Will Kelly

Not even a day job and side freelance projects can keep me from getting to the pool during the summer and this year is no different. It’s also a time of year when I break away from reading about technology, project management, and delve into other topics.

Here is my reading list (thus far) for this summer:

• Hard Measures by Jose A. Rodriguez Jr. and Bill Harlow. I read this book over Memorial Day Weekend and really liked it because increasingly I like to see insights about current events and recent history not bounced through a politician’s spin cycle or by the media to drive ratings. It’s a memoir of Jose A. Rodriguez and pulls the veil from some of the tough decisions that had to be made after 9/11. The text is free of political correctness or media spin, which is always refreshing.
• No Matter What They’ll Call This Book Racist by Harry Stein. An interesting look at race in America and the entities that hijack the issues for their own agendas. I warn you that some of the book’s topics are going to be painful to some but if you believe that nobody should be above reproach then it makes for interesting reading.
• The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. I had to break many bad habits and gain some new positive habits after my Total Thyroidectomy, which got me interested in how people make changes in their lives so I think this book is going to be an interesting read for me this summer.
• Quiet by Susan Cain. Interpersonal communications especially in the workplace have recently become an interest of mine after having the cause and time to reflect over where I am at professionally. There is a lot of power in Introverts that companies never seem to tap into especially if the organization is drawn to attention whores when too many times the introverts just throw up their hands, take the paycheck, and wait for the day the economy improves. The company, customer, and project can lose big and may not even notice until the attention whore stops talking.
• Imagine: How Creativity Works by Jonah Lehrer. I want to read this book to gain some better insight into how creativity works. Now that I have my health back and all cylinders are firing, I am back to writing more and hope to learn some more about creativity from this book to keep myself sharp.
• Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahnman. This book promises to be about decision-making. After suffering through Brain Fog brought on by my previous Thyroid issues, I am looking forward to learning more about judgment and decision-making.

I am sure this list might see some additions as the summer goes on but this is a start.

What books are you reading by the pool this summer?