6 Books to help you get a board role

With the holiday season ahead, with a bit of luck, you will find yourself with some downtime. What better way to spend it than to invest in your board career with these practical books? In this article, I have outlined my top 6 books to help you get the board role you have been chasing. I will focus on the takeaways that will assist with your board career. However, they all have practical advice and methodologies that you can apply to your executive career and personal life.

So let’s get started.

#1 Find Your Why (Simon Sinek)

Review

This is the follow-up book to Simon Sinek’s best-seller ‘Start With Why’, which many of you will have read or heard of. Whilst “Start with Why” focuses on successful organisations, ‘Find Your Why’ takes the Golden Concept further to focus on the steps individuals can take to figure out their purpose/ (Why).

“Find Your Why” is a short and practical book. It is full of exercises to help you recognise your Why – your purpose, cause, or belief that should serve as the driving force behind most of what you do.

“Find Your Why” reinforces a well-researched psychological theory that, for most of us, true success comes from pursuing meaningful work that aligns with our values. At the very least, the book will inspire you to embark on a journey of self-discovery.

Takeaways to help you get appointed

Not everyone agrees with Simon’s philosophy that everything should start with why, but when it comes to gaining a board appointment, the why is everything. Why, you may ask. There are many reasons:

• Discovering your why will help you identify which boards and board roles are right for you. To successfully gain a board role, you must have realistic expectations and target the right organisations.
• If you are on a board that shares your why, you are more likely to thrive and be offered other board roles.
• When you know your why, you find your passion. We know that board chairs seek passionate board members. Chairs know that skills can be learned and knowledge can be gained, but the passion for the goals of the board and the organisation can make a difference.

#2 Getting Things Done: The art of stress-free productivity (David Allen)

Review

There is a reason why this is one of the most significant productivity books of the last two decades. It offers powerful, practical strategies for vastly increasing your organisational skills, efficiency and creativity in your work and personal life. David Allen shows how to cut through the clutter in your mind, on your desk and on your devices to get much more done with much less effort. How to complete your ‘to do’ lists with a fail-safe system.

In fact, David has developed his system into a 5-step methodology, the Getting Things Done (GTD) method:

1. Capture – collect or write down what needs to be done or on your mind
2. Clarify – determine what is actionable and what to do with them
3. Organise – sort, categorise and set reminders
4. Reflect – review and update your system constantly
5. Engage – action with confidence and clarity

Takeaways to help you get appointed

Finding and gaining a board appointment takes time, perseverance and a regular commitment to the process. And it is a process. No one is going to tap you on the shoulder and offer you your dream board role.

One of the main reasons that people fail to gain a board role is because life and their executive careers get in the way. They feel completely overwhelmed with their ever-growing task list, let alone taking on more in order to gain or maintain a board appointment. This is where many give up. They feel that they can not find the time to search for board roles, develop a board network or apply for board roles.

I am a huge fan of frameworks and manageable systems to get things done and achieve your goals. My Board Appointment Training Series is based on breaking down the entire process of gaining a board appointment into a manageable, actionable framework. Adding David Allen’s GTD methodology to your daily professional and personal life will make you more productive and able to allocate more time to gain a board appointment. It will help you manage multiple projects simultaneously with fewer distractions and greater clarity and focus.

At the end of the day, even if you are still unsuccessful in gaining a board role, the organisational, time-management and cognitive thinking skills you will have developed by practising GTD will make you far more productive, creative and a better decision-maker.

#3 Presence – Bringing Your Boldest Self To Your Biggest Challenges (Amy Cuddy)

Review

Amy Cuddy is best known for having delivered the 2nd most-watched TED talk in history. The talk is titled “Your Body Shapes Who You Are”.

“Presence stems from believing in and trusting yourself—your real, honest feelings, values, and abilities. That’s important because if you don’t trust yourself, how can others trust you? Whether we are talking in front of two people or five thousand, interviewing for a job, negotiating for a raise, or pitching a business idea to potential investors, speaking up for ourselves or speaking up for someone else, we all face daunting moments that must be met with poise if we want to feel good about ourselves and make progress in our lives. Presence gives us the power to rise to these moments.” — From Presence by Amy Cuddy.

The most profound element of Amy’s research focuses on the power of body language. To be more precise, how we can use our physiology (our bodies) to increase our power and presence. It can enable you to override your fight or flight instinct, allowing you to be grounded, open and engaged. It has been tested and proven. Your body pose can change hormone levels and your mind.

Takeaways to help you get appointed

Networking is key to gaining a board role, as we know that 65% of all board appointments are made via a personal or professional connection. Fear of rejection and working about what others may think is the main hurdle to making these connections. Having presence is about having the control, confidence and self-assurance to stop the constant inner monologue. 

Cuddy’s research and advice are even more useful once you have made it to a board interview. Here, the takeaway is to focus on the Power in the Body and the Power in the Voice, not only to articulate what you have to offer the board but also to provide confidence to the panel that you are a strong candidate and leader.

My final takeaway is Cuddy’s “Fake it until you become it” theory. Don’t get me wrong; this is not about faking your skills or experience to get a board role. It is about practice, body language and portraying confidence. This confidence will allow you to share your knowledge and present your true self.

#4 Smart Brevity: The Power of Saying More with Less (Roy Schwartz, Mike Allen, Jum VandeHei)

Review

Smart Brevity is a communication formula created by Jim VandeHei, Mike Allen, and Roy Schwartz, based on their decades of experience in media, business, and communications. Simply put, Smart Brevity is a method of conveying important information concisely and impactfully. The focus is on eliminating unnecessary words and delivering the essential message effectively and clearly. This approach can be applied to most forms of spoken and written communication.

With the rise of communication technology, people are bombarded with far more pieces of communication from multiple sources simultaneously. It is not physically possible to consume everything. It is, therefore, critical to communicate faster and more efficiently whilst not losing quality. 

Takeaways to help you get appointed

Whether a selection panel is assessing your board application, you are talking to a recruiter, at a networking event or in a board interview, you essentially have just 7 seconds to make an impression. One way to do this is to effectively articulate your message in the shortest amount of time whilst separating yourself from the competition. This task is not easy for most of us, so taking expert tips can make all the difference.

The book provides the methodology and how-to to apply immediately to your communication. And, like most things, you will get better with practice. As we go further into the digital era and now AI, quality over quantity will be the only way to communicate effectively.

As a previous executive recruiter, I can tell you that recruiters are incredibly time-poor people. By applying Smart Brevity, you are more likely to get my attention, make a good impression by respecting my time and make my job easier by clearly conveying the essential information I require.  

#5 The DIP (Seth Godin)

“The extraordinary benefits of knowing when to quit (and when to stick)”

Review

The Dip revolves around the theory that all worthwhile journeys have a dip. Success comes from accepting this, recognising it and making a conscious decision when to and when not to push through the dip. Godin’s fundamental concepts are that:

• Winners quit the right stuff at the right time.
• Too many people settle for good enough instead of the best in the world.
• Being well-rounded is not the secret to success.

Society knows and assumes that you are going to quit. Some systems and organisations profit from this fact. However, if you learn about the systems or processes ahead of you and anticipate the dips or obstacles, you are more likely to push through at the point where others give up.

In the Dip, Godin explains the importance of quitting strategically. It can be used as a successful approach to managing your life and career. But there are times when selling or quitting is the wrong thing. As it happens, there is a reasonably simple way to determine what to do and when to do it.

Takeaways to help you get appointed

The path to a board appointment is a long and worthwhile journey for most. It is one that will be full of obstacles and dips. Most give up far too early, leaving the spoils to those who persevere and push through. Others will persevere on a set pathway when they should give up and find a new pathway or end goal.

During my Board Appointment Training Series, I will teach you the systems and the processes of gaining a board appointment. I will also show the different pathways you can take. Everyone’s pathway to a board appointment will be different. Everyone’s obstacles and Dips along the way will also be different. But one thing in common is that everyone’s successful board appointment journey takes perseverance. Applying the concepts and theories of The Dip will help you find the right pathway for you.

#6 Click or Clash (Dr Ali Walker)

“Discover the new connection and compatibility types that will transform your relationships – in love, friendship and work.

Review

This is my favourite book. Click or Clash helps you, through a free personality assessment, connect your personality to your purpose. By understanding your personal connection style and those of others, you can strengthen your sense of belonging and recognise who you are compatible with in relationships, in teams, and in leadership.

From boards, the workplace, to friendships old and new, to family, to dating and long-term romantic partners, this groundbreaking book will explain and transform all of the connections in your life – the clicks and the clashes. Using her unique Connection Type model, Dr Ali Walker (Australia’s leading human connection scientist) reveals the tools for 

In this book, you will discover:

• the 17 connection types – including yours
• your Frequency type = how often you like to connect with people
• your Intensity type = how often you like to connect with people
• why you bond easily with some people but have friction with others
• the four types of belonging (and how to achieve them)
• how to communicate in true alignment with who you are

Based on fascinating new research and filled with real-life examples and practical advice, Click or Clash is for anyone seeking healthy, happy, fulfilling relationships of any kind – including the board kind.

Takeaways to help you get appointed

If you have read anything I have written on how to gain a board role, you will know that over 65% of all board roles are filled via personal connections and over 50% via ‘weak tie’ connections – people you see rarely or infrequently. You will also know that I never speak of ‘networking’ but rather developing personal connections. For many, this is difficult, primarily because very few of us understand how we connect best, who we are compatible with, and why.

By understanding your personal connection style and those of others, you can recognise who you are compatible with, strengthen your sense of belonging and develop meaningful relationships. I discovered that I am a ‘shapeshifter’.

Our lives are filled with relationships and daily interactions. They are vital to our well-being and crucial in building professional relationships that can facilitate board appointments. 

This book was quite powerful. It helped me not change who I was or want to be but rather understand and accept my connection style and learn to embrace it. It gave me more confidence to be authentic, and in turn, it helped me better understand how to connect with others. 

Conclusion

Gaining a board role is not something that will just happen. It takes time and perseverance and is more achievable with an actionable plan. You must also be prepared to change your plan and goals.

Everyone’s pathway to their first and subsequent board role will be different, as will the obstacles they face. The books I have recommended should help most of you with these challenges, regardless of where you are in your board career.

Even if you have read some of these books in the past, I recommend you reread them. This time, focus on how you can apply the theories and concepts in relation to the processes of gaining a board appointment.