As I make my transition to the civilian sector I am really interested into what professional development books mentors see as valuable in understanding the current corporate atmosphere. And what books other service members feel assisted them in successfully making the transition from military to the corporate world.
Answers
First, there is no one book to focus on, as many management books have a few good insights. Having said that, you don't have to read 100 books either, as once you're read a few, you find a lot of the same themes, just packaged differently and with different evidence to support them (studies, anecdotal evidence, or personal experiences). Also, as with any set of tools, much of the trick is knowing which skills to apply at what times, and in what manner. There are times to be collaborative, and times to be directive, and so on. Having said that, some books that I've found to be helpful in educating people to the tools they should consider are:
1) Good to Great, 2) Communication Catalyst, 3) One-minute manager, 4) 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, 5) First, Break all the Rules, 6) Leaders Eat Last.
I recommend reading one every few months and trying to apply each before moving on to the next one. You can't cram leadership learning and expect it to work. It takes insight and then practice.
Martin,
All great recommendations! My thoughtful picks would be "Built to Last" from Porras/Collins, "The Goal" From Goldratt, (I had to read it twice before brain engaged), and another Collins book, From "Good to Great".
Other thoughts, read to insight, do to learn. Don't find out by reading the book of Hard Knocks that your USMC military style of leadership is not corporate friendly. Picking the right corporate culture will allow you to succeed. Read the interviewers, the social media boards on the companies you are interested in, and judge honestly if you will fit into their culture. Do your research, you are not looking for a job, but a impactful career!
The second book I read as I transitioned, "Winnie the Pooh on Management", a gift from my young daughter. A funny book, but more important a gesture that made me remember to laugh and cherish what is really important.
DEZ
Three actually: The One Minute Manager, Management by Walking Around, and (believe it or not) Rogue Warrior by Richard Marcinko.
Hi Martin,
First off I would like to thank you for your service.
There are lots of books that are great reads and there are no wrong books to read, I love Eric Worre, Brian Tracey, Jeff Olson, Jim Rhone.
Self development, reading books and attending seminars are critical to reaching your potential. Most important, though, is something that will give you the opportunity to grow and achieve in so doing. With such an interest, it would be fun to hear from you what your life goals are. What do you aspire to?
A series of books by Dr. Eliyahu (Eli) Goldratt starting with Critical Chain revolutionized the way I see and attack problems. It also helped me to develop as a leader. Another book I would recommend is Emotional Intelligence 2.0
Martin, thank you for your service. I see you are a Captain in the Marine Corps, and therefore already know a great deal about leadership. When I first stepped into a formal leadership role in my career, reading "Discovering the Leader Within You" by John Maxwell was very helpful. Later, when I moved into a management position I read "Developing the Leaders Around You" by the same author. I wish you well in your transition into civilian life.
Amazing book recommendations, I wanted to get a consensus on books that multiple individuals found informative and work my way through a few. I am grateful for the advice and book recommendations and I personally want to thank all of you for taking the time to respond. Have a Great New Year!
Hello Martin. Really great feedback here. Not much to add to the great books and replies. Since I am an aggressive advocate of personal and professional development, I wanted to post my thoughts on the topic. First, no matter what your intentions for making a transition are you must be decisive, focused and committed. Therefore, I have found the key to not just making the decision to transition but effectively sustain this action toward your intended outcome is motivation and inspiration. You know how to acquire industry knowledge and express this so I focus on empowering your power. Always remember, "Change is not a matter of ability, it's a matter of motivation."
Some books that I found helpful... The Leader Who Had No Title(Robin Sharma), Unlimited Power (Anthony Robbins), The Charge(Brendon Burchard), 8 Ways To Be 10x Better, 360* Leader, To Sell is Human, and so many more.
There are so many great books and websites that provide the right inspiration at the right time. You are on the right path to sustained success in the direction you choose. All the best to you and always be learning!
Happy to help!
R Hill
No need to read any literature, your resume is the key. What you will find is that each HR employee will have certain likes and dislikes. Tailor your resume to the position your seeking.
Sometimes you might have to accept a lower position and than work your way up. The Railroads love prior military because their structure was set up by former Army Officers.
Marc Newsome
Manager of Railroad Signals
Thank you for your service Martin. I recommend two books. "The Human Side of Enterprise" by Douglas McGregor is a classic that strongly influenced me as an active leader with Exxon. More recently "Turn the Ship Around" by Navy Captain L. David Marquet provides a real life example of McGregor's Theory Y view of people in action. Finally I would be happy for you to review and comment on our ebook, "Freedom-Based Management" which you can find on www.freedom-basedmanagement.com.
Best wishes, Bill Nobles
The Goal. A classic. Find that bottleneck. Great way to learn about how corporations look at increasing efficiencies.
For leadership: Leadership and Self Deception. This is a good book to assist those transitioning from military leadership to a corporate management position.
Currently reading Good to Great by Jim Collins and find it fascinating. Great companies deal with the hard realities to become great in their specific fields and never let their guard down due to the ever changing times. This would have to be my recommendation.
Hey Martin - I like The Leadership Engine by Noel Tichy. It's an older book but has stood the test of time.
Bill
Honestly, and this is going to sound crazy, but the best leadership book I ever read was the biography of Caesar. Find here: http://goo.gl/G3f59X "Caesar: A Biography" ISBN-13: 978-0465008957
The book, which is a biography of course, reads as a "how to" in being an awesome leader and a successful person. It starts with his childhood, his education, his belief in himself, and his philosophy on just being an amazing guy. One could argue that he perfected the modern idea of leading by example.
Just a truly amazing book about an amazing guy.
Hi Martin,
Thank-you for your service!
One of the authors I recently stumbled upon is John C Maxwell, winner of the Golden Gavel award from Toastmasters Intl. Although I've only read a couple, the leadership messages he shares are very insightful. I found this one very inspiring;
The 360 Degree Leader: Developing Your Influence from Anywhere in the Organization
Small Unit Leadership by Col. Dandridge Malone
Martin, good question to ask. There are probably as many possible responses to your question as there are books out there about what you seek.
I think the suggestions you have received here are all worthwhile to consider and worth following up. I’ll give you a little suggestion about those that are books: For a good review of them, search them in Amazon. If they are found there you might be able to get a very good sampling by using Amazon’s “Look Inside” feature. You also can find reviews, pro and con, by others who have read the book.
I would have to say that most books are more helpful for ideas than they likely to become “your bible”. Mostly they are tools that have ample instructions to help you to use them. But, for myself, specific to your specific question, the book that I still go back to often is a book about the history and development of management and leadership theory, i.e., the Classics and the basics. Lots of those out there too and more recent..... but the one I favor is not new nor with a clever title but very clear and a quick read: “Complex Organizations” by Charles Perrow. It is chock full of the beliefs and theory steps that led up to humanistic thought in management concepts. It’s a good foundation to work from and its shorter than a Management 101 text book.
In my postgraduate studies, I attended the School where Peter Drucker made his base in Southern California. I chose to take two courses about Management/Leadership Classics over those taught by Drucker. "Complex Organizations" was one of the text books. My professor, a graduate of Stanford, started both courses with a statement I have retained in my “work and view” about leadership and management literature: “There are no truths here”…… which Professor B said but never really explained. Many students endured and left one or both his courses uncomfortably without figuring out what that statement or Professor B meant. I am not sure that I have but I became comfortable with it for what it means to me about management and leadership. Give it some thought for yourself as you read the literature.
Good luck in your career.
Thanks everyone. I have received a lot of great recommendations and I think I will be busy for sometime.
Martin,
I really think you would enjoy "Wooden on Leadership", I read this book when I began to transition into management and the way that Coach Wooden led his team really spoke to me. Another great read is "The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership" by John C. Maxwell.
If you are interested in working for an organization that gives back check out www.mwacareers.org
"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" by Stephen Covey. It focuses on principled-centered leadership which should be the basis for effective leadership...and for life.
Military history books have been a catalyst to influencing my leadership and work habits. Especially ones concerning World War II. However, I recently read "American Sniper" by Navy SEAL, Chris Kyle. It was proof one man can make a difference in a huge way. Half the engineers I work with are military veterans so my corporate experience is atypical. We are professional and get things done.However, on lunch breaks we usually talk about guns, jets, tanks, and blowing stuff up. For being electrical engineers, there is nothing nerdy about my team. The ideology is definitely team oriented, however individual initiative and personal accountability are heavily valued. So, we are your basic anti-socialist types if you want to go that route. Although, we are pretty good at playing the business game and have tons of charismatic types who can explain engineering to business types and HR. So far, I love it.
First let me start by saying "thank you" to all of you for the book recommendations and personal advice. Lynn, that was a great question and I really hate talking about myself but it made me sit for a minute and really think about what is important to me as I transition out. My ultimate goal is to do something meaningful that will have an impact in the community that I will reside in (Midland, Virginia). I would like to give back because the people that influenced and shaped me to the person I now am gave their time and thats where I plan to take my first step. As I depart the military, I would like to get a job that is a right fit for me and them but first I want to expand my options and do volunteer or non-profit to extend my network, meet like minded people, and make an impact. If I cannot find the right job that offers a challenge and upward mobilty than I plan on continuing my education and obtain a Masters in Business Management. Due to having a successful wife and making all the right decisions over the course of our marriage and my career, I am in a good place to dedicate myself to making a difference. It may sound as though I am undecided but truly I am not; just blessed at the present circumstances that will allow me to give back. I know that I will be successful in anything that I will do in the future because if there is anything that I learned in the Marine Corps is to pick yourself up and continue to march. My original question was aimed at getting a perspective from others to give me an idea on what the corporate life and ideology might be like since I have only known the military over the course of two decades. Lastly, I plan on attending TED talks just to expand my thinking, engaging individuals like this forum, and continue to read as reading is what I really seem to enjoy.
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