Top 5 Books on Thinking Differently
What if bringing forth your boldest ideas didn’t have to be so intimidating—or better yet—got you a promotion? These reads outline the importance of breaking down what it means to be average, and why thinking out of the box will benefit both you and the world we live in.
Adam Grant with foreward from Sheryl Sandberg, Originals: How Non-Conformists Change the World
If Give and Take wasn’t enough to convince you Adam Grant was one of his generation’s most provocative thought leaders, Originals will prove it. If you avoid speaking up or question battling conformity, this book will provide you for reasons why you shouldn’t shy away. Drawing from studies and stories from business, politics, entertainment, and sports, Grant explains how to manage fear and doubt, stand up without being silenced, and how originality can improve the status quo.
Amy Cuddy, Presence: Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges
Amy Cuddy’s revolutionary TED talk about how your body language shapes who you are captured the attention of millions of viewers. She’s now presenting her fascinating discoveries in her latest book, Presence. Amy argues that if we can access our personal power, we can achieve presence, the state in which we stop worrying about the impression we’re making on others and instead focusing on the impression we’re making on ourselves. Drawing from research and stories of individuals who learned to combat stressful situations with confidence and poise, Presence is armed to prep anyone looking to approach their biggest challenges with newfound satisfaction.
Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J Dubner, Think Like a Freak
Riding the wave of their bestsellers Freakonomics and Superfreakonomics, the Steven/Stephen duo has released their latest guide: how to Think Like a Freak. Known for challenging conventional wisdom, they use their practical toolkit for thinking differently (based on data rather than emotion to answer questions) and have summarized it into a readable guide. Learn why sometimes it’s best to think like a child, and how (and why) to quit before you fail so you can spend your energy solving tomorrow’s problem.
Adam Steltzner, The Right Kind of Crazy
Adam Steltzner led the Entry, Descent, and Landing team when landing the Curiosity rover on Mars. And while his achievements are impressive, he barely graduated from high school. Adam followed his curiosities about space and enrolled in a local community college, and luckily for us, this accidental leader is sharing his story. The Right Kind of Crazy is Adam’s first-person account of innovation, and how to turn craziness into creativity and originality.
Todd Rose, The End of Average: How We Succeed in a World That Values Sameness
Metrics are used to compare humanity to the measure of averages from the day we are born. Is your child an A or B student? Are they crawling at the same age their peers are? From GPA’s to personality test results, we are so accustomed to comparing ourselves to averages that we simply accept it. Todd, a budding name in the science of the individual, shows us the fallacies of the system. By channeling individuals into groups based on their scale of average, Todd argues we are ignoring our differences and failing to recognize talent. He incorporates science, history, and his personal story as a high school dropout to show us we must take advantage of individuality to succeed in this world.