There’s nothing quite like settling down on a nice winter’s day with a great book!
Here are a couple of books I’d like to suggest if you’re looking for what to read this winter.
What is it that makes a great team? In this book, Coyle analyses some of the highest performing and most cohesive groups in the world and comes up with 3 key elements of what it takes to create such synergy… and it ain’t what you think!!! Check it out! (I’ll be posting a more in-depth blog on this topic once I’m done with the book). This topic is so pertinent especially in farming where employee retention is such an elusive goal.
No time to go to business school? Not a problem. The Personal MBA breaks down key business concepts into bite-sized, easy to process sections. So many of us get into farming because we love farming… only to find out we’ve gotten ourselves into a business!! Here’s a great book to fill in some of the gaps!
My all-time favorite farming book!!! This is a classic 1884 conversation between a highly successful vegetable grower and his dairy farming friend… captured and transcribed by a secretary and put into book format. This is an amazing source of pre-chemical ag. wisdom and practical knowledge. I particularly like the part where one of them says that the corn silage fad will never catch on and that forage beets will never be replaced… you gotta smile sometimes!!
A fantastic marketing framework that allows us to tap into the power of story to convey our message in a clear and compelling way. After reading and doing the exercises in this book, you’ll have a complete brand framework that will support you to have a consistent manner to talk about your products in all your marketing and advertising outlets. The author also has a fantastic podcast and online course
If you’re one of those people whose brain likes spreadsheets…and if you’re looking for a way to free up your mind, be more creative, and be more productive, this book is for you!!!
The central lesson of this book is: Your mind is for having ideas, not storing them!
The 4 Disciplines of Execution
Humans love games. More than that, humans love winning! How do we create a team spirit where everyone is onboard and where everyone can know in an instant if our team is ‘winning’? Enter the 4DX framework! Check out this blog post of mine for a more complete discussion of this.
And last but not least (lest you think all I do is geek out about business management)!!
Welcome to Earthsea! World of magic, of adventure, and of balance between light and dark. This exquisitely written series is a masterpiece of fantasy prose with a robust philosophical and moral message.