Lessonist

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Sticking Points by Haydn Shaw How to Get 5 Generations Working Together

- February 25, 2026

What's it about? Sticking Points (2013) explores what happens when up to five generations work side by side. It shows how shared goals at work are often undermined by everyday misunderstandings rooted in different generational experiences, habits, and expectations. The central message is practical and optimistic: these tensions are normal, manageable, and solvable when we learn how to work with differences instead of fighting them. You've probably been in this meeting. Someone's checking their phone. Someone else looks annoyed. One person wants to talk it through. Another just wants the follow-up email. Everyone leaves irritated. This kind of friction shows up everywhere at work: it’s present in debates about remote work, feedback styles, meeting length, dress codes, loyalty, and technology. It can feel personal, even when it’s not. But this isn't a case of the devil being in the details. The real driver is something much bigger—and much newer. For the first time, w...

Root Cause Analysis by Matthew A. Barsalou A Step-By-Step Guide to Using the Right Tool at the Right Time

- February 23, 2026

What's it about? Root Cause Analysis (2014) explains how to investigate quality problems systematically using empirical evidence and structured methods rather than intuition or blame. It introduces the theoretical foundations of root cause analysis and then shows how to apply cycles of plan–do–check–act together with a range of quality tools to identify underlying causes of failures in manufacturing and service environments. Things rarely go wrong at a convenient moment. A product fails at a customer site, a service grinds to a halt, a complaint lands on your desk, and suddenly everyone is under pressure to “fix it fast.” In the rush, it’s tempting to blame the nearest suspect, patch the symptom, and move on. The problem is that the same issue often comes back wearing a slightly different mask, and each repeat costs more money, time, and trust than the last one. Root cause analysis offers a different way of responding. Instead of asking "Who messed up?", it asks "...

Future Forward by Glenn Rifkin Leadership Lessons from Patrick McGovern

- February 22, 2026

What's it about? Future Forward (2019) chronicles Patrick McGovern’s five-decade journey building International Data Group from a one-person research shop into a $3 billion global technology media empire. It reveals ten leadership lessons McGovern used to create publications in nearly 100 countries while maintaining extraordinary employee loyalty and editorial integrity. On a December afternoon in 1983, Patrick McGovern walked through Computerworld’s newsroom, visiting each workspace to deliver bonuses and speak with every staff member individually.This personal touch defined the founder of International Data Group, who built a technology media empire from nothing into a $3 billion global enterprise.McGovern started IDG in 1964 in a small Massachusetts house with one research report.By the time of his death in 2014, IDG had publications in nearly 100 countries: brands like Computerworld and PCWorld as well as the For Dummies book series. The company helped launch technology jour...

The American Revolution by Geoffrey C. Ward An Intimate History

- February 22, 2026

What's it about? The American Revolution (2025) expands on the sweeping saga of the American Revolutionary War for independence from the six-part PBS series of the same name. It captures, with considerable detail and rich empathy for the individuals on all sides, the broad international context for the conflict which kick-started more than two centuries of anti-colonial revolutions around the world. The story of the American Revolution is taught in history classes and recounted by tour guides in cities like Boston and Philadelphia. But it often comes down to a handful of characters and stories about a Tea Party, a midnight ride, Betsy Ross sewing the nation’s flag, or George Washington crossing the Delaware. They tell the two-dimensional tale of an upstart British colony crying for liberty against a distant king, ultimately winning its hallowed independence. But the reality is far more complicated. For instance, the tale doesn’t include that more than 20 nations were directly i...

Startup CXO by Matt Blumberg A Field Guide to Scaling Up Your Company’s Critical Components

- February 20, 2026

What's it about? Startup CXO (2021) serves as a comprehensive tactical manual for scaling the specialized leadership roles that drive a growing company’s most vital departments. With contributions from several co-authors, it details how various executive functions – from finance and marketing to product and people operations – must evolve and integrate to ensure a business survives the transition from a small team to a mature organization. Starting a company is one thing. But scaling it? That’s an entirely different challenge. In the early days of a new venture, you can get by on hustle, improvisation, and sheer force of will. But, as your startup grows, the scrappy approach that got you to product-market fit becomes the bottleneck – and it starts preventing you from reaching the next level. It’s at that point that you start needing structure and specialized expertise. And, perhaps most importantly, you need leaders who can build the systems and teams that turn a promising idea i...