Business reads to help you grow, lead and get inspired
c.2025, several publishers
$29.99–$32, different page counts
The calendar is running out, and you want to make the best of what’s left of the year.
You have a small list of to-dos, and one thing on it is to grow. So why not check out these new business books about growth, knowing your strengths, finding your best spot and knowing history?
On the list you’ve made is finding a new job or a better position within your company, and “Work How You Are Wired” by William Vanderbloemen (HarperCollins Leadership, $29.99) can help with a dozen steps to help you sort your feelings and thoughts.
For sure, when you’re faced with a possible move elsewhere or upwards, it’s easy to get your mind in a scramble. But this book uses statistical science, personality categories, common-sense lists and solid data to help you see the forest for the trees.
Imagine how great life would be if you were working at a job that meshes with the person you are. You could make it happen with this book.
News flash: If you are a woman in business, you can take the office bull by the horns and still be perceived as a nice person. In “Powerfully Likeable” by Kate Mason, Ph.D. (Harmony, $30), you’ll see how it could happen.
Quick: List all the things that make a man a leader. You might think that the same is expected of a woman in business, but Mason says that women can make themselves stand out by embracing the total opposite without seeming weak.
The trick lies in being yourself, showcasing your uniqueness in the workplace, and learning to use your best communication skills. Ideas and exercises inside this book make it easy to understand and easy to use, and that’s something you’ll pass around to other women you know. Bonus: It’s an enjoyable read, too.
And finally, also just for fun, you can learn about business history in “They All Came to Barney’s: A Personal History of the World’s Greatest Store” by Gene Pressman (Viking, $32).
Once upon a time, if a woman wanted to be on the razor’s edge of fashion, she shopped for couture at Barneys on Seventh Avenue in New York City. Pressman knows, because his family owned the store. In this book, he shares stories of the origins of what became a world-famous shopping emporium and writes about the heyday of Barney’s and of the fashion world.
And oh, yes, he drops names like fashion drops hemlines and offers history that’s slightly outside the fashion world but that was still relevant to the business.
This is a fun book to read for fashionistas, retail store owners and anyone who loves a good yarn.
So, you want more, different, something else? Then make your list of to-dos and add “Go to the library or bookstore” to it. There, you’ll find a whole staff dedicated to helping you find the right book for the right time, or they’ll help you find the books above.
The calendar’s running out. Don’t wait.
Editor’s note: News is my Business earns a small commission if you click the link in this post and make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.
