Alchemy, the medieval practice of attempting to convert base metals into gold in pursuit of a universal elixir, found new purpose during the Industrial Revolution as banks transformed secure short-term deposits into long-term risky investments. Author Mervyn King, the recent governor of the Bank of England, suggests this immensely seductive process led to “the creation of extraordinary financial powers that…
Book Report – Beach Reads!
Here are the best books I’ve read since the last time we took a break from the serious stuff: The Girls, Emma Cline – This is one disturbing debut novel from Cline, in which bored teen Evie becomes enamored of a gaggle of girls who seemingly do whatever they want. Set in the late 60’s and the present day, we…
Book Report – Rocket Fuel by Gino Wickman and Mark C. Winters
Radio Spot A Is your drive too hard for most people on your team? Do you find results to be inconsistent as a result? Perhaps you’re battling a dysfunctional culture that lacks openness and honesty? Do you have a reluctance to let go of certain roles and responsibilities? Are you quickly and easily bored? Is it fair to say…
Book Report – The Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande
“Good checklists are precise,” writes Atul Gawande in his terrific book, The Checklist Manifesto. “They are efficient, to the point, and easy to use even in the most difficult situations.” One hopes the summary below does justice to the best-selling author’s guidelines. Safety first. They say flying is safer than driving and for good reason. If drivers were required to…
Book Report – The Airbnb Story by Leigh Gallagher
Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia were flat broke. Unemployed and desperate, the two art school grads decided to raise money by renting out air mattress space in their San Francisco apartment when a big design conference came to town and hotel rooms proved hard to come by. While the brainstorm was meant to buy themselves another month of lodging to…