So, you want to make a change. Maybe you’re ready to start exercising again, or pick up a new hobby, or work for a new company. Maybe all you’re certain about is the need for some kind of change, while the details remain obstinately fuzzy. Whatever the case may be, if you’re curious about the delicate art and hard science of changing your life, start by checking out the seven excellent reads below.
Fast Forward: 5 Power Principles to Create the Life You Want in Just One Year
By Wendy Leshgold and Lisa McCarthy
Backed by psychological research and brain science, Fast Forward’s 5 Power Principles have helped more than 100,000 professionals achieve extraordinary success and happiness. And as they have excelled, so have their businesses and teams. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by co-author Wendy Leshgold, in the Next Big Idea App
Clear Thinking: Turning Ordinary Moments into Extraordinary Outcomes
By Shane Parrish
Through stories, mental models, and more, Clear Thinking offers the missing link between behavioral science and real-life outcomes. The result is a must-have manual for optimizing decision-making, gaining competitive advantage, and living a more intentional life. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Shane Parrish, in the Next Big Idea App
This Working Life: How to Navigate Your Career in Uncertain Times
By Lisa Leong and Monique Ross
This Working Life is one of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s most popular podcasts and this book offers the best lessons from the show, offering a holistic, warm approach to finding a new working normal in our increasingly uncertain times. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by co-authors Lisa Leong and Monique Ross, in the Next Big Idea App
The Performance Paradox: Turning the Power of Mindset into Action
By Eduardo Briceño
Discover how to balance learning and performing to bolster personal and team success with this revolutionary guide from a world-renowned expert on growth mindset. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Eduardo Briceño, in the Next Big Idea App
Build the Life You Want: The Art and Science of Getting Happier
By Arthur C. Brooks and Oprah Winfrey
With insight, compassion, and hope, a Harvard professor and a global icon reveal how the tools of emotional self-management can change your life―immediately. They recommend practical, research-based practices to build the four pillars of happiness: family, friendship, work, and faith. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by co-author Arthur C. Brooks, in the Next Big Idea App
Mindset: The New Psychology of Success
By Carol Dweck
Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck shows how success in school, work, sports, the arts, and almost every area of human endeavor can be dramatically influenced by how we think about our talents and abilities. Listen to our professionally-read Book Bite summary in the Next Big Idea App
Lead Like a Marine: Run Towards a Challenge, Assemble Your Fireteam, and Win Your Next Battle
By John Warren and John Thompson
Two decorated veterans lay out the simple, universal rules that helped them succeed, from valuing grit and potential over pedigree, to condensing large groups into resilient “fireteams,” to cross-training team members so that anyone can step up to the plate in a crisis. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by co-authors John Warren and John Thompson, in the Next Big Idea App
The Key Ideas in 15 Minutes
“If you are going to get anywhere in life, you have to read a lot of books,” Roald Dahl once famously said. The only trouble is, reading even one book from cover to cover takes hours—and you may not have many hours to spare.
But imagine for a moment: What if you could read a groundbreaking new book every day? Or even better, what if you could invite a world-renowned thinker into your earbuds, where they personally describe the 5 key takeaways from their work in just 15 minutes?
With the Next Big Idea App, we’ve turned this fantasy into a reality. We partnered with hundreds of acclaimed authors to create “Book Bites,” short audio summaries of the latest nonfiction that are prepared and read aloud by the authors themselves. Discover cutting-edge leadership skills, productivity hacks, the science of happiness and well-being, and much more—all in the time it takes to drive to work or walk the dog.
Go Deeper with a Next Big Idea Club Membership
The Next Big Idea App is free for anyone to try—and if you love it, we invite you to become an official member of the Next Big Idea Club. Membership grants you unlimited access to Book Bites and unlocks early-release, ad-free episodes of our LinkedIn-partnered podcast. You also gain entry to our private online discussion group, where you can talk big ideas with fellow club members and join exclusive live Q&A sessions with featured authors.
For a more focused learning experience, we recommend a Hardcover or eBook Membership. Every few months, legendary authors and club curators Malcolm Gladwell, Susan Cain, Adam Grant, and Daniel Pink select two new nonfiction books as the must-reads of the season. We then send hardcover copies straight to your doorstep, or eBook versions to your favorite digital device. We also collaborate with the authors of selected books to produce original reading guides and premium video e-courses, 50-minute master classes that take you step by step through their most life-changing ideas. And yes, it’s all available through the Next Big Idea App.
Learn Faster, from the World’s Leading Thinkers
Whether you prefer to read, listen, or watch, the Next Big Idea is here to help you work smarter and live better. Wake up with an always-fresh Idea of the Day, the perfect shot of inspiration to go with your morning coffee. Then dive into one of our Challenges, hand-picked collections of Book Bites that form crash courses in subjects like communication, motivation, and career acceleration. Later, watch the playback of an interview with U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, Stanford psychologist Jennifer Eberhardt, or philosopher John Kaag. And be sure to check the “Events” tab in the app, so that you can join an upcoming live Q&A and personally chat with the next featured thought leader.
If you’re hoping to grow as a person or as a professional, we hope you’ll join us and tens of thousands of others who enjoy the Next Big Idea. Get started by downloading the app today!
