Business Book Summaries to Avoid the Summer Slide

EBSCO’s Accel5, features thousands of business book summaries on critical soft skills. See which ones you should check out this summer.

In academic settings, the “summer slide” refers to the decline of skills that can occur during the summer while school is out. However, the summer slide is applicable in corporate settings as well while business may be slower and employees are taking extra vacation days.

Instead of letting your business skills decline this summer, utilize Accel5’s business book summaries to hone critical soft skills. See some of our reading suggestions below or begin your free trial of Accel5 to access our entire library of summaries.

8 Steps to High Performance by Marc Effron

High performance is the key to higher pay, more power, greater recognition and more opportunities in the workplace. However, it’s often difficult for people to identify the actions they must take to consistently deliver better results than 75 percent of their peers. In this book summary, author Marc Effron identifies and explains eight proven techniques you can use to enhance your performance at work.

Make the Most of Your Workday by Mary A. Camuto

In this summary, author Mary A. Camuto details the principles that will allow you to become the leader of your workday. This involves changing your behavior and attitude and bringing more awareness into your life, from adopting strategies that will help you work more efficiently to taking more control over the demands imposed on you during your workday. Positive improvements will help you become more engaged at work, and your organization will benefit from a more engaged employee.

Instead of letting your business skills decline this summer, utilize Accel5’s business book summaries to hone critical soft skills.

Change the Way You Change! By Kendall Lyman and Tony C. Daloisio

Today, organizations must perpetually evolve in order to succeed and survive. The best way for organizations to conduct this type of change is by reforming their structures and processes while also reorienting their cultures. This is the message expressed by R. Kendall Lyman and Tony C. Daloisio in Change the Way You Change! Based on their experience as leadership and change management consultants, the authors present their organizational change practices and theories, and offer a template for the role of leadership in effecting true and lasting organizational transformations.

The Manager’s Answer Book by Barbara Mitchell and Cornelia Gamlem

In this summary, authors Barbara Mitchell and Cornelia Gamlem offer a guide that managers can use to stay informed about difficult workplace issues. By developing your management skills, building the right team, creating a strong personal brand, and navigating conflict and risk, you can overcome the potential land mines and be a confident and successful manager.

Listen Up or Lose Out by Robert Bolton and Dorothy Grocer Bolton

When you listen empathically, you focus on understanding the thoughts and feelings of the person you’re listening to instead of thinking about what you’re going to say next. This type of listening, called active listening, strengthens relationships at work and enhances intimacy at home. It’s a learned skill that can be practiced anywhere, any time. In this summary, authors Robert Bolton and Dorothy Grover Bolton present a method to make you an empathic listener and influential asset in any organization.

To access these business book summaries and many more, begin your free trial of Accel5 today.