Tony Hsieh

Former CEO at Zappos

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Book Recommendations:

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Recommended by Tony Hsieh

The 7 Habits encompasses timeless principles that can help guide and company towards success. (from Amazon)

Internationally renowned leadership authority and bestselling author Stephen R. Covey presents a hands-on companion to his landmark book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, which has sold more than 10 million copies and has become a touchstone for individuals, families, and businesses around the world. Stephen Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People took the self-help market by storm in 1990 and has enjoyed phenomenal sales ever since. The integrated, principle-centered 7 Habits philosophy has helped readers find solutions to their personal and professional problems and achieve a life characterized by fairness, integrity, honesty, and dignity. Covey’s tried and true step-by-step approach is explored even more fully in this workbook, which leads readers through the 7 Habits and shows them how to put these ideas into action everyday. With the same clarity and assurance that Covey’s readers have come to know and love, the workbook helps readers further understand, appreciate, and internalize the power of the 7 Habits. These engaging, in-depth exercises allow readers—both devotees and newcomers—to get their hands dirty as they develop a philosophy for success, set personal goals, and improve their relationships. The overwhelming success of Stephen R. Covey’s principle-centered philosophy is a testament to the millions who have benefited from his lessons, and now, with The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Personal Workbook, they can further explore and understand this tried-and-true approach. This reference offers solutions to both personal and professional problems by promoting and teaching fairness, integrity, honesty, and dignity. An engaging companion to a bestselling classic, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Personal Workbook will help readers set goals, improve relationships, and create a path to life effectiveness.

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Recommended by Tony Hsieh

In this valuable guide Chris Guillebeau shows that transforming an idea into a successful business can be easier than you think…You are in charge of which ideas deserve your time, and this book can help you wake up every morning eager to progress to the next step. (from Amazon)

Lead a life of adventure, meaning and purpose—and earn a good living. “Thoughtful, funny, and compulsively readable, this guide shows how ordinary people can build solid livings, with independence and purpose, on their own terms.”—Gretchen Rubin, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller The Happiness Project Still in his early thirties, Chris Guillebeau completed a tour of every country on earth and yet he’s never held a “real job” or earned a regular paycheck. Rather, he has a special genius for turning ideas into income, and he uses what he earns both to support his life of adventure and to give back. Chris identified 1,500 individuals who have built businesses earning $50,000 or more from a modest investment (in many cases, $100 or less), and focused on the 50 most intriguing case studies. In nearly all cases, people with no special skills discovered aspects of their personal passions that could be monetized, and were able to restructure their lives in ways that gave them greater freedom and fulfillment. Here, finally, distilled into one easy-to-use guide, are the most valuable lessons from those who’ve learned how to turn what they do into a gateway to self-fulfillment. It’s all about finding the intersection between your “expertise”—even if you don’t consider it such—and what other people will pay for.  You don’t need an MBA, a business plan or even employees. All you need is a product or service that springs from what you love to do anyway, people willing to pay, and a way to get paid. Not content to talk in generalities, Chris tells you exactly how many dollars his group of unexpected entrepreneurs required to get their projects up and running; what these individuals did in the first weeks and months to generate significant cash; some of the key mistakes they made along the way, and the crucial insights that made the business stick. Among Chris’s key principles: If you’re good at one thing, you’re probably good at something else; never teach a man to fish—sell him the fish instead; and in the battle between planning and action, action wins. In ancient times, people who were dissatisfied with their lives dreamed of finding magic lamps, buried treasure, or streets paved with gold. Today, we know that it’s up to us to change our lives. And the best part is, if we change our own life, we can help others change theirs. This remarkable book will start you on your way.

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Recommended by Tony Hsieh

Whether you want to influence others, make smarter decisions, or just better understand the mystery that is human behavior, this book will show you how. A terrific, insightful read. (from Amazon)

In Invisible Influence, the New York Times bestselling author of Contagious explores the subtle influences that affect the decisions we make—from what we buy, to the careers we choose, to what we eat. “Jonah Berger has done it again: written a fascinating book that brims with ideas and tools for how to think about the world.” —Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit If you’re like most people, you think your individual tastes and opinions drive your choices and behaviors. You wear a certain jacket because you liked how it looked. You picked a particular career because you found it interesting. The notion that our choices are driven by our own personal thoughts and opinions is patently obvious. Right? Wrong. Without our realizing it, other people’s behavior has a huge influence on everything we do at every moment of our lives, from the mundane to the momentous. Even strangers have an impact on our judgments and decisions: our attitudes toward a welfare policy shift if we’re told it is supported by Democrats versus Republicans (even though the policy is the same). But social influence doesn’t just lead us to do the same things as others. In some cases we imitate others around us. But in other cases we avoid particular choices or behaviors because other people are doing them. We stop listening to a band because they go mainstream. We skip buying the minivan because we don’t want to look like a soccer mom. By understanding how social influence works, we can decide when to resist and when to embrace it—and learn how we can use this knowledge to exercise more control over our own behavior. In Invisible Influence, Jonah Berger “is consistently entertaining, applying science to real life in surprising ways and explaining research through narrative. His book fascinates because it opens up the moving parts of a mysterious machine, allowing readers to watch them in action” (Publishers Weekly).

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Recommended by Tony Hsieh

For Zappos, part of delivering a great customer experience means developing personal and emotional connections, both with employees and customers. These are the types of connections people talk about with their friends and family. This book will show you how to give people something to talk about. (from Amazon)

The small business guru behind Duct Tape Marketing shares his most valuable lesson: how to get your customers to do your best marketing for you. The power of glitzy advertising and elaborate marketing campaigns is on the wane; word- of-mouth referrals are what drive business today. People trust the recommendation of a friend, family member, colleague, or even stranger with similar tastes over anything thrust at them by a faceless company. Most business owners believe that whether customers refer them is entirely out of their hands. But science shows that people can't help recommending products and services to their friends-it's an instinct wired deep in the brain. And smart businesses can tap into that hardwired desire. Marketing expert John Jantsch offers practical techniques for harnessing the power of referrals to ensure a steady flow of new customers. Keep those customers happy, and they will refer your business to even more customers. Some of Jantsch's strategies include: -Talk with your customers, not at them. Thanks to social networking sites, companies of any size have the opportunity to engage with their customers on their home turf as never before-but the key is listening. -The sales team is the most important part of your marketing team. Salespeople are the company's main link to customers, who are the main source of referrals. Getting them on board with your referral strategy is critical. -Educate your customers. Referrals are only helpful if they're given to the right people. Educate your customers about whom they should be talking to. The secret to generating referrals lies in understanding the "Customer Referral Cycle"-the way customers refer others to your company who, in turn, generate even more referrals. Businesses can ensure a healthy referral cycle by moving customers and prospects along the path of Know, Like, Trust, Try, Buy, Repeat, and Refer. If everyone in an organization keeps this sequence in mind, Jantsch argues, your business will generate referrals like a well-oiled machine. This practical, smart, and original guide is essential reading for any company looking to grow without a fat marketing budget.

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Recommended by Tony Hsieh

The Happiness Equation will lead to tremendous changes in both your professional and personal life! (from Amazon)

The #1 international bestseller from the author of The Book of Awesome that “reveals how all of us can live happier lives” (Gretchen Rubin). What is the formula for a happy life? Neil Pasricha is a Harvard MBA, a New York Times–bestselling author, a Walmart executive, a father, a husband. After selling more than a million copies of the Book of Awesome series, wherein he observed the everyday things he thought were awesome, he now shifts his focus to the practicalities of living an awesome life. In his new book The Happiness Equation, Pasricha illustrates how to want nothing and do anything in order to have everything. If that sounds like a contradiction in terms, you simply have yet to unlock the 9 Secrets to Happiness. Each secret takes a piece out of the core of common sense, turns it on its head to present it in a completely new light, and then provides practical and specific guidelines for how to apply this new outlook to lead a fulfilling life. Once you've unlocked Pasricha’s 9 Secrets, you will understand counter intuitive concepts such as: Success Does Not Lead to Happiness, Never Take Advice, and Retirement Is a Broken Theory. You will learn and then master three brand-new fundamental life tests: the Saturday Morning Test, The Bench Test, and the Five People Test. You will know the difference between external goals and internal goals and how to make more money than a Harvard MBA (hint: it has nothing to do with your annual salary). You will discover that true wealth has nothing to do with money, multitasking is a myth, and the elimination of options leads to more choice. The Happiness Equation is a book that will change how you think about pretty much everything—your time, your career, your relationships, your family, and, ultimately, of course, your happiness.

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Recommended by Tony Hsieh

A great guide to turning your customer service around. (from Amazon)

The ultimate, practical guide to transforming your customer service, company culture, and customer experience, endorsed by all the top names in the field. Great customer service may be today's most essential competitive advantage. Yet when it comes to delivering great customer service and a great customer experience, most companies tragically continue to miss the mark. But you can succeed where so many have failed:  Ignore Your Customers (and They'll Go Away) spells out, step by step, how to craft a customer service culture and customer experience so powerful that they'll transform your organization and boost your company's bottom line. You'll enjoy inspirational, often hilarious, tales from the trenches as author Micah Solomon, one of the world's best-known customer service consultants and thought leaders, brings you with him on hands-on adventures assessing and transforming customer service in a variety of industries. (Ever wonder what it's like to mystery shop, for instance, a luxury spa, where you get paid for your opinions while receiving a massage and a manicure-for research purposes, of course?) You'll spend time behind the scenes with Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh and discover how Zappos delivers "wow" customer service. You'll visit personally with Richard Branson to learn how Virgin brands deliver authentic customer service (avoiding what Branson calls "Stepford Customer Service") and learn Branson's secrets for turning social media attackers into brand promoters. Drawing on a wealth of stories personally assembled from today's most innovative and successful companies-including Amazon, Cleveland Clinic, Drybar, USAA, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, Nordstrom, MOD Pizza, Nextiva, and more-Solomon reveals what it takes to turn a ho-hum customer interaction into one that drives customer engagement and lifelong loyalty. What you'll find inside: * Exclusive customer service secrets and proven turnaround methodologies from author Micah Solomon (today's best-known customer service and customer experience consultant) showing the reader how to perform effective and lasting customer service transformation at their own companies. * A dive into one of the hottest topics in business today: company culture, specifically how to build and sustaining a customer-centric company culture. * Case studies and anecdotes from the great customer-centric companies of our time. ALSO INCLUDED:* Special material throughout on diversity and inclusion from Jan Jones Blackhurst, EVP at Caesars International (and the first female mayor of Las Vegas) and Michael Hyter, renowned author of The Power of Inclusion. * Each chapter concludes with a Business Reading Group Guide and a point-by-point summary to maximize reader memory retention and make every insight actionable.

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Recommended by Tony Hsieh

Hundreds of businesses have customers who admire them, but only an elite few have true advocates— passionate, loyal, vocal fans—who rave about them to anyone who will listen. Jeanne Bliss, who served as a senior customer executive at five major companies, says there’s no shortcut to becoming beloved—you can’t hire a fancy marketing firm to get there. You earn it by how you decide to run your business—as Wegman’s and Harley-Davidson have for decades and as relatively new companies like Zipcar and Zappos are doing right now. After studying and working with dozens of beloved companies, Bliss has identified five key decisions that lead to customer devotion: • Decide to believe • Decide with clarity of purpose • Decide to be real • Decide to be there • Decide to say “sorry” Her examples and advice will help readers sustain growth and profit even in a tough economy.

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Recommended by Tony Hsieh

Proven principles for sustainable success, with new leadership insight PEAK is the popular, transformative guide to doing business better, written by a seasoned entrepreneur/CEO who has disrupted his favorite industry not once, but twice. Author Chip Conley, founder and former CEO of one of the world’s largest boutique hotel companies, turned to psychologist Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs at a time when his company was in dire need. And years later, when the young founders of Airbnb asked him to help turn their start-up home sharing company into a world-class hospitality giant, Conley once again used the principles he’d developed in PEAK. In the decade since this book's first edition, Conley's PEAK strategy has been developed on six continents in organizations in virtually every industry. The author’s foundational premise is that great leaders become amateur psychologists by understanding the unique needs of three key relationships―with employees, customers, and investors―and this message has resonated with every kind of leader and company including some of the world’s best-known, from Apple to Facebook. Avid users of PEAK have found that the principles create greater loyalty and differentiation with their key stakeholders. This new second edition includes in-depth examples of real-world PEAK companies, including the author’s own at Airbnb, and exclusive PEAK leadership practices that will take you―and your company's performance―to new heights. Whether you're at a startup or a Fortune 500 company, at a for-profit, nonprofit, or governmental organization, this book can help you and your people reach potential you never realized you had. Understand how Maslow's hierarchy makes for winning business practicesLearn how PEAK drove some of today's top businesses to successHelp employees reach their full potential―and beyondTransform the customer experience and keep investors happyThe PEAK framework succeeds because it elevates the business from the inside out. These same principles apply in the boardroom, the breakroom, and your living room at home, and have proven to be the foundation of healthy, fulfilled lives. Even if you think you're doing great, you could always be doing better―and PEAK gives you a roadmap to the next level.

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Recommended by Tony Hsieh

“Tribal Leadership gives amazingly insightful perspective on how people interact and succeed. I learned about myself and learned lessons I will carry with me and reflect on for the rest of my life.” —John W. Fanning, Founding Chairman and CEO napster Inc. “An unusually nuanced view of high-performance cultures.” —Inc. Within each corporation are anywhere from a few to hundreds of separate tribes. In Tribal Leadership, Dave Logan, John King, and Halee Fischer-Wright demonstrate how these tribes develop—and show you how to assess them and lead them to maximize productivity and growth. A business management book like no other, Tribal Leadership is an essential tool to help managers and business leaders take better control of their organizations by utilizing the unique characteristics of the tribes that exist within.

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Recommended by Tony Hsieh

Do you have a hobby you wish you could indulge in all day? An obsession that keeps you up at night? Now is the perfect time to take that passion and make a living doing what you love. In Crush It! Why NOW Is the Time to Cash In on Your Passion, Gary Vaynerchuk shows you how to use the power of the Internet to turn your real interests into real businesses. Gary spent years building his family business from a local wine shop into a national industry leader. Then one day he turned on a video camera, and by using the secrets revealed here, transformed his entire life and earning potential by building his personal brand. By the end of this book, readers will have learned how to harness the power of the Internet to make their entrepreneurial dreams come true. Step by step, Crush It! is the ultimate driver’s manual for modern business.

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Recommended by Tony Hsieh

Learn what sets high achievers apart -- from Bill Gates to the Beatles -- in this #1 bestseller from "a singular talent" (New York Times Book Review). In this stunning book, Malcolm Gladwell takes us on an intellectual journey through the world of "outliers"--the best and the brightest, the most famous and the most successful. He asks the question: what makes high-achievers different? His answer is that we pay too much attention to what successful people are like, and too little attention to where they are from: that is, their culture, their family, their generation, and the idiosyncratic experiences of their upbringing. Along the way he explains the secrets of software billionaires, what it takes to be a great soccer player, why Asians are good at math, and what made the Beatles the greatest rock band. Brilliant and entertaining, Outliers is a landmark work that will simultaneously delight and illuminate.

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Recommended by Tony Hsieh

Jonathan Haidt skillfully combines two genres-philosophical wisdom and scientific research-delighting the reader with surprising insights. He explains, for example, why we have such difficulty controlling ourselves and sticking to our plans; why no achievement brings lasting happiness, yet a few changes in your life can have profound effects, and why even confirmed atheists experience spiritual elevation. In a stunning final chapter, Haidt addresses the grand question "How can I live a meaningful life?," offering an original answer that draws on the rich inspiration of both philosophy and science. "The Happiness Hypothesis is a wonderful and nuanced book that provides deep insight into the some of the most important questions in life--Why are we here?  What kind of life should we lead?  What paths lead to happiness?  From the ancient philosophers to cutting edge scientists, Haidt weaves a tapestry of the best and the brightest.  His highly original work on elevation and awe--two long-neglected emotions--adds a new weave to that tapestry.  A truly inspiring book." -David M. Buss, author of The Evolution of Desire:  Strategies of Human Mating “In this beautifully written book, Jonathan Haidt shows us the deep connection that exists between cutting-edge psychological research and the wisdom of the ancients.  It is inspiring to see how much modern psychology informs life's most central and persistent questions-Barry Schwartz, author of The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less  “In our quest for happiness, we must find a balance between modern science and ancient wisdom, between East and West, and between ‘left brain’ and ‘right brain.’ Jon Haidt has struck that balance perfectly, and in doing so has given us the most brilliant and lucid analysis of virtue and well-being in the entire literature of positive psychology.  For the reader who seeks to understand happiness, my advice is: Begin with Haidt.”-Martin E.P. Seligman, Director, Positive Psychology Center at the University of Pennsylvania and author of Authentic Happiness “Haidt is a fine guide on this journey between past and present, discussing the current complexities of psychological theory with clarity and humor. . . Haidt’s is an open-minded, robust look at philosophy, psychological fact and spiritual mystery, of scientific rationalism and the unknowable ephemeral – an honest inquiry that concludes that the best life is, perhaps, one lived in the balance of opposites.”-Bookpage

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Recommended by Tony Hsieh

With Search Inside Yourself, Chade-Meng Tan, one of Google’s earliest engineers and personal growth pioneer, offers a proven method for enhancing mindfulness and emotional intelligence in life and work. Meng’s job is to teach Google’s best and brightest how to apply mindfulness techniques in the office and beyond; now, readers everywhere can get insider access to one of the most sought after classes in the country, a course in health, happiness and creativity that is improving the livelihood and productivity of those responsible for one of the most successful businesses in the world. With forewords by Daniel Goleman, author of the international bestseller Emotional Intelligence, and Jon Kabat-Zinn, renowned mindfulness expert and author of Coming To Our Senses, Meng’s Search Inside Yourself is an invaluable guide to achieving your own best potential.