[Book review]: Triggers by Marshall Goldsmith

Triggers is a book that actually triggers your thinking toward a new dimension of approaching a goal.

The gist is very simple and straightforward
"Many times we fail because we are too much goal or target oriented, but that can be over come by changing the focus to effort"
Changing the question from "was I happy today?"to "did I put my maximum effort to be happy today?"
Such type of approach can be applied to many aspects of professional and personal life.
The author gives numerous practical suggestions and illustrations on how this approach works.
The concept of daily questions elaborated in the book are a great way to change behaviour and make it permanent. After reading about it, I already have daily questions now. I don't see any reason why anyone will not have a similar daily questions once they finish reading this book.

Why you have to read this book ?

• If you are struggling to start a new habit or maintain it, this is the best book on the shelf.
• An intense depth is provided on psychological aspect of behaviour change with practical illustrations.
• Anyone can read this book even those who doesn't want behavioural change. You might find something which needs to be changed once you start reading this book.

[Book review]: Austin Kleon's Steal like an artist: 10 things nobody told you baout being creative

Good artists copy; great artists steal *
Steve Jobs has quoted the above quote but again it might have been Picasso who has originally quoted it. 
Yeah great artists steal and make it unique. 
That uniqueness may be in modification, improvisation, combination and/ or just marketing it rightly.
"Austin Kleon's Steal like an artist: 10 things nobody told you about being creative" gives you general ideas on how and what to steal. Being a book on stealing, I am pretty sure most of the stuff are stolen. But what makes it a great book is the way it is presented. *

The book has several tips on how to be creative. Two things that got my attention.

Shun digital and use digits
Using hands and real movements to be creative.
Well, I had heard it somewhere.
May be Mastery by Robert Greene.

Real creativity isn't immediately recognized
If you are creative, initially people think you are mad.
The importance of your creative work will be only realised later.
May be sometimes it takes a lifetime.
Just get into the flow and be creative; sooner or later it will be recognised.
The philosophical point of the long latent period of creativity recognition seems to be from Osho's Creativity: unleashing the forces within.


I am not suggesting that above two are stolen from that book. But they could be stolen from a book that has stolen from this book.
But never mind "Austin Kleon's Steal like an artist: 10 things nobody told you about being creative" book is a must read as he has stolen only the gems.

A must my read: why ?
A small book: an entire lunch break can be sufficient for a fast reader.
Big takeaways: practical lessons like maintaining a scratch pad for jotting the ideas.

[Book review]: Mossad: The great operations of Isreal's secret service

Mossad: The great operation of Isreal's secret service 
So what should I call this book? A thriller roller coaster ride. The perfect and genuine description of the world's most ferocious intelligence agency. The author provides a neutral and gripping narrative of the accounts.
Many successes intermingled with some albeit serious failures of the Mossad has been elegantly converted into a book. Start reading and I would bet that you don't need to watch some spy action thrillers for days. Every chapter in the book is an episode of some action thriller series. The narrative and the incidents; both are elegant and make this book a must read for all the undercover bookworms ;) Go read it and be a witness to the action that unfolds just in front of your eyes; world's most successful and ferocious yet fascinating intelligence agency's story.
A bit idea about the geopolitical issue pertaining to Isreal and surrounding Arab countries is essential. If not just read about them as you go or else you will be bit tad lost in the details.

[Book review]: The art of persuasion: winning without intimidation

"Respond don't react" 

The above quote is quoted ubiquitously but how to respond is not illustrated as much as the quote.

This Bob Burg's book gives us a lot of practical examples on how to respond to situations with other known or anonymous individuals. The author's understanding of the issue is so clear cut that he sometimes use the technique mentioned on readers too.
The only drawback of this awesome book is the feeling of redundancy of some topics. But a cup of coffee will certainly get past those hiccups. It's a must read for all those who are short tempered and tend to lose or gain nothing from other people because of their negative traits. If you aren't that type, then chill back and read to enhance the quality of your interactions.
The real life examples are nice but may not be applicable to all culture. So, take the advice with a pinch of salt in case you start applying the techniques en block.
The book is worth a read and I would like my readers not to react by just reading this, but to respond by buying and reading this book. Ah! I have acquired quite a bit of persuasion from this book.

[Book review]: Hooked: How to build habit forming products

"Behaviors done with little or no conscious thought "
The above is the definition of habit and this book describes how to recreate them in customers.
Nir Eyal's "Hooked" is a must read for those who are working on products that have the potential to make an impact on masses.
The detailed strategies used by the companies that are habit forming are clearly mentioned.
The book can be read with two main objectives
- Learn about how to build habit forming products
- Know the psychology behind habit forming products and try to avoid the trap
The remember and share section combined with do this now section will give a lot of headway into applying the concepts practically.
I tried to follow one of them and saw 4-5 people mindlessly juggling through Facebook stream. But at the end of the day, I was also doing the same sometime. But now that I am aware of it, probably will be reducing/stopping that mindless act soon. Well I have reached one of the objective, go ahead and read to fulfill your objectives.

[Book review] Deep work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World

"I'll live the focused life, it's the best kind there is"
Winifred Gallagher
Cal Newport in his book "Deep work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World" repeats this line both in the introduction and at the end. The only question that follows is whether you agree on it or not. Yes, if you read his book "Deep work", you are more likely to agree.
I had shared earlier the author's TEDx video where he urges the audience to disregard social media in this connected world. If you begin to read this book, you'll soon begin to realize how much depth this man has been into work.
Why read this book?
No shallow things, no exaggeration, thoroughly researched and elegantly presented. The book is a treat for those who are ready to jump into the depth.
Not at all for the distracted souls 
Not for those social media junkies out there. It will definitely seem like a boring intellectual dull research paper for you. I would suggest you to change your mindset before you dare to go through this book. Yeah!!! Reading this book requires a bit of depth in your concentration
My favorites from the book
The deep work and its benefits
Pros of social media quitting
The psychology of doing productive work

[Book Review]: Don Norman: The design of everyday things

Some books change the way you think. Very rarely you find a book that causes a paradigm shift in your thinking.

Ever blamed yourself for switching on the wrong button for the light; no need to blame or degrade yourself. It is a designer's fault indeed. Go and read this awesome book to find out more about everyday things that we use and a new perspective about them. Happy reading !!!

Don Norman's The design of everyday things books changes the way you look and think about everyday used things. The design insight he provides is deep.

The importance of design is nicely illustrated with real world examples. If you are working on product design or associated with any part of the product design; then this book is a must read for you. If you are not involved in any design innovation; still you can savor this book.

[Book review] Sprint: Solve Big Problems and Test New Ideas In Just Five days

A must read for all the entrepreneurs. Well, it's an understatement. It's a must read for all who deals with products in any manner.
Sprint: Solve Big Problems and Test New Ideas In Just Five days.  The book can change the way you look at product development.

Listening to the customers
The main gist of Sprint process is listening to the customers early in the product development. The book has many practical ideas and illustrations on how to do that. I was impressed by the story of listening by Airbnb co-founders.
Ideation and creating a prototype
This forms the basis of the Sprint process. The step-by-step guide on how to do it and how much time to allocate for each process is well outlined. Identifying the problems by breaking the process into smaller units is well illustrated with real world examples.
Interviewing the customer
Obtaining feedback for the prototype by interviewing the customers will be the most important process that many often ignore. I like the way the process is illustrated and the interviewing tips are also relevant to real world scenario.
And I didn't find any negatives at all with this book, do comment here if you find one.
P.S: You may not be the target audience if you feel like you have wasted your time on this book. Go buy this book and it will be worth it ...

[Book review] The power of the other; The startling effect other people have on you ...

"Freedom is not about how much free willed you are in your actions;  it's also the responsibility that you have to take for your actions"

The above line is a paradox for this book's title as the book is more about power of others. And yes, although the "power of others" cannot be overlooked; the responsibility of one's own action is also important. The book is a nice guide on how to manage "power of others" so that you become responsible to how you chose to use "power of others"

"The power of the other; The startling effect other people have on you, from the boardroom to the bedroom and beyond - and what to do about it."

The title as you see seems long and boring; but Dr Henry with his vast academic and practical acumen has done it the exact opposite, crisp and exciting read.
To summarize, the author concludes that the power of others fall into four categories or corners

• Corner 1 where you feel lonely
• Corner 2 where you feel low
• Corner 3 where you are on a false high and the collapse is unavoidable
• Corner 4 where you are really high 

Read on the book "The power of the other" to know more details about these corners. The author's own experiences are presented systematically. Lots of real life examples about each corners and how to move to corner 4 for optimum performance.
The book is a must read for all those who are bogged down in your relationships; professional or personal. Why not make use of one of the finest leadership/relationship's consultants advice and gain the maximum out of it. Go ahead and read it.

[Book Review] Go suck a lemon: Strategies to improve your emotional intelligence

"It will take a force of will to do that"

The book begins with and ends with this statement. Right emphasis though because it takes a force of will to improve our emotional intelligence.
Michael Cornwall nails it perfectly in this book about how to handle emotions. The strategies described can be easily adopted in our lifestyle. The real life counseling conversations provides a great value to the readers.
I would say it a must read; buy it on amazon and become the Sherlock and investigate and alter your emotions at the core.

• Nice book describing how to analyze and control your emotions
• Various practical tips that are extremely helpful in real life
• A must read for all who are struggling with emotions that is affecting their wellbeing.

5 things Kane and Abel novel will teach us about life

Jeffrey Archer's Kane and Abel, a thrilling story of two men born in different parts of the world only to comfort each other to save each other and finally destroy each other. The tale had many lessons for our life. Here are the five important of them.

Prisons inside mind are much more dangerous and difficult to deal
Abel comes out of many prisons in his life time including a concentration camp but fails to come out of the prison inside his mind until the end. The moral is simple here, physical prisons are much easier to overcome than the imaginary ones. 

Never burn bridges 
I always think of this quote "Never burn bridges, you will never know how many times you have to cross the same". The story gives ample fodder for these lines as the two proponents in the story save each other and finally destroy each other unknowing of the earlier deeds.

Move with a direction and you will achieve it 
The story of the Polish immigrant becoming successful by working with conviction makes a splendid story for moving with an intent until we achieve our goals.

Never assume things
The actions we take on others should not be based on assumptions. The assumptions made by the two protagonists in the story fuels the hatred till the end.

Hard work interposed with smartness creates opportunities 
The story of Polish immigrant becoming successful with working hard and also with a strategy suggests the importance of smartness along with hard work for being successful.