Books like Good Strategy Bad Strategy — picked by fans

I spent my first decade in business assuming the game was chess: play well, win. It took an embarrassingly long time to notice most rooms run on rules nobody wrote down. Power, persuasion, what breaks teams, who you measure yourself against. Each book here named a rule I was losing to without knowing it existed. And the deepest unwritten rule of all was the ladder itself: do the junior work, get trained, move up. Nobody questioned it because it had always held. I build AI tools for a living, and I can see it coming apart. Which is probably why I wrote a book about what replaces it.

I was born into a family and community of hardworking, service-oriented people with attraction to abundance, entertaining friends, and giving gifts. To earn money, I started selling gift wrap and greeting cards around eight years old, babysitting most of the kids in my small Iowa town at some point, and working summers in the fields at age 12.

As my career unfolded, I had a great seat at the table in multinational corporations, global business teams, private-equity-sponsored growth companies, and a disruptive innovation venture. My effectiveness as a colleague and a leader has been dramatically enhanced by the stories great writers share, and I only hope someone else is helped by the stories I’ve captured in Love Works.

We are thrilled to present this carefully curated book list. As passionate advocates for leadership, self-mastery, and health and well-being, we have handpicked these titles to inspire and empower individuals on their journey toward personal and professional growth. Each book within this collection resonates with principles that we believe are pivotal for fostering resilience, achieving self-mastery, and maintaining a healthy and balanced lifestyle. Whether you're seeking leadership insights, self-help guidance, or ways to enhance your overall well-being, these books offer a diverse range of perspectives and actionable strategies. We hope this collection becomes a valuable resource for you on your path to personal excellence. – Colleen Callander & Shannah Kennedy. 

I’ve always loved solving problems. Over 30 years ago, I worked for a company that had high employee turnover and an inability to recruit. The problem was the worst in the company backbone—the employees who made us money. I moved from Finance to HR even though I didn’t know anything about HR. Quickly, I identified the root causes of our turnover, developed plans, and implemented them. Within six months, we’d shut down the exodus, which immediately made recruiting easier. Over the years I’ve worked with a wide variety of firms in many industries. I have demonstrated my process with continued success while moving beyond much of HR’s dogma.

I am the founder and principal of Work & Think, LLC., and help clients make complex decisions that include a realistic understanding of uncertainty. My Spangler Ethical Reasoning Assessment® (SERA®) is used across industries and around the world, enabling individuals to combine critical thinking and values to make complex decisions. I am a frequent keynote speaker, a corporate consultant, a researcher, and an author. My new book is Reasoning for Business. Learn more at my website.

I’ve seen the benefit of investing in awareness about how you can improve in leadership. I am a military veteran with two decades of experience in leading teams in high-stress environments. I’ve seen military leadership at its strongest and at its weakest. I’ve since led multi-million dollar projects and seen the value of investing in leadership and developing a culture of high-performance. For over 100 weeks, I researched and wrote a series of blog articles titled Leadership Sparks. The goal was to be able to create a spark with my words in someone else's mind. To pass the small ignition point of leadership growth to them. 

I’ve spent my career building products, scaling companies, and leading teams through the highs and lows of entrepreneurship. I know firsthand how challenging it is to take an idea and turn it into something real—whether that’s a product, a company, or a movement. The books on this list have shaped my approach to leadership, innovation, and resilience. They’ve helped me navigate tough decisions, build stronger teams, and think bigger. I’m passionate about sharing these insights because I believe great builders aren’t just born—they’re made. If you’re looking to create something meaningful, these books will push you, challenge you, and inspire you to build something great.

I’ve spent many years as a management consultant to a range of big, global corporations, smaller companies, and not-for-profits. I also headed up succession planning and management development at two major companies. I decided to go into this field based on a strong conviction, a conviction that continues today: that leadership counts. Strong leaders benefit people in their organizations and, ultimately, society itself. Having worked with many senior leaders and led organizations myself, I know the range of pressures executives face and how easy it is to fail. Companies need a supply of capable, well-equipped senior leaders, and those who aspire to top-level positions need guideposts about achieving their career aspirations. 

I learned about leadership and building organizations in a volunteer, community-based organization growing up. I ran my first leadership workshop as an 18-year-old for 15-16-year-old kids, and at its peak, led a passionate group of 200+ kids. I then woke up from that dream into a “real job” as a product manager in a company selling products like bath soap and shampoo, and later as a strategy consultant. It was there that I noticed the significant pain people were experiencing in the corporate world, and I realized I could help leaders build organizations where both the business and its people could thrive. 

I’m an innovator. I’ve been one since I was a kid. Since then, I’ve started a couple of non-profits and four companies, and I’ve advised hundreds of clients on innovation opportunities. I’ve also led the team that created one of the world’s first smartphones. Over the past dozen years, I’ve written four books on the strategy and capabilities of innovation. Innovation is one of the essential characteristics that make us human. It can get the world into trouble, but it does more good than harm on balance. My mission is to make us better at innovation and make the world a better place.