Books 2015 - Vol I. #6

For each issue we’ll highlight books, some new, some old, some for adults, some for children.

Conscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business

 

by John Mackey and Raj Sisodia

 

This is a thoughtful, commonsensical, and provocative book on business, capitalism, and leadership.  There is much to ponder, to converse about, to agree with, and to get upset by—especially as it challenges engrained paradigms and beloved “gurus” of all sorts. (There are plenty of ideas said or not said in the book that merit challenge and development).  The fact that it promotes and cites Victor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning is an obvious sign it’s not business as usual.

 

The book’s relevance is well beyond business and directly and indirectly has value for communication professionals, educational leaders, etc.  Simply, it is a good read for anyone, as obviously “economics” and business are part of our everyday life and public perception regarding free markets, private property, and capitalism matter.

 

Here is a smattering of quotes to entice and to give a firm idea this is not a partisan or politically polarizing work and worthy of real engagement.

 

"In the United States, overly powerful labor unions have undermined the long-term competitiveness of the automobile, steel, and airline industries (in addition to management failures, of course)."

 

"The best conscious leaders are merchants of hope and entrepreneurs of meaning…They build organizations whose higher purpose becomes engrained into the DNA.  This is most effectively done through story telling…Stories are the most powerful way to engage with people at an emotional level..."

 

"To a degree, the media has become philosophically corrupted by the postmodernist philosophy that there is no objective truth, only subjective interpretations…all interpretations are seen as equally valid, and one’s ideology becomes the dominant prism through which to view reality.  People then twist things to make them fit their ideological biases...If the media were to reengage in the pursuit of objective truth…it could regain public trust and serve a more beneficial role in our society."

 

"Conscious leaders have a great capacity for love and care.  They recognize how important it is to drive fear out of the organization…Fearful people are hyper vigilant, defensive, and purely self-interested."

 

"Humans have a strong confirmation bias.  If we expect to see something, we are likely to start seeing it.  Even if they are not there…"

 

"Most of us were taught to think with the analytical part of our mind: we divide things up into parts and analyze them…(it) is obviously valuable and…it has limitations…We have trouble seeing the big complex picture…Without the ability to think with holistic systems intelligence…"

 

"Medicine has become a very expensive automobile repair shop delivering first aid, pharmaceutical drugs, medical devices, and surgeries that primarily address symptoms rather than the sources of disease."

 

"In some industries, such as health care and education, the government is now so powerful and dominant that entrepreneurship and innovation are being curtailed."

 

"The burden of regulations falls disproportionately on small businesses."

 

 

Well…much (whole) food for thought…

Man’s Search for Meaning

 

by Victor Frankl

 

Not too long ago I was chatting with a psychiatrist at an educational conference.  He was very active with publishing books and with schools, and I like his works.  As were walking and talking, I asked him how relevant Frankl was with respect to logotherapy and, of course, to his books.  I was surprised and dismayed by how hastily he dismissed the question and gave a simple reply of: “No one reads him anymore; not relevant.”  OK, I thought, what a pity, but recently I was equally surprised to see Frankl’s book mentioned in Conscious Capitalism. He is still relevant--his observations, insights, and wisdom are of the kind that do not age, or perhaps we can say they age well.  I’ve often thought this work coupled with a few others could serve as a great source to rethink educational paradigms, systems, and vision.

 

As we know, this work is beautifully written and packed with meaning (too many puns intended).  Here is a taste (and a challenge to Freud whose willed materialistic vision can cause so much distortion and repression of eros and the primal desire for transcendent meaning and beauty):

 

"…there are various masks and guises under which the existential appears .  Sometimes the frustrated will to meaning is vicariously compensated for by a will to power, including the most primitive form of the will to power, the will to money.  In other cases, the place of frustrated will to meaning is taken by the will to pleasure.  That is why existential frustration often eventuates in sexual compensation.  We can observe in such cases that the sexual libido becomes rampant in the existential vacuum."

 

     ~ V. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning

 

The Forest

 

by Roger Caras

 

This is delightful, fast-paced natural history in narrative form.  Readers learn about nature and its relational and dynamic nature without feeling their “learning.”  We move from one exciting chase or wonder moment to another, such as a golden eagle’s lunge for a rabbit or a battle between a California king snake and a rattle snake…and on and on.

 

And while not entering strongly into philosophic debates, the intelligent, efficient, and mysterious design of “Nature” is repeatedly referenced, even though the words “intelligent design” do not often appear…and as some may recall such evident signs of “intelligence” without their being an obvious being with intelligence doing the directing is one of the old proofs of the existence of God…anyhow, too much on that already…enjoy!

 

For adults of all sorts

For mature high school students and beyond

For middle school students and beyond

Henry David Thoreau: Collected Essays and Poems

 

Walking

 

by Henry David Thoreau

 

It simply wouldn’t be right to feature poetry by the great Thoreau and not a book.  He is worth visiting and revisiting (something Thoreau himself apparently did often to the Emersons, especially around supper time).  Always fresh, often deeply insightful, at times radical (and I think with respect to John Brown, bizarre), his work is that of a master craftsman and an American original.

 

Here is a collection of his works and a separate essay on the importance of sauntering in the wild.

 

For high school students and beyond

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