Reading list for Jan-2011

A Century of Innovation: The 3M Story
 There is no other company to study, than 3M, to understand innovation. This book is a compilation of memories, photos, facts, and events from the first 100 years of the 3M company. 3M is responsible in bringing out several products of day-to-day use including things like: waterproof sandpaper, Cellophane tape, reflective sheets used for highway markings, Scoth-brite cleaning pads, magnetic recording tape and videotapes and ofcourse the Post-It notes. It would be great fun to understand the history, values, work ethic and other host of things that keeps 3M's innovative engine chugging on, now for over 100 years.
This book was brought to my notice by my good friend Vinay Dabholkar, who runs his own consulting business doing some very interesting work in the area of Innovation and help companies in their quest towards the same.
 You can download the free PDF of this book, from the 3M's site here.




 Switch: How to change things when change is hard

I am a big fan of the Heath brothers' first book Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die. And when Vinay Dabholkar recommended this book, I immediately set out to buy one and am I glad I did. The authors use the analogy of an Elephant and the Rider:  the emotional side of our mind is like a headstrong Elephant, and the rational side of our mind is the guiding Rider. The Rider holds the reins and seems to be in control,  but an emotional Elephant often tends to overpower a rational Rider. The third element is the Path, that the Rider wishes to take the Elephant to take. The authors explore all these three elements in detail in the context of leading the change. There are examples of several individuals who with little power were instrumental in bringing in a major change. The examples appear to be simple, practical and inspiring.

The Shift: From Ambition to Meaning
Dr. Dyer has been one of my favourite author. In this book, he illustrates how and why to make the move from ambition to meaning. Lives of many of us is directed by ego and therefore characterized by ambition and struggle. Its also true that most of us strive to lead the life which is meaningful and purpose driven instead. The Shift doesn’t mean that we lose our drive and ambition; it signifies that we become ambitious about something new. We make a commitment to living a life based on experiencing meaning and feeling purposeful, rather than never-ending demands and false promises that are the trademark of the ego’s agenda.