Tribal Leadership explores how organizations are composed of naturally occurring groups of 20 to 150 people, which the authors term 'tribes.' The book, based on a 10-year study involving 24,000 people in over two dozen organizations, outlines a framework to understand, motivate, and grow these tribes. It introduces a five-stage model of tribal culture, from Stage One (despairingly hostile) to Stage Five (focused on making a global impact). The authors provide actionable advice on how leaders can upgrade their tribal culture to enhance organizational performance, employee satisfaction, and innovation[1][3][5].
In 'Delivering Happiness,' Tony Hsieh shares his entrepreneurial journey, from co-founding LinkExchange to leading Zappos to its remarkable success. The book emphasizes the importance of company culture, customer service, and employee happiness in achieving business success. Hsieh outlines three core sections: 'Profits,' 'Profits and Passion,' and 'Profits, Passion, and Purpose,' highlighting key lessons such as the superiority of product quality over marketing, the importance of passion in entrepreneurship, and the critical role of company culture in driving success. He also introduces frameworks for happiness, including perceived control, progress, connectedness, and vision/meaning, and how these can be applied to create a happy and productive workplace[2][4][5].
In 'The Happiness Hypothesis,' Jonathan Haidt delves into the nature of happiness, fulfillment, and meaning. He discusses the division of the self into two parts: the primitive limbic system and the rational neocortex, using the metaphor of a rider and an elephant to explain the relationship between conscious and unconscious processes. Haidt examines 'Great Ideas' from ancient thinkers like Plato, Buddha, and Jesus, and evaluates them in light of contemporary psychological research. He argues that happiness is influenced by both internal and external factors, including biological set points, life conditions, and voluntary activities. The book also explores the importance of social relationships, the role of adversity in personal growth, and the concept of 'vital engagement' in work and life[2][3][5].
In 'Good to Great,' Jim Collins and his research team investigate why some companies achieve long-term greatness while others do not. The book identifies key concepts such as Level 5 Leadership, the Hedgehog Concept, a Culture of Discipline, and the Flywheel Effect. These principles are derived from a comprehensive study comparing companies that made the leap to greatness with those that did not. The research highlights that greatness is not primarily a function of circumstance but rather a result of conscious choice and discipline. The book provides practical insights and case studies to help businesses and leaders understand and apply these principles to achieve sustained greatness.
In this classic work, Csikszentmihalyi investigates 'optimal experience' and reveals that true happiness and satisfaction can be achieved through a state of consciousness called 'flow.' During flow, individuals experience complete concentration on the task, clarity of goals, and immediate feedback. The book demonstrates how this positive state can be controlled and how it can improve the quality of life by unlocking meaning, creativity, and peak performance.
This book summarizes Anders Ericsson's 30-year research on the acquisition of expertise. It introduces the concept of 'deliberate practice,' a specific learning method used by experts to achieve superior performance. The authors distinguish between different types of practice, such as naive practice, purposeful practice, and deliberate practice, emphasizing the importance of mental representations in achieving expertise. The book also addresses the misconception of the '10,000-hour rule' popularized by Malcolm Gladwell and provides practical tips for improving skills in various areas[1][2][5].
Tony Hsieh visits Google to discuss his book "Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose."
Back in 1999, Tony Hsieh sold LinkExchange, the company he co-founded, to Microsoft for $265 million. He then joined Zappos as an adviser and investor, and eventually became CEO.
In 2009, Zappos was listed as one of Fortune magazine's top 25 companies to work for, and was acquired by Amazon later that year in a deal valued at over $1.2 billion on the day of closing.
In his book, Tony shares the different business lessons he learned in life, from operating a lemonade stand and a pizza business through LinkExchange, Zappos, and more. He shows how using happiness as a framework can produce profits, passion, and purpose – both in business and in life.
Originally published in July of 2010.
Visit http://youtube.com/TalksAtGoogle/ to watch the video.
Talks at Google 
