Even before Brian Grazer became a famous and successful Hollywood producer, he was seeking out interesting people for his “curiosity conversations.”

The book provides an in-depth understanding of the role that curiosity has played in Grazer’s life. The premise of his argument is that you are a better leader if you approach your work (and life) with a health does of curiosity. This means learning about things outside your area of expertise. For example, Grazer had a curiosity conversation with Jonas Saulk, the inventory of the Polio vaccine. No, he didn’t meet with him because he was doing a movie about Polio. He met with him because he was curious to know what it felt like to be responsible for saving so many lives.

By expanding your knowledge to other areas, you improve your ability to solve problems because you have a wider vantage point from which to draw.

Gazer also discusses the need to use curiosity with your own team. Using curiosity allows you to ask questions rather than give direction. It opens your eyes to things that you may be taking for granted. It creates a culture that allows people to questions, in a safe environment, why you are doing the things you are doing. He gives examples of how he uses it with his team when a movie isn’t going the direction he was expecting.
If you are wondering about the role curiosity should play in your business, or how to get more curiosity into your life, A Curious Mind is a good place to start.

Stand Out, Dorie Clark’s latest book is a great practical guide for anyone looking to do something more fulfilling in their life. We each have something to offer the world, and for most of us, it isn’t what we are currently doing in our day job. This book walks you step-by-step through the process of identifying your idea, building a following, and turning your idea into a business that makes an impact.
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One of the best features of the book is that Clark provides a list of questions at the end of each chapter that will help you think through the lesson of the chapter. Follow these questions, and by the end of the book, you’ve got yourself a well planned business idea.

There is a difference between creative and artistic, and a lot of times when we say we aren’t creative, we mean that we can draw or paint or turn old socks into coffee cozies. The best employees are creative—at solving problems, at making impossible timelines work, and at getting someone to do something they don’t want to do. This book will help you understand your type of creativity so that you can take full advantage of it.

It is a pretty well know phenomenon that people who are struggling to solve a problem usually have an insight in the shower. Although this is generally accepted as something that really happens, many of us aren’t really sure about the science behind why it happens.

The Breakout Principle by Herbert Benson and William Proctor explains the science behind it. The book is not for everyone because it does spend a lot of time on science, especially neuroscience, as well as psychology studies. However, if you are curious about why we all have these breakouts, and more importantly, how you can trigger a breakout, it will be worth the effort.

Nearly all of us have to give presentations in the course of our job. Whether it is a project kick off, a status meeting, or an executive steering committee presentation, having a presentation that is memorable and stands out will set you apart. This book provides creative ways to present your information and gives insight into the psychology of how people process and remember your data.