The World's Best Book Summaries
What is gamification? What are some examples of gamification in the workplace? Gamification is the practice of using gaming elements such as scores, leaderboards, and achievement badges to make work more engaging. In their book The 4 Disciplines of Execution, Chris McChesney, Jim Huling, and Sean Covey suggest using a scoreboard to gamify workplace dynamics and improve team engagement. Here’s how to use gamification in the workplace.
Do you often write for business? What are some things to keep in mind when writing a professional e-mail, memo, or report? If you want to improve your business writing skills, the number one thing to keep in mind is simplicity. And don’t be afraid to add some personality rather than sounding like a robot. Here are some tips on how to improve your business writing.
How often have you or your organization come up with an amazing plan, showed it off, admired it, been sure that it’s the solution to all your problems—only to have it die a slow death over the following months? In hindsight, what do you think prevented you from putting your plan into motion? In their book The 4 Disciplines of Execution, Chris McChesney, Jim Huling, and Sean Covey say this isn’t uncommon, because strategy (making the perfect plan) is much easier than execution (actually carrying out your plan). McChesney, Huling, and Covey’s system—or 4 Disciplines—addresses this challenge with a framework
Do you hold accountability meetings with your employees? How often do you meet, and what do you discuss? In The 4 Disciplines of Execution, Chris McChesney, Jim Huling, and Sean Covey recommend holding a weekly accountability meeting—what they call a WIG (Wildly Important Goal) session. At each WIG session, team members will report what they’ve accomplished last week and what they plan to accomplish in the coming week. Keep reading to learn about the 4DX accountability meeting.
Have you heard about Netflix mobile games? Neither have a lot of people, but it’s already available for mobile users worldwide. Find out more about this move and what’s next for Netflix. What Is Netflix Gaming? On November 9th, 2021, Netflix announced that their games were available globally on Android and iOS devices. Want to see for yourself? Open up the Netflix app on your phone and check out the tabs at the bottom. There’s no additional cost to access these games, all you need is a Netflix subscription. Some of their most popular games at the moment are Asphalt Xtreme,
What are “WIGs” or “Wildly Important Goals”? What are some things you should consider when deciding on your WIGs? Wildly Important Goals form the crux of the first discipline of the 4DX. These are the goals that should be your primary focus. Once you choose your WIGs, the next step is to choose your team goals that will support the WIGs. Keep reading to learn about the concept of WIG goals.
What’s the story of Bill Campbell—Trillion Dollar Coach? What was his leadership philosophy? Bill Campbell helped to build some of Silicon Valley’s greatest companies, including Google, Apple, and Intuit. In Trillion Dollar Coach, Google executives Eric Schmidt, Jonathan Rosenberg, and Alan Eagle have compiled Campbell’s principles for business and life. According to Schmidt, the book’s title is an understatement—if you add up the market capitalization of all the companies he coached, Campbell’s value was worth much more than one trillion dollars. We’ll cover the key themes of Bill Campbell’s philosophy: operational leadership, building workplace trust, building stronger teams, and leading
Have you been accused of micromanaging? How does micromanaging and overseeing every little detail of your team’s workflow hinder performance? There is a fine line between leadership and micromanagement. Micromanagers are too nervous to give up control because they don’t trust their team’s judgment or capabilities. However, micromanagement actually hinders, not helps, performance. Here’s how micromanagement hurts both your team and their performance.
What makes a good team leader? How do you, as a leader, ensure that all of your team members perform up to standard? As a leader, you must accept your team’s successes and failures: It’s your responsibility to ensure every team member is performing at a high standard. But if you push your team too hard, you’ll destroy your team’s morale and hinder their performance. According to Jocko Willink and Leif Babin, the authors of The Dichotomy of Leadership, there are two instances in which leaders ask too much of their teams: 1) imposing too many rules and 2) making
Are you nervous about giving your subordinates too much autonomy? Why is delegation important in leadership? Because a leader can’t do everything herself, the best way to take responsibility for your team’s success is to endow other people with responsibility. However, if you delegate all your responsibilities and assume that someone else is solving every problem, you could be unknowingly steering your team toward disaster. That’s why it’s important to strike a balance between hands-on leadership and delegation. Here’s how to find the sweet spot between the two.