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Reading lists

8 books to help you survive and thrive

The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know

Think Again

In a world of aggressive certitude, Adam Grant's latest book is a refreshing mandate for humble open-mindedness ... not just a useful lesson; it could be a vital one

Wise, frank, and funny; a fabulous book about how to think more clearly and more kindly. Think Again offers a spellbinding mix of storytelling and groundbreaking research -- we urgently need this book right now

Tim Harford, bestselling author of How To Make The World Add Up

Adam Grant believes that keeping an open mind is a teachable skill. And no one could teach this hugely valuable skill better than he does in this wonderful read. The striking insights of this brilliant book are guaranteed to make you rethink your opinions and your most important decisions

Daniel Kahneman, Nobel Prize winner in economics and author of THINKING, FAST AND SLOW

Rule number one: never miss a new Adam Grant book! I loved this one!

THIS. This is the right book for right now. Yes, learning requires focus. But, unlearning and relearning requires much more -- it requires choosing courage over comfort. In THINK AGAIN, Adam Grant weaves together research and storytelling to help us build the intellectual and emotional muscle we need to stay curious enough about the world to actually change it. I've never felt so hopeful about what I don't know

Brené Brown, Ph.D., #1 New York Times bestselling author of DARE TO LEAD

In his latest book, Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know, [Grant] is in vintage form

Delivers smart advice on unlearning assumptions and opening ourselves up to curiosity and humility

Adam Grant makes a compelling case that if we have the humility and curiosity to reconsider our beliefs, we can always reinvent ourselves. Think Again helped me learn about how great thinkers and achievers don't let expertise or experience stand in the way of being perpetual students

M. Night Shyamalan, director of THE SIXTH SENSE and SPLIT

Pushes us to reconsider, rethink, reevaluate and reimagine our beliefs, thoughts, and identities and get to the core of why we believe what we do, why it is so important to us, and why we are steadfast to hold on to those ideas and beliefs. . . . It teaches us to stop digging our heels and doubling down and consider other people's points of view so that we may grow our own. Once again, Adam Grant succeeded in turning our very way of thinking upside down as he pushes us to examine the obvious

Blends psychology and self-help to prove how doubt, failing, and rethinking are instrumental to improving ourselves and our world. . . . In three sections, he outlines why we struggle to embrace feedback, how we can help others rethink effectively, and how our communities can shift to encourage rethinking

Grant is a born communicator-engaging and impossibly articulate. . . . Think Again . . . digs into the synaptic weirdness of why we think how we do and how we know what (we think) we know. The bottom line: In a world that's constantly changing, we could all benefit from deliberately reassessing our cherished opinions

Adam Grant is an organizational psychologist at Wharton, where he has been the top-rated professor for seven straight years. His books have sold millions of copies, his TED talks have been viewed more than 30 million times, and he hosts the hit podcast Re:Thinking. His pioneering research on motivation and meaning has enabled people to reach their aspirations and exceed others' expectations. His viral piece on languishing was the most-read New York Times article of 2021 and the most-saved article across platforms. He has been recognized as one of the world's ten most influential management thinkers and Fortune's 40 Under 40, and has received distinguished scientific achievement awards from the American Psychological Association and the National Science Foundation. Grant received his B.A. from Harvard University and his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan, and he is a former Junior Olympic springboard diver. He lives in Philadelphia with his wife and their three children.

THE MILLION-COPY BESTSELLER 
 
If you can change your mind you can do anything. 
 
Why do we refresh our wardrobes every year, renovate our kitchens every decade, but never update our beliefs and our views? Why do we laugh at people using computers that are ten years old, but yet still cling to opinions we formed ten years ago? 
 
There's a new skill for the modern world that matters more than raw intelligence - the ability to change your mind. To have the edge we all need to develop the flexibility to unlearn old beliefs and adapt when the evidence and the world changes before us. 
 
Told through fascinating stories, informed by cutting-edge research and illustratedwith amazing insights from Adam Grant's conversations with people such as Elon Musk, Hilary Clinton's campaign team, top CEOs and leading scientists, this is the ultimate guide to keeping your thinking fresh, learning when to question your ideas and update your own opinions, and how to inspire those around you to do the same.

Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, and Finding Joy

Option B

#1 New York Times bestseller and global phenomenon -- a powerful, inspiring and practical guide to finding resilience and moving forward after life’s inevitable setbacks

Option B is the single wisest book about grief I have ever found ... I have tried to think of anyone who would not find Option B invaluable at some point in their life, and I can’t.

Remarkable, generous, honest, [and] almost unbearably poignant … This is a book that will be quietly passed from hand to hand, and it will surely offer great comfort to its intended readers.

It's a humbling - and tearjerking - story of humanity.

I recommend this inspiring book to everyone around the world. None of us can escape sadness, loss, or life’s disappointments, so the best option is to find our Option B.

MALALA YOUSAFZAI, Nobel Peace Prize winner

Sheryl writes about her own heartbreaking experience with a rare honesty. Then she and Adam translate her personal story into a powerful, practical guide for anyone trying to build resilience in their own lives, communities, and companies. It’s hard enough to resonate with readers. It’s even harder to help take concrete steps towards a better future. Option B does both.

BILL AND MELINDA GATES, co-chairs of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Thoughtful, insightful, and compelling. Both individually and collectively, we all need to understand the power of rehabilitation, recovery, and redemption if we are to overcome adversity. This incredible book doesn’t avoid the loss and tragedy we all sometimes encounter, but it is animated by a resolve that is both inspiring and instructive.

BRYAN STEVENSON, author of Just Mercy and founder of the Equal Justice Initiative

Option B is as hopeful as it is heartbreaking. Here are stories of sometimes unimaginable pain and loss, but also of how human beings nonetheless have the capacity to endure and even thrive. This book is not just an absorbing read. It also provides lessons that everyone needs to learn.

Illuminating, original, and deeply inspiring, Option B is one part riveting memoir, one part heal-your-heart boot camp, one part stories of others who learned to thrive in the face of profound loss: a practical, vital contribution to the literature on loss and resilience.

As someone who has spent the last 25 years immersed in the field of grief and bereavement I didn’t think I’d learn very much from Option B, but I did. It gave me useful ideas, ways of thinking and small steps that help rebuild a life after the death of someone we love. Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant have succeeded in combining useful information with heartfelt stories, which is illuminating and helpful. It is a book I highly recommend.

Sheryl Sandberg (Author) 
SHERYL SANDBERG is chief operating officer at Facebook and international best-selling author of Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead. Prior to Facebook, she was vice president of Global Online Sales and Operations at Google. She previously served as chief of staff for the United States Treasury Department and began her career as an economist with the World Bank. She received B.A. and M.B.A. degrees from Harvard University. Sandberg serves on the boards of Facebook, The Walt Disney Company, Survey Monkey, ONE, and Women for Women International, and chairs the board of LeanIn.Org. 
 
Adam Grant (Author) 
ADAM GRANT is a psychologist and Wharton’s top-rated professor. As theNew York Timesbest-selling author ofOriginals and Give and Take, he is a leading expert on how we can find motivation and meaning, and live more generous and creative lives. He has been recognized as one of the world’s twenty-five most influential management thinkers and received distinguished scholarly achievement awards from the American Psychological Association and the National Science Foundation. He serves as a contributing op-ed writer for The New York Times. Grant earned his B.A. from Harvard University and his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan.

In 2015 Sheryl Sandberg’s husband, Dave Goldberg, died suddenly at the age of forty-eight. Sandberg and her two young children were devastated, and she was certain that their lives would never have real joy or meaning again. 
 
Just weeks later, Sandberg was talking with a friend about the first father-child activity without a father. They came up with a plan for someone to fill in. “But I want Dave,” she cried. Her friend put his arm around her and said, “Option A is not available. So let’s just kick the shit out of Option B.” 
 
Everyone experiences some form of Option B. We all deal with loss: jobs lost, loves lost, lives lost. The question is not whether these things will happen but how we face them when they do. 
 
Thoughtful, honest, revealing and warm, OPTION B weaves Sandberg’s experiences coping with adversity with new findings from Adam Grant and other social scientists. The book features stories of people who recovered from personal and professional hardship, including illness, injury, divorce, job loss, sexual assault and imprisonment. These people did more than recover—many of them became stronger. 
 
OPTION B offers compelling insights for dealing with hardships in our own lives and helping others in crisis. It turns out that post-traumatic growth is common—even after the most devastating experiences many people don’t just bounce back but actually bounce forward. And pre-traumatic growth is also possible: people can build resilience even if they have not experienced tragedy. Sandberg and Grant explore how we can raise strong children, create resilient communities and workplaces, and find meaning, love and joy in our lives. 
 
“Dave’s death changed me in very profound ways,” Sandberg writes. “I learned about the depths of sadness and the brutality of loss. But I also learned that when life sucks you under, you can kick against the bottom, break the surface and breathe again.”

How Non-conformists Change the World

Originals

A manifesto for originality and a guide to championing new ideas that challenge the status quo.

ORIGINALS is one of the most important and captivating books I have ever read, full of surprising and powerful ideas. It will not only change the way you see the world; it might just change the way you live your life. And it could very well inspire you to change your world.

Sheryl Sandberg, bestselling author of LEAN IN

Reading ORIGINALS made me feel like I was seated across from Adam Grant at a dinner party, as one of my favorite thinkers thrilled me with his insights and his wonderfully new take on the world.

After launching hundreds of businesses—from airlines to trains, music to mobile, and now a spaceline—my biggest challenges and successes have come from convincing other people to see the world differently. ORIGINALS reveals how that can be done and will help you inspire creativity and change.

This extraordinary, wildly entertaining book sheds new light on the Age of Disruption. What does it take to make a meaningful difference? And how can you apply this insight to your own life? By debunking myths of success stories, challenging long-held beliefs of process, and finding commonality among those who are agents of profound change, Adam Grant gives us a powerful new perspective on not just our place in the world, but our potential to shake it up entirely.

JJ Abrams, director of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, co-creator and executive producer of Lost, and cofounder of Bad Robot

Adam Grant is one of the great social scientists of our time

ORIGINALS is a fascinating, eye-opening read that will help you not just recognize your own unique gifts, but find the strength to challenge conventional wisdom to bring them to life. Using surprising studies and riveting stories, Adam Grant brilliantly shows us how to champion new ideas, bust persistent myths that hold us back and change not only our lives, but our world.

It can sometimes seem as if one must master everything old in order to earn the privilege of doing anything new. Adam Grant does a masterful job showing that is not the case; we are lucky to have him as a guide.

Peter Thiel, cofounder of PayPal and Palantir, and author of Zero to One

Adam Grant is a serious social scientist, master storyteller and infectious optimist…. “Originals” is filled with fresh insights on a broad array of topics that are important to our personal and professional lives. Mr. Grant has an uncanny ability to infuse a familiar topic with deeper meaning and leave the reader feeling hopeful and a little exhilarated.

An urgent must read, a seminal work that will surprise you on every single page. Adam Grant has reset our expectations for what it means to be creative and what's required to make a difference. Share it with someone you care about.

Seth Godin, bestselling author of PURPLE COW and many other titles

Fresh research, counter-intuitive insights, lively writing, practical calls to action ... Grant has a deserved reputation as an original thinker.

[A] rich and practical paean to nonconformity.

Originals succeeds by marrying sound research and insightful anecdotes to a breezy narrative style

Part of the fun of Grant’s book is that he redeems behaviors we typically regard with puritan disdain. . . . Thought-provoking.

#1 New York Times Bestseller! 
 
‘Extraordinary’ JJ Abrams 
‘Fascinating’ Arianna Huffington 
‘Inspire creativity and change’ Richard Branson 
‘One of my favourite thinkers’ Malcolm Gladwell 
‘Masterful’ Peter Thiel 
‘One of the great social scientists of our time’ Susan Cain, bestselling author of Quiet 
‘Fresh research, counter-intuitive insights, lively writing, practical calls to action’ The Financial Times 
 
 
The New York Times bestselling author examines how people can drive creative, moral, and organisational progress—and how leaders can encourage originality in their organisations. 
 
How can we originate new ideas, policies and practices without risking it all? Adam Grant shows how to improve the world by championing novel ideas and values that go against the grain, battling conformity, and bucking outdated traditions. 
 
Using surprising studies and stories spanning business, politics, sports, and entertainment, Grant explores how to recognize a good idea, speak up without getting silenced, build a coalition of allies, choose the right time to act, and manage fear and doubt. Parents will learn how to nurture originality in children, and leaders will discover how to fight groupthink to build cultures that welcome dissent. 
 
Told through dazzling case studies of people going against the grain, you’ll encounter an entrepreneur who pitches the reasons not to invest, a woman at Apple who challenged Steve Jobs from three levels below, an analyst who challenged secrecy at the CIA, a billionaire financial wizard who fires employees who don’t criticize him, and the TV executive who saved Seinfeld from the cutting room floor. Originals will give you groundbreaking insights about rejecting conformity and how to change the world.

Adam Grant (Author) Adam Grant is an organizational psychologist at Wharton, where he has been the top-rated professor for seven straight years. His books have sold millions of copies, his TED talks have been viewed more than 30 million times, and he hosts the hit podcast Re:Thinking. His pioneering research on motivation and meaning has enabled people to reach their aspirations and exceed others' expectations. His viral piece on languishing was the most-read New York Times article of 2021 and the most-saved article across platforms. He has been recognized as one of the world's ten most influential management thinkers and Fortune's 40 Under 40, and has received distinguished scientific achievement awards from the American Psychological Association and the National Science Foundation. Grant received his B.A. from Harvard University and his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan, and he is a former Junior Olympic springboard diver. He lives in Philadelphia with his wife and their three children. Sheryl Sandberg (Foreword By) SHERYL SANDBERG is chief operating officer at Facebook and international best-selling author of Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead. Prior to Facebook, she was vice president of Global Online Sales and Operations at Google. She previously served as chief of staff for the United States Treasury Department and began her career as an economist with the World Bank. She received B.A. and M.B.A. degrees from Harvard University. Sandberg serves on the boards of Facebook, The Walt Disney Company, Survey Monkey, ONE, and Women for Women International, and chairs the board of LeanIn.Org.

WINNER of the Chartered Management Institute's (CMI's) Mangement Book of the Year Awards 2017, JP Morgan's Best Summer Read 2018, and a #1 New York Times Bestseller! 
 
‘Extraordinary’ JJ Abrams 
‘Fascinating’ Arianna Huffington 
‘Inspire creativity and change’ Richard Branson 
‘One of my favourite thinkers’ Malcolm Gladwell 
‘Masterful’ Peter Thiel 
‘One of the great social scientists of our time’ Susan Cain, bestselling author of Quiet 
‘Fresh research, counter-intuitive insights, lively writing, practical calls to action’ The Financial Times 
 
 
The New York Times bestselling author examines how people can drive creative, moral, and organisational progress—and how leaders can encourage originality in their organisations. 
 
How can we originate new ideas, policies and practices without risking it all? Adam Grant shows how to improve the world by championing novel ideas and values that go against the grain, battling conformity, and bucking outdated traditions. 
 
Using surprising studies and stories spanning business, politics, sports, and entertainment, Grant explores how to recognize a good idea, speak up without getting silenced, build a coalition of allies, choose the right time to act, and manage fear and doubt. Parents will learn how to nurture originality in children, and leaders will discover how to fight groupthink to build cultures that welcome dissent. 
 
Told through dazzling case studies of people going against the grain, you’ll encounter an entrepreneur who pitches the reasons not to invest, a woman at Apple who challenged Steve Jobs from three levels below, an analyst who challenged secrecy at the CIA, a billionaire financial wizard who fires employees who don’t criticize him, and the TV executive who saved Seinfeld from the cutting room floor. Originals will give you groundbreaking insights about rejecting conformity and how to change the world.

Adam Grant

This remarkable book reveals what it takes to become a better version of yourself. Adam Grant lights the way to developing talents that once seemed beyond your abilities and achieving goals that once seemed out of reach

I read Hidden Potential in one sitting, loved it, and have been thinking about it ever since. Which is the highest praise I can give a book. This is Adam Grant's finest work-it will inspire you to bigger dreams

Malcolm Gladwell, author of OUTLIERS and host of REVISIONIST HISTORY podcast

This brilliant book will shatter your assumptions about what it takes to improve and succeed. I wish I could go back in time and gift it to my younger self. It would've helped me find a more joyful path to progress

Serena Williams, 23-time Grand Slam singles tennis champion

Very good... Explores how most talented and successful people were not born that way; they are simply better at learning. It's an enjoyable exploration into the difference between character and personality

Grant takes the reader on a whistle-stop tour of the factors that lead to success . . . Policymakers and executives ought to play close attention to the final section of the book: how to build structures that create opportunity for all

This is a book that should be read by parents, leaders, coaches, and every school board member in America. Adam Grant reveals that everything you think about developing potential is wrong

Mark Cuban, Shark Tank investor, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, and cofounder of Cost Plus Drugs

Wickedly entertaining and deeply insightful, Adam Grant has done it again. You have more in common with Mozart and Steph Curry than you know, and Hidden Potential will show you how to achieve your absolute best. You'll devour it and find yourself begging for more

U.S. Navy Admiral William H. McRaven, bestselling author of MAKE YOUR BED

Hidden Potential teaches us to reach new levels of mastery and unlock our greatest resource: our humanity. We would all be better off if we took Adam Grant's wise counsel seriously!

Writing with authority and clarity, Grant examines how talents can be discovered, developed, and turned into achievement

The Science of Achieving Greater Things

#1 New York Times bestseller 
 
&quot;This brilliant book will shatter your assumptions about what it takes to improve and succeed. I wish I could go back in time and gift it to my younger self. It would've helped me find a more joyful path to progress.&quot; 
-Serena Williams, 23-time Grand Slam singles tennis champion 
 
The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Think Again illuminates how we can elevate ourselves and others to unexpected heights. 
 
We live in a world that&rsquo;s obsessed with talent. We celebrate gifted students in school, natural athletes in sports, and child prodigies in music. But admiring people who start out with innate advantages leads us to overlook the distances we ourselves can travel. We can all improve at improving. And when opportunity doesn&rsquo;t knock, there are ways to build a door. 
 
Hidden Potential offers a new framework for raising aspirations and exceeding expectations. Adam Grant weaves together groundbreaking evidence, surprising insights, and vivid story&shy;telling that takes us from the classroom to the boardroom, the playground to the Olympics, and underground to outer space. He shows that progress depends less on how hard you work than how well you learn. Growth is not about the genius you possess &ndash; it&rsquo;s about the character you develop. Grant explores how to build the charac&shy;ter skills and motivational structures to realize our own potential, and how to design systems that create opportunities for those who have been underrated and overlooked. 
 
This book reveals how anyone can rise to achieve greater things. The true measure of your potential is not the height of the peak you&rsquo;ve reached, but how far you&rsquo;ve climbed to get there.

Adam Grant

Praise for Hidden Potential

This remarkable book reveals what it takes to become a better version of yourself. Adam Grant lights the way to developing talents that once seemed beyond your abilities and achieving goals that once seemed out o ...

I read Hidden Potential in one sitting, loved it, and have been thinking about it ever since. Which is the highest praise I can give a book. This is Adam Grant's finest work-it will inspire you to bigger d ...

This brilliant book will shatter your assumptions about what it takes to improve and succeed. I wish I could go back in time and gift it to my younger self. It would've helped me find a more joyful path to progre ...

This remarkable book reveals what it takes to become a better version of yourself. Adam Grant lights the way to developing talents that once seemed beyond your abilities and achieving goals that once seemed out o ...

I read Hidden Potential in one sitting, loved it, and have been thinking about it ever since. Which is the highest praise I can give a book. This is Adam Grant's finest work-it will inspire you to bigger d ...

This brilliant book will shatter your assumptions about what it takes to improve and succeed. I wish I could go back in time and gift it to my younger self. It would've helped me find a more joyful path to progre ...

This remarkable book reveals what it takes to become a better version of yourself. Adam Grant lights the way to developing talents that once seemed beyond your abilities and achieving goals that once seemed out o ...

I read Hidden Potential in one sitting, loved it, and have been thinking about it ever since. Which is the highest praise I can give a book. This is Adam Grant's finest work-it will inspire you to bigger d ...

This brilliant book will shatter your assumptions about what it takes to improve and succeed. I wish I could go back in time and gift it to my younger self. It would've helped me find a more joyful path to progre ...

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8 books to help you survive and thrive

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