Leading in Tough Times: Overcome Even the Greatest Challenges with Courage and Confidence (Maxwell, 2021)

I'm always ready to read or listen to anything John C. Maxwell has to say. This book is like sitting with a good mentor who's telling you everything you need to know to become or remain a great leader. His advice in these challenging times is a wonderful refresher for seasoned leaders and certainly great for anyone new to a leadership position. We're all living in difficult times and hope that we're bringing our best game; however, a time of crisis doesn't create leaders, it reveals them. Maxwell presents a road map for all leaders to follow as we look for ways to turn crisis into opportunity. Each chapter is filled with words of wisdom and reminders of what good leaders aspire to be every day.

Raising Resilient Kids with Angela Duckworth (A Bit of Optimism Podcast with Simon Sinek, June 8, 2021:https://simonsinek.com/discover/episode-35-raising-resilient-kids-with-angela-du)

I've had the pleasure of hearing Simon Sinek speak and was first introduced to him through his book, Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action. I'm a glass half full kind of girl, so Sinek's approach to leadership and his emphasis on optimism in his podcasts appeal to me. He interviews many authors and leaders, interjecting his own brand of wisdom and philosophy.

In this podcast, he interviews University of Pennsylvania psychology professor Angela Duckworth, the author of Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance. Sinek postulates that kids already weren't resilient in dealing with adversity and then COVID-19 came along on top of it all. His discussion with Duckworth centers on why this upcoming generation lacks grit, including the ability of children to deal with stress based on their parents' reactions to their experiences. If parents don't allow their child to stumble, fall, scrape their knees, and work through their problems, the child may never learn how to do so. Duckworth suggests that teaching service and knowing how to ask for and give help are ways to learn how to have grit.

Although this podcast deals with children, it also extends to leaders in acknowledging the challenges of leading multiple generations. Developing grit, or in another word resilience, is top of mind for most nurse leaders during the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. Sinek's podcasts are filled with great leadership and life lessons we can all apply in both our professional and personal lives.

Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard (Heath and Heath, 2010)

Change in healthcare has almost become a moment-to-moment experience. When I first read this New York Times bestseller, I was struck by the practicality of the approach and the recognition that to effect transformative change, we must capture individuals' emotional side, as well as their rational side. Every successful change initiative follows a pattern, which the Heaths have laid out. Not all change looks the same; however, this book is filled with numerous examples of change that bring to life their methodology. The ability to gain traction for your ideas and be an influencer in today's workplace is essential. If you're leading significant transformative change, being able to step back and analyze the process is the key to success. If you don't know the rider, the elephant, and the path, you need to add this book to your nightstand or bookshelf.