If this is your first time checking out the Leadership and Management Book podcast, you’ll tune-in quickly to the fact that Wally Bock and I are both passionate about books and we have a great deal of fun on these shows! We hope the fun and the insights come through loud and clear.

For this episode, the focus is on biography. Specifically, we each selected two of our favorite biographies and offer reasons why these are fabulous reads for anyone open to learning from inspirational characters. We both ended up with one selection from history and one from the realm of business biography. I can’t wait to read Wally’s selections and from the sound of it, he’ll be reading mine.

Enjoy this focus on biography and please add to our reading list with your favorites in the comments section.

Art's Signature

 

 

Biography Show Highlights:

Wally: “A book is a gift from the past.” (1:25)

Wally leads off with his thoughts on The Art of Being Unreasonable: Lessons in Unconventional Thinking by Eli Broad. (2:12)  Check out Wally’s detailed review of this book at his Three Star Leadership blog.

In case you haven’t heard of Eli Broad. (2:50)

One of the big takeaways from The Art of Being Unreasonable (3:50)

A book to return to—A chapter at a time. (4:57)

What does Eli Broad mean by “being unreasonable?” (5:50)

Who will benefit from reading The Art of Being Unreasonable? (9:40)

Art shares his first pick: Theodore Roosevelt—A Life, by Nathan Miller as his favorite treatment of this larger than life individual from American history. (Along with a host in reasons he’s fascinated by Roosevelt.) (10:30)

What the author does so well that places this biography ahead of many others about Theodore Roosevelt (15:20)

Wally’s view on T.R. (17:15)

Final thoughts from Art on why he recommends Nathan Miller’s treatment (17:50)

Wally kicks off his thoughts on Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson (18:20)

The book is “simply masterful.” We think we know about Leonardo, but there’s a lot more. (19:20)

Wally ties a Bruce Willis movie, Hudson Hawk) to Leonardo(20:26)

Why should we know something about Leonardo Da Vinci? (22:30)

Art kicks off a contemporary business biography: Onward: How Starbucks Fought for Its Life without Losing Its Soul (23:30)

The defining moment in Howard’s life and how it ties to Starbucks the company. (24:40)

Why Art admires this book and this individual for the character of his decisions. (25:30)

Wally highlights why he appreciates the consistency of character Schultz displays. (29:30)

Art and Wally set the stage for a biography showdown between Onward and Shoe Dog (31:02)

Art shares his encounter with Howard and how it didn’t translate into a fortune. (32:50)

Wally’s closing words on why we should all read biographies. (34:37)

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