Last year I aimed for 15 books and ended up reading 18. I also let myself start almost a full month early, but the reality is I wasted more than a month not reading at all during the year. So this year I’m aiming for 20 books. Hitting those 20 books won’t really be so […]
Some books just grab you and don’t let go. I wasn’t even expecting to read this book last weekend. On Friday I got an email saying my library’s ebook version of The Martian was now available and was automatically checked out for my account. All I had to do was open up my Kindle and let […]
When my mother got word that I was getting into drawing, she supported it whole-heartedly. For my birthday, she got me a sketchpad, art pencils, and Art Before Breakfast by Danny Gregory. Not only does the book exude a can-do attitude that everyone is capable of making art, but it excites the reader into doing […]
My team lead, Simon, and I have a one-on-one chat every week. It’s typically casual in tone but big picture in topic. At some point in an August chat, we hit the topic of managing people. Recently this book has been read by several Automatticians and Simon is one of them. He recommended I read […]
I have trouble speaking up unless I’m absolutely sure what I say will be the right thing. Last night I was reading Work Rules by Laszlo Bock and hit this passage… One leader, who had been cautious about wading into issues outside his area of expertise, was told, “Every time you open your mouth you […]
Upon completing Mint Juleps with Teddy Roosevelt, I met my goal of reading 15 books in 2015. It all happened more easily than I thought – three months early! Taking another look at the 2015 reading list, I notice that four of the books were late additions (meaning that I added them to my list after […]
Most people that don’t work in technology probably know the name Peter Thiel from watching The Social Network. Or maybe from when the Thiel Fellowship started, asking talented young technologists to put off college for a couple years and build startups instead. But if you work in tech you probably know that he’s a vocal […]
I’m usually not much for biographies or memoirs. Normally with non-fiction I tend to read business books, or books for helping me learn a skill. But I love everything Felicia Day creates so I needed to read this one. More accurately, I needed to read this one after Amber finished it. While I wanted to […]
On our way to and from Fort Smith, Arkansas, Amber and I listened to A Game of Thrones on audiobook. It’s such a cultural touchpoint now, but we’re both very behind on the books, the tv series, everything. I have only seen three episodes of the series, and Ber has seen the first season of the series. Neither […]
In college I first started reading self-help books. Classic stuff like Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill and How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie. It was also during this time that I became a little obsessed with success. I still focus a lot on how to live a successful life […]
Alex Gustafson