There’s a flawed logic that exists within many tech and cyber teams. High-performing individual contributors are offered leadership opportunities, because there’s an assumption their technical expertise translates to leadership expertise. The truth is: being a great leader requires a specialized skill set.
Below is a list of books every leader needs to read, digest, and apply to their role if they want to become a great leader.
Extreme Ownership
Why this book? The core idea of extreme ownership is simple. As a leader, take FULL responsibility. No excuses for any external factors. If something is not in your favor, it’s your job to figure it out and solve it.
Favorite Quote: “Leaders must own everything in their world. There is no one else to blame.”
Radical Candor
Why this book? The author introduces Radical Candor as a management philosophy where leaders succeed by caring deeply about their team members on a personal level. Care personally and challenge directly — genuinely caring about your team members while also challenging them to do better. It’s a balancing act.
Favorite Quote: “In order to build a great team, you need to understand how each person’s job fits into their life goals.”
Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions
Why this book? The outcomes of our decisions can be misleading. Suboptimal decisions sometimes lead to positive results (dumb luck) and optimal decisions sometimes lead to bad results (bad break). If we can shift our focus from results (which can be misleading) to process, we can increase our odds of success in the long-run. One of my biggest takeaways from this book was the power of moving away from black and white in favor of the gray area. Making a decision is more important than getting hung up on lack of data to make a decision. Leaders need to be decisive.
Favorite Quote: “We simply must come to a decision right now with as much as we know at this moment.”
Checklist Manifesto
Why this book? In the business world, where we place so much emphasis on people’s abilities to innovate, The Checklist Manifesto is a sobering reminder that even someone at the top of their field can overlook the simplest of things. Process mapping ensures everything stays on task and no shortcuts are taken, thus stopping small issues growing into big ones.
Favorite Quote: “Checklists seem able to defend anyone, even the experienced, against failure in many more tasks than we realized.”
How to Win Friends and Influence People
Why this book? Successful professional relationships are built on understanding and respecting others’ perspectives. Genuinely be interested in others, actively listen, remember people’s names, give sincere praise, avoid criticism and complaints, show empathy, understand others’ perspectives, use persuasion over force, and always strive to make the other person feel important and valued will help you succeed as a leader.
Favorite Quote: “If you want to gather honey, don’t kick over the beehive.”