This page is divided into three sections all focused on resources that can help with bringing about social change and improving our interpersonal connections. This page is for working with others. I am referencing resources that I have personally found helpful and to help you get an idea of what they are like, I have indicated the level which I think the resources are appropriate for, the topic covered and given my opinion of why the resource is worth checking out. I have read all of these books so am speaking from personal opinion (unless otherwise indicated).
1. Resources coming from a secular mindfulness point of view
3. Resources from a Buddhist perspective
4. Resources on social change, facilitation, learning and development.
'The Mindfulness Revolution', edited by Barry Boyce
Level: All (though if you already know what mindfulness is you might get more out of it)
Topic: Collection of chapters by different writers on a wide range of mindfulness themes - including mindful eating, mindful parenting, mindfulness in general
Why read: It is a diverse book covering lots of topics and shows the many ways in which mindfulness can be applied to different aspects of life. It will deepen and widen your understanding of mindfulness.
'Teaching Mindfulness - a practical guide for clinicians and educators' by Donald McCown, Diane Reibel and Marc S. Micozzi
Level: For the more experienced
Topic: The ins and outs of teaching mindfulness
Why read: This is a really interesting insight into how to teach mindfulness - including a summary of how mindfulness came to be, its journey over the last 20 years, why the course is structured the way it is, teaching techniques and a breakdown of how to teach each element of the course.
The Mindful Workplace by Michael Chaskalson
Level: Beginners and advanced
Topic: This book is specifically about using mindfulness in the workplace. What I enjoyed about this book is that it relates mindfulness training to things like improvements in emotional intelligence, stress management, management and coaching and leadership. It refers to a lot of studies that have been done and papers that have been written and it links mindfulness to neuroscience, organisational development, and various theories around stress. The language used in the book is quite matter of fact and business like which I think is appropriate if you want to engage businesses. It gives examples of meditations and talks about how a mindfulness course can be delivered. Note of caution - I think the book is overpriced for what is (more than double the price of other books listed here and by far the shortest book, with the biggest font and the most self-promotion!). Fortunately, the content is strong and for an organisation or a mindfulness trainer or coach - I think it is worth spending the money.
The Art of Power by Thich Naht Hanh
Level: Beginners/Intermediate or above
Topic: Explanation of how to deal with the corrosive nature of what we call 'power'; how to create a happy, healthy, insightful society, free from fear of not having power and the fear of losing power.
Why read: Personally, this is my favourite book so far by Thich Naht Hanh. Short, easy to read and yet dense with wisdom. Power can be such a compelling and consuming force and Thay, as TNH he is known, explains what real power is. It is an inspiring, thought provoking read which I have no doubt I will reread many times. I highly recommend this book - especially if you are new to Buddhism or to Thay's writing.
Buddhist Ethics: A Very Short Introduction by Damien Keown
Level: This is a beginners guide to ethics but I would say you will understand more of it if you are already have an understanding of buddhism more generally.
Topic: Ethical issues and Buddhist stance/position or lack thereof about them
Why read: This is a fascinating, very short, and easy to read book covering many common ethical issues such as animals and the environment, sexuality, suicide and euthanasia and cloning. The book often compares christianity and buddhism so that we have some sense of comparison. I found it interesting because it talks about how buddhism is applied to current issues.
Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman
Level: All
Topic: The book is about emotional intelligence which is about self awareness, managing self, managing emotions, self motivation, social skills, relating to others etc. The book talks about how important it is parenting, education, the workplace, relationships and general emotional well being.
Why read: It is clear from reading this book that emotional intelligence is really important - even more so than IQ arguably. The book explains emotions and emotional management from a neuroscientific perspective too which is interesting. It talks about emotions like anger, worrying, depression, happiness and studies that have been done on these emotions. It is a little old now but it is still interesting and persuasive. I have done a blog post summarising the main points from the book (click on 'emotional intelligence').
More Time to Think by Nancy Klein
Level: Anyone -very easy to read (it doesnt talk about mindfulness but there is a lot of mindfulness principles within it and possibly a very good way of bringing mindfulness into organsiations without making it explicit).
Topic: This book is about helping people to think better. It explains the key qualities or factors that need to be in place to create a really good thinking environment in some detail. This is particularly useful in a work place environment. It then talks through some of the approaches that can be used to help people think better like thinking partnerships, or facilitation techniques for groups/meetings, or for mediation. Apparently there are courses you can attend to learn to facilitate or coach in this way. It makes for compelling reading and it is practical so there are some things that you can put into place straight away.
Why read: What I liked about this book was: 1) the emphasis on helping people to think for themselves, and giving them the space and support to do that; 2) the emphasis on not just the factors necessary to help people think better, but the very practical suggestions for changing the way we work to encourage better thinking; 3) the chapter at the end around improving meetings, emails, the use of flipchart and powerpoint
'Accelerated Learning for the 21st Century' by Colin Rose and Malcolm J. Nicholl
Level: All
Topic: Multiple intelligences, how to learn, how to teach
Why read: This is an excellent book explaining various principles about how learning works - including exploring eight different 'intelligences' that people have which affect the way they learn. It is really useful any trainer and any learner.
'Multiple Intelligences' by Howard Gardner
I haven't read yet but I imagine it will be similar to book above which is excellent.
Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahnemann
Level: All with a keen interest in the mind. He is an economist and this book is rich in studies, research and examples.
Topic: This book is basically about bias in our minds. It describes two 'systems' of thinking - one which is fast and heavily reliant on intuitions, snap judgements, easy problems and decisions and the other is slow thinking which requires our rational minds to work things out. The book talks through some fascinating psychological studies on things like decision making, happiness, different types of biases. It talks about statistics and how we often don't pay enough attention to them. It is very digestible way and makes a compelling case about why we shouldn't rely too heavily on our instincts (especially if statistics are giving us a conflicting view).
Why read: It makes you realise that there is much more to our minds than we think. It is filled with interesting insights and I have found it relevant to both my work and to my personal life.
Daring Greatly: How the Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the Way we Live, Love, Parent and Lead by Brene Brown
Level: Anyone - whether interested in parenting, management, relationships or just for yourself
Topic: This book is based on a wealth of research about what helps people connect, feel a sense of belonging and worthiness. It talks a lot about vulnerability and shame and how we deal with those emotions. She talks through research that suggests that we are increasingly living in an age where we don't feel like we are _____ enough (fill in the gaps) and due to this, this generation (in the US) has become the most medicated, obese, debt ridden and addicted in history. She gives lots of examples, including quite entertaining personal ones, about how people successfully deal with feelings of shame and vulnerability and how this leads to healthier relationships, more creativity, a sense of belonging.
Why read: She is an excellent, engaging writer. The book sounds like it is about a 'heavy' topic but you can't help reading and nodding along - realising that most of this stuff applies to you. I highly recommend. I read it in 2-3 days. I have done blog posts about her and her book.
Quiet by Susan Cain
Level: Anyone - but it is longer and more dense than Brene Brown
Topic: This book is about introverts and extroverts. The general theme of the book is that we live in a world now that heralds 'extroverts', their qualities and their preferences in higher regard than introverts. Schools, the workplace are moving towards open plan offices, pods, group work etc and social skills are highly desirable as we are encouraged to hone our skills in public speaking, presenting, socialising, working together. She argues - compellingly - that introverts have a lot of important qualities and that these should not be dismissed and should be catered for. Many great writers, artists, scientists are introverts. She also argues that this drive towards 'extrovert-ising' is damaging because group think can mean we make the wrong decisions, it can dampen creativity and it can mean we don't learn what we need at the speed that is right for us.
Why read: This book helped me understand myself better and also made me think about how this should be taken into account in the workplace. We should be acknowledging and catering for different types of people.
Blogs
http://welearnsomething.blogspot.co.uk/ by Gillian Martin Mehers micro-enterprise 'Bright Green Learning'. If you only refer to one blog about learning then make it this one. Gillian has created a world of fascinating posts about tons of fun, innovative, helpful things related to learning.
http://thelearningngo.wordpress.com/ This blog is more specific to learning with NGOs (non-government organisations) working on international development, humanitarian intervention etc. Bruce Britton is a passionate and engaging trainer, consultant and writer and I highly recommend checking out his papers, books and blogs if you are interested in learning within NGOs.
Videos
Education and the need to revolutionize it. This is a captivating video on what is becoming 'fast food' education.
1. Resources coming from a secular mindfulness point of view
3. Resources from a Buddhist perspective
4. Resources on social change, facilitation, learning and development.
1. Resources on Mindfulness and Social Change
Level: All (though if you already know what mindfulness is you might get more out of it)
Topic: Collection of chapters by different writers on a wide range of mindfulness themes - including mindful eating, mindful parenting, mindfulness in general
Why read: It is a diverse book covering lots of topics and shows the many ways in which mindfulness can be applied to different aspects of life. It will deepen and widen your understanding of mindfulness.
'Teaching Mindfulness - a practical guide for clinicians and educators' by Donald McCown, Diane Reibel and Marc S. Micozzi
Level: For the more experienced
Topic: The ins and outs of teaching mindfulness
Why read: This is a really interesting insight into how to teach mindfulness - including a summary of how mindfulness came to be, its journey over the last 20 years, why the course is structured the way it is, teaching techniques and a breakdown of how to teach each element of the course.
The Mindful Workplace by Michael Chaskalson
Level: Beginners and advanced
Topic: This book is specifically about using mindfulness in the workplace. What I enjoyed about this book is that it relates mindfulness training to things like improvements in emotional intelligence, stress management, management and coaching and leadership. It refers to a lot of studies that have been done and papers that have been written and it links mindfulness to neuroscience, organisational development, and various theories around stress. The language used in the book is quite matter of fact and business like which I think is appropriate if you want to engage businesses. It gives examples of meditations and talks about how a mindfulness course can be delivered. Note of caution - I think the book is overpriced for what is (more than double the price of other books listed here and by far the shortest book, with the biggest font and the most self-promotion!). Fortunately, the content is strong and for an organisation or a mindfulness trainer or coach - I think it is worth spending the money.
2. Resources on Buddhism and Social Change
The Art of Power by Thich Naht Hanh
Level: Beginners/Intermediate or above
Topic: Explanation of how to deal with the corrosive nature of what we call 'power'; how to create a happy, healthy, insightful society, free from fear of not having power and the fear of losing power.
Why read: Personally, this is my favourite book so far by Thich Naht Hanh. Short, easy to read and yet dense with wisdom. Power can be such a compelling and consuming force and Thay, as TNH he is known, explains what real power is. It is an inspiring, thought provoking read which I have no doubt I will reread many times. I highly recommend this book - especially if you are new to Buddhism or to Thay's writing.
Buddhist Ethics: A Very Short Introduction by Damien Keown
Level: This is a beginners guide to ethics but I would say you will understand more of it if you are already have an understanding of buddhism more generally.
Topic: Ethical issues and Buddhist stance/position or lack thereof about them
Why read: This is a fascinating, very short, and easy to read book covering many common ethical issues such as animals and the environment, sexuality, suicide and euthanasia and cloning. The book often compares christianity and buddhism so that we have some sense of comparison. I found it interesting because it talks about how buddhism is applied to current issues.
3. Resources on social change, facilitation, learning and development
Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman
Level: All
Topic: The book is about emotional intelligence which is about self awareness, managing self, managing emotions, self motivation, social skills, relating to others etc. The book talks about how important it is parenting, education, the workplace, relationships and general emotional well being.
Why read: It is clear from reading this book that emotional intelligence is really important - even more so than IQ arguably. The book explains emotions and emotional management from a neuroscientific perspective too which is interesting. It talks about emotions like anger, worrying, depression, happiness and studies that have been done on these emotions. It is a little old now but it is still interesting and persuasive. I have done a blog post summarising the main points from the book (click on 'emotional intelligence').
More Time to Think by Nancy Klein
Level: Anyone -very easy to read (it doesnt talk about mindfulness but there is a lot of mindfulness principles within it and possibly a very good way of bringing mindfulness into organsiations without making it explicit).
Topic: This book is about helping people to think better. It explains the key qualities or factors that need to be in place to create a really good thinking environment in some detail. This is particularly useful in a work place environment. It then talks through some of the approaches that can be used to help people think better like thinking partnerships, or facilitation techniques for groups/meetings, or for mediation. Apparently there are courses you can attend to learn to facilitate or coach in this way. It makes for compelling reading and it is practical so there are some things that you can put into place straight away.
Why read: What I liked about this book was: 1) the emphasis on helping people to think for themselves, and giving them the space and support to do that; 2) the emphasis on not just the factors necessary to help people think better, but the very practical suggestions for changing the way we work to encourage better thinking; 3) the chapter at the end around improving meetings, emails, the use of flipchart and powerpoint
'Accelerated Learning for the 21st Century' by Colin Rose and Malcolm J. Nicholl
Level: All
Topic: Multiple intelligences, how to learn, how to teach
Why read: This is an excellent book explaining various principles about how learning works - including exploring eight different 'intelligences' that people have which affect the way they learn. It is really useful any trainer and any learner.
'Multiple Intelligences' by Howard Gardner
I haven't read yet but I imagine it will be similar to book above which is excellent.
Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahnemann
Level: All with a keen interest in the mind. He is an economist and this book is rich in studies, research and examples.
Topic: This book is basically about bias in our minds. It describes two 'systems' of thinking - one which is fast and heavily reliant on intuitions, snap judgements, easy problems and decisions and the other is slow thinking which requires our rational minds to work things out. The book talks through some fascinating psychological studies on things like decision making, happiness, different types of biases. It talks about statistics and how we often don't pay enough attention to them. It is very digestible way and makes a compelling case about why we shouldn't rely too heavily on our instincts (especially if statistics are giving us a conflicting view).
Why read: It makes you realise that there is much more to our minds than we think. It is filled with interesting insights and I have found it relevant to both my work and to my personal life.
Daring Greatly: How the Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the Way we Live, Love, Parent and Lead by Brene Brown
Level: Anyone - whether interested in parenting, management, relationships or just for yourself
Topic: This book is based on a wealth of research about what helps people connect, feel a sense of belonging and worthiness. It talks a lot about vulnerability and shame and how we deal with those emotions. She talks through research that suggests that we are increasingly living in an age where we don't feel like we are _____ enough (fill in the gaps) and due to this, this generation (in the US) has become the most medicated, obese, debt ridden and addicted in history. She gives lots of examples, including quite entertaining personal ones, about how people successfully deal with feelings of shame and vulnerability and how this leads to healthier relationships, more creativity, a sense of belonging.
Why read: She is an excellent, engaging writer. The book sounds like it is about a 'heavy' topic but you can't help reading and nodding along - realising that most of this stuff applies to you. I highly recommend. I read it in 2-3 days. I have done blog posts about her and her book.
Quiet by Susan Cain
Level: Anyone - but it is longer and more dense than Brene Brown
Topic: This book is about introverts and extroverts. The general theme of the book is that we live in a world now that heralds 'extroverts', their qualities and their preferences in higher regard than introverts. Schools, the workplace are moving towards open plan offices, pods, group work etc and social skills are highly desirable as we are encouraged to hone our skills in public speaking, presenting, socialising, working together. She argues - compellingly - that introverts have a lot of important qualities and that these should not be dismissed and should be catered for. Many great writers, artists, scientists are introverts. She also argues that this drive towards 'extrovert-ising' is damaging because group think can mean we make the wrong decisions, it can dampen creativity and it can mean we don't learn what we need at the speed that is right for us.
Why read: This book helped me understand myself better and also made me think about how this should be taken into account in the workplace. We should be acknowledging and catering for different types of people.
Blogs
http://welearnsomething.blogspot.co.uk/ by Gillian Martin Mehers micro-enterprise 'Bright Green Learning'. If you only refer to one blog about learning then make it this one. Gillian has created a world of fascinating posts about tons of fun, innovative, helpful things related to learning.
http://thelearningngo.wordpress.com/ This blog is more specific to learning with NGOs (non-government organisations) working on international development, humanitarian intervention etc. Bruce Britton is a passionate and engaging trainer, consultant and writer and I highly recommend checking out his papers, books and blogs if you are interested in learning within NGOs.
Videos
Education and the need to revolutionize it. This is a captivating video on what is becoming 'fast food' education.
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