The Reading List

This has been a foundational book for me, that very much galvanized a drawn out ‘a-ha’ moment for me in my own leadership development. Jocko and Leif lay out, with vivid real world stories and translation to civilian business the leadership lessons they learned from a career at the tip of the spear. My number one, with a bullet.

The Culture Code lays out how to build and maintain successful organizational cultures in a way that will blow your mind. It is extremely digestible and applicable to any environment, going so far as to use case studies involving the military and civilian teams. One my favorite reads this past year, highly recommend.

Sebastian Junger dives deep into why we yearn to be in groups and what that looks like in different parts of humanity. It helps to understand why sense of belonging is so vital to a persons drive and overall happiness. Short, great read.

A hilarious adventure through why hierarchies are self serving, inefficient structures that result in people being promoted to their level of incompetence and everything inevitably going wrong. Really funny, easy to read, and informative.

I had to fly my inner leadership dork flag, and this is that book choice. It’s more of a textbook for one, and it reads and is organized that way. But my god, the insights I gained were incredible. You may recognize this from my early DGUTS ThoughtLab work, and I continue to reference it. Highly recommend if you really want to understand concepts on an academic level.

Bestselling author Daniel Goleman first brought the concept of emotional intelligence (EI) to the forefront of business through his articles in Harvard Business Review, establishing EI as an indispensable trait for leaders. The Emotionally Intelligent Leader brings together three of Goleman's bestselling HBR articles.

New York Times best-selling author Patrick Lencioni unveils a truly groundbreaking new model that will change the way we think about work and teams forever.

The 6 Types of Working Genius is the fastest way to help people identify the type of work that brings them joy and energy, and avoid work that leads to frustration and burnout.

Are you tired of feeling fu*ked up? If you are, Gary John Bishop has the answer. In this straightforward handbook, he gives you the tools and advice you need to demolish the slag weighing you down and become the truly unfu*ked version of yourself. ''Wake up to the miracle you are,'' he directs. ''Here's what you've forgotten: You're a fu*king miracle of being.'' It isn't other people that are standing in your way, it isn't even your circumstances that are blocking your ability to thrive, it's yourself and the negative self-talk you keep telling yourself.

Sinek starts with a fundamental question: Why are some people and organizations more innovative, more influential, and more profitable than others? Why do some command greater loyalty from customers and employees alike? Even among the successful, why are so few able to repeat their success over and over?

People like Martin Luther King Jr., Steve Jobs, and the Wright Brothers had little in common, but they all started with WHY. They realized that people won't truly buy into a product, service, movement, or idea until they understand the WHY behind it.

In his work with organizations around the world, Simon Sinek noticed that some teams trust each other so deeply that they would literally put their lives on the line for each other. Other teams, no matter what incentives are offered, are doomed to infighting, fragmentation and failure. Why?

The answer became clear during a conversation with a Marine Corps general. "Officers eat last," he said. Sinek watched as the most junior Marines ate first while the most senior Marines took their place at the back of the line. What's symbolic in the chow hall is deadly serious on the battlefield: Great leaders sacrifice their own comfort--even their own survival--for the good of those in their care.

Thunder Below! is the incredible true story of the USS Barb and it’s adventures during WWII where their skipper, Admiral Eugene Fluckey and company were prolific in their prosecution of undersea warfare on multiple war patrols, Fluckey earning multiple Navy Cross’s and the Medal of Honor, and their even infiltrating main land Japan and - BLOWING UP A TRAIN. Must read.

Turn the Ship Around! is a true story about how the USS Santa Fe (SSN 763) from worst to first in the fleet by challenging the US Navy’s traditional leader-follower approach.