Resources

Recommended Books

Life’s a Pitch
Stephen Bayley & Roger Mavity (2007)

An irreverent but extremely useful guide to getting your message across in business (and other) settings.

Transitions: Making Sense of Life's Changes
William Bridges (2004)

A classic work that sheds light on the internal process of transition that we all go through when we make changes in our lives (or when they are forced upon us).

What Should I Do with My Life?
Po Bronson (2004)

A fascinating and inspiring set of stories about people who took stock of their lives and decided they needed to make fundamental changes.

Leadership Is an Art
Max De Pree (1990)

A classic book on leadership by a CEO that explores the ethics and philosophy from a fresh perspective.

Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In
Roger Fisher & William Ury (2003)

If you ever wanted to know how to negotiate more effectively, but in a principled way, then this is the book for you.

The Inner Game of Tennis
W. Timothy Gallwey (1986)

This book is not just about tennis but rather about how all forms of performance are really more about the ‘inner game’ than about beating a competitor.

Working Identity: Unconventional Strategies for Reinventing Your Career
Herminia Ibarra (2004)

This is a research-based study into people changing career and how they used an unconventional strategy of trying on ‘possible selves’.

Seasons of a Man's Life
Daniel Levinson (1978)

This book describes in some detail an exhaustive research project that tracked a group of men through the different stages of their lives. The research identified a series of major turning points and the ages at which they usually occur, the knowledge of which helps to explain some of the feelings we have and the decisions we make.

Free Agent Nation: The Future of Working for Yourself
Daniel H. Pink (2002)

This is an interesting analysis of the trend towards what Pink calls free agency, in other words various forms of self-employment. The book focuses more on US experience but is relevant to the UK.

Maverick!: The Success Story Behind the World's Most Unusual Workplace
Ricardo Semler (2001)

This is the remarkable story of the growth of a uniquely successful company, Semco, a unique organisation based in Brazil that measures its success not just in financial terms but in terms of the opportunities it provides for the personal growth and development of each employee.

Leadership and the New Science
Margaret J. Wheatley (2001)

This book presents a vision of organisational leadership for these times based on new science rather than Newtonian principles.