Reading Corner: Michael Jordan – The Life by Roland Lazenby

I wrote this post on the last weekend of the Paris Olympic Games, a weekend that will most likely be the last time I’ll see LeBron James and Diana Taurasi playing for the United States team on an international stage. I mention these two because they are some of my references, and I had the privilege to watch them play their entire careers while still pursuing my dream of being a professional basketball player. This fact reminded me that I haven’t told you yet about the first book I read this year – Michael Jordan: The Life by Roland Lazenby.

Michael Jordan was a big influence in my childhood and when I started playing basketball, but I never had the opportunity to see him play regularly while he was still in his prime. I was too young to have memories from the Barcelona 1992 Olympic Dream Team and growing up in Portugal, a country with just four TV channels in the public service, I never had a chance to watch a full game of the Chicago Bulls in the 90s. However, I did have a chance to watch NBA Action once a week, a show with the top plays of the week where Michael invariably appeared.

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By João Ferreira Aug 11, 2024 Books 0 Comments

Reading Corner: Slow Productivity by Cal Newport

Cal Newport’s latest book, Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout, is a must-read for every knowledge worker. In current times, it seems that everyone is focused on achieving more and more, following rules and patterns that no longer make sense as they were developed to limit physical fatigue of factory labor or maximize the use of solar light.

As we sprint towards the goal of always achieving more, we tend to add more tasks and responsibilities to our lists, ultimately leading to anxiety and having a negative impact on productivity. The book starts with an introduction to Pseudo-productivity, a concept used to describe the use of visible activity as the primary means of measuring actual productive efforts.

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By João Ferreira Jul 21, 2024 Books 0 Comments

Reading Corner: The Unicorn Project by Gene Kim

The Unicorn Project by Gene Kim is a book that everyone working in IT should read, regardless of their role within the organization. Don’t let the title or the format deceive you; I also had doubts that a novel about IT could be interesting, but I was so wrong. I guarantee that the story told in this book occurs in thousands of companies worldwide, and even if you don’t work in IT, I bet you will find something that relates to your daily job.

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By João Ferreira Jun 9, 2024 Books 0 Comments

Reading Corner: The Power of Regret by Daniel H. Pink

Starting a reading corner on my blog last year was a great idea, and even though I took a little break, I’m back! Today, I want to talk about a book that really made me think: “The Power of Regret” by Daniel H. Pink.

Daniel H. Pink is a pretty well-known author. He’s written some bestsellers like “Drive” and “When”, and he’s got a knack for digging into what makes us tick. Before he became a writer, he did some interesting stuff like writing speeches for Vice President Al Gore.

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By João Ferreira Apr 23, 2024 Books 0 Comments

Reading corner – I, Human by Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic

In an era dominated by rapid technological advancements, the power of Artificial Intelligence has become a topic of growing concern. People worry about AI’s potential to reshape society, influence decision-making processes, and even replace human roles.

Nevertheless, despite these worries, there is a tendency to overlook the pervasive influence of AI in our daily lives. In “I, Human,” psychologist Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic highlights the impact of AI on our behaviors, revealing how it can make us distracted, selfish, biased, narcissistic, entitled, predictable, and impatient.

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By João Ferreira Jun 5, 2023 Books 0 Comments

Reading corner – Emotion by design by Greg Hoffman

Emotions by Design is a must-read book for any Nike fan looking to gain insights into the brand’s success and learn from one of its top executives. Greg Hoffman, who spent almost three decades at Nike, shares his lessons and stories on the power of creativity in building strong emotional connections with consumers.

From the iconic “Just Do It” slogan to the Michael Jordan partnership, Hoffman provides fascinating stories about Nike’s most famous campaigns and how they succeeded in creating an empowering brand that resonates deeply with people.

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By João Ferreira May 3, 2023 Books 0 Comments

Reading corner – The Infinite Game by Simon Sinek

I had kept Simon Sinek’s book “The Infinite Game” on my bookshelf since its release and had been reminded of it in John Couch’s “My Life at Apple and The Steve I Knew”. I saw this as the perfect opportunity to finally read it and gain a better understanding of the infinite mindset that drives successful companies like Apple.

The book is a powerful exploration of how we can approach life and business as an infinite game rather than a finite one. Simon Sinek argues that most businesses and individuals approach life as if it were a finite game, in which the goal is to win and beat the competition. However, this approach often leads to short-sighted decisions and a focus on short-term gains at the expense of long-term success.

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By João Ferreira Apr 7, 2023 Books 0 Comments

Reading corner: Deliver What You Promise – The Building Blocks of Business

I was in a book shop scanning the shelves, with my eyes darting from title to title, when suddenly this one grabbed my attention. Maybe it was the bright colors on the cover, the quirky title, or the Lego bricks. Whatever it was, I’m happy I found it.

“Deliver What You Promise: The Building Blocks of Business” written by Bali Padda a former Lego CEO who had a crucial role in helping LEGO turn around its business and restore its financial stability after years of declining sales and profits.

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By João Ferreira Mar 18, 2023 Books 0 Comments

Reading corner: My Life at Apple and the Steve I Knew

This type of post is a first for me, I’ve never did a book review even though I’m a book addict and a book author. From now on, in this space you will find book reviews that somehow relate with technology, management or any other topic I’m into.

The first book review is about “My Life at Apple: And the Steve I Knew” a memoir written by John Couch, a former Apple executive that was employee number 54 and worked at the company for more than 20 years.

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By João Ferreira Feb 5, 2023 Books 1 Comment

Get my Hands-On Microsoft Teams book for just $5 dollars

Packt the publishing company with whom I published my book Hands-On Microsoft Teams book is committed to help people to increase their technical skills in the beginning of the year.

With this in mind they’ve decided to run a campaign until January 15^th 2021, offering a significant discount in several book titles.

If you want to start the year mastering Microsoft Teams don’t loose the opportunity to get your hands on my Microsoft Teams book, you can do your order here.

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By João Ferreira Jan 3, 2021 Books 0 Comments