LAFD EMERGENCY OPERATIONS RECOMMENDED READING LIST

Whether it is a book, a magazine article, or an after action review report of an emergency incident – reading is possibly the shortest, most established path to growth and total self-improvement.

“Being a leader means you’re going to bump into all kinds of situations you’ve never experienced before. You’re going to face problems for which there are no easy solutions. The good news is that no matter what challenge you’re facing, no matter how unique or how modern, you’re far from the first to encounter it. For roughly 5,000 years, human beings have been experiencing, solving, and, most importantly, writing books about these exact struggles.” Ryan Holiday

This list – on the following pages – is intended to be a diverse source of selected books and other material that will hopefully inspire and challenge you to be a better firefighter, better leader, and better human being…to be the best you can be.


2021 reading list

 

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2021 Reading List

 

Welcome to Management:
How to Grow from Top Performer to Excellent Leader

by Ryan Hawk

Popular leadership podcast host Ryan Hawk distills best practices for newly promoted managers from his in-depth interviews with over 300 forward-thinking leaders and his own experience of moving from exceptional individual producer to new leader. Welcome to Management provides a three-part framework outlining how to lead yourself, build your team, and lead your team. New leaders, and existing leaders who’d like to improve, will benefit from Hawk’s valuable research and practical management strategies.

 

The Truth About Leadership:
The No-Fads, Heart-of-the-Matter Facts You Need to Know

by James Kouzes & Barry Posner

Leadership experts James Kouzes and Barry Posner share 10 time-tested fundamental truths about leadership and becoming an effective leader. Based on 30+ years of research, the fundamental truths outlined in this book will endure regardless of context or circumstance. The principles presented in The Truth About Leadership can be especially valuable to both new leaders and experienced leaders in transition.

 

The First 90 Days:
Proven Strategies for Getting Up to Speed Faster and Smarter

by Michael Watkins

In The First 90 Days, Harvard Business School professor Michael Watkins presents a road map for taking charge in the first 90 days of a new leadership position. The first days in a new position are critical because small differences in actions can have a huge impact on long-term results. The First 90 Days will equip executives with strategies and tools to get up to speed faster and achieve more sooner. Watkins reviews with readers how to diagnose a situation and understand its challenges and opportunities.

 

From Bud to Boss:
Secrets to a Successful Transition to Remarkable Leadership

by Kevin Eikenberry & Guy Harris

Perhaps the most challenging leadership experience anyone will face is their first promotion to leadership. They must deal with the change and uncertainty that comes with a new job, requiring new skills, and they’ve been promoted from peer to leader. While this book addresses the needs of any manager, supervisor, or leader, it pulls from the best leadership and management thinking, and puts the focus on the difficulties that new leaders experience. From Bud to Boss can help new leaders get beyond the stress and fear to focus on becoming the most effective leader they can be — starting right now.

 

Leading with Gratitude:
Eight Leadership Practices for Extraordinary Business Results

by Adrian Gostick & Chester Elton

Research shows that gratitude boosts employee engagement, reduces turnover, and leads team members to express more gratitude to one another thereby strengthening team bonds – but few executives effectively use this simple tool. In Leading with Gratitude, best-selling authors Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton identify the myths that cause leaders to withhold thanks and introduce eight simple ways managers can show employees they are valued. It’s a skill that everyone can easily learn.

 

Crucial Conversations:
Tools for Talking When Stakes are High

by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan & Al Switzler

If you feel stuck — in a relationship, in your career, at home — chances are a crucial conversation is keeping you there. Crucial Conversations, a New York Times bestseller, will help you handle crucial conversations — conversations that occur when the stakes are high, emotions run strong, and opinions vary. With crucial conversations skills, you’ll be able to: prepare for high-stakes situations with a proven technique; transform anger and hurt feelings into powerful dialogue; make it safe to talk about almost anything; be persuasive, not abrasive; improve nearly every professional and personal relationship; and yield major professional improvements in areas like productivity, quality, safety, diversity, and leadership initiatives.

 

 

 

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