Time management, technology and business are some of the themes of the books that four Financial Times journalists have chosen to indicate to readers next year.
In “Leading in a non-linear world”, it addresses which values open organizations consider important, and in “Happiest time”, it is possible to discover strategies to organize obligations and make better use of time. See the full list.
Leading in a Non-Linear World: Building Wellbeing, Strategic and Innovation Mindsets for the Future [Liderar em um mundo não linear: construir bem-estar, mentalidades estratégicas e inovadoras para o futuro]
by Jean Gomes
One only needs to look at the past year to understand how unpredictable the world can be. The only things that are certain are, ironically, constant uncertainty and complexity, so we need new ways of understanding and thinking about the challenges we encounter, whether personal, at work or in society.
In an era of rapid transformation, mental inflexibility can leave us with beliefs, values and opinions that are not aligned with new realities. Here, Jean Gomes examines the fascinating range of inner resources of our minds and bodies that can improve our health and performance in complex times – and how organizations can encourage and leverage them too.
Gomes provides a practical manual with the analysis of our mentality and the means to expand and strengthen it. Drawing on exciting discoveries in neuroscience, experimental psychology, and physiology, the book offers experience for taking control in the face of unprecedented situations.
Our mindsets, both individual and collective, are not fixed and can be adjusted and evolved, so the author offers some effective ways to unlock them and presents science-based strategies for dealing with disruption. From a team or organizational perspective, for example, the “Future Now” chapter details how to shift to a long-term business strategy with the aim of “breaking the assumption that the short term is our only option.”
Meanwhile, the chapter on the “experimental mindset” describes how we can improve by failing “if we accept that failure is an inevitable consequence of good experimentation.”
“The Open Mindset” highlights that open organizations encourage values such as transparency, learning, creativity, community, and collective creation. Google, for example, has researched what makes a great team. Gomes says the technology group found that who was on the team was a less important variable than how team members interacted. “By far the most significant factor they found was the influence of psychological safety.”
Happier Hour: How to Spend Your Time for a Better, More Meaningful Life [Hora mais feliz: como usar seu tempo para ter uma vida melhor e mais significativa]
by Cassie Holmes
“I have no time!”
In fact, this book by a professor of marketing and behavioral decision-making at the University of California, Los Angeles shows that, indeed, you do. Everyone seems to be short on time these days, especially working parents, but surprisingly small changes can help you regain some control and subsequently feel happier at work and in life.
The author, who teaches Applying the Science of Happiness to Life Design for master’s students, says that when it comes to lack of time, “perception is everything”, and brings her personal experiences, others and a lot of research to support. -there.
When analyzing data, Cassie Holmes found that people with very little time are significantly less happy and less satisfied with their lives. Meanwhile, having more than five hours of free time a day is also linked to less happiness, in part because it undermines a person’s sense of purpose.
Holmes found that people can begin to feel much happier if they set aside just two hours to do the things that are important to them, a goal she felt was within reach as she struggled to be a scholar, mother, and wife.
From this, Holmes also deduced that it is far more important how we spend the time we have than just how much. Take exercise as an example. Many can relate to giving up physical activity when life seems too busy – including the author: “Studies show that time stress makes people exercise less overall, and this has a direct negative effect on physical well-being and emotional,” writes Holmes.
But if you feel like you don’t have time, do it anyway. The author describes how her time demands were the same as usual, but she took control, got up 30 minutes early and went for a run. The result? She felt in control and her day started out less hectic.
The book has lots of hands-on exercises to get you started to buy time for the things you really want to do. This includes tracking your time and guidance on how to analyze what you’ve learned from it, what makes you happiest… and what doesn’t.
In general, Holmes urges readers to weigh “importance over urgency” and argues for a long-term view. “Thinking in terms of years can be vital in informing how to spend your hours,” she writes. “That is, thinking about life as a whole highlights your values, which can guide better immediate decisions about how to use your time.”
Tomorrowmind: Thriving at Work with Resilience, Creativity, and Connection – Now and in an Uncertain Future [A mente do amanhã: prosperando no trabalho com resiliência, criatividade e conexão – hoje e num futuro incerto]
by Gabriella Rosen Kellerman and Martin Seligman
Many business books examine changes affecting the workplace and what the future of work will mean for business. Here, two writers with backgrounds in psychology and psychiatry set out to address the impact of these changes on people, offering advice on how individuals can thrive in an increasingly technology-oriented, upside-down work world.
The “tomorrow mind” in the title describes an ideal mindset type: simply put, one where you can best prepare for change, react to setbacks, and reach your full potential, whatever the transformations in the workplace.
Gabriella Rosen Kellerman, director of innovation at coaching platform BetterUp, co-wrote the book with psychologist and founder of positive psychology Martin Seligman. They’re based on her experience and combined results from BetterUp’s research, which includes data from “hundreds of thousands of workers in all industries around the world” about what it takes to succeed in the workplace.
By looking at the evolution of work through the lens of behavioral science, Kellerman and Seligman study how historical changes in work, such as the shift from agriculture to industrialization, have affected humans and the brain.
More recently, how the rapid growth of technology-based work has created problems for workers, from job insecurity and social isolation to stress and burnout. The authors single out individuals who have managed to adapt and overcome these challenges. They also look at the organizations themselves and why some are better than others at enabling employees to thrive.
But most importantly, the book puts the focus on the individual and offers guidance on how to develop a “tomorrow mind,” which is broken down into five critical skills: Foresight, Resilience, Innovation, Social Connectivity, and Importance.
The authors’ goal is to help people thrive at work in the face of psychological pressures, amidst an ever-accelerating pace of change. “Tomorrowmind” argues that while this shift is inevitable, mindset is everything.
Break the Rules! The six counter-conventional mindsets of entrepreneurs that can help anyone change the world [Quebrem as regras! As seis mentalidades anticonvencionais de empreendedores que podem ajudar qualquer pessoa a mudar o mundo]
by John Mullins
There is a group of high-profile businessmen who wear their lack of formal education as a badge of honor: Bill Gates, a university dropout, Sir Richard Branson, a school dropout aged 16, to name just two. But John Mullins, a professor at the London Business School, provides written proof that academia can teach something of practical value to today’s generation of aspiring filmmakers and creators.
This book is the latest in a series of highly praised Mullins titles, combining a researcher’s interest in case studies with a founder’s stance that conventional thinking on issues such as forming a business plan and obtaining financing is probably flawed.
“Break the Rules” builds on that theme, challenging half a dozen commonly held views about the best way to succeed in business. Chapters are presented as lectures, with key learning points, real-life examples, and closing comments to distill the points made.
Mullins has personally taught this type of teaching to MBA students at LBS and mentored startups through leadership programs like the Young Presidents’ Organization for many years. And it shows in his writing. He’s also got experience in the game, as they say, having founded three startups, which gives this easy-to-read 210-page book a higher degree of authority than some other self-help texts for entrepreneurs.
Translated by Luiz Roberto M. Gonçalves
I have over 10 years of experience working in the news industry. I have worked for several different news organizations, including a large news website like News Bulletin 247. I am an expert in the field of economics and have written several books on the subject. I am a highly skilled writer and editor, and have a strong knowledge of social media. I am a highly respected member of the news industry, and my work has been featured in many major publications.
