Every once in a while, two new books complement each other in tackling an important, timely topic. Next Big Idea Club curators Malcolm Gladwell, Susan Cain, Adam Grant, and Daniel Pink are thrilled to present two spring titles that do just that. Their selections for the Next Big Idea Club’s Spring Box inspire us to explore what it means to lead, to grow our influence—and how to use it to meaningfully impact the world around us.
Here are the books that changed how Malcolm, Susan, Adam, and Daniel think about how we use power and leadership in our society. To receive more groundbreaking ideas handpicked from these leading thinkers, join the Next Big Idea Club today.
New Power: How Power Works in Our Hyperconnected World—and How to Make It Work for You by Jeremy Heimans and Henry Timms
#MeToo. The March for Our Lives. The upheaval of the taxi industry by Uber and Lyft. Our current age of unprecedented connectivity is an age of new power—power that is decentralized and adaptable. In New Power, Jeremy Heimans and Henry Timms—who are behind the remarkable GetUp! and Giving Tuesday movements—shed light on the forces behind today’s most influential movements and businesses.
Since new power is a far cry from the hierarchical systems of previous centuries, you can use it to change what you think needs changing. If you want to tell a story that matters, fight for what’s right, and maybe even make the world a better place, you’ll need to know about how new power works, and how to cultivate it yourself.
“The surest sign that I’ve encountered a big idea isn’t what that idea does to my brain. It’s what it does to my eyes. When an idea is sufficiently compelling, it changes the very way I see. That’s what happened to me with our latest NBIC selection, New Power. Once you read this book, you’ll begin to observe events both dramatic and quotidian through a new filter. Like the best ideas, this one will alter your vision.” —Daniel Pink
The CEO Next Door: The 4 Behaviors that Transform Ordinary People into World-Class Leaders by Elena Botelho and Kim Powell
Picture a CEO in your mind. Now, wipe that image away for good. Successful CEOs are a much more diverse group than we realize, and more united by common behaviors than by common demographics. And that’s good news for everyone. Through their groundbreaking CEO Genome Project, Elena Botelho and Kim Powell have identified the four key behaviors that differentiate good leaders from great ones, behaviors we can all turn into habits. In The CEO Next Door, they provide practical tips we can use to up our leadership game, while changing perceptions of what great leadership looks like for the better.
“This book rethinks what a ‘natural’ leader is, and even the very idea of ‘natural leadership.’ Some great leaders are grown-up versions of the children who effortlessly organized their peers into elaborate playground games; some great leaders are tall, white, male, highly educated charismatic extroverts. But many more are not. Great leaders do have other traits in common, though—traits that we can all learn. Elena Botelho and Kim Powell have conducted a massive amount of research to bring you these insights. Their findings have the power to change the way you work, the ambitions you have for yourself, and, of course, the way you lead.” —Susan Cain
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