Reading list for Sep-13

Insanely Simple: The Obsession That Drives Apple's Success - Ken Segall

To Steve Jobs, Simplicity wasn't just a design principle. It was a religion and a weapon. The obsession with Simplicity is what separates Apple from other technology companies. It's what helped Apple recover from near death in 1997 to become the most valuable company on Earth in 2011, and guides the way Apple is organized, how it designs products, and how it connects with customers. It's by crushing the forces of Complexity that the company remains on its stellar trajectory.

As creative director, Ken Segall played a key role in Apple's resurrection, helping to create such critical campaigns as 'Think Different' and naming the iMac. Insanely Simple is his insider's view of Jobs' world. It reveals the ten elements of Simplicity that have driven Apple's success - which you can use to propel your own organisation. Reading Insanely Simple, you'll be a fly on the wall inside a conference room with Steve Jobs, and on the receiving end of his midnight phone calls. You'll understand how his obsession with Simplicity helped Apple perform better and faster.


A Compass to Fulfillment:  Passion and Spirituality in Life and Business - Kazuo Inamori

I was fortune enough to work in one of the group companies of Kyocera, founded by Inamori-san and therefore have been under his influence.

Kazuo Inamori, founder of Kyocera and KDDI, weavestogether his Buddhist faith and personal experience tocreate a life/business philosophy based on the simplest but most profound of human concepts: do the right thing,always. Inamori credits his and his companies’ extraordinary success to the daily practice of this timeless truth.
In A Compass to Fulfillment, the author helps you develop your own personal philosophy for success by:

• Recognizing your deepest desires and using them to create a better reality
• Informing all decisions with simple truths and principles
• Elevating your mind and practicing humility
• Living your life steered by an attitude of selfless service
• Controlling the trajectory of your life by accepting the“will of the universe”

A Compass to Fulfillment is about strategic thinking, butnot in the sense of business and management technicalities.It is about, first, understanding yourself, and then using that knowledge to get to the point you want to be—in your career, in your business, and in your life.