Bad Boy Ballmer. The Man who Rules Microsoft. Frederic Alan Maxwell. 2002. ISBN 0066210143. An unauthorized biography which still does as fair job of assembling the real Balmer from the published PR and past records. The author did a lot of research and interviews to end up with a very easy to read and interesting book. Lots of insights and lessons to be learned here for those of us in the tech industry. Yes the picture is not always that pretty, but hey Andrew Carnegie for all his “good works” had a dark side to him too. Get it at the library and also at book warehouse at the moment .

You Don’t Have to Do It Alone. Axelrod et al. 2004. ISBN 157675278X. They tell us this is a book written by committee. And it is done quite well. The chapter on the meeting canoe (how to structure an effective meeting) is worth the price. Building on the team theme, this book continues the thought that none of us are as smart as all of us together. Many tactical tips on getting and keeping people involved. As useful for non profits (volunteers) as well as business groups. Plus it is short and very readable.

Video. What the Bleep Do We Know? The Movie. What a hoot of a movie. Put your mind in this blender. Quantum physics and its applications to some definitions of reality. Or the theory behind The Matrix if you want. http://www.whatthebleep.com/ Its worth the two hours despite a bit of a slow start. The speakers are worth the price of admission to me. (Plus it has a book list that is amazing!)

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. Patrick Lencioni.2002. ISBN 0787960756. Another one of the four fables Lencioni has written. If you are in the process of planning for 2005 and want to look at how your team and management meetings are going, I recommend this book. Elegantly simple, devilishly difficult to do consistently, but team building is essential to building traction. He writes an easy to read, but compelling tale. Worth having on your library shelf.