124: Liminal Thinking by Dave Gray

In 'Leaders Eat Last', Simon Sinek explores the principles of true leadership, emphasizing the importance of trust, safety, and the well-being of team members. The book delves into the biological and anthropological aspects of leadership, highlighting the role of neurochemicals such as serotonin, oxytocin, dopamine, and endorphins in shaping behavior. Sinek advocates for a 'Circle of Safety' where leaders prioritize the needs of their team members, ensuring they feel protected and valued. He contrasts short-term, self-serving leadership with long-term, people-centric leadership, using examples from various organizations to illustrate his points. The book stresses that leadership is a choice rather than a rank and that great leaders focus on the well-being of their people above all else.

In this influential business book, Clayton Christensen shows how even the most outstanding companies can lose market leadership when they fail to adapt to disruptive innovations. Christensen explains why companies often miss new waves of innovation and provides a set of rules for capitalizing on disruptive technologies. The book uses examples from various industries, including the disk drive, mechanical excavator, steel, and computer industries, to illustrate trends that lead to success or failure in the face of disruptive technologies.

The Mountain Is You delves into the reasons behind self-sabotaging behaviors and offers a comprehensive guide on how to transform these patterns into self-mastery. The book uses the metaphor of a mountain to represent the internal challenges we face and emphasizes the importance of deep internal work, such as excavating trauma, building emotional intelligence, and releasing past experiences. It encourages readers to take responsibility for their actions and to cultivate a resilient mindset to overcome their own barriers to success.

In 'Willpower Doesn't Work,' Benjamin Hardy argues that willpower is not a reliable tool for achieving success. Instead, he advocates for the power of environment in shaping behavior and outcomes. The book provides strategies on how to create an environment that supports your goals, such as removing distractions, investing in personal growth, and using 'forcing functions' to ensure desired behaviors become automatic. Hardy draws on psychological theories and the experiences of successful individuals to illustrate how adapting to and designing one's environment is crucial for personal and professional success.

Originally published in 1940 and revised in 1972, this book is a classic guide to intelligent reading. It describes the art of reading as the process by which a mind elevates itself through its own operations on the symbols of readable matter. The authors emphasize active reading, highlighting the importance of keen observation, available memory, range of imagination, and an intellect trained in analysis and reflection. The book provides practical lessons on how to read books effectively, including inspectional reading, analytical reading, and syntopical reading, to achieve a deeper understanding of the material.

The Great Mental Models: General Thinking Concepts is the first book in The Great Mental Models series. It details nine fundamental thinking concepts that form the bedrock of clear reasoning and effective decision-making. Drawing on examples from history, business, art, and science, this book teaches how to avoid blind spots, find non-obvious solutions, anticipate and achieve desired outcomes, and play to your strengths while avoiding your weaknesses. The book covers mental models such as first principles thinking, Hanlon’s razor, inversion, and probabilistic thinking, among others, to help readers better understand the world, solve problems, and gain an advantage.