Running a business can be tough, and managing internal challenges alongside market and industry fluctuations can be a challenge even for seasoned executives. On top of all of this, navigating professional relationships with employees and staff can be a daunting task. After all, a business is only as strong as it’s employees.
Fortunately, corporations can make use of the lessons others have learned before them, without having to learn things the hard way. Using business books and books about leadership to teach and train employees, managers, and executives can offer valuable lessons about personal and professional development. Here are a few of the top selections for corporate development.
1. HERO ON A MISSION: A PATH TO A MEANINGFUL LIFE BY DONALD MILLER
Are you going to the villain, the hero, or the victim in your life?
We all have narratives, stringing us along through our routines and affecting our lives in a myriad of ways.
If you're the villain, it's basically impossible to form genuine friendships.
If you are the victim, everything feels doomed to fail and the world appears to be against you.
On the other hand, if you take on the role of the hero, guiding others to fulfill their goals and dreams, every aspect of life just seems to fall into place magnificently.
This book will help you take charge of your own life so that you can be as empowered as possible while helping others along the way.
2. CHOOSE YOUR STORY, CHANGE YOUR LIFE: SILENCE YOUR INNER CRITIC AND REWRITE YOUR LIFE FROM THE INSIDE OUT BY KINDRA HALL
This gem of a book is all about mastering the art of positive internal dialogue: The stories we tell ourselves about our circumstances in life do actually have a ripple effect, for better or for worse—If we find ourselves weighed down constantly because we keep thinking we're not good enough to accomplish our dreams in life, then we probably won't ever set out to.
On the other hand, if we wake empowered and ready to take on the day, it's quite possible that we will actually achieve everything we set out to in due time, and we'll be a lot kinder to ourselves in the process.
In short, the stories we tell ourselves can truly change our lives, for better or worse, so they ought to be empowering ones.
3. THE MEMO: WHAT WOMEN OF COLOR NEED TO KNOW TO SECURE A SEAT AT THE TABLE BY MINDA HARTS
It's become increasingly apparent that microaggressions are far too common in the workplace, and it's a lot harder for minorities to advance in their career than it is for others to do the same.
Reading The Memo can help everyone realize how severe the daily injustices black women face in organizations across America every day truly are. It also contains pragmatic advice for how to change these issues. It is hard to fix a problem if you don't know it exists in the first place and, if you yourself have never experienced such injustice, it might be difficult to even attempt to relate.
If you are a black woman who wants to accomplish phenomenal career success, this is a wonderful guidebook.
The Memo can help organizations foster tangible empathy and truly become the change they want to see in the world.
4. BRIDGE THE GAP: BREAKTHROUGH COMMUNICATION TOOLS TO TRANSFORM WORK RELATIONSHIPS FROM CHALLENGING TO COLLABORATIVE BY JENNIFER EDWARDS
If you are having trouble communicating with your coworkers, you're certainly not alone, and this book can make a world of difference unless you're dealing with an emotional abuser, in which case it's probably in your best interest to start searching for another job.
Books can act as beacons of hope, especially during these trying times, and sharing these incredible reads with your corporate team could make a world of difference.
