Now that we’re approaching a time where we can (luckily) have more time to read and think, I wanted to share with you the three books that have inspired me the most this year.
David Epstein is one of my favorite authors. I love how he’s able to transmit simple ideas on complex topics and he always does it full of scientific rigor and with multiple examples from various disciplines.
In RANGE, the author of The Sports Gene shares how in most professional fields, generalist profiles triumph over the specialized ones. Or, in his own words, there are many more “Roger Federer” (people who tried out many disciplines before choosing the one that would make them succeed) than “Tiger Woods” (people who specialized early and focused just on one field). Some examples of famous generalists were Charles Darwin, Duke Ellington, Maryam Mirzakhani, and Vincent Van Gogh, and all of them reached fame after trying out several disciplines.
Some of my favorite quotes:
“Highly credentialed experts can become so narrow-minded that they actually get worse with experience, even while becoming more confident -a dangerous combination.”
It takes time -and often forgoing a head start- to develop personal and professional range, but it is worth it.
“It is difficult to accept that the best learning road is slow, and that doing poorly now is essential for better performance later.”
Although published in 2020, this book is an updated edition of the classic from 1992, in which Jim Collins pays tribute to his mentor and co-author, the late Bill Lazier.
B.E. 2.0 is not just a business book that has helped thousands of people build and grow their companies. It is also a book about life and how people can inspire you to do great things. In an original format, the book has two types of pages: the dark color ones with information from the original book, and the light color ones, in which Collins highlights his current view on the given topic.
Some of my favorite quotes:
“There is no shortage of good ideas: there is only a lack of receptivity to ideas.”
“The basic message is to hire good people, create the environment for them to work, and get out of their way.”
“The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function.”
And last, but not least, my favorite book of the year. I bought it out of curiosity and it has been a very positive surprise.
Michael Platt is a Neuroscience professor at several universities and in his book he shares insights from his research studies conducted with animals, and some with people, and how they help us develop our abilities.
Platt speaks about the “social brain”, and how by developing it we can interact better with other people. And he does so by sharing multiple studies and practical examples that we can try as we read the book.
Some of my favorite quotes:
“The more power (real or perceived) you have, the less attention you pay to others, especially those of lower status”
“Employees who received gratitude from their managers subsequently worked harder and were more productive”
“With access to just three “likes” of music on Facebook, a marketing expert can accurately predict personality types along five major dimensions. If you liked 10 pieces of music, they could make that prediction better than your coworker could. And with 300 likes, they could predict your personality better than your spouse”.
These have been my three favorite books of the year. What are yours? What was your favorite book? Thanks for sharing it in the comments section. below!
Have a great holiday,
Pedro
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