Bookshelf
A collection of books, by category, I’ve found most memorable.
The Psychology of People
These books have helped me understand how people think and have ultimately improved my communication with others. There are fun takes on some of these topics in books like Freakonomics. But these are my favorites that I recommend to others. Being an effective communicator is a critical skill.
- How to Win Friends and Influence People
- Predictably Irrational
- Thinking, Fast and Slow
- Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
- Crucial Conversations
- Emotional Intelligence
Business and Professional Development
All of these books can help develop personal habits and knowledge of how for-profit businesses run, which can be a valuable asset no matter where you go. This is a very short list of the business and professional development books that I refer to.
- Eat that Frog
- 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
- Good to Great and all of Jim Collins’s works
- The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership and really all of John C. Maxwell’s works
- The Five Dysfunctions of a Team and other works by Patrick Lencioni
- Leading Change and other works by John P. Kotter
- Team of Teams
- On Writing Well
Engineers’ Path to Leadership
It’s not a given that all engineers want to progress on the so-called “managerial track.” I have done it, and in addition to seeking counsel from trusted colleagues who had made the transition, these are the books I read as I began taking the plunge and applying for managerial roles. The key takeaway that I have since learned is that whatever you think “leadership” is, there is a whole other side of being responsible for people’s careers and livelihoods that no book can prepare you for emotionally.
- An Elegant Puzzle
- High Output Management
- The Manager’s Path
- First Break All the Rules
- What Got You Here Won’t Get You There
Life and Emotional Hangovers
Some books leave me with a heavy heart at the close—a book so good that I can’t quite start the next one. I need a day or two to really let it soak in. While these books don’t really fit neatly into a category above, they have left a lasting impression on me nonetheless. Some deal with heavy topics; others might inspire you. Enjoy.
Significant Revisions
- Dec 20th, 2025 Cut, cut, cut. What a blowhard.
- Jul 20th, 2024 Originally published on https://www.jsrowe.com with uid 56EBCCD0-E5AD-4376-86FB-5EF9A5E96160
- Jul 13th, 2024 First draft