Here are 100 books that The Five Dysfunctions of a Team fans have personally recommended if you like
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team.
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In 2014, I was laid off from my management role at Lowe’s Home Improvement. Instead of starting another job, I took several months to reflect on my leadership experiences and researched how leadership has evolved in the 21st Century. Based on a detailed analysis of 14 books, including the five I recommend, I wrote my first book that explains how to practice 21st-century leadership (now in its second edition). After publishing, I’ve written another leadership book, several blogs, and have been a keynote speaker. I now host the Unlabeled Leadership Podcast, which helps listeners learn how everyday people practice leadership.
A colleague of mine introduced me to this book and argued that Kouzes and Posner wrote the gold standard of leadership practices. After reading their research-based stories, I agree.
The authors write in a way that goes beyond theory by offering a practical guide by focusing on the five practices of exemplary leadership. These practices are applicable to anyone’s career! Through inspiring examples and actionable steps, I learned how to lead with integrity, inspire others, and drive higher performance more effectively.
Read the gold standard of leadership development. It can become your call to action!
The most trusted source of leadership wisdom, updated to address today's realities The Leadership Challenge is the gold-standard manual for effective leadership, grounded in research and written by the premier authorities in the field. With deep insight into the complex interpersonal dynamics of the workplace, this book positions leadership both as a skill to be learned, and as a relationship that must be nurtured to reach its full potential.
This new sixth edition has been revised to address current challenges, and includes more international examples and a laser focus on business issues; you'll learn how extraordinary leaders accomplish extraordinary things,…
It is April 1st, 2038. Day 60 of China's blockade of the rebel island of Taiwan.
The US government has agreed to provide Taiwan with a weapons system so advanced that it can disrupt the balance of power in the region. But what pilot would be crazy enough to run…
I’ve founded companies, shut them down (then rebuilt my life), and coached hundreds of executives and founders through their own turning points. Those experiences taught me that resilience isn’t about bouncing back after hard things happen to you. It’s about being open to what can happen through you, including growth, clarity, curiosity, and conviction. That’s why I wrote Rethinking Resilience and why I return to these books often. Each one has helped me see strength, adaptability, and curiosity as intentional and sustainable traits—not something we summon only after crisis. I’m passionate about helping leaders move from reaction to intention and turn pressure into power, and I think this list captures that shift perfectly.
I adore this book, from the title to the contents.
(I love asking "what’s possible?” and then making it reality—that’s the very essence of a startup founder and CEO!) It’s creative, human, and endlessly quotable.
The Zanders show that true leadership isn’t about control, it’s about perspective. Their stories blend music, psychology, and life in a way that always pulls me out of scarcity thinking and back into imagining what’s possible.
Whenever I catch myself over-analyzing or trying to “power through,” I reread a chapter and instantly feel lighter, more creative, and more grounded in choice instead of pressure.
Presenting twelve breakthrough practices for bringing creativity into all human endeavors, The Art of Possibility is the dynamic product of an extraordinary partnership. The Art of Possibility combines Benjamin Zander's experience as conductor of the Boston Philharmonic and his talent as a teacher and communicator with psychotherapist Rosamund Stone Zander's genius for designing innovative paradigms for personal and professional fulfillment. The authors' harmoniously interwoven perspectives provide a deep sense of the powerful role that the notion of possibility can play in every aspect of life. Through uplifting stories, parables, and personal anecdotes, the Zanders invite us to become passionate communicators,…
The world of entrepreneurship has been my driving passion for decades. Why? It is entrepreneurs, despite their many quirks, who make the world a better place. It’s entrepreneurs who create jobs in a world where jobs in many places are in short supply. It’s entrepreneurs who wake up every day with a passion to forge their own path with the freedom to do so. And it’s why I embarked at mid-life on a second career as a business-school professor. It’s why I teach and why I write. The books I suggest here will give you a fighting chance to deal effectively with the challenges you’ll surely find along your entrepreneurial journey.
Jim Collins’ best book is the most pragmatic and most useful business book I’ve ever read. Period. From “getting the right people on the bus” to “the hedgehog concept” and more, the fundamentals entailed in creating a truly great business are all here. What more need I say?
________________________________ Can a good company become a great one? If so, how?
After a five-year research project, Jim Collins concludes that good to great can and does happen. In this book, he uncovers the underlying variables that enable any type of organisation to make the leap from good to great while other organisations remain only good. Rigorously supported by evidence, his findings are surprising - at times even shocking - to the modern mind.
Good to Great achieves a rare distinction: a management book full of vital ideas that reads as well as a fast-paced novel. It is widely regarded…
A Duke with rigid opinions, a Lady whose beliefs conflict with his, a long disputed parcel of land, a conniving neighbour, a desperate collaboration, a failure of trust, a love found despite it all.
Alexander Cavendish, Duke of Ravensworth, returned from war to find that his father and brother had…
Having begun my career in publishing, I worked for many years as a management consultant and trainer; alongside that, I have written and published many books offering advice on management, marketing, and job skills, like the time management book shown above, a bestseller now in its sixth edition. I have always thought management often fails by overlooking the importance of issues rather than finding things difficult; I hope my business writing helps identify priorities and shows that the deployment of various techniques and skills can be manageable–and useful.
This was perhaps the first bestselling business book and became a classic. Drucker coined many maxims, for example, saying that if you don’t know where you are going, any road will do. This is obvious, but how many flounder for lack of clear objectives?
Good, sound common sense is here that stands a new look in the present day, even if it comes from a time when legislation and political correctness made things more straightforward while leaving some current issues unaddressed.
The measure of the executive, Peter F. Drucker reminds us, is the ability to "get the right things done." This usually involves doing what other people have overlooked as well as avoiding what is unproductive. Intelligence, imagination, and knowledge may all be wasted in an executive job without the acquired habits of mind that mold them into results.
Drucker identifies five practices essential to business effectiveness that can, and must, be learned:
Managing time
Choosing what to contribute to the organization
Knowing where and how to mobilize strength for best effect
Setting the right priorities…
I grew up in the 70s when a linear perspective was king, including the objectivity of science and elevation of the importance of men’s work, so I fought to become a female exploration geologist. I learned to conquer dangers and collect data to discover riches. I also learned that my feminine intuition and curiosity were invaluable in understanding the patterns in nature. My next career as a treaty negotiator for the Federal government introduced me to indigenous cultures, and I felt the familiar clash of circular and linear thinking once again. I dedicated myself to the study and work experience that would help me give language to this pattern.
What first gripped me was the insight into how North American Indians organized their societies. It was so interesting to see how it was advantageous to them to be free of the command-and-control leadership style in a competitive battle for economic gains. Instead, they relied on numerous pods of self-organizing systems where people chose who to follow based on what they admired in a person and understood the situation to require. It made them very nimble and creative.
This decentralized system might be the future of organizational leadership or at least a viable alternative. I love how the authors translate traditional wisdom into modern business practices. I really want to wrap my head around this.
If you cut off a spider's head, it dies; if you cut off a starfish's leg it grows a new one, and that leg can grow into an entirely new starfish. Traditional top-down organizations are like spiders, but now starfish organizations are changing the face of business and the world.
What's the hidden power behind the success of Wikipedia, craigslist, and Skype? What do eBay and General Electric have in common with the abolitionist and women's rights movements? What fundamental choice put General Motors and Toyota on vastly different paths?
Ori Brafman and Rod Beckstrom have discovered some unexpected answers,…
I've been blessed in my career, beginning as a 16-year-old, being an assistant manager at 17, a general manager at 20, and the face of the franchise at the age of 30 for over 16 years. This has led to me learning how to get people more motivated to perform their work than they ever thought possible when they accepted the position. I spent over 30 years literally “growing up” with this company and in this business, having been exposed to some of the best companies within their respective industries, learning how they source, on-board, train, and retain their team members, as well as some of the most influential motivational speakers throughout the world.
This book took our customer service performance in our company to levels we had never seen before. All of our leaders read this book and then the magic began.
The premise is that satisfied customers just are not good enough. They need to be “raving fans’ of us meaning, they actually become advocates of your business! This led to sales and traffic that exceeded our peers in all measurable ways while truly making our work more fun than we ever thought.
A straightforward and snappy guide to successful customer service from the author of the bestselling The One Minute Manager.
Raving Fans, in a nutshell, is the advice given to a new Area Manager on his first day - in an extraordinary business book that will help everyone, in every kind of organisation or business, deliver stunning customer service and achieve miraculous bottom-line results.
Raving Fans is written in the parable style of The One Minute Manager and uses a brilliantly simple and charming story to teach how to define a vision, learn what…
The Duke's Christmas Redemption
by
Arietta Richmond,
A Duke who has rejected love, a Lady who dreams of a love match, an arranged marriage, a house full of secrets, a most unneighborly neighbor, a plot to destroy reputations, an unexpected love that redeems it all.
Lady Charlotte Wyndham, given in an arranged marriage to a man she…
Every person faces moments that test their strength, their identity, and their belief in what is possible. For me, those moments became the foundation of Mastering Intentions. These five books reflect the power of mindset, discipline, and self-awareness to transform challenge into clarity. They each carry a truth I live by: that you can rebuild from anything when you move with intention. Each of these authors has, in their own way, taught me how to align thought with action, faith with focus, and purpose with power. If you are navigating transition, rebuilding after loss, or simply ready to step into a new chapter, these books will help you rise stronger and more grounded than before.
This book is one of the most effective guides to meaningful, lasting change.
James Clear explains how transformation happens through small adjustments practiced consistently over time. His philosophy aligns with a core belief in my own life and work: growth is created by what you do daily, not occasionally.
Clear breaks down the power of systems, discipline, and identity-based habit building. The book proves that success is rarely about dramatic breakthroughs. It is the result of steady, intentional actions that accumulate into extraordinary impact.
Mastering the next right step is the foundation of personal and professional excellence.
The #1 New York Times bestseller. Over 4 million copies sold!
Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results
No matter your goals, Atomic Habits offers a proven framework for improving--every day. James Clear, one of the world's leading experts on habit formation, reveals practical strategies that will teach you exactly how to form good habits, break bad ones, and master the tiny behaviors that lead to remarkable results.
If you're having trouble changing your habits, the problem isn't you. The problem is your system. Bad habits repeat themselves again and again not because you don't want to change, but because you have the…
From an early age, I had an insatiable curiosity. I questioned organized religion. I wondered why people can’t get along and why wars were fought over personal ideas and beliefs. Additionally, early in life, I had multiple physical and psychological spiritual experiences that kept my wonder and searching alive. My curiosity took me on a journey of self-discovery. I studied the ontology of language and became certified as a structural integration body/mind therapist and mediator. Each of the suggested books played a role in awakening me and providing tools to become a better human being. I hope the books inspire you.
This was the first book that piqued my interest in human dynamics and relationships. Steven’s seven habits ask us to examine our patterns of interaction with others and consider how we can think and act differently in our work. Steven’s approach opened my eyes to some bad habits I had, while also inspiring me to learn more.
Along with a few business dilemmas and dramas, this book set me on a path of inquiry about humans, relationships, work ethics, and the power of words and conversations.
New York Times bestseller - over 25 million copies sold The No. 1 Most Influential Business Book of the Twentieth Century
"[Thirty] years after it first appeared, the wisdom of The 7 Habits is more relevant than ever. On an individual level people are burning out, and on a collective level we are burning up the planet. So Dr. Covey's emphasis on self-renewal and his understanding that leadership and creativity require us to tap into our own physical, mental, and spiritual resources are exactly what we need now." Arianna Huffington
One of the most inspiring and impactful books ever written,…
I was a business school professor for 38 years, always fascinated by how organizations could (or couldn’t) adapt to their changing environments. Over the course of my career, I observed and studied how organizations sought to adapt to major disrupting forces such as new information-processing technologies, internationalization, downsizing, new organizational forms, digitization, and artificial intelligence. Today’s global business environment is complex, dynamic, and highly interconnected. The only way to adapt is through collaboration–organizations must be able to quickly respond to any environmental change by identifying appropriate resources wherever they may exist and efficiently marshaling them into a desired response and eventual solution. In competitive terms, this is called a “relational advantage.”
Nike is one of the most recognized companies in the world. Known for its innovative products and its focus on high performance, the Nike mystique intrigues everyone. I love this book because it tells the story of Nike from the very beginning. Few people are aware of the many obstacles this company overcame to become the powerhouse it is today.
A new company must be innovative just to survive, and Shoe Dog describes years of struggling and experimentation at Nike simply to gain traction in its business. The massive scale the company now enjoys is built on collaborative partnerships with athletes, designers, suppliers, and many others in its vast ecosystem.
'A refreshingly honest reminder of what the path to business success really looks like ... It's an amazing tale' Bill Gates
'The best book I read last year was Shoe Dog, by Nike's Phil Knight. Phil is a very wise, intelligent and competitive fellow who is also a gifted storyteller' Warren Buffett
In 1962, fresh out of business school, Phil Knight borrowed $50 from his father and created a company with a simple mission: import high-quality, low-cost athletic shoes from Japan. Selling the shoes from the boot of his Plymouth, Knight grossed $8000 in his first year. Today, Nike's annual…
This book follows the journey of a writer in search of wisdom as he narrates encounters with 12 distinguished American men over 80, including Paul Volcker, the former head of the Federal Reserve, and Denton Cooley, the world’s most famous heart surgeon.
In these and other intimate conversations, the book…
I have always been fascinated by the magic that happens at the intersection of bits and atoms. Circuits, sensors, and algorithms, for better or worse, have permeated every part of our lives. It’s impossible to understand our environment now without understanding the subtle influence of the code that manages and monitors it.
With this textbook disguised as a novel, Goldratt tells a story that sneaks up on you, revealing how simple digital thinking—like tracking bottlenecks and using systems analysis—can revolutionize physical processes. It’s not just about manufacturing; it’s about seeing challenges as opportunities to improve again and again.
This is a story about inspiration and being ready to look at the world differently to make every process—from your own projects to global operations—run a little smoother.
*A Graphic Novel version of this title is now available: "The Goal: A Business Graphic Novel"
30th Anniversary Edition. Written in a fast-paced thriller style, The Goal, a gripping novel, is transforming management thinking throughout the world. It is a book to recommend to your friends in industry - even to your bosses - but not to your competitors. Alex Rogo is a harried plant manager working ever more desperately to try improve performance. His factory is rapidly heading for disaster. So is his marriage. He has ninety days to save his plant - or it will be closed by…
