J. Timothy King’s Blog

Ten Favorite Books

These are not necessarily my all-time favorites in all categories. I don’t even know whether I could narrow the list down that far. But these are ten really good books from my library, all of which I heartily recommend.

In fact, I continue to be amazed at how many people have not read even the most significant of these books. How many businessmen have never read Peter Drucker. Every executive, every manager, every entrepreneur must read Peter Drucker. Or how many software engineers have never read Frederick Brooks or Demarco and Lister. Or how many software managers don’t even know who Brooks or Demarco or Lister is.

The Executive in Action by Peter Drucker. This has three great books in one volume: Managing for Results, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and The Effective Executive. Peter Drucker’s work was my introduction to the science of running a business, and I grieved at his passing. No matter how well versed you are in the subject, these seminal works will still likely bring you new understanding.

The Mythical Man-Month: Essays on Software Engineering by Frederick Brooks. This classic on software development processes and practices, it’s still quoted often. Because every developer sees some part of himself in Frederick Brooks’s adages and stories.

Peopleware: Productive Projects and Teams by Tom Demarco and Tim Lister. If you are miserable in your software development job, read this book, and you’ll immediately understand why. What’s so amazing is that Peopleware is almost 20 years old now, it still holds true, and software managers and staff still face the same problems and ask the same questions and come to the same wrong answers as they did 20 years ago. I think they all need a swift kick in the incompetence.

Crystal Clear: A Human-Powered Methodology for Small Teams by Alistair Cockburn. I’ve written about Crystal Clear before (and Peopleware, too). If following a formulaic system isn’t working for you, and it probably isn’t, try seeking the 7 properties Alistair Cockburn says characterize successful teams.

Fail-Safe Investing : Lifelong Financial Security in 30 Minutes by Harry Browne. I first discovered Harry Browne during the 1996 U.S. presidential campaign. I was a typical disenfranchised voter, except for the fact that I was willing to consider alternatives. This was back in the days before Google, and I searched the web for information on third-party candidates. And I found Harry Browne. At first, I thought he was a little crazy, but closer to my position than any other candidate. As I listened, I heard the words of an eloquent, patient sage. By election day, my own political views had changed significantly. Over the years, I’ve learned from Harry Browne how to treat others, how to persuade, how to love life, and how to plan for the future. And I still sometimes must remind myself that he too is no longer with us, even though it’s been over 7 months since he passed away. Here in this compact volume, Harry Browne lays out a plan for practically risk-free retirement savings. It’s based on a so-obvious-it’s-overlooked philosophy: None of us knows what’s going to happen tomorrow. Since you don’t know what’s going to happen, don’t try to predict it. Instead, choose a portfolio that will perform regardless of what happens tomorrow.

How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie. I was like many other software developers. Through my childhood and early adulthood, I knew how to get the computer to do almost anything I wanted. But I was no good at working with people. I knew how to win any logical argument, but I would never be a leader. Then Harry Browne referred me to Dale Carnegie’s seminal work. For many people, Carnegie’s advice will seem so obvious, they’ll wonder why it needs to be said. For others, it will seem manipulative, but only because they don’t actually mean the kind things he advises us to say. For someone like me, who has a good heart but just doesn’t know how to express it, Carnegie was heaven sent.

Never Eat Alone: And Other Secrets to Success, One Relationship at a Time by Keith Ferrazzi. Doing Dale Carnegie one better, this is a modern classic on networking. Keith Ferrazzi explains how to establish and maintain relationships, how to make a difference, and how to get ahead. He challenges some common assumptions, such as when he advises, “Never keep score.” Rather, he tells us never to withhold help from others, because the more you give, the more you’ll get in return. And he caters to the maverick in me, with stories of challenging the status quo in his department, his company, even his whole industry. You can even see this book’s influence in this my blog. How many times have I said, “The worst they can do is fire you”?

Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt. (But the 50′th anniversary edition has been updated with more current statistics.) In this libertarian classic, Henry Hazlitt explains why “Live and let live” is good for everybody. More importantly, he draws lessons that apply to running a business. For example, too many economic fallacies come about because we notice what we see, but we ignore what we don’t see. We ignore what would have happened if we had taken a different course. Of course, this is human nature. It happens in every aspect of our lives. And the man who can see the whole picture can do better than he who only sees what’s in front of his face.

The Leadership Challenge by James Kouzes and Barry Posner. This is a very thick, very dense book. I mean dense as in, so jam-packed full of insight, reading it makes my head feel like it’s going to explode. The Leadership Challenge lays out the characteristics and behaviors of a leader. One thing I found is that some parts of myself that I was afraid of, sublimated through years of living in the establishment, were the leadership strengths I needed to exercise.

The Dilbert Principle: A Cubicle’s-Eye View of Bosses, Meetings, Management Fads & Other Workplace Afflictions by Scott Adams. Dilbert needs no introduction, of course. But the Dilbert Principle might. You may have heard of the Peter Principle: Once competent people rise through the ranks of management until their brains turn into lemon meringue. But move over Peter Principle. Now, we’re in the age of the Dilbert Principle. Now, we systematically identify and promote the least competent among us. This explains a lot. (It explains, for example, the President of the U.S., and why I consider it an insult to suggest that either of my daughters would ever rise to that office!)

-TimK