Looking for your next book or a last-minute gift idea? Look no further. We asked the Case Award winner and finalists to tell us about books that have helped them in their business. Here are their favorites:
Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy Seals Lead and Win (2015) by Jocko Willink & Leif Babin
Chosen by Brian Diamond, Owner, Quality Home Exteriors
Case Award winner
This book presents the concept that, as the leader of your business, it is necessary to own its successes as well as its failures. It has made me realize as the leader of my business I am responsible for EVERYTHING that happens. If I’m not getting the results I desire, I first need to look at myself and determine if I am doing the things necessary to get what I’m looking for. Instead of blaming a salesperson for not hitting revenue goals, I’m going to first diagnose my actions: Have I taken the time to keep track of their performance? Did I provide adequate coaching? Understanding the performance of your team is more than likely a direct reflection of your leadership, or lack thereof.
How to Win Friends and Influence People (1936) by Dale Carnegie
Chosen by Abby Binder, CEO Abby Windows
Case Award finalist
I first read Carnegie’s book a couple of years ago as my business was getting to the level where I had to start hiring people and couldn’t do things on my own anymore. It’s a book that teaches a person how to be a better salesperson, better leader, and better customer service provider. This book shows you how to work with people. Listening and having empathy for the other person is a big lesson we all can learn. I had my customer service concierge read it and plan to have my salespeople read it next. I refer back to it quite often when I’m dealing with a very upset customer or need to motivate an employee. (Good thing I have the pocket edition!) Though it was written for a totally different era, everything still holds true today.
Markup and Profit: A Contractor’s Guide (1999) by Michael C. Stone
Chosen by Ken Combs, Owner and CEO, CQCHome
Case Award finalist
I read Stone’s book in 2014 after I had already started my business. There are few resources to help remodelers understand how to charge properly for their work and what markup they need to obtain proper margins. Stone’s book helped me understand my need to correctly mark up my projects, which leads to better bottom-line numbers. It has helped in building my company’s pricing model and for us to both understand it and train our team on it.
Shop Class as Soulcraft (2010) and The World Beyond Your Head (2016) both by Matthew B. Crawford
Chosen by Zach Snider, Owner, Alloy Architecture & Construction
Case Award finalist
These two books take a deep look at the value of hands-on physical work to us as individual human beings. Crawford champions the work and the skilled workers that are the fundamental base of the remodeling industry. Given our current skilled labor shortage, I find the message in these books to be particularly important to our industry. The ideas Crawford expresses here have the potential to spark a renewed cultural interest in working in the skilled trades. These books have also reinforced the value of what we do everyday as remodelers and tradespeople in a world where the lines between real and virtual are fading. It is refreshing to be reminded of why I love what I do.
