From Pages to Paychecks: My Career-Boosting Book List

One of the best parts of being a manager is coaching and mentoring colleagues on their way to become managers themselves.

In our company, you have to go through an assessment center to prove your potential as a manager. My first coachee from this year just passed and started, the next one is anxious for his assessment center in a month and an introductory session with my third coachee is coming up next week.

Therefore, I am starting this post by listing the books that I have read in preparation of my management assessment center and role in general. These are also the ones I keep recommending to my coachees. As I am going through my management career I will keep adding any new good read I come across. I hope the list can be helpful to you, too!

Aspiring Managers

• Managing Performing Living: Effective Management for a New World, Fredlund Malik Ever wondered what the tasks of a manager are? While they of course differ in context depending on the business function, this book shows the overarching tasks that are the same for every manager. To me it was such an eye opener that made everything seem a lot easier.
• HBR’s 10 Must Reads on: Managing People
• HBR’s 10 Must Reads for New Managers
• The Making Of A Manager, Julie Zhuo
• The First 90 Days: Proven Strategies for Getting Up to Speed Faster and Smarter, Michael D. Watkins

Women In Male-Dominated Work Environments

• The Game of Power!: How to Navigate Successfully a Male-Dominated Environment, Marion Knaths If you’re traveling to Spain, you’ll learn some Spanish. If you’re working in a male dominated environment, you’ll have to pick up some of the male tactics. This book is such a fun and easy read with great practical insights and tips.

Mommas Who Are (Aspiring) Managers

• Motherhood Is the New MBA: Using Your Parenting Skills to Be a Better Boss If you’re a momma and a manager this book will be such a relatable read from the one or the other perspective as the author compares parenting and managing employees. It was more a fun ready but I did still pick a few new insights, again for both perspectives.

What was a good book that helped you in your career? I would love to hear your recommendations in the comments, via email or socials.

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