A Reading List for the Financial Professional, with a Twist

It’s the time of year when most advisors take time off, as their clients are also vacationing and harder to meet with. As the summer season gets underway, we have some suggested reading that can help you reinvigorate your creativity and refresh your perspective.

1. SAME AS EVER: A GUIDE TO WHAT NEVER CHANGES by Morgan Housel

This is the newest book from Morgan Housel, author of financial planning favorite “The Psychology of Money.” It makes the case that understanding unchanging principles, like the power of good decisions and delayed gratification, offers a better path forward than trying to predict the unpredictable future. He explores happiness through the lens of low expectations and then explores the forces that drive human behavior, including incentives and past experiences. Ultimately, the book emphasizes that understanding what doesn’t change is the key to navigating risk and living a fulfilling life.

2. TO SELL IS HUMAN: THE SURPRISING TRUTH ABOUT MOVING OTHERS by Daniel H. Pink

This practical tome, which became the material for Daniel H. Pink’s MasterClass, explores what makes for an effective pitch (hint: invite the other side in as a collaborator), why attunement works, and the importance of being clear on options and consequences. Everyone can benefit from becoming more skilled at persuasion. As Michael Kitces once said, “If you, as the planner, don't know how to ‘sell’ your clients on the value of you, the financial planning you offer, and motivate them to act on your recommendations, then you simply can't succeed as a financial planner.”

3. HIDDEN POTENTIAL: THE SCIENCE OF ACHIEVING GREATER THINGS by Adam Grant

Organizational psychologist Adam Grant argues in this book that success hinges on learned skills, such as proactivity and discipline, and not talent alone. He provides strategies and examples for developing these skills, and guidance for how leaders can help their teams do the same. For those in a time crunch, this Big Think video of Grant explaining the book’s basic concepts may be all you need to get inspiration.

4. THE HAPPINESS ADVANTAGE: THE SEVEN PRINCIPLES OF POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY THAT FUEL SUCCESS AND PERFORMANCE AT WORK by Shawn Achor

Shawn Achor, who spent years studying happiness at Harvard, explains in this book that happiness is not a byproduct of success. Instead, it is the key to achieving it. He details seven principles to cultivate a positive mindset, which research has shown to enhance motivation, creativity, and overall success. For example, one of the principles is “falling up,” or finding the best path out of failure by having the audacity to believe it exists. His TED talk on the happy secret to better work gives you a sense of his funny and engaging style.

5. GRIT: THE POWER OF PASSION AND PERSEVERANCE by Angela Duckworth

By now you’re probably familiar with “grit” as a concept, but if you haven’t read the eponymous book by Angela Duckworth, you’ll want to give it a chance. She draws on her research of West Point cadets, spelling bee champions, and CEOs to illustrate the qualities that propel high achievers. Through an unpacking of related concepts like growth mindset and learned optimism, she offers a practical framework for readers to cultivate their own grit. Her short TED talk on grit from 2013 may provide the motivation to dig into the rest of the author’s research.

6. LEADERS EAT LAST by Simon Sinek

With a title evoking a military tradition, this book explores the tenets of leadership and its impact on team dynamics. Speaker and author Simon Sinek contrasts successful teams with those doomed to fail, highlighting the importance of appointing leaders who prioritize the team's needs. The book offers actionable insight, illustrating concepts through real-world stories and scientific research. For those leading a team of Millennials, note that newer versions of the book have a section that lays out the differences in this generation and how companies can help them perform at their peak.

Like Our Book List? Try Our Summit!

There’s a common thread among these authors: Each one of them has spoken at an eMoney Summit. This is the year to discover why Kitces.com added Summit to its “Best Financial Advisor Conferences to Attend in 2024” list.

Sparking New Ideas

After reading our curated summer reading list, we encourage you to share your own book recommendations from the past year in the comments section for a collaborative learning experience. In the words of Victor Hugo, “To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is spelled out is a spark.”

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