Ryanair

A book that reveals why I wouldn't want to work for Ryanair but nonetheless you have to have admiration for those that do.

The wisdom of crowds

A detailed study on why, when and how, groups make better decisions than even teh best individuals.
The secret is to have a heterogenous mix in your group.

Shroom - A cultural history of the Magic Mushroom

Andy Letcher clearly loves his subject and gives an insightful study right up to the present day from both a factual and cultural perspective.

A must-read book for lovers of Psilocybe semilanceata, despite the governments best efforts to dissuade us otherwise.

Now, discover your strengths & Strengths Finder 2.0

A brilliant approach to staff development that focuses on teh things you are good at and making them better - rather than trying to bang your head against a wall and improve your 'failings'



Earlier version of thebook I first came across

I am a Strange Loop

Douglas Hofstader explores further the concept of self-recursive systems and how can we each sense that we exist as an 'I' inside our heads, and that this existence seems to be the most 'real' thing there is.

How can this 'I' arise from just a collection of particles, collected into neurons, containing symbols in a vast processing machine of our brain?

As ever, his books are very readable and not overly technical and thoroughly enjoyable

The hamster revolution (reclaim your life from email)

I picked this book up because the title caught my eye.
I can't say I have adopted all teh tips and tools in teh book but I have used enough of them to manage down the daily torrent of emails I receive to a manageable level. It also has a suggestion for a structured approach to filing emails and all your electronic work.
The overall message is that we get the emails we deserve!

The Mind Gym

A book packed with useful ideas on how to win back more time from some of the more common situations that steal it away from you.

A self scored questionnaire to help you focus on the most important chapters for you.

Seeing Red

A delightful little book at 134 pages, it appears to be going to be an easy read though in fact although it is more work than you expect, your efforts will be rewarded.

An in-depth explanation of what is going on in your brain and mind when you see red (my italics).

The book comes from a series of lectures that Nicholas Humphrey gave at Harvard in 2004 when he projected a red screen on the wall and then promised to explain in the next 3 hours what students were actually experiencing.

Darwin's Dangerous Idea

Daniel Dennett, explores how Darwinian evolutionary theory can be successfully applied to many fields beyond biology.

He looks at the evolution of language, culture, ethics and the origins of life itself.

As ever his books are very well written and a delight to read.

Mind the Gap

I heard Graeme Codrington speak at an MD2MD session and obtained a copy of his book that expanded on his ideas.
A really useful guide for any manager over 40 who want to understand why their younger recruits (and their children) sometime seem to be from a different planet!
Then the book packs loads of tips on how to get the various generations to interact more constructively.
I have implemented some of the ideas in this book and they really work and have improved our staff retention and morale.
Great quotes "we have many friends in life but only one set of parents, they are special - lets keep them that way" and "Half of all the people who have ever turned eighty are alive today"

The God Delusion

Well this is one of those books that tends to polarise its audience into love it or hate it (probably depending on your personal position in the arguments)
I unashamedly admit I come out firmly on Richard Dawkins' side and this is a great book for pulling out bits of argument to support your point. ON the other hand this is one of his more extreeme works and some have described it a s a bit of a rant.

It's a zoo around here

A great little book from Nigel (who is also a very entertainig speaker). I received this as part of a series of workshops whilst I worked for Wyko.
I have used the content myself in several workshops I have run and attendees really like it as it is easy to understand and start to recognise the traits in others.
The animal labels for teh 4 categories are also good fun (Lion, Monkey, Elephan, Dolphin).
The book itself is meant to be read in 4 ways (depending on your personal style).

Shut Up, Move On

I heard Paul McGee speak as part of a development program whilst I worked for Wyko. He could only cover a couple of sections from this excellent book during that session.
The title comes from Shut Up Move On and is all about putting life's events into perspective.
My personal favorite is to ask yourself "how important is this going to seem in a year's time?". THere are 7 SUMO habits in all.



SUMO your relationships is pretty much a slight rewrite with a slant towards relationships - I can't say it is really worth it or as good as the original.

Freakonomics

A great book that isn't really about economics at all but rather looking at everyday issues through a thought provoking lens of statistical economics.

As an example a whole chapter on how you can tell a persons likely skin colour and income level from the names they give their children.

Breaking the Spell - Relidgion as a natural phenomenon

Daniel Dennett studies the roots of religion and belief and why it evolved within society.

Why are such ideas so common across societies and so powerful within them? He doesn't contest religious beliefs but rather argues that we need to understand why the phenomenon is so deeply rooted.

The Paradox of Choice - Why More is Less

An insigtful book for anyone trying to sell. Schwartz explains why having more choice actually reduces the chances of a successful sale, or from th eother side why increased choice increases stress and decreases happiness.

As well as the explanation, he gives practical advice on how to survive in a world where the mantra of ever increasing choice is alomost unavoidable - or how to lead a more contented life.

Those who manage to be grateful for what they have, who experience and express gratitude - lead longer healthier lives and are more optimistic about the future. Such individuals are more alert, enthusiastics, and energetic and are more likely to achieve personal goals.

The Impact Code

Nigel Risner explaining his model for a more fullfilled life that I first picked up on the Wyko Management Development program.

I have seen Nigel present this material several times and although I can't immediately remember what all the letters of IMPACT stand for, I do remember the point about being 'in the room' (you will have to read the book to find out what it means).

In summary:
In the room
Model from the best
Passion & Purpose
Action
Comic Relief
Trust

Talk to the Hand

After reading Eats, Shoots & Leaves I picked up this book also by Lynne Truss.

A humourous rant on those things that would cause 'disgusted of Tunbridge Wells' to write into the telegraph.

Stumbling on Happiness

Every now and then you stumble across a wonderful book that you only picked up because of the strange title whilst browsing the bookshelves waiting for another delayed flight - well this is one of those little gems.

The essence of the book is that we try and do the things today that we think will make us happy tomorrow and when we get there we are often saddened to discover that we made the wrong choices and worse than that we are so ungrateful towards the idiot who made those choices.

How can this happen, shouldn't we be the best people to judge what the tastes, preferences, needs, and desires of the people we will become next year (or at least tomorrow)?

Well the book explains why we are typically so poor at it and it does give some tips on how to be a little better at enjoying life.

There are echoes in here of the truths about humans very poor ability to detect true correlations and causal relationships that also popped up in The Black Swan and Fooled by Randomness.

Working with Emotional Intelligence

Daniel Goleman - the originator of the Emotional Intelligence and author of teh book of teh same name, here applies his concepts specifically in the working arena.

Strongly rooted in empirical study of what makes successful leaders different, and even more important, what lessons we can all learn from them, the book is a good solid grounding in the techniques that can make you a better leader.

A reasonably dense book it certainly isn't a light read but worth it in the end.

The Millennium Problems

In May 2000, the Clay Mathematics Institute in Paris announced that $1m prizes were being offered for solutions to each of seven unresolved problems of mathematics.

This book doesn't explain the problems in detail but rather aims to give the background that a lay reader can understand and more important why the problems themselves are considered important.

The Riemann Hypothesis - about the pattern of primes
Yang-Mills Theory - quantum physics behaviour of particles
P vs NP problem - proof that certain equations are unsolvable by computation
Navier-Stokes equations - familiar to engineers of fluid dynamics but there is no formal solution to them
The Poincare conjecture - how do you tell the difference between an apple and a doughnut?
The Birch and Swinnerton-Dyer Conjecture that builds on Fermat's Last Theorem and points to possible solutions
The Hodge Conjecture - about an obscure issue deep within abstract topology.

The Agile Gene

Matt Ridley follows on from his earlier work 'Genome' to explore the nature vs nurture debate. In the end he describes it as a false dichotomy with nurture favouring certain individuals and hence the genes that will continue their lineage, in turn defining the personality of those who will nurture the next generation.

The Ancestors Tale - A Pilgrimage to the Dawn of Life

Richard Dawkins travels back over the human family tree to the dawn of life and introduces us to the other life forms that branched out along the way (including who there descendants are today, or were in the fossil record)

I must admit I lost interest before the end of the book. Once you get the idea it is more of a review of the taxonomy of life than a deeply philosophical study that many of his other books are. I would recommend it to anyone interested in biology or taxonomy though.

The Gold Mine

An explanation of lean manufacturing written as a novel (similar to The Goal several years before). If you, or someone you know, wants to leanr about the subject but doesn't get on with conventional text books - then this could be the book for you.

Published by the Lean Enterprise Institute - who have many more conventional books on the subject if you are interested.

The Definitive Book of Body Language

From Allan & Barbara Pease (grandmasters in the art) comes a truly definitive guide to reading other people and hence improving your depth and effectiveness of communications with them.

Much more than just a guide to body signals, the book also explores the underlying psychology and physiology behind the body language signals.

A very readable book whether you are a complete novice or an expert in the craft.

The book has been reprinted many times in slightly different versions but they all contain the same material.