DON! The Idea Guy

During a recent presentation to the  American Marketing Association at The Ohio State University, I spent a portion of my time discussing attitude with the audience. 

When I asked the 50 or 60 attendees in the room how many of them felt that a positive attitude was key to their success, every single person raised their hand.  But, when I asked how many of them actively spend time studying ways to cultivate a more positive attitude – not a single hand was in the air.

After sharing some examples of simple ways they could work in 10 or 15 minutes per day developing a more successful attitude, I quickly spouted off a few book titles that I have found key to my own attitude improvement efforts.  Several of the AMA members contacted me the day after the seminar asking for the list of books, so I’ve posted the titles shared at the seminar (along with a few other favorites) complete with links to Amazon. 

This is a list of my favorite books on the successful development, care and feeding of a positive attitude.  I hope you find them as useful and insightful as I have over the years.  My personal thanks to my own friends and mentors who’ve directed me to these literary treasures over the years (and special thanks to Jeffrey Gitomer for causing me to look at The Little Engine That Could in a completely new light. As Gitomer says: “It’s not just a book for kids, it’s a philosophy for life.”)

Kids books (that aren’t just for kids)

The Little Engine That Could
by Watty Piper
http://amzn.to/hyc3Zf

Instructions
by Neil Gaiman
http://amzn.to/eZLZts

Oh, the Thinks You Can Think!
by Dr. Seuss
http://amzn.to/eHm6Nz

Daily Dose : Invest 10-minutes in your success

Napoleon Hill’s Positive Action Plan: 365 Meditations
by Napoleon Hill
http://amzn.to/g02QwV

Warrior of the Light: A Manual
by Paulo Coelho
http://amzn.to/eeVeVN

Quick Reads : Invest a little more time, get a bigger pay-off

It’s Not How Good You Are, Its How Good You Want to Be
by Paul Arden
http://amzn.to/gUVL8G

Ignore Everybody: and 39 Other Keys to Creativity
by Hugh MacLeod
http://amzn.to/eweKcb

Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude
by Jeffrey Gitomer
http://amzn.to/eBckow

Rework
by Jason Fried
http://amzn.to/hkOSl0

The Energy Bus
by Jon Gordon
http://amzn.to/en3piG

The Think Big Manifesto
by Michael Port
http://amzn.to/esfTHV 

Books you don’t just “read” — you study.

Think and Grow Rich
by Napoleon Hill
http://amzn.to/fv5uki

He Can Who Thinks He Can
by Orison Swett Marden
http://amzn.to/hresD2

Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?
by Seth Godin
http://amzn.to/gbj5kU

How To Win Friends and Influence People
by Dale Carnegie
http://amzn.to/htxBmt