100 Books?

About 10 years ago I set a personal goal to read 100 books every year. That’s right, two zeroes. I gave myself and average of 3.65 days to complete each book. And I’m not talking about the books I read to my children every night, although that is probably the most likely way that I’d reach my goal. I realize 100 books is a bit aggressive given my career and family responsibilities, but not impossible. For the record, over 10 years, I’ve never reached my goal, but I look forward to trying to reach that goal every year.?

It’s certainly therapeutic to be able to connect to someone else’s story. I value the learning I get from reading and capturing key messages and insights, and more importantly applying the concepts I learned. Maybe I thought I would have some grand enlightenment by doing so. Looking back, powering through 100 books a year doesn’t give you a chance to fully reflect and consider how to apply what you’ve learned. You end up merging stories and concepts. In the beginning I read maybe 10 books focused on stories from World War II, which were seemingly all connected.

And in the beginning, when I started on this journey, I tried to keep track of every book I read. I had a spreadsheet with notes and a Goodreads profile, along with ratings and comments and the like. It was all encompassing. But it was also unsustainable, given other commitments. I also realized that I just started reading them faster just to complete them, without maintaining comprehension or being able to apply any learnings to my actual life. What was the goal for? After a while, I began to slow down and select books based on a specific purpose. The purpose could be learning a new topic or skill, or it could be very simply, an interesting story.

I’ve abandoned my goal of 100 books and instead have chosen to be a lot more selective with my time and attention. This has allowed me to reflect more on what I am reading and connect certain themes, building a deeper understanding the content I am consuming. Each year, I pick a few of books from my list and share my own recommendation to my network. This is much easier than updating a spreadsheet or maintaining my Goodreads profile.

For these 4 in particular, there is also a personal connection for me (I personally know the author or the subject) and there are some common threads that these books offer, around resilience, persistence, and moving forward in the face of tragedy/crisis. After recently losing my mother and oldest brother in sudden fashion, and caring for another aging parent, these stories have helped me adjust my perspective and continue the healing process.

My Recommendations:

?Crisis is inevitable. Whether it is a personal loss or tragedy, a global pandemic, or a climbing accident, we all face situations that challenge our physical, emotional, and mental well-being. How do we cope with such adversity and emerge stronger and wiser? How can we lead ourselves and others through the darkest hours and find the light on the other side?

?These books share some common themes that can help us navigate through crisis and transform ourselves and our organizations for the better. Here are some of them:

1)??? The Prepared Leader: Emerge from Any Crisis More Resilient Than Before by Erika H. James and Lynn Perry Wooten?

Before Erika James became the Dean of the Wharton school, she was one of the many amazing professors at the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia where I attended b-school. It’s always great to learn about her extensive work in crisis leadership, especially as we continue to face challenging times.

### Prepare for the unexpected

Crisis can happen at any time, often without any warning. We can’t control what happens to us, but we can control how we respond to it. The Prepared Leader argues that the time to prepare for crisis is always. The authors, who are both history-making experts in crisis leadership, provide a roadmap for leaders to develop the skills, mindsets, and behaviors that enable them to handle any crisis effectively. They outline the five phases of crisis management: 1) Early warning and signal detection, 2) preparation and prevention, 3) damage containment, 4) recovery, and 5) learning and reflection. Along with those five phases, they share a list of the important skills needed to manage crisis. They also share tools and frameworks for making the right decisions under pressure, building a crisis leadership team, and applying the lessons learned to future challenges.?

2)??? The Self-Aware Leader: A Proven Model for Reinventing Yourself by Dan Gallagher and Joseph Costal?

I had a chance to get to know Dan Gallagher (www.gallagherleadership.com) during my time at Comcast NBCUniversal. Dan is a leadership expert and has personally helped mentor me, and many others in our own leadership journeys. He’s always been authentic and willing to provide his expertise to anyone who knows him.

In his book, the Self-Aware Leader, Dan emphasizes the importance of preparation, especially in terms of self-awareness. He offers a proven model for reinventing yourself as a leader along four pillars: 1) an above average network and support system, 2) a proficiency in critical and systems thinking, 3) a savvy perspective of political landscape, and a 4) courageous drive for magis (more for the good of others). He also provides “practical application”, the actual “how to” for these pillars. Highly recommended read.

3)??? The Other Side of Yet: Finding Light in the Midst of Darkness by Michelle Hord

I had the pleasure of getting to know Michelle during my time at Comcast NBCUniversal when she led Recruiting for NBC and partnered closely with our Diversity and University Relations recruiting teams. I was always in awe of her experience in TV entertainment, and I remember specifically her kindness to me and everyone who worked with her. While I own both the hardcover and the audiobook version of her book, I encourage you to buy the audio version so that you can hear her tell her personal story in her own voice, to truly grasp what she has gone through during such a difficult time.

### Find meaning and purpose

Crisis, tragedy, loss, can shatter our sense of identity, security, and belonging and can make us question our own values, our own purpose. How can we find meaning and direction in the midst of chaos and uncertainty, especially after a life altering event? The Other Side of Yet is Michelle’s memoir of grief, when she lost her daughter in a most tragic way and her journey from darkness and devastation to light and hope.

In “The Other Side of Yet”, Michelle also offers a compassionate blueprint for anyone who is facing emotional crossroads or unexpected crisis. She shows how we can create a life of purpose, passion, and possibility regardless of what is thrown at us.

Michelle created Gabrielle’s Wings (Gabrielle's Wings (gabrielleswings.org)) in honor of her daughter, a non-profit organization “dedicated to giving elementary-aged children of color in systemically vulnerable communities the kind of experiences, access, programs, and exposure that Gabrielle had during her short life.”

4)??? Hidden Mountains: Survival and Reckoning After a Climb Gone Wrong by Michael Wejchert

I met Emmett Lyman while in business school at the University of Virginia. Emmet was always one of the friendliest people I remember, but also one of the brightest amongst some of the brightest minds. I didn’t know at the time that he was a climber, but I knew he was very much into the outdoors. This story is about Emmet and his climbing partners, the tragedy that changed Emmet’s life forever and the time that comes after such a harrowing accident. The author recounts the harrowing rescue attempt that followed the tragic accident that left Emmet severely injured and changed their lives forever. He explores the physical and emotional cost of living through such a nightmare scenario and living with himself after. He examines how his friendship with his climbing partners was affected by the trauma and how he struggled to find closure and healing. He also reflects on what motivated him to climb in the first place and what he learned from his experience. Such a powerful read.

Crisis can test our character, integrity, and values individuals and as leaders. It can also reveal a lot about who we are, and who we have potential to be. It can test our relationships, our resilience and our purpose. I have found that these reads for me have helped me think about ways to move past the crises in my own life, and become more resilient and impactful every day.

Enjoy!