2017 Rusty Rueff Reading List

2017 was a productive year of reading with the completion of 39 books.

Here are a few of the stats to accompany the list:

19 were read digitally (all on the Kindle)
10 were audiobooks (all through Audible)
10 paper bound

17 Fiction
22 Non-Fiction

March was the most productive month with 7 books completed
November and December the least productive with only 1 book completed in each month

Here is my commentary:

Best Book Overall:  A Gentleman in Moscow (Fiction)
Best Next Fiction:   My Absolute Darling
Best Non-Fiction:    Evicted
Best Next Non-Fiction: H is for Hawk

Most Overrated:  Lincoln in the Bardo

Most Underrated: The Dry

Best Audio Book: Endurance

Most Memorable Fiction: The Sport of Kings
Most Memorable Non-Fiction: The Road to Character

Book I didn't think I would like but did: The Conscientious Conservative

Book I thought I would like but didn't much care for:  Wonder

Most beautifully written:  Moonglow

Best Author Debut Book:  My Absolute Darling

Here's to a Happy 2018 of reading for all!

Rusty

(d) The Sympathizer: A Novel - Nguyen      F

(d) Born to Run- Springsteen     NF  

(d) Reclaiming Hope: Lessons Learned...- Wear      NF    

(d) The Dry - Harper     F  

(a) Running for My Life- Lomong     NF      

(d) Whiplash-Ito/Howe     NF    

(a) Shoe Dog - Knight     NF      

(d) Moonglow - Chabon     NF      

(a) Truevine- Macy     NF       

Not I, But Christ- Henderson     NF       

Beloved- Morrison     F            

Mindset- Dweck     NF         

(d) The Vegetarian- Kang     F                

(d) The Sport of Kings- Morgan     F                 

(d) Difficult Women- Gay      F                

The Blood Pressure Solution- Merritt     NF

(d) Lincoln in the Bardo- Saunders      F    

On to the Next Dream- Madonna     NF 

(a) Evicted- Desmond     NF 

                   

The Winning Horseplayer- Beyer     NF      

(d) A Gentleman in Moscow-Towles     F   

On Hundred Apocalypses and Other Apocalypses- Corin     F               

(d) Commonwealth- Patchett     F         

(a) The Road to Character- Brooks     NF        

(a) H is for Hawk- Macdonald     NF      

(d) Into the Water - Hawkins     F           

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a... - Manson     NF       

(d) The Conscientious Conservative- Flake     NF       

(d)  Sudden Sea- Scotti     NF      

Sorry to Disrupt the Peace- Cottrell     F           

(d) New People- Senna     F           

(d) My Absolute Darling- Tallent      F         

(d) Swing Time- Smith     F    

(a) What Happened- Clinton     NF        

(a) Troublemaker: Scientology...- Remini      NF     

(a) Endurance- Kelly     NF         

(d) Girls- Cline     F            

(a) Rocket Men: The Epic Story of First... -Nelson     NF      

(d) Wonder- Palacio     F             

The POTUS Job Creation Gauntlet Has Been Thrown Down

In today's POTUSElect's first Press Conference since the election, the POTUSElect made this statement:

"I will be the biggest jobs creator God ever created".

That is a big claim and one that can be easily measured.  Here is the measurement that we can/should all look towards -

As the statistics show, in the current President's 8 year term, nearly 15MM jobs were created.

There is the gauntlet that has been thrown. I'd be the first to stand and applaud if that kind of job growth can be surpassed.



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IF = THEN, Then Why Not This?

IF the ISIS threat = Build and register all Muslims

IF the Immigration threat = Build a wall between Mexico and the US

THEN the Mental Illness Epidemic = A Gun No-Buy List and More Thorough Background Checks

Right?

Repeal and Replace ObamaCare Process Reminds Me of The Old Prisoner - Cobbler Joke

A convict spends 35 years in prison. Upon his release he receives a bag with his personal items that were confiscated and stored when he entered prison.  As he leaves the prison he opens his wallet and finds a few dollars and a claim ticket for a pair of shoes.  Knowing there wasn't any chance the Cobbler would have his shoes, much less still be in business, with nothing else to do, he drives to the shoe store.  Amazed, he sees that that store is still there and open.  He parks his car and walks into the store.  The same bell from 35 years earlier rings as he opens the door and the same Cobbler, much older now comes from behind the curtained back of the store and says, "Can I help you?"

The ex-prisoner says, "I'm here to pick up a pair of shoes I dropped off to be resoled".

The Cobbler looks quizzically at the ticket and says, "Just one moment" and returns to the back.

The ex-prisoner stands there, waiting and looking around wondering if he has any recourse if the shoes have been lost or thrown away.  Just as has convinced himself that he should just leave rather than have to explain why its been 35 years, the cobbler comes out from behind the curtain.  The ex-prisoner speaks first.

"Do you have them?", he asks?

"Yes", says the Cobbler.  "They will be ready tomorrow."

And this is how I feel about the replacement of The Affordable Health Care Act.  The Republicans have voted how many times to repeal the Act and promised it would be there for signature on Day One of the President's new term.  That means there have been nearly eight years of time to have a replacement bill ready to go.  Instead, the answer is, "We will have something to consider within six months".

Sounds very familiar to the Cobbler and the shoes, "They will be ready tomorrow."

It's one thing to joke about what we can expect from the stereotypical Cobbler, it's another thing to expect more from those who represent us and govern us.

We should expect more!

My 2016 Life Highlight Reel

2016 Life Highlight Reel - Events throughout the year that stood out!

January -       Patti's 60th Birthday Celebration in Sonoma

February-     "Champions" @ SF Jazz

March -         Khaled Housseni @ our House to preview "A Thousand Splendid Suns"

March -         Cuba Trip with President's Advisory Committee on the Arts

April -           Rollout weekend of Life Apps 2.0 @ Cornerstone

April -           Seeing "Hamilton" and "The Humans" on same day in Manhattan
May -            Kentucky Derby 142

May -           Weekend at Clear Lake

June -            Speaking @ HireVue Disrupt in Park City

August -        Sandra and Bobby's Wedding

August -        Rhode Island weekend with Ram's Gate event

August -        First "Impossible Burger" @ Momofuku Nishi in NYC

September-   Victor's 50th Birthday Party

September-   The Spicer Mansion

September-   Kennedy Center National Symphony Season Opening Gala

October -      Hawaii visit + Kona Shuttle

October -      Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize Award weekend - co-chairing the event

October -      Criminal Trial Jury Service - 4 days

October -      Beginning of the releases of Hamilton MixTape

November -  LifeApps 3.0 Series @ Cornerstone

November-   Election Night 2016 @ Ro Khanna for Victory Celebration

November-   Napa Valley Film Festival (Big Sonia, Lion, Burn Your Maps)

December -  Kennedy Center Honors

December -  Patti Birthday Dinner @ Manresa
December - White House Holiday Celebration (last foreseeable one for us)

December -  Christmas Trip Home to Indiana

2016 Rusty Rueff Reading List

My 2016 Reading List:

Between the World and Me - Coates - NF                             
(d) Fate and Furies -Groff - F                               
(d) The North Water: A Novel - McGuire -F                             
A Separate Peace -Knowles -F                              
Oracle Night - Auster -F                                
(d) Mr. and Mrs Doctor -Iromuanya -F                                
(d) Everybody Rise: A Novel -Clifford -F                                
(d) Strong and Weak -Crouch -NF                             
Heels Over Head - Small - F                                 
(d) American Nations:  A History of Eleven Rival Nations - Woodard - NF             
(d) The Underground Railroad -Whitehead -F                                  
(d) The Fifth Season - Jemison -F                                  
(d) The Nix - Hill -F                                  
(d) Hillbilly Elegy - Vance - NF
(d) Racing the Rain: A Novel     Parker   F

Only 15 books in 2016 (started The Sympathizer in December and will be a 2017 finish)

73% Digital

73% Fiction

Best Non-Fiction: A tie between Between the World and Me and Hillbilly Elegy (just coincidence that I began and finished the year with these two cultural bookend books).

Best Fiction:   The North Water: A Novel.  Surprised me given I thought I would rate The Underground Railroad, Fates and Furies and The Nix above it. It didn't get the recognition it should have. But, Underground Railroad and The Nix, and Fates and Furies still great reads!

Knowledge referenced the most throughout the year: American Nations.  A great primer to HillBilly Elegy and the rest of the understanding of political and economic understanding.

Biggest head snapper:  Hillbilly Elegy when I realized that JD Vance not my age but 20 years younger and his life pattern is still the same as my generation's experience.



                        

My 2014 Life Highlight Reel

And here's to what 2015 might bring:

• January - Attending Ray Dolby's Life Memorial Service
• January - GRAMMY Special Merit Awards and being on the GRAMMY telecast
• January - Being at the taping of the Beatle's 50th Anniversary of the Ed Sullivan appearance
• March - Marathon #8 at Phoenix Marathon
• April - Masters Tournament with Stuart
• May - Kentucky Derby weather and seeing California Chrome win like he did
• May - Visit to the 9/11 Memorial in NYC
• May/June - Walking the Camino de Santiago in Spain  
• June - AFI Awards Honoring Jane Fonda
• June - Speaking weekend at Cornerstone Church
• July - Visit to Jackson Hole, WY
• September - Bill Hedden Ireland golf Trip
• October - Purdue Week as Entrepreneur in Residence
• October - Ro Khanna Debate with Mike Honda
• October - Mark Twain Awards at Kennedy Center and first PACA meeting
• November - 20th Anniversary Trip to Savannah, Charleston and Kiawah
• December - Kennedy Center Honors week

2014 Rusty Rueff Books Read and "Best Ofs"

2014 Rusty Rueff Books Read and "Best Ofs"

I am pleased to share my 2014 Books completed list.

I've also included what I felt were my "The Best Ofs" for the year.

Another year to also compare reading Statistics/Mediums:
 
17 Books read (a down year for me due to lots of writing on my own second book)
71% read digitally (d) - that's up from 66% in 2013 and 25% in 2012
71% were Fiction


(d) The Goldfinch - Taart   *predicted its Pulitzer win from the first page.  Loved it.                      
(d) Americanah-  Adichie  *If Dave Eggers says read it, then must be good. It was!               
(d) Bark - Moore   *Best Short Story collection                
(d) The Silkworm - Galbraith (Rowling)
(d) Brave Girl Eating - Brown *Most eye-opening book of the year                  
(d) I am Pilgrim: A Thriller- Hayes  *Best page-turner (and first time author)                   
(d) The Son - Meyer                  
The Defector -Silva                    
The Fallen Angel - Silva                
Boys in the Boat - Brown  *Best non-fiction and want it to be a movie            
The Big Burn - Egan              
The Soundtrack of My Life -Davis           
(d) Whiskey Tango Foxtrot - Shafer                  
(d) The Art of Stillness - Iyer             
(d) 10:04 - Lehrer  *Best to not live up to its hype                
(d) Citizen's Creek -Tademy  *Best fiction based on truth that made me want to know more          
(d) All The Light We Cannot See - Doerr *Best book of the year! Can't believe I got the gift to start the year with The Goldfinch and end with All The Light We Cannot See - 2015 Pulitzer?! Think so!  

2013 List:  http://boltsofthinking.blogspot.com/2014/01/2013-rusty-rueff-books-read-and-best-ofs.html

2012 list: http://boltsofthinking.blogspot.com/2012/12/2012-books-read-and-best-ofs.html

2011 list: http://boltsofthinking.blogspot.com/2011/12/2011-reading-list.html  

2010 list: http://boltsofthinking.blogspot.com/2011/01/2010-reading-list-and-commentary.html

 A decade of reading - 2000-2009:  http://boltsofthinking.blogspot.com/2010/01/my-decade-of-reading.html
              

A Cough

Want to be "superhorse", California Chrome, has a "cough".  As he prepares for the second leg of the Triple Crown tomorrow in The Preakness Stakes, everyone is talking about the coughs that he had as he came off the racetrack yesterday after training.

It's clear, no one likes to hear a cough in a racehorse, in a person, or in a company.  A cough signifies nothing but bad to come. Sometimes, it's nothing and a little tickle in the throat passes, but when we hear a cough, we begin to worry and even step aside to not catch the cold ourselves.  Last year, while traveling in Costa Rica, one of the locals told me that when America coughs, Latin America gets pneumonia. 

No one likes a cough and more often than not those coughs that we see in the market, or with a company, or in a team are the beginning of something and shouldn't be ignored. 

How many times have we heard the cough, ignored it and and then later kicked ourselves for not seeing what later were so obvious signs?

Chefs or Short-Order Cooks?

For most things at work, or in life, we can approach things in one of two ways: as a Chef, or as a Short-Order Cook. 

A Short-Order Cook takes orders and fulfills the assignment just as it is given to them.  They operate quickly, efficiently and can be counted on to deliver on time.  A Chef sees things differently, always considering options and other ways to achieve the order.  Creativity trumps efficiency sometimes and there is an anxious anticipation of the customer of what might arrive.  Because of this, a Chef gets a little more time and more leeway than the Short-Order Cook.  The similarity is that both know their customer.  For the Short-Order Cook; it's the waitress/waiter who is standing at the hot table waiting.  For the Chef, the wait staff are just a delivery vehicle to their ultimate customer; the diner. 

Seldom does someone ask the Short-Order Cook to come out and meet the table to receive their lauds.  But, also seldom does someone applaud the Chef who makes the table wait too long for their food.  The balance is tricky and it all gets messed up when someone tries to take the opposite role when to everyone else it is pretty clear what is expected. 

Which are you? 

Which does your company reward and recognize? 

Is your organization in balance with the right amount of Chefs and the right amount of Short-Order Cooks?

3-Deep

Anyone who has ever sold or marketed into an enterprise (company) big or medium sized fears one thing; losing their internal champion/supporter. A ton of work can go into landing a deal only to learn that the person internally who was leading the acceptance of your product/service is being moved into another job or leaving the company.  Where does that leave you?  Starting all over, unfortunately. So, the best approach is to ensure that you are "3-Deep" in every account.  That means, three people who are below the champion who also support the product so that is she/he moves on, you aren't caught with no one knowing who you are.

We Have Just Returned...

"(Fill in name of Company) is buzzing with all the units we have in the office, and thanks to our trip to China last week, we have even more on the way. Here’s a quick update on the trip and the product.

Our co-founders, (Fill in Name (CEO)), (Fill in name) (CTO)), and (Fill in Name (Design Director)), returned last week from a great trip to China where they met with our manufacturer and reviewed the new hardware design. We saw some major improvements and are happy with the progress they’ve made. We’re finalizing the layout now, and the factory is getting ready to produce our updated hardware design en masse. That will start with (Fill in number) units for the beginning of (Fill in Month)."

This is a message that I get some version of once a month from someone who is entering the hardware business with a hot and highly anticipated hardware/software enabled product.

It's always a trip to China, Taiwan, Malaysia, etc.

I'm waiting for the first hot product that sends their update that says, "We just
returned last week from a great trip to (Fill in a state in the U.S.) where we met with our manufacturer and reviewed the new hardware design."

That's the one I will immediately want to buy!

Understandable People: A Tribute to Dr. Gary Becker (1931-2014)

I'm going to be honest and a little vulnerable here today.  I need to let you know that one of the reasons I try and write this blog in common sense and practical terms is that I can't myself understand or comprehend much more than that. 

On a plane the other day someone had left a copy of The Economist.  That is one of the magazines that I know I should be able to read and enjoy, but I just can't.  Half the time I don't understand what they are trying to say and the depth and understanding of the economics behind the stories are usually over my pay grade. 

This is why I was so sorry to hear that Gary Becker died this last Saturday.  Some may not know him, but I felt like I did.  Professor Becker was a Nobel Prize winning economist, but more important for me, he was an economist who I could understand.  When he wrote for Business Week, I would read his every word and walk away with something that I could not only relate, but also apply in my thinking and actions. 

Our world is a complex one and we need more people, like Dr. Gary Becker, who can boil it down so that most of us can use our common sense to understand.

When the Bucks Stops Here!

As leaders, managers, or in today’s world, even those who work someplace where we have influence over decisions that are made that could affect others, we need to be careful and constructive in those decisions.  We seldom see examples of leaders who step up when things go wrong.  Some will do it and admit that the buck stops with them, but they won’t accept the full responsibility, which many times would lead to a resignation or some other type of repercussion.  Last week we saw a leader do so though when South Korean Prime Minister, Chung Hong-won, resigned after the failed rescue of the ferry that capsized. I found this interestingly juxtaposed with the firing of a number of the GM senior execs, but not the CEO.  I know, she is new, but remember, she was on the senior team and has been with the company for 34 years. I’m not saying that she should have been fired, but when the buck stops, it must stop somewhere and the best of the best leaders know it stops with them. 

Anything short of that, can feel like lip service to leadership.

Thinking Before We Speak

As we are learning in the world of sports, there are consequences to word and actions.  When we are part of a larger organization, those consequences can reach far and wide and hurt many people. 

We usually don't know how broadly, until it happens. 

But, we can still think ahead and imagine the consequences before we act or speak. 

Hunters and Farmers

Sales organizations are getting smarter in how they organize.  Well, actually, most have always organized in the manner that is most successful but today they are getting better at giving the organizations names that better describe what they do. Back in the day you had "New Account Teams" and you had "Existing Account Teams".  Now, we have "Hunters and Farmers". 

Hunters bring in new business.  Farmers expand the growth.  Subtle, but big differences in the type of people to do these jobs and their responsibilities. 

Some times just getting better at describing what someone does can make the difference in hiring and assigning the right person to the job.

Cubed

There is a new book out by Nikil Saval, called "Cubed".  I have not read it yet, but have read the reviews of it and I will be picking it up soon.  What Saval does in his book is give us the history of our current workplaces covering things like the drop ceiling, lighting, filing spaces, open door policies and yes, the "Cubicle". My total time working in corporations was 21 years.  Of those 21 years, as best as I can add up, I spent eight years in a Cube and two and a half years working in an open floor space. So, almost half, not in an office.

The best of all of those years (including a couple of years in offices that were well beyond nice and totally not necessary), were the years in the open floor plan where there were no walls and I was out in the open with everyone else.  I learned new forms of boundaries (headphones on meant I was busy), shorter phone calls, discretion of conversation (loudness and content) and time management (there wasn't any hanging around with the feet on the desk shooting the breeze).

Where we sit can make a difference in how we work.  Where we assign others to work, can make a difference in their productivity and motivation. Part of what we are to do, if we want to be good leaders and managers, is to be cognizant and sensitive to the environment that we ask people to work.

If you have people begging to work at home, you might want to ask yourself if that cubicle might be part of their motivation.

Breaking the Tape First!

This is not a sports blog, but I can't resist.  Yesterday, something amazing happened in the sports world and it couldn't have happened at a better time, a better place, or to a better athlete.  Yesterday, on April 21st, 2014, marathon athlete Meb Keflezighi, at 38 years old, won the Boston Marathon and became the first American winner in 31 years.  Why was this victory so sweet?  Sure, it was because he won on the first anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombings.  Yes, it was great that he is an old guy as 38 is over the hill for marathoners.  And for sure, the American win is not the norm. But, his win was more than that.  I happen to serve on the board of runcoach with Meb and I have heard him talk of overcoming injuries and working his way back to his top form.  Marathoners are much like we are in business.  We get a couple of great moments a year and the rest of the time we are up early, logging the hours of training and doing our best to balance the rest of life, fueling ourselves for the next bit of competition.  And when we start to feel the pains and hurt, it takes time to get over them.  We'd be well served to bask in the win of Meb yesterday and remind ourselves that winning only comes because we put in the hard work, understand what it takes to win when we need to, and shut out the rest that keeps us from getting to our peak form.

Permadeath

A friend's child didn't get the summer job that was expected. It was the first time in a short life that a rejection that couldn't be changed happened.  Shock and awe, along with lots of questioning ensued. I was not surprised as we have a generation plus now who don't know what it means to not play on the team or to not be able to do things over until they reach satisfaction.  It seems that now, everyone, regardless if the team wins or loses, gets to get out on the field or court and play.  In videogames we let you start over and over and nothing really ended, or died...until now.  Games are making the turn to what is called "Permadeath".  That means that once the character or figure dies, they don't come back.  I remember this being experimented with in the late 90's only to receive outrage from customers who claimed that they had the right to bring the character back over and over. Who is to know what is best, but I don't see that much harm in teaching the next generation that loss and rejection are real and that we need to learn the lesson early, not wait until employers and business have to be the first to hand out the word, "no".