The Awesome Story of Chilly Fall Nights, Books, Entrepreneurs & Red Wine!

Time to ThugStart — If You Begin, You Win.

Entrepreneurs it’s still too early to start really bundling up and hunkering down, but chilly fall nights are coming, and nothing is better than a good book when you want to lay low. As you make your hibernation preparations, there are definitely some you should stock up on now so they’re ready when you need them.

Just like summer usually means you want a “beach read” or something light to enjoy on a hot day, autumn’s a time to break out what I’ll call The Red Wine Books — but all that means is that you can devour them with a glass of red wine (or curled up in bed with a glass of red wine) instead of on the beach with a margarita. Seasons change, but a good read is always just a good read.

1. O Great One!: A Little Story about the Awesome Power of Recognition

Jeff took a deep breath to calm down. He was about to stand in front of the employees of the Happy Face Toy Company’s faltering Cleveland factory. As the new CEO, he d been advised to close this factory as soon as possible, but he wanted to see it first. “How hard could this be?” he wondered, gathering the courage to ask them about their jobs.

He had no idea what he was in for.

When was the last time you told your colleagues how much you value them? It sounds like a trivial thing in the middle of a busy work day. But as David Novak discovered during his years as a hard charging executive, there’s nothing trivial about recognition. It can make a life-or-death difference to any organization, when people see that someone important really notices and appreciates their contributions.

Rather than explain the power of recognition in a typical business book, Novak decided to write a fun story that draws on his real-world experiences at Pepsi and Yum! Brands, as well as his personal life.

The story opens when Jeff Johnson becomes the third-generation CEO of his family business, after the sudden death of his father. The Happy Face Toy Company had many hits in the 1950s and 60s, including Crazy Paste, but its results have been declining for more than a decade. The board has given Jeff just one year to turn the business around, or else they’ll have to sell it to the highest bidder.

As Jeff races to save his family’s legacy by getting the company back on track, he meets downtrodden factory workers and an uninspired executive team. Then a birthday gift from his own grandson gives Jeff an important insight into why Happy Face lost its old culture of innovation and excitement, along with its profitability. Jeff comes up with an idea that seems crazy. But is it crazy enough to work?

Whether you’re trying to lead a small department, a Fortune 500 company, a non-profit, or your own family, the lessons at the heart of O Great One! can help you make everyone around you happier and more effective.

2. Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance

In Angela Duckworth’s view, the adage that only practice makes perfect is not only true; it is inexorable. Indeed, the secret to achievement is not talent or genius, says Duckworth, but pure persistence, what she calls “grit.” Through interviews with some of the world’s highest achievers to historical anecdotes to insights gleaned from modern experiments in peak performance,

Duckworth reveals that the ability to persevere is perhaps the greatest talent of all.

Angela Duckworth has written a book that teaches us all how to maximize our talent and, perhaps, make the world a little happier place to live in the process.

3. Forty Chances: Finding Hope in a Hungry World

With a foreword by Warren Buffett, “40 Chances” is an “inspiring manifesto…both an informative guidebook and a catalyst for igniting real changes” in the struggle against world hunger.

If someone granted you $3 billion to accomplish something great in the world, what would you do? In 2006, legendary investor Warren Buffett posed this challenge to his son Howard G. Buffett. Howard set out to help the most vulnerable people on earth — nearly a billion individuals who lack basic food security. And Howard gave himself a deadline: forty years to put the resources to work on this challenge.

“40 Chances: Finding Hope in a Hungry World” captures Howard’s journey. Beginning with his love for farming, we join him around the world as he seeks out new approaches to ease the suffering of so many. Each of the forty stories here provides a compelling look at the lessons Howard learned, ranging from his own backyard to some of the most difficult and dangerous places on Earth. But this message goes beyond the pages of this book, it’s also a mindset: a way of thinking that speaks to every person wanting to make a difference. It’s about reasons to hope and actions we can take. “40 Chances” “recounts Howard’s personal and professional experiences in surprisingly candid and colorful fashion…successfully blending personal stories with a tough look at the struggle to fight domestic food scarcity and world hunger…A satisfying read” (“Publishers Weekly”) that provides inspiration to transform each of our limited chances into opportunities to change the world.

4. The Energy Bus: 10 Rules to Fuel Your Life, Work, and Team with Positive Energy

The Energy Bus, an international best seller by Jon Gordon, takes readers on an enlightening and inspiring ride that reveals 10 secrets for approaching life and work with the kind of positive, forward thinking that leads to true accomplishment — at work and at home. Jon infuses this engaging story with keen insights as he provides a powerful roadmap to overcome adversity and bring out the best in yourself and your team. When you get on The Energy Bus you’ll enjoy the ride of your life!

5. Drive: The Surprising Truth about What Motivates Us

Most people believe that the best way to motivate is with rewards like money the carrot-and-stick approach. That’s a mistake, says Daniel H. Pink (author of To Sell Is Human: The Surprising Truth About Motivating Others). In this provocative and persuasive new book, he asserts that the secret to high performance and satisfaction-at work, at school, and at home is the deeply human need to direct our own lives, to learn and create new things, and to do better by ourselves and our world.

Drawing on four decades of scientific research on human motivation, Pink exposes the mismatch between what science knows and what business does and how that affects every aspect of life. He examines the three elements of true motivation autonomy, mastery, and purpose-and offers smart and surprising techniques for putting these into action in a unique book that will change how we think and transform how we live.”

6. Grit to Great: How Perseverance, Passion, and Pluck Take You from Ordinary to Extraordinary

In Grit to Great, Linda Kaplan Thaler and Robin Koval tackle a topic that is close to their hearts, one that they feel is the real secret to their own success in their careers — and in the careers of so many people they know and have met.

And that is the incredible power of grit, perseverance, perspiration, determination, and sheer stick-to-it-tiveness. We are all dazzled by the notion that there are somepeople who get ahead, who reach the corner office because they are simply gifted, or well-connected, or both. But research shows that we far overvalue talent and intellectual ability in our culture.

The fact is, so many people get ahead — even the gifted ones — because they worked incredibly hard, put in the thousands of hours of practice and extra sweat equity, and made their own luck. And Linda and Robin should know — they are two girls from the Bronx who had no special advantages or privileges and rose up through their own hard work and relentless drive to succeed to the top of their highly competitive profession.

In a book illustrated with a cornucopia of stories and the latest research on success, the authors reveal the strategies that helped them, and countless others, succeed at the highest levels in their careers and professions, and in their personal lives. They talk about the guts — the courage — necessary to take on tough challenges and not give up at the first sign of difficulty. They discuss the essential quality of resiliency. Everyone suffers setbacks in their careers and in life. The key, however, is to pick yourself up and bounce back. Drawing on the latest research in positive psychology, they discuss why optimists do better in school, work, and on the playing field — and how to reset that optimistic set point.

They talk about industriousness, the notion that Malcolm Gladwell popularized with the 10,000-hour rule in his book Outliers. Creativity theorist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi believes it takes a minimum of 10 years for one’s true creative potential to be realized. And the authors explore the concept of tenacity — the quality that allows us to remain focused and avoid distraction in order to get the job done — an increasingly difficult task in today’s fragmented, cluttered, high-tech, connected world.

Written in the same short, concise format as The Power of Nice and leavened with the natural humor that characterizes Linda’s and Robin’s lives — and books — Grit to Great is destined to be the book everyone in business needs.

7. BALLS: It Takes Some to Get Some

Changing your gender from female to male takes balls. And if you’re going to do it in front of five hundred coworkers at the largest ad agency in Boston, you’d better have a pretty big set!

At a time when the term transgender didn’t exist, and with support from family, friends, and a great therapist, Chris Edwards endured 28 surgeries to become the person he always knew he was meant to be. He used the principles of marketing along with his ever-present sense of humor to rebrand himself and orchestrate what was quite possibly the most widely accepted and embraced gender transition of its kind. He’s a pioneer who changed the perception of an entire community, and his memoir, BALLS, will touch readers’ hearts and change quite a few minds.

Edwards is funny, brazen, and endearing, and BALLS is a hilarious and inspiring story about family, friends, and the courage to be your true self. It boldly and fearlessly goes where other trans memoirs don’t. If you’ve ever felt uncomfortable in your own skin–for whatever reason–you will be inspired and empowered by this book.

8. The Confidence Effect: Every Woman’s Guide to the Attitude That Attracts Success

Every day, talented, hardworking women are passed over for promotions. While it’s easy to blame a corporate culture that favors men, seasoned executive Grace Killelea identifies another culprit: a surprising disparity in confidence. Men are prone to overestimate their abilities, while women too often sell themselves short.

The Confidence Effect helps women speak out, take risks, and assume leadership positions with assurance. The book moves beyond research and statistics to focus on what’s really important: how women can become more confident, one step at a time.

Practical strategies show how to turn job competency into the kind of authentic confidence that gets noticed. Women learn to practice the Four Rs of Success — relationships, reputation, results, and resilience — dipping in for tips and tools on how to:

Build circles of influence — Seize opportunities they normally avoid — Leverage and promote their skills — Cultivate executive presence — Use data compellingly — Bounce back from setbacks — And more

With this powerful new book, women everywhere will find the confidence they need to step off the sidelines onto the playing field — and claim the success they deserve.

9. Rock Bottom to Rock Star: Lessons from the Business School of Hard Knocks

Can you remember that one time you got recognized or someone thanked you for your contribution to their life? You were a rock star, even for just one second. This book isn’t about a charmed path to success or some untouchable fairy tale that nobody can relate to-this is about going from rock bottom to rock star, something that everybody can relate to.

In his first book, Blair shared the brutally honest story of how he went from an at-risk youth, sleeping on a mattress on the floor of a shack, to a self-made multimillionaire by his early twenties. As his story became a national sensation, fans started asking him how they too could become entrepreneurs, take their careers to the next level, and achieve financial freedom. Rock Bottom to Rock Star answers those questions.

Blair has battled extreme obstacles: life as a former gang member, balancing a demanding career with single parenthood, building and selling multiple companies, and making and losing tens of millions of dollars (sometimes all in one day). He wants to help others avoid the mistakes he made in the school of hard knocks, so he has compiled his unique advice for going from rock bottom to rock star in whatever field you chose to pursue.

Much of his advice is counterintuitive, and definitely not what you would learn in business school. Here’s one example:

“Don’t believe your own hype. The moment you start celebrating, you’ve left the stage. It wasn’t celebration that made you a rock star. It was hard work.”If you’re serious about making the most of your life and you’re ready to become the “rock star next door” instead of just looking up to them, this may be the most rewarding book you’ll ever read.

10. The Universe Has Your Back: Transform Fear to Faith

This one is the #1 New York Times Bestseller!

In her latest book, The Universe Has Your Back, New York Times best-selling author Gabrielle Bernstein teaches readers how to transform their fear into faith in order to live a divinely guided life. Each story and lesson in the book guides readers to release the blocks to what they most long for: happiness, security, and clear direction. The lessons help readers relinquish the need to control so they can relax into a sense of certainty and freedom. Readers will learn to stop chasing life and truly_live._

Making the shift from fear to faith will give readers a sense of power in a world that all too often makes them feel utterly powerless. When the tragedies of the world seem overwhelming, this book will help guide them back to their true power.

Gabrielle says, “My commitment with this book is to wake up as many people as possible to their connection to faith and joy. In that connection, we can be guided to our true purpose: to be love and spread love. These words can no longer be cute buzz phrases that we merely post on social media. Rather, these words must be our mission. The happiness, safety, and security we long for lies in our commitment to love.”

When readers follow this path, they’ll begin to feel a swell of energy move through them. They will find strength when they are down, synchronicity and support when they re lost, safety in the face of uncertainty, and joy when they are otherwise in pain. Follow the secrets revealed in this book to unleash the presence of your power and know always that The Universe Has Your Back.

This season, there are lots of great new releases no matter what you’re into. There are some heady literary novels to start, biographies, dark memoirs, murder mysteries — pretty much anything you can imagine. Go out and enjoy the Awesome Story of Chilly Fall Nights, Books, Entrepreneurs & Red Wine!

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