Books
Living and Leadership
- The Surpassing! Life by Brad Rex
- Creating the Magic by Lee Cockerell
Lee's outstanding book is required reading for any leader. I guarantee that you will learn things you didn't know and it will improve your leadership, or Lee will give you your money back! (Actually, maybe you better talk to him about that.) Lee is also an exceptional public speaker and you should try to hear him in person. - On the Profession of Management by Peter Drucker
Anything by Peter Drucker will help your leadership. This is a good compilation of his thoughts.
Daily e-mails from Fast Company and Harvard Business Review, and regular articles from McKinsey Quarterly
The Critical Link Between Humility and Leadership Success
- Good to Great by Jim Collins
- How the Mighty Fall by Jim Collins
- Humilitas by John Dickson
Jim Collins is a tremendous researcher, author and speaker. Every leader must read Good to Great. How the Mighty Fall is a wonderful follow-on book. Humilitas was written by a historian, John Dickson. Dickson gives a compelling case for the importance of humility in successful leadership drawing on both historical and contemporary examples.
Disney
- Project Future by Chad Emerson
Chad has prepared a fascinating look at how Walt Disney envisioned and implemented Walt Disney World. Disney was an amazing man, and this book will further
Starting a New Job
- The First 90 Days by Michael Watkins
- Right From the Start by Dan Ciampa and Michael Watkins
I've had over 15 different jobs so far in my career and I wish these two books had been available when I started each one. If you are changing roles, these are required reading.
Biographies
- Theodore Rex by Edmund Morris
- Tried By War by James McPherson
- Memoirs by Ulysses S. Grant
These three biographies provide fascinating insights into key leaders that shaped the United States-Theodore Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant. You will find that much of leadership is not new. These men faced similar issues in their times that leaders confront today.
- Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela
Mandela has an amazing story of perseverance and forgiveness. He chose to be "better" rather than "bitter," and an entire country was saved from division and war.
Wisdom and Spiritual Intelligence
- The One Year Bible NIV or Holy Bible YouVersion app
Whatever your spiritual viewpoint, the Bible is full of wisdom for leaders. The format of a daily reading Bible allows you to spend about 15 minutes a day and read through the entire Bible in a year. You will be amazed at how often what you read that day applies to a life or leadership situation.
The YouVersion app allows you to select the Bible you want to read (I recommend the New International or Message versions) and the length of your reading plan. It is free.
- Faith in the Halls of Power by D. Michael Lindsay
Lindsay interviewed numerous executives to learn about the intersection between faith and work. He provides interesting insights into the importance of spiritual direction in career success.
Food and Wine
- Pacific Northwest Wining and Dining
Written by my sister, Braiden Rex-Johnson, this beautiful book comprehensively captures the wonderful cuisine and drink from the Pacific Northwest. Sign up for her newsletter at www.withbraiden.com.
Fitness and Health
- The 4 Hour Body by Timothy Ferris
Ferris debunks many of the myths and conventional thinking about exercise and diet. I like the fact that he tests his recommendations on himself, and is a data fanatic. I changed my exercise routine significantly, and have gotten much better results in a shorter time.
Consultants
Accelera Consulting Group
President of Accelera Consulting Group, Betsy Jordyn is an organizational "potentiator" and strategic problem solver. Viewed by her growth-oriented, executive and senior leader clients as the ultimate "think partner," she is known for her ability to rapidly cut through the clutter of circumstances and pinpoint root issues. Focusing on the leverage points, she then determines the best strategies and designs customized solutions to achieve maximum performance and efficiency.
Betsy's unique talent for accurately assessing key issues combined with her extensive experience in leadership, strategy, organization redesign, inter-departmental coordination, and executive team development has helped numerous organizations achieve some of their biggest goals and overcome their most daunting challenges. In her post as a Senior Organizational Development Consultant for Walt Disney World, Betsy's work included a broad range of initiatives as well as mentoring 20 other in-house consultants.
Betsy's work has accelerated the potential of her Fortune 100 clients such as Walt Disney World and a large non-profit organization with over 3,300 full-time staff members. However, her solutions and strategies are completely scalable as she has achieved similarly successful outcomes with a broad spectrum of businesses in various sizes and business sectors.
As an "Executive Sounding Board," Betsy provides her clients with an unbiased, external and highly strategic vantage point that helps them quickly develop clarity and make quality decisions in even the most chaotic of environments. By generating greater achievement and efficiency at work, Betsy and her clients are able to live a more balanced and integrated life that encompasses family, friends, time for personal and spiritual development and opportunities to give back to local communities.
Betsy is a highly respected member of the Central Florida business community. She holds a Masters Degree in Human Resources and Organizational Development from Rollins College.
Visit www.betsyjordyn.com for more information.
Integrated Insight Inc.
Integrated Insight Inc. is a management consulting and training firm helping organizations out-behave the competition. Through the use of data-driven insights and sophisticated decision analytics, we pinpoint untapped opportunities and ensure long-term, sustainable growth - we help you reach your full potential. Key areas of focus include Market Research and Consumer Insights, Pricing and Revenue Optimization, Forecasting, Strategic Planning and Training. The principals of Integrated Insight bring a wealth of senior executive experience to your organization, having had responsibility for leading and managing dynamic service organizations with full accountability for delivering results. We understand first-hand the challenges and opportunities our clients face and among others, have assisted world class brands such as Universal Parks and Resorts, Starwood, Rocky Mountaineer and Full Sail University grow their business. For a free consultation, visit www.IntegratedInsight.com.
John Van Horn Web Design
John is the Owner/Operator of John Van Horn Web Design, a small web design firm located in Clermont, Florida. John began his professional web design career as a web designer in Walt Disney World's Documentation department, where he led a team converting training materials to interactive online experiences.
After departing Disney, John worked for a small company called Perceptive Technologies, and later for EA Games, setting up their Maitland Florida game studios' "Tiburon" website.
John brings a passion for visual design and ease-of-use to the table and combines with a strong application programming background to deliver top-notch web design services. You can visit his website and extensive portfolio at www.JohnVanHorn.com.