The Art of Project Management

Philosophy and strategy

de Botton, Alain, The Consolations of Philosophy (Vintage, 2001) ISBN 0679779175

Management philosophy derives much from classical Eastern and Western philosophy, and this is a good place to start. I understood and remembered more about Western philosophy from this little book than several years of university philosophy education. de Botton writes essays that are short, thought provoking, informal, fun, personable, and memorable. This is the one book I give to people when they say they are interested in philosophy but don't know where to start.

Russell, Bertrand, The Conquest of Happiness (Liveright Publishing Corporation, 1930) ISBN 0871401622

Happy people make for better managers. While I doubt happiness can be conquered, this book will help you sort out what makes you happy and why. Russell was a prominent philosopher in the 20th century, and in spite of that, he writes very well. He was something of a troublemaker and free thinker and it shows in his writing. I first read this book on a road trip with Chris McGee from Seattle to Banff. I started on the trip quite unhappy with life in general, and came back ready to make changes. This book, Chris, and the trip itself were all influential in my decision to leave Microsoft and start writing.

Tzu, Sun, Art of War, Pocket Edition (Shambala, 1991) ISBN 0877735379

This was the first Eastern philosophy book I read that made any sense to me. I recommend it for its simplicity and very short length. It's written ...