WilliamGriggs.com | Entrepreneur + Marketer + Technologist

Last week, I wrote a post sharing with you my five favorite books for entrepreneurs as well as a collection of lists other people have put together around the same topic. Today I am going to share with you the five books I am going to read by the end of the summer (Labor Day: September 5th, 2011)!

The Steve Jobs Way: iLeadership for a New Generation by Jay Elliot and William L. Simon

Tell To Win by Peter Guber

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni

Uncharitable: How Restraints on Nonprofits Undermine Their Potential by Dan Pallotta

Robin Hood Marketing: Stealing Corporate Savvy to Sell Just Causes by Katya Andresen

What books will you be reading this summer?

Introduction:

Reading will set you a part from the crowd. Being well-read both in your field of interest, but also areas outside your field of interest, will help increase your likelihood of success and make you a more interesting and valuable leader, team member, family member and friend. Below is a list of my favorite entrepreneurship-focused books, as well as a list of top entrepreneurship-focused book lists compiled by others. Enjoy!

My Top 5:

- Poke the Box by Seth Godin
- The Referral Engine: Teaching Your Business to Market Itself by John Jantsch
- Good Boss, Bad Boss: How to Be the Best… and Learn from the Worst by Robert I. Sutton
- Making Ideas Happen: Overcoming the Obstacles Between Vision and Reality by Scott Belsky
- Rework by Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson

Other Strong Lists:

- Books For Startups by Steve Blank
- What books should entrepreneurs read? (Source: Quora)
- The 99 Best Business Books (Source: PersonalMBA.com)
- 15 Books Every Entrepreneur Should Read (Source: BusinessInsider.com)
- Must-Read Badass Business Books For Entrepreneurs (Source: TheRiseToTheTop.com)
- The Business Owner’s Bookshelf (Source: Inc.com)

Let me know what books will you be reading this summer in the comments below!

Back Story:

Whenever I eat at a restaurant, I often think about the people sitting at the tables around me. Questions like, “Who are they?”, “What are their names?”, “What do they do for a living?”, “What’s going on in their life?” and “What’s their life story?” flow through my head.

The Idea:

Create a documentary that seeks to find the answers to the questions above and many more. This documentary will be set in McDonald’s restaurants all across the world, as we interview the people that are dining in, encouraging them to tell their story.


As we film this documentary, I envision we would find and profile people from all walks of life. Differences we can’t begin to fully understand until we ask the question, “What’s going on?”

What Do You Think?

Would you go see this documentary? Do you have a documentary that you are just itching to create?

Below are my favorite YouTube videos. To be honest, I often find myself watching these videos over and over again. I hope you enjoy them as well!

- William

Number 5

Number 4

Number 3

Number 2

Number 1

http://youtu.be/dWeqe9AfyyM

What are some of your favorites? Put them in the comments below! If they are good enough, I might alter my list.

The Idea

Visit the ten tallest buildings in the world and profile some of the individuals and businesses that work on the top floor, of said buildings, while sharing some of the amazing views they get to enjoy on a daily basis.

What do you think?

Would you go see this documentary? Do you have a documentary that you are just itching to create?

Back Story:

Recently, a friend of mine, John Capps (above), won a “Teacher of the Week” award and it got me thinking… What a simple way to show someone you respect and support what it is they do. Why aren’t more good deeds, or jobs well done shown this level of respect?

The Research:

I did some Googling to see what kind of “(Insert Word Here) of the Week” awards I could find in Nashville. The findings are below:

• - Educator of  the Week
• - Teacher of the Week
• - Photo of the Week
• - Crime of the Week
• - Artist of the Week
• - Player of the Week

An Idea:

Not bad… Not bad… But we can do better! Everyone feels underappreciated from time to time, so why not give everyone the opportunity to shine?! Imagine…

• - Assistant of the Week
• - Realtor of the Week
• - Custodian of the Week
• - Receptionist of the Week
• - Accountant of the Week
• - Lawyer of the Week
• - Entrepreneur of the Week
• - CEO of the Week
• - Account Executive of the Week
• - Sales Person of the Week
• - HR Manager of the Week

Clarification:

Now don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that everyone should win an award. I am saying that if there are people out there that are doing a “bang up” job, and there are you probably can name three off the top of your head right now, they deserve to have their horn tooted.

Part II:

In Part II of “(Insert Word Here) of the Week Award!” we will discuss how I propose we address this issue. Stay tuned!

Who else deserves to be recognized for a job well done? Did I miss anyone? If so, please leave them in the comments below!

I recently attended TEDxNashville and was blown away by the quality of speakers and more importantly the messages they shared. Among all the great speakers, I found Jeremy Cowhard’s story to be one of the most inspirational. A native Nashvillian, Jeremy used his set of skills (photography) to both impact people’s lives and inspire to do the same. Though a small gesture, Jeremy’s story shows us all that we can use our own set of skills to positively impact others and change the world! Be sure to watch the video below!

How can you use you set of skills to change the world?