Two Books For You
In the years before I launched the DMOU podcast, I would often use the December edition of the Z-newsto highlight books that I had found especially powerful or inspirational. After launching DMOU, I found myself instead featuring those books throughout the year by interviewing the authors.
The two books that I'm about to recommend will get both; space in this newsletter and a segment on the podcast sometime in the coming months.
The first up is Would You Work for You by Chris Ihrig. Now, full disclosure, Chris is a partner of mine in the Board Leadership for Destinations Symposium. But make no mistake, I have other friends who have written books for which I have not provided a five star review on Amazon.
I so wish this book existed when I began my leadership path. As I now look at the back nine of my journey, I can only nod at so many of the concepts Chris shares...but I had to learn them the hard way. This book will jump start and guide anyone looking to lead or trying to recreate their leadership style to be more effective.
Beyond the wisdom Chris imparts, I was really drawn to the highly detailed formatting of the book. He breaks down the pathway to leadership in four chronologically significant sections. Within each section are six chapters. Within each chapter, he lays out the challenge, features a figure in history who exemplifies the primary point of the chapter and then (and this is the big one) offers up clearly defined recommendations for the reader to complete the challenge.
As someone who has struggled with imposter syndrome for years, Chris had me in Chapter One when he wrote, “impostor syndrome is often a side effect of a job well done, regardless of the years spent as a leader or mentor. Doubt is a part of the human experience, and if you feel like you're faking it, you are probably doing something right.” Bam…validation accepted.
The other book that really got me thinking (and, trust me, I've read a lot of books on branding,) is The Civic Brand: The Power and Responsibility of Place by Ryan Short. As Charles Marohn says in the forward, “this book lays out a compelling argument: that what's missing from so many of our communities is not funding or planning or even leadership; it's a shared sense of identity.” And, ain’t that the truth?
In the book, Ryan suggests that a place brand is insufficient to help guide our communities forward. Indeed, he writes that a Civic Brand is not a campaign, it's a commitment that is shaped by everyone and owned by no one. That a Civic Brand is uncovered, not invented and it embraces tension as a tool, not a threat. A Civic Brand embraces how place shapes us and we shape it.
Powerful, unflinching and passionate, The Civic Brand was my constant companion on airliners as I completed my travel year in 2025. If you are a student or practitioner of Place Branding, The Civic Brand will challenge you to, as Rafiki said in the Lion King, “look harder.”
Two books; two thumbs up. And, subscribe to DMOU wherever you listen to your podcasts to be notified when these two episodes drop…because we’re working to schedule them both in the near future.
Til then,
Bill
For the Online Edition, CLICK HERE.