FALL BACK TO READING SERIES – Featuring Michael McKinney

This year, as the seasons change and we enjoy fall, I’ve launched my FALL BACK TO READING SERIES. The series will feature two dozen leadership and marketing experts, who will share their inspiration in both fiction and nonfiction, and hopefully, provide the impetus to read more. To quote New York Times Bestselling author Kristin Harmel, “If you give a person a book, you give him the world.” For today’s post, I’d like to introduce Michael McKinney.

Michael McKinney is the president of LeadershipNow, a company dedicated to building leaders at all levels through writing and consulting. He is also the author of the award-winning LeadingBlog designed to provide commentary on current leadership thinking and insights.

QUESTION: Which business books have made the biggest impact on your career?
MICHAEL McKINNEY: There are two that I read in college that put me on the leadership and personal development trajectory.

The first was Warren Bennis’ book, The Unconscious Conspiracy: Why Leaders Can’t Lead. In it, he wrote, “The crisis calls for leadership, but the leaders aren’t leading.” Contemplating that statement, I started LeadershipNow in 1980.

The other is The Age of Discontinuity by Peter Drucker. I came across it nearly a decade after it was first published. It is essentially a book about change and the need for us to change with it. “We need to do different things and do them differently.”

QUESTION: Who is your favorite author, and why?
MICHAEL McKINNEY: My favorite author for business is Peter Drucker. I was introduced to him by my Dad. Drucker’s insights are timeless and not confined to business and management but to life as well. In reading Drucker, you get a lesson on critical thinking and finding the right perspective. Reading Drucker changes the way you think.

QUESTION: What book did you read in high school or college that, to this day, you still remember vividly, and why?
MICHAEL McKINNEY: I’ve always done a lot of reading. The novels by Louis L’Amour are some of the most memorable. I began with Reilly’s Luck and Sitka and ended up reading them all. Some more than once. His novels are more than the story. They are full of wisdom and insights into human nature.

My Dad knew Louis, and when I was in college, I accompanied him to lunch with Louis at the Polo Lounge in the Beverly Hills Hotel in his corner booth. Louis wrote, “Reading without thinking is as nothing, for a book is less important for what it says than for what it makes you think.” His books make you think.

QUESTION: Do you intersperse fiction with your business reading? If yes, what was the last work of fiction that you read?
MICHAEL McKINNEY: I try to have a fiction book going along with everything else I read. I give my mind a chance to work on the non-fiction I read. These days, I mostly choose thrillers and espionage novels or go back and reread one of the classics. The best authors have done their research and provide some insights into international politics. I just finished Brad Thor’s Dead Fall.

QUESTION: If you created a nonprofit organization to promote reading to children and young adults, what would you name it, and why?
MICHAEL McKINNEY: I would call it “Reading for Life” based on the idea that reading is critical to living life and it is for the duration of your life—essential and life-long.

I am an eclectic reader and have encouraged my son and others – especially the young – to do the same. Reading is best taught by example, and encouraging parents to read to their children and to be seen reading is the best way to pass the joy of reading to the next generation. The benefits of reading go far beyond the act of reading alone.

SHARE THIS: The benefits of reading go far beyond the act of reading alone. ~@LeadershipNow #Reading #DebbieLaskeysBlog

My gratitude to Michael for participating in this year’s fall back to reading series and for sharing his inspiring recommendations!

Image Credit: Joshua Woroniecki via Unsplash.

Connect with Michael at these links:
Website: https://www.leadershipnow.com/
X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/LeadershipNow
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leaderworks/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelmckinney/

Check out Michael's previous appearance here on this Blog:

The Alignment Between Leaders, Leadership, and Culture (July 2021)
https://www.debbielaskeysblog.com/2021/07/the-alignment-between-leaders.html

FALL BACK TO READING SERIES – Featuring Gregory Kennedy

This year, as the seasons change and we enjoy fall, I’ve launched my FALL BACK TO READING SERIES. The series will feature two dozen leadership and marketing experts, who will share their inspiration in both fiction and nonfiction, and hopefully, provide the impetus to read more. To quote New York Times Bestselling author Kristin Harmel, “If you give a person a book, you give him the world.” For today’s post, I’d like to introduce Gregory Kennedy.

Gregory Kennedy has an impressive track record with over two decades of expertise in spearheading global marketing, content, brand, and communication strategies for leading high-tech firms, such as, InMobi, AdRoll, and Sojern. A former creative director and a two-time head of marketing, his specialty is helping to take startups from zero to scale. He now works as a Fractional CMO and marketing consultant with his agency BrandZen, where he advises early-stage companies on their go-to-market strategy, empowering them to thrive in a competitive environment.

QUESTION: Which three business books have made the biggest impact on your career?
GREGORY KENNEDY: I love this question, here are my top three most impactful books.

(3) Only the Paranoid Survive by Andy Grove:
Andy Grove led Intel to become an incredible force in Silicon Valley and built that company into a legendary firm helping to define Silicon Valley along the way. This book is quite well-known and is frequently listed on many business and leadership reading lists. His concept of pollyannas versus Cassandras is my favorite takeaway. We are supposed to be optimistic, but Andy Grove advises us to listen to those pointing out the danger we may face.

(2) Ogilvy on Advertising by David Ogilvy:
The creator of the legendary agency that still uses his name today, this is the best book on advertising ever written. While technology, formats, and media channels have changed significantly, human psychology has not. What constitutes a great ad and motivates people to buy are universal truths that Ogilvy does a fantastic job describing for readers. His system of components, what makes up an ad, a visual, a caption, a headline, copy, and a signature, is still relevant and in use today.

(1) Art of War by Sun Tzu:
This has been my favorite book since I first read it 25 years ago. Nearly 5,000 years old, the book's timeless concepts are just as relevant today as they were when they were written. It continues to find an audience as each new generation discovers it. It’s a short book, under 10,000 words, and can be read in a single sitting. It is filled with short-form advice and passages like, "If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles," which seem like they were written for social media.

SHARE THIS: David Ogilvy's system of components, what makes up an ad, a visual, a caption, a headline, copy, and a signature, is still relevant and in use today. ~George Kennedy #Advertising #DebbieLaskeysBlog

QUESTION: Who is your favorite author, and why?
GREGORY KENNEDY: Such a tough question. If I can only pick one, it must be Mark Twain. I think it’s fair to say that he will always be remembered as the greatest literary figure that the United States ever produced. Even though much of his writing is old, the humor, wit, themes, insights, and narratives all continue to stand up. I would call him the "American Shakespeare."

QUESTION: What book did you read in high school or college that, to this day, you still remember vividly, and why?
GREGORY KENNEDY: I read a lot of books when I was a kid. Two or three a week, so picking one is a challenge. I loved the science fiction author William Gibson, who is credited with inventing terms like cyberpunk and cyberspace.

I remember when his book, The Difference Engine, was first published. The premise was that a massive technology revolution happened in the 19th century, because they perfected mechanical computers called difference engines. The book started the steampunk movement and inspired a popular aesthetic most widely adopted at Burning Man.

Difference engines are real devices. They were never built in the 19th century, but detailed drawings exist. A working replica is at the Computer Museum in Silicon Valley, proving that the devices would have worked if one had ever been built back then.

William Gibson’s novels described much of what the Internet would become before its popularization. This had a profound influence on me and my decision to make a career in the new and exciting world of the Internet.

QUESTION: Do you intersperse fiction with your business reading? If yes, what was the last work of fiction that you read, and what caught your attention about it?
GREGORY KENNEDY: No. I don’t read fiction at all anymore. I enjoyed it when I was young, but once I took to reading business publications like The Economist and business books, I stopped. In the early 2000's, before social media, I was obsessed with The Economist and read every issue cover to cover. I would send them emails, and the writers would write me back. It all seems so quaint now.

Today, sites like LinkedIn, make it easy to talk to any writer or author you want. It’s nothing special. But at the time, you had to be dedicated to getting a response.

QUESTION: If you created a nonprofit organization to promote reading to children and young adults, what would you name it, and why?
GREGORY KENNEDY: I am so removed from youth culture these days. I have no idea what is cool to them.

But if I were in charge of this initiative, I would hire some Tik Tok agencies and make them compete for the business. They would need to develop viral challenges that excited young people about the power of narrative and the written word. I would want something that catches on like the McDonald’s Grimace shake challenge. Some of those videos were amazing.

On the surface, videos make no sense, but I grew up with Sesame Street, which helped me learn to read and write. This new generation of kids is on their phones, and they need something that is cool and has a positive message.

As for the name, let’s give it a working title like TikTokBookReport.


My gratitude to Gregory for participating in this year’s fall back to reading series and for sharing his inspiring recommendations!

Image Credit: Ogilvy.

Connect with Gregory at these links:
Website: https://www.wearebrandzen.com
Blog: https://www.wearebrandzen.com/blog
Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/I_AM_GKennedy
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregorykennedy

FALL BACK TO READING SERIES – Featuring Michelle Redfern

This year, as the seasons change and we enjoy fall, I’ve launched my FALL BACK TO READING SERIES. The series will feature two dozen leadership and marketing experts, who will share their inspiration in both fiction and nonfiction, and hopefully, provide the impetus to read more. To quote New York Times Bestselling author Kristin Harmel, “If you give a person a book, you give him the world.” For today’s post, I’d like to introduce Michelle Redfern.

Michelle Redfern is a globally recognised gender equality, diversity, and inclusion strategist based in Australia. She advises organisations in the business and sporting sectors on DEI strategy development and implementation and works directly with women leaders to advance their careers. She has been recognised as one of Australia’s Top 100 Women of Influence and has won awards for her contributions to women’s advancement. She is passionate about what sets her soul on fire, closing the global leadership gender gap, and enabling women to have a career that soars!

QUESTION: Which three business books have made the biggest impact on your career?
MICHELLE REDFERN: I highly recommend reading NO CEILING NO WALLS by Susan Colantuono. This book has greatly influenced my leadership approach and how I teach others, especially women. It provides a valuable guide how to effectively lead, emphasizing the importance of developing critical business skills and building a reputation for them. As an ambitious woman in my career, this book has shown me that I am not alone.

Another great read is LEAN IN by Sheryl Sandberg. Although it may not be as popular today, I found it to be a powerful call to action for women leaders. It helped me gain clarity about my career goals and intentions.

Lastly, STOP FIXING WOMEN: WHY BUILDING FAIRER WORKPLACES IS EVERYBODY'S BUSINESS by Catherine Fox challenges the notion that women need fixing. Instead, it highlights how the workplace system is broken and unfair for women. This book gave me a better understanding of how to create positive change in both the workplace and society for women.

QUESTION: Who is your favorite author, and why?
MICHELLE REDFERN: I'm sorry, but as a passionate and enthusiastic reader, I cannot provide a definitive answer. However, I can share some of my favourite authors.

For non-fiction, I am deeply inspired by accomplished female business leaders. I seek to learn from their experiences and promote gender equality by incorporating their stories into my work on advancing women.

As for fiction, although I enjoy reading anything by Ken Follet, I also appreciate works by women authors who specialize in political, spy, and crime thrillers. These genres are always a reliable choice for me.

QUESTION: What book did you read in high school or college that, to this day, you still remember vividly, and why?
MICHELLE REDFERN: I have an unconventional answer when it comes to my favorite book. When I was younger, I found LUCKY by Jackie Collins in my parent's reading pile and decided to give it a try. Despite the mature content, I thoroughly enjoyed it and found myself looking up to the main character, Lucky Santangelo. She was confident, powerful, and unapologetically herself. This is also why I have a deep love for New York City. It has been my dream destination since childhood, despite growing up in regional Western Australia. I try to visit the city as often as possible, as it holds a special place in my heart.

QUESTION: Do you intersperse fiction with your business reading? If yes, what was the last work of fiction that you read, and what caught your attention about it?
MICHELLE REDFERN: I sure do. I average a fiction book a week. It’s a great way to give my brain a break and to spark my imagination and creativity.
 
Fiction also helps me to unwind and decompress from the fairly heavy non-fiction reading I do every day.

I have just completed HOMECOMING by Kate Morton. I picked it up at the airport ahead of a trip and was mesmerised by it. So much so that I have just ordered another four of her books.

SHARE THIS: I average a fiction book a week. It’s a great way to give my brain a break and to spark my imagination and creativity. ~@RedfernMichelle #Reading #DebbieLaskeysBlog

QUESTION: If you created a nonprofit organization to promote reading to children and young adults, what would you name it, and why?
MICHELLE REDFERN: I have a name in mind for an organization that would bring together book lovers: Bookworms Unite.

Reading was encouraged and nurtured during my childhood, earning me the loving nickname of "bookworm" from my parents. Despite being different from my peers, who didn't share my passion for reading, I always found comfort in books and the stories they contained. I believe that Bookworms Unite would be a great way to create a supportive and like-minded community where the love of reading can be fostered.


My gratitude to Michelle for participating in this year’s fall back to reading series and for sharing her inspiring recommendations!

Image Credit: JR Korpa.

Connect with Michelle at these links:
Website: https://michelleredfern.com/
Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/RedfernMichelle
LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/in/michelleredfern
and https://www.linkedin.com/company/leadtosoar/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AdvancingWomeninBizandSport/
and https://www.facebook.com/LeadToSoar
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michelleredferndotcom/
and https://www.instagram.com/lead.to.soar/


Check out Michelle's previous appearances here on this Blog:

Start Listening to Women = Removal of Barriers for Women Leaders (June 2023)
https://www.debbielaskeysblog.com/2023/06/start-listening-to-women-removal-of.html

Tips to Create Gender Equality in Your Workplace (March 2022)
https://www.debbielaskeysblog.com/2022/03/tips-to-create-gender-equality-in-your.html

FALL BACK TO READING SERIES – Featuring Deborah Connors

 

This year, as the seasons change and we enjoy fall, I’ve launched my FALL BACK TO READING SERIES. The series will feature two dozen leadership and marketing experts, who will share their inspiration in both fiction and nonfiction, and hopefully, provide the impetus to read more. To quote New York Times Bestselling author Kristin Harmel, “If you give a person a book, you give him the world.” For today’s post, I’d like to introduce Deborah Connors.

Deborah Connors is an organizational health and culture expert and researches the latest breakthroughs in workplace culture around the world. She is the author of A Better Place To Work: Daily Practices That Transform Culture, through which she has distilled the knowledge of hundreds of business and organizational health thought-leaders. She is the founder of The Better Workplace Conference, a powerful initiative that created a generation of workplace health professionals and a huge community of practice. She is part-time executive director of BCALM (the BC Association for Living Mindfully) in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Through her business, Well-Advised Consulting, Inc., Deborah helps leaders and teams create great cultures where people can flourish.

QUESTION: Which three business books have made the biggest impact on your career?
DEBORAH CONNORS: Here are my three:

Building The Bridge As You Walk On It: A Guide for Leading Change by Dr. Robert Quinn: A few decades ago at the University of Michigan, Quinn and colleagues started a school of research called Positive Organizational Scholarship. They recognized that, at the time, organizational research was focused on fixing problems. They wanted to study excellence and what makes some organizations more positive and successful than others. This book is about the transformational leadership required to create positive change in the workplace and was transformational to my thinking as an organizational health consultant.

Conversations Worth Having: Using Appreciative Inquiry to Fuel Productive and Meaningful Engagement by Jackie Stavros and Cheri Torres: I met Cheri Torres at a conference about positive psychology. This book had just been released, as had mine. We exchanged books and both found ourselves reading each other’s books on the plane on the way home. I was fascinated by the appreciative practices introduced in this book and how effective they were for shifting the tone and direction of almost any conversation. I started incorporating these practices into my work and ended up taking the first facilitator’s program they offered for people wanting to teach these ideas. I have since taught the Conversations Worth Having course numerous times to hundreds of people, and I use these practices in my consulting work every day.

The Truth About Burnout: How Organizations Cause Personal Stress and What To Do About It by Christina Maslach and Michael P. Leiter: I went through burnout in the winter of 1998, and at the time, it was much less prevalent than it is today. There was a stigma that those who burned out "just couldn’t cut it." I knew that wasn’t true, and when I read this book, I was introduced to the ways that organizations cause people to burn out. There was so much truth captured in the book. Since this time, Maslach and Leiter have written two additional books: Banishing Burnout and The Burnout Challenge: Managing People’s Relationships With Their Jobs.

QUESTION: Who is your favorite author, and why?
DEBORAH CONNORS: Patti Digh. The first book of hers that I read was Life is a Verb: 37 Days to Wake Up, Be Mindful and Live Intentionally. She wrote this book based on the death of her stepfather, who died 37 days after his diagnosis. The question was, "If you only had 37 days to live, what would you do?" Her writing is poignant, funny, intentional, and hard to put down.

QUESTION: What book did you read in high school or college that, to this day, you still remember vividly, and why?
DEBORAH CONNORS: Mindfulness by Helen J. Langer. When this book was published in 1989, mindfulness was not a well-known concept in North America. I was in grad school. The title jumped out at me, as did the first few pages of the book, so I bought it and was captured by the concept.

Langer, a professor of psychology at Harvard, was doing research on "the psychological and physical costs we pay because of pervasive mindlessness" and about the benefits of learning to be mindful. She reminds us that many of the issues we have in the workplace today are due to mindlessness.

Particularly interesting to me was a study that she and other researchers from Harvard conducted with elderly residents in a nursing home. When the residents were given the opportunity to take care of a houseplant and make a few small decisions about their daily routines (i.e., to be "mindful"), they were more cheerful, active, and alert than others who were not given these responsibilities.

Today, my work has gravitated to mindfulness, and the mindful workplace, no doubt impacted by reading this first book on the subject many years ago.  

QUESTION: Do you intersperse fiction with your business reading? If yes, what was the last work of fiction that you read, and what caught your attention about it?
DEBORAH CONNORS: Yes, but I am more prone to read biographies and autobiographies. With fiction, I like stories set in places I want to visit, or have been. The latest work of fiction I read was called One Italian Summer by Rebecca Serle, which interested me because it was set in Positano, Italy, where I was going to vacation a few months later. When I visited Positano, I climbed the steps to the actual hotel written about in the book.

I’m currently reading Still Life by Sarah Winman, which is set in Florence, another city I visited last year and fell in love with.

The latest biography I read was Spare, by Prince Harry, which I found fascinating.

SHARE THIS: With fiction, I like stories set in places I want to visit, or have been. ~@well_advised #Reading #DebbieLaskeysBlog

 
My gratitude to Deborah for participating in this year’s fall back to reading series and for sharing her inspiring recommendations!


Image Credit: Maria Bobrova via Unsplash.

Connect with Deborah at these links:
Website:  https://www.deborahconnors.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WellAdvisedConsulting
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahconnors/
X: https://twitter.com/well_advised/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/deborah.connors/

My Choice for TIME Magazine's 2023 Person of the Year

At the end of each year, TIME Magazine announces its person of the year. Some recent recipients of this honor include President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, businessman (and Twitter killer) Elon Musk, and the Silence Breakers who spoke out against sexual abuse and harassment. In 1982, "The Computer" was named "Machine of the Year" to herald the dawn of the Information Age.

According to Wikipedia, "The Person of the Year (called Man of the Year or Woman of the Year until 1999) is an annual issue of TIME Magazine, the American news magazine and website, featuring a person, a group, an idea, or object, that for better or for worse has done the most to influence the events of the year."

So who made news during 2023? Certainly, the Ukraine/Russia conflict has continued to make news, and the recent Israel/Hamas conflict has made news. But there is one story that continues to dominate the news, and I bet it will win this year's honor: America's Striking Workers.

During 2023, labor strikes happened virtually EVERYWHERE and by nearly EVERYONE.

"This is certainly the biggest moment for labor, and the most active period that I've seen in my career," explained Sharon Block, executive director at Harvard Law School's Center for Labor and a Just Economy.

"Altogether, there have been 312 strikes involving roughly 453,000 workers so far in 2023, compared with 180 strikes involving 43,700 workers over the same period two years ago. This is a pretty considerable uptick relative to the rest of the 21st century. With each successful outcome, other labor actions are more likely to follow. Strikes can often be contagious," said Johnnie Kallas in late October. Kallas is a PhD candidate at Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations and the project director of the ILR Labor Action Tracker.

According to CNN, in late March, "Service Employees International Union Local 99 represents 30,000 school custodians, cafeteria workers, bus drivers, and other student services staff at Los Angeles schools. The 3-day strike that kept a half-million students out of classrooms this past week has ended, but that happened even before the union announced a tentative labor contract on Friday. Still, the union’s success is another sign of why short-term strikes like it are surging nationwide."

Professional writers (represented by the Writers Guild of America) were on strike from May through September. In New York and Hollywood, major celebrities walked in solidarity with the WGA for weeks; comedian and game show host Drew Carey paid more than a half-million dollars to feed striking writers in California for months.

The SAG-AFTRA actors' strike began in July, effectively stopping the entertainment industry from doing any business. This was the first time that both SAG-AFTRA and the WGA went on strike together since 1960. (The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists is an American labor union that reflects the 2012 merger of SAG and AFTRA and represents approximately 160,000 media professionals worldwide.) The strike showed signs of ending last week.

According to Forbes, in June, "Hospitality workers at 61 hotels in Los Angeles and Orange County authorized a strike with 96% of members voting yes. Contract negotiations had broken down in April, and the union’s contracts with the 61 different hotels expired on June 30. The workers officially walked out on July 1. The workers, who are represented by Unite Here Local 11, were striking for better wages, healthcare benefits, a pension, and safer workloads. The union also sought to create a hospitality workforce housing fund (paid for via a proposed tax to be levied on hotel room sales and home-sharing), as rising housing costs had forced many workers to move farther away from their jobs requiring long commutes. Meanwhile, hotel profits have soared, particularly after receiving billions in federal bailout money during the pandemic."

In June, workers at 150 Starbucks stores across the United States went on a week-long, staggered strike to protest the company's removal and ban on LGBT pride decor - June is Pride Month. The strike followed an unfair labor practices charge, filed June 7 with the National Labor Relations Board, amid worsening treatment of LGBTQ+ employees. On June 26, Starbucks issued a press release promising to offer clearer guidelines surrounding the display of LGBT decor policy in response to the strike.

In July, the package delivery company United Parcel Service (UPS) narrowly averted a strike at the eleventh hour that would have been the largest single-employer labor stoppage in US history due to its number of 350,000 full- and part-time workers.

In July, Southwest Airlines pilots were on the picket line at BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport in Baltimore. The Southwest Airlines Pilots Association (SWAPA) says they have been trying for three years to reach an agreement with the airline, and 99 percent of union members voted in May in favor of a strike. Southwest pilots also picketed at Los Angeles International, Hartsfield Jackson International (Atlanta), Houston Hobby and Chicago Midway airports.

Also in July, flight attendants at American Airlines voted to strike while fighting for a new contract with pay raises and more staffing on flights.

Then, the United Auto Workers (UAW) launched a targeted strike against Ford Motor Co., General Motors, and Stellantis in the early hours of September 15. Since then, more than 30,000 workers have been off the job at 44 facilities across the United States and Canada. On September 26, President Biden walked the picket line in Belleville, Michigan, in favor of the striking auto workers, and met with UAW president Sean Fain. The strike showed signs of ending last week.

In October, more than 75,000 health-care workers walked off the job at Kaiser Permanente, the nation’s largest non-profit health-care organization, driven in part by demands for higher pay in the midst of staffing shortages, which left employees burned out.

According to Reuters, tech workers at the New York Times went on strike for half a day on Monday, October 30, because they accused the publisher of attempting to unilaterally force them back to the office. Nearly 700 workers held demonstrations on Zoom and outside the company's headquarters in Manhattan.

According to the BBC, "The American strike culture may continue if workers increasingly see that these movements work."

And what about from a marketing perspective? Are customers and fans more likely to support these brands because workers went on strike? Do they agree with workers' demands? Or are they simply striking "in spirit" alongside workers because they cannot go on strike from their own jobs?

What do you think? Do you agree with my choice for TIME Magazine's 2023 Person of the Year? Only a short time until TIME makes its official announcement!


While compiling this lengthy list, I found an interesting book by Kim Kelly entitled, "Fight Like Hell: The Untold History of American Labor." One review explains, "Inspirational, intersectional, and full of crucial lessons from the past, Fight Like Hell shows what is possible when the working class demands the dignity it has always deserved."
Check it out on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1982171057?tag=simonsayscom

For a full list of all recipients of the TIME Magazine Person of the Year honor, check out this link:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_Person_of_the_Year

Image Credits: TIME Magazine and Refresh Financial.

FALL BACK TO READING SERIES – Featuring Suzanne Huber

This year, as the seasons change and we enjoy fall, I’ve launched my FALL BACK TO READING SERIES. The series will feature two dozen leadership and marketing experts, who will share their inspiration in both fiction and nonfiction, and hopefully, provide the impetus to read more. To quote New York Times Bestselling author Kristin Harmel, “If you give a person a book, you give him the world.” For today’s post, I’d like to introduce Suzanne Huber.

Suzanne Huber is an award-winning digital strategist who has helped hundreds of companies and nonprofits attract new customers while growing brand awareness. Her company creates marketing strategies and provides outsourced digital marketing solutions that drive client acquisition. Suzanne also works with and trains small and medium-sized companies to launch their own innovative marketing campaigns that take their organizations to new heights.

QUESTION: Which three business books have made the biggest impact on your career?
SUZY HUBER: Here are my three:

Awaken the Giant Within by Anthony Robbins: This book taught me to think big and the power of goal settings and making sure you are reaching for fulfillment across all areas of your life. I revisit the goal setting exercise in the book often and have found most have come true. It reminds me that I need to go back and make some fresh ones for where I am today.

Super Attractor by Gabrielle Berstein: Though not a business book, spirituality and personal development books are relevant for business as far as I am concerned. It may come across as a bit “woo” to some, but I find her writing very compatible with my views of the world and creating a life of meaning with the support of the universe.

Fierce Conversations by Susan Scott: Since we are all living a different reality, we need to interrogate it regularly to ensure we are having effective communication with others, so that we are actually on the same page. This book has been very influential in my understanding as to how we are all thinking and acting differently so we need to regularly check in with both parties to make sure we are aligned in what we are trying to communicate to others.

QUESTION: Who is your favorite author, and why?
SUZY HUBER: Gabrielle Bernstein is my favorite author and one of the few whose books I purchase when they are released. Her spirituality and leadership commentary positively impact my visioning/manifesting and is also great for mindset work. I have been watching her career and have watched her build from the ground up, becoming a multiple times New York Times best-selling author. Gabby is inspirational and motivational. She represents the new age of spirituality, and that has a big impact on my relationship with the universe through her teachings.

QUESTION: What book did you read in high school or college that, to this day, you still remember vividly, and why?
SUZY HUBER: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. This book was given to me as a gift and didn’t really resonate with me the first time I read it. A friend suggested I read it again, and the underlying messages hit differently. I have also read most of Paulo’s others books. I love how he simplifies life wisdom in a way that resonates through his quotes and fables.

QUESTION: If you created a nonprofit organization to promote reading to children and young adults, what would you name it, and why?
SUZY HUBER: Intellect Ignited: Unleashing the Power of Knowledge.

Reading affords the opportunity to expand your imagination and knowledge, and to tap into the thinking of brilliant minds. When I was little, I used to ride my bike to the library and load up on books. Reading helps to develop your mind. I love that I can read or listen to a book and download a lifetime of work by someone very proficient in a topic. Reading and learning to think independently are extremely valuable life skills to develop that can help you to design a future with intentionality.

SHARE THIS: Reading helps to develop your mind. ~@SuzyHuber #Reading #DebbieLaskeysBlog

My gratitude to Suzy for participating in this year’s fall back to reading series and for sharing her inspiring recommendations!

Image Credit: Brad Mills via Unsplash.


Connect with Suzy at these links:
Website: https://www.suzannehuber.com
X: https://twitter.com/SuzyHuber
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suzanneleehuber

Check out Suzy's previous appearances here on my blog:

Covid Brand Pivots, Marketing and Twitter (April 2023)
https://www.debbielaskeysblog.com/2023/04/covid-brand-pivots-marketing-and-twitter.html

Branding and Marketing Build Businesses (September 2022)
https://www.debbielaskeysblog.com/2022/09/branding-and-marketing-build-businesses.html

FALL BACK TO READING SERIES – Featuring Dr. Natalie Petouhoff

This year, as the seasons change and we enjoy fall, I’ve launched my FALL BACK TO READING SERIES. The series will feature two dozen leadership and marketing experts, who will share their inspiration in both fiction and nonfiction, and hopefully, provide the impetus to read more. To quote New York Times Bestselling author Kristin Harmel, “If you give a person a book, you give him the world.” For today’s post, I’d like to introduce Dr. Natalie Petouhoff.

Dr. Natalie Petouhoff is a customer and employee experience consultant, speaker, and co-author of the WSJ best-selling book Empathy in Action. Working side-by-side with top executives, her new theories are transforming the bottom line, by focusing on the two most important assets in a company, the customer and the employee. By transforming their experiences, she is able to show executives how to reduce costs and increase revenue, even in a tough economy.

QUESTION: Which three business books have made the biggest impact on your career?
DR. NATALIE PETOUHOFF: Here are my four:

Cluetrain Manifesto by Christopher Locke, David Searls, and David Weinberger: This book stands out because these authors predicted that there would be a time where technology would transform all of our lives. Think Internet and digital social media. Their account of the future (the book was first published to the web in 1999 and as a book in 2000) was hauntingly amazing, and their foresight was incredible.

The Experience Economy by Joe Pine: This book really was the pioneer on establishing the value on the experience that the customer has on the brand as well as on profitability.

When More is Not Better by Roger Martin: Roger has taken the current accounting principles and turned them on their head! He's really driving new economic profitability models that include customer and employee experience.

Bold by Peter Diamandis: This is a book about the art of the possible, showing us that there is enough for everyone, especially with advancing exponential technologies that make things possible in ways that were never possible before.

QUESTION: Who is your favorite author, and why?
DR. NATALIE PETOUHOFF: The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. I love this book (and author) because it reveals the source of self-limiting beliefs that rob us of joy and create needless suffering, so that we can become who we truly are meant to be.

QUESTION: What book did you read in high school or college that, to this day, you still remember vividly, and why?
DR. NATALIE PETOUHOFF: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is that book for me. Here's a stand-out quote from the book: "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view...Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it."

I love this quote because it is the essence of peace. When we understand things from someone else's point of view (i.e., practice empathy), we can truly understand one another and become a better person. If everyone did this, the world would be a much better place!

QUESTION: Do you intersperse fiction with your business reading? If yes, what was the last work of fiction that you read, and what caught your attention about it?
DR. NATALIE PETOUHOFF: Yes, and the last book I read was Season of Life: A Football Star, a Boy, a Journey to Manhood by Jeffery Marx. In a world where new leadership models are necessary to create a world where people are loving, kind, and supportive of one another, this book is a glowing example of what it means to be a leader.

QUESTION: If you created a nonprofit organization to promote reading to children and young adults, what would you name it, and why?
DR. NATALIE PETOUHOFF: Reading is Freedom.

Because when you learn things from reading, it gives you the power and knowledge you need to make your way in the world like nothing else!

SHARE THIS: Reading is freedom. ~@drnatalie #Reading #DebbieLaskeysBlog

My gratitude to Natalie for participating in this year’s fall back to reading series and for sharing her inspiring recommendations!

Image Credit: NatureWorks.

Connect with Natalie at these links:
Website: https://www.drnatalienews.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/DrNatalieP
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drnataliepetouhoff/
Facebook book: https://www.facebook.com/natalie.petouhoff/

The UPS Store Cannot Do Everyth-ing

When it comes to outstanding customer experiences, what retail stores stand out? While Nordstrom probably appears in most people’s top five list, there is one retail store that wishes it could be included.

With all the television advertising that the UPS Store does to promote its “-ing” capabilities, such as, copying, faxing, printing, packing, shipping, shredding, moving (supplies), notarizing, etc., what about simple CARING for customers in a polite manner?

Check out a 2018 press release released by the corporate office based in San Diego, California:

“The new “Beyond Shipping” campaign was inspired by a nationwide research effort that revealed small business owners know The UPS Store takes care of shipping, but were surprised to discover the extensive range of business services the locally owned and operated locations offer. Lighthearted and humorous, the fully integrated campaign features fast-paced commercials and videos showcasing the breadth of existing services available at The UPS Store as every “ing” a small business owner might need.”

However, read about my recent experience at a UPS Store in a suburb of Los Angeles, and I guarantee that you’ll cringe with me.

I walked into the store with a pre-packaged and labeled box to be returned to Amazon. While I did not have to wait in line, I chose to wait for the employee, who was assisting another customer, so that I could get a receipt showing that the box had been scanned into the UPS system, aka, received. This scanning receipt would serve as proof to Amazon that I had dropped off the package - and I would be entitled to my refund for the item being returned.

After waiting several minutes, the employee took the box from me and said, “I don’t give paper receipts. They just go into landfills anyway. Consider the box scanned.” Then he dropped the box on the counter behind him and engaged the next customer.

I asked when he would scan the box to show me that the box was, indeed, entered into the UPS system, and he rudely said, “I’ll get to it later.”

Wow!

What happens if my box gets lost? UPS cannot and will not guarantee my refund from Amazon if the box gets lost without being scanned.

And who appointed this particular UPS employee as National Environment Czar to determine that no one gets printed receipts? I know for a fact that EVERY OTHER UPS STORE PRINTS RECEIPTS UPON REQUEST, because I have requested and received them.

This experience got me thinking...I wonder if the UPS Store’s corporate office approves each franchise’s business practices, because this one definitely has no idea how to interact with customers nor how to align with the corporate brand’s advertising messages.

On a final note: the irony is not lost on me that if this particular employee is such an environment lover, he should not work in a store that deals with paper and packages!


Image credit: The UPS Store.

FALL BACK TO READING SERIES – Featuring Stacey Danheiser

This year, as the seasons change and we enjoy fall, I’ve launched my FALL BACK TO READING SERIES. The series will feature two dozen leadership and marketing experts, who will share their inspiration in both fiction and nonfiction, and hopefully, provide the impetus to read more. To quote New York Times Bestselling author Kristin Harmel, “If you give a person a book, you give him the world.” For today’s post, I’d like to introduce Stacey Danheiser.

Stacey Danheiser is a CMO, Founder, Author, and former Fortune 500 marketing leader. At Shake Marketing Group, she helps B2B organizations become more customer-focused. She runs a mentorship and training program called B2B Marketing Blueprint at Soar Marketing Society to help aspiring B2B marketing leaders elevate their confidence and impact.

QUESTION: Which three business books have made the biggest impact on your career?
STACEY DANHEISER: Here are my three:

Strengthsfinder by Tom Rath: This book was instrumental in helping me understand my own strengths as well as my team’s strengths.

Everybody Writes by Ann Handley: I love how she simplifies the writing process and makes it accessible for everyone, reminding us that we are not alone in thinking that writing is hard.

The Challenger Sale by Brent Adamson and Matt Dixon (Gartner): I read this book when I was a B2B Marketing Director for a Fortune 500 company. It helped me connect with the sales team better as a marketer and create more effective content and programs to educate and influence customers.

QUESTION: Who is your favorite author, and why?
STACEY DANHEISER: I love anything by Malcom Gladwell because he digs deeper into subjects that many of us don’t think about on a daily basis. He has a unique way of uncovering details and telling disparate stories that somehow all weave together to make a point.

As a marketer, books like Outliers and The Tipping Point provide great insight and mental stimulation. Plus, Gladwell has a podcast that I really enjoy (Revisionist History) that gives a glimpse into worlds that aren’t familiar to me, such as, art galleries, music production, and even law school entrance exams!

QUESTION: What book did you read in high school or college that, to this day, you still remember vividly, and why?
STACEY DANHEISER: I read 7 habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey in college and loved the simplicity of each lesson. I ended up taking additional training from Franklin Covey when I started my first corporate job, and to this day, I go back and review each lesson when I need additional motivation or guidance.

Here are the 7 habits:

• Be Proactive
• Begin With the End in Mind
• Put First Things First
• Think Win-Win
• Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood
• Synergize
• Sharpen the Saw

QUESTION: Do you intersperse fiction with your business reading? If yes, what was the last work of fiction that you read, and what caught your attention about it?
STACEY DANHEISER: Yes! On my nightstand, I have at least 3-4 books open at any one time. I love sci-fi and books about time travel because I love to think about the future and envision 'what if' scenarios.

The last work of fiction that I read is a three-book series starting with Before the Coffee Gets Cold, by Japanese author Toshikazu Kawaguchi. It’s about a back-alley café that provides patrons with a unique opportunity – to go backwards or forwards in time just long enough to drink a cup of coffee. It’s a thought-provoking and imaginative read!

QUESTION: If you created a nonprofit organization to promote reading to children and young adults, what would you name it, and why?
STACEY DANHEISER: Naming a business is harder than naming your child! I think I’d call it "Lifelong Learners," because reading is about experiencing something new and different. It can be a way to escape to another world or put yourself in the shoes of someone else...and it’s a process that never ends.

SHARE THIS: Reading can be a way to escape to another world or put yourself in the shoes of someone else...and it’s a process that never ends. ~@Shakemktg

My gratitude to Stacey for participating in this year’s fall back to reading series and for sharing her inspiring recommendations!

Image Credit: Jesse Bowser via Unsplash.

Connect with Stacey at these links:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/staceydanheiser/
Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/Shakemktg
Soar Marketing Society: https://www.shakemktg.com/soar
B2B Marketing Blueprint: https://www.shakemktg.com/confident-marketer-playbook

Check out Stacey's previous appearance here on my blog:
There Is No Standard Marketing Playbook (October 2022)
https://www.debbielaskeysblog.com/2022/10/there-is-no-standard-marketing-playbook.html

 

FALL BACK TO READING SERIES – Featuring Katherine Spinney

This year, as the seasons change and we enjoy fall, I’ve launched my FALL BACK TO READING SERIES. The series will feature two dozen leadership and marketing experts, who will share their inspiration in both fiction and nonfiction, and hopefully, provide the impetus to read more. To quote New York Times Bestselling author Kristin Harmel, “If you give a person a book, you give him the world.” For today’s post, I’d like to introduce Katherine Spinney.

Katherine Spinney combines her background in education, social work, leadership, and coaching to support new, aspiring, and growing supervisors to become the leaders they strive to be. Through a powerful, research-based combination of training and coaching along with a robust virtual community in The Supervisors Circle, Katherine helps managers build the confidence and skills they need to better support their teams and ultimately their clients. As a former struggling supervisor who had to teach herself how to become a successful leader, it is Katherine’s life’s mission to help others learn and grow leadership skills.

QUESTION: Which three business books have made the biggest impact on your career?
KATHERINE SPINNEY: Here are my three:

Quiet by Susan Cain: Before I understood what an introvert was or that I was one, I simply felt out of place and unsure of how I fit in as a person and as a leader. Susan Cain’s seminal work opened my eyes and my understanding about what it means to be an introvert, and more specifically, what it means to be an introverted leader. It was life-changing for me, and I recommend this book to everyone. If you are an introvert yourself, it will help make sense of some things and potentially help you navigate some areas of work life that may be challenging for you. If you do not consider yourself an introvert, it can provide a much better understanding of how to more effectively work with, for, and alongside introverts.

First Break All the Rules by Curt Coffman and Marcus Buckingham: This is another book I recommend to everyone, especially managers. It provides a different way of working with people by focusing on strengths. It really helped me approach my work in a different way and made me a much stronger manager because.

The Renaissance Soul by Margaret Lobenstine: Since I was in school, I was asked about and told to choose that one thing I wanted to do. I couldn’t ever do it because there were always so many different things I was interested in. This remains true today, and this book helped validate how that can be a perfectly wonderful way to approach work and life. A great read if you consider yourself to be a renaissance soul and/or to better understand those who do.

QUESTION: Who is your favorite author, and why?
KATHERINE SPINNEY: I don’t have a favorite author, and my interests are a bit all over the place (see The Renaissance Soul above!)

For fiction, I appreciate a good story that is well-written. Some of my all-time favorites are Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides, White Oleander by Janet Fitch, Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole, Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, and The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold.

For non-fiction, I appreciate insightful, well-researched content. My non-fiction tends to be focused on my work, so somewhere in the world of leadership, management, coaching, nonprofits, human service, etc., but as with fiction, I appreciate  good, well-written content. That has taken me any and everywhere from Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow to Stiff by Mary Roach, from Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich to Motley Crue’s The Dirt, from Dear Sugar by Sheryl Strayed to the Autobiography of Malcolm X by Alex Haley.

Reading not only improves vocabulary and our ability to express ourselves, but it has also been shown to improve our understanding of others, and of course, our empathy. As relationships are at the core of our work and our leadership, we do not always have to read books about leadership to improve our ability to lead more effectively.

SHARE THIS: We do not always have to read books about leadership to improve our ability to lead more effectively. ~@CoachKat2017 #Reading #Leadership #DebbieLaskeysBlog

QUESTION: What book did you read in high school or college that, to this day, you still remember vividly, and why?
KATHERINE SPINNEY: Two that stand out from high school are The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas and All the King’s Men by Robert Penn Warren. I remember both being books that I didn’t want to put down as they completely captivated my attention. I loved being introduced to stories and books that were completely new to me and ones that I would not have chosen for myself. Plus, the writing and the stories were so strong and of the highest quality. I remember being surprised that books could be like that.

QUESTION: Do you intersperse fiction with your business reading? If yes, what was the last work of fiction that you read, and what caught your attention about it?
KATHERINE SPINNEY: Yes, all the time. When I start to read several of one type of book in a row (i.e., fiction or non-fiction), I can start to feel that I am ready for the other. It is not a schedule or timetable, but a simple listening to and responding to what I am ready to read when I’m ready to read it.

The last book of fiction I read was The Town of Babylon by Alejandro Varela. It was for one of my book groups, which is how I get introduced to a lot of books. I don’t always love the books I read for book groups, but I love the chance to try something new, and of course, the opportunity to connect and discuss the work with others.

QUESTION: If you created a nonprofit organization to promote reading to children and young adults, what would you name it, and why?
KATHERINE SPINNEY: Fabulous question! I would name it something like “What’s your story?” for it’s double meaning, both, what is the story you have to tell, and what is the story you are currently reading. Or something simple like, “What are you reading?” Wouldn’t it be great to make this question as normal as, “Seen any good movies lately?”

Thank you, Debbie, for this opportunity to talk about one of my favorite and most important things in my life. Reading is a joy and a gift, and I am grateful for the opportunity to discuss it and hear from others as well.

My gratitude to Katherine for participating in this year’s fall back to reading series and for sharing her inspiring recommendations!

Image Credit: MontyLov via Unsplash.

Connect with Katherine at these links:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/coach-katherine-spinney
Facebook/Instagram: CoachKat2017
Twitter/X: @CoachKat2017

Check out Katherine's previous appearances here on my blog:

Have You Ever Participated in a Leadership Book Club? (February 2022)
https://www.debbielaskeysblog.com/2022/02/have-you-ever-participated-in.html

Leadership Is ALWAYS About Those You Lead! (February 2021)
https://www.debbielaskeysblog.com/2021/02/leadership-is-always-about-those-you.html

TweetChat Highlights: How to Improve Leadership Readiness during the #COVID19 Crisis (April 2020)
https://debbielaskey.blogspot.com/2020/04/tweetchat-highlights-how-to-improve.html
and https://wakelet.com/wake/tqlW4MASG2XSO4B4WTJg6

How Can Leaders Help Employees Exceed Expectations? It’s All About the Culture! (August 2018)
https://www.debbielaskeysblog.com/2018/08/how-can-leaders-help-employees-exceed.html