Tag: leadership

Uncommon Sense by Mel Blackwell Review

On By authoranthonyavinablogIn reviewsLeave a comment

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

Author Mel Blackwell shares the lessons he learned to create a culture of problem solving in successful businesses in the book “Uncommon Sense.”

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The Synopsis

Does your business look successful on the outside—but feel chaotic on the inside?
Are you stuck in constant firefighting, watching the same problems repeat while people dodge responsibility and culture slowly erodes? Is your culture just dysfunctional enough that everyone’s comfortably miserable, too afraid of the change that actually removes the root obstacles?

You don’t need another trendy leadership theory. You need something that actually works. Fix your culture and all metrics improve immeasurably.

After more than 35 years leading startups, turnarounds, and large organizations, former EOS Integrator Mel Blackwell has seen what really breaks businesses—and what actually fixes them. He’s led from the shop floor to the C-suite, rebuilt broken teams, and helped leaders move from chaos to clarity when pressure was real and payroll was due.

Uncommon Sense: The Fight to Fix Your Workplace Culture in the Wild West of Business is built on battle-tested leadership—not buzzwords. Through gritty stories, plainspoken wisdom, and practical tools, Mel shows you how to build a culture that can take a hit, solve problems fast, and keep moving forward.

This book doesn’t sell theory. It gives you a roadmap.

In this book, you’ll learn:

  • How to build a problem-solving culture instead of a complaining one
  • How to build winning leverage and traction into your culture
  • Why structure must come before people—and how to get it right
  • How to lead with accountability, not excuses
  • The system for eliminating toxic behavior that attracts, empowers, and develops good people
  • Best Pledge™—How to get the absolute best from your people because people as their worst self will not deliver best practice
  • How to align your team around vision and stellar execution
  • Why every organization needs two visions—and how to use them
  • How to lead with courage and win when pressure hits


Plus, you’ll discover why most leaders are “worshipping problems” instead of solving them, why not everyone belongs in every role, and how real leadership shows up when things get hard.

This book doesn’t read like a consultant talking at you. It’s written by a mentor walking beside you—telling the truth, sharing the scars, and showing you what works in the trenches.

When you apply what’s inside this book, leadership gets clearer. Problems get smaller. People are at their best. Teams get stronger. You gain leverage. And your business becomes something that can survive storms instead of being wrecked by them.

If you’re tired of drifting, guessing, and putting out fires—and ready to lead with clarity, courage, and confidence—this is your moment.

Buy Uncommon Sense: The Fight to Fix Your Workplace Culture in the Wild West of Business today and start building a culture that actually works.

The Review

This was a powerful and insightful read that really does a remarkable job of cutting through the technical jargon and power words that so many other business books like to focus on for leadership and instead focuses on getting to the root of many company’s problems. The honest and engaging way the author engaged with the reader and wrote in a way that felt conversational in tone allowed the reader to hone in on the author’s core messages and experiences and apply those lessons throughout the book to their own life.

The author touches upon a lot of useful and tried and true practices and engaging tools that management, leadership, and aspiring entrepreneurs can use on a daily basis. The idea of leaders needing not only an initial vision for the company, but a subvision of how the company will get to that end goal was fascinating, as was the square wheeled wagon theory the author presents that reflects the misdiagnosis of company problems that often lead to more issues than results. The imagery and creative ways in which the author relates these problems are not only fun but help illustrate the problems perfectly.

The Verdict

Engaging, thoroughly-presented, and compelling, author Mel Blackwell’s “Uncommon Sense” is a must-read business and leadership nonfiction book that will both inspire and educate readers who are looking to establish a solid, functioning culture of cohesiveness for their businesses. The even pacing of the book and detailed practices the author puts out there for readers to utilize will keep them not only engaged in the book, but utilizing it as a point of reference time and time again. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!

Rating: 10/10

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About the Author

Mel Blackwell – Senior Executive, Speaker, Culture Architect

Mel Blackwell has been fixing broken businesses for over 35 years. He started in a smoke-filled trailer park collection office right out of high school and worked his way up to leading teams at billion-dollar companies. He’s run startups, turned around failing businesses, and spent more than 20 years in VP-level C-suite roles.

He’s learned what works and what doesn’t, usually by screwing things up first, then figuring out how to fix them. He’s walked into businesses that looked like shot-up saloons and helped turn them into places where good people actually want to work.

Mel doesn’t sell complicated frameworks or flavor-of-the-month programs. He shoots straight about what it takes to build a culture that can actually handle the Wild West of business. No fluff. No corporate jargon. Just what works.

When he speaks or coaches, people tell him he makes complicated things simple. That’s because he’s lived it. He knows what it’s like to be in the middle of the fire with no perfect answer and a team looking to you for direction. He is featured in International Business Times, USA Today, CEO Weekly, and MSN.

Mel holds a BS in Marketing from Auburn University and an MA in Management from The University of Alabama, but most of what he knows came from doing the work, not from a textbook.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mel-blackwell-702866271

https://www.instagram.com/blackwellmel/

https://amzn.to/4u5QJsB

The Post-Managerial Era of Capitalism: Organizational Design as the Next Innovation Frontier (Elements in Reinventing Capitalism) by Hunter Hastings Review

On By authoranthonyavinablogIn reviewsLeave a comment

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own. 

Author Hunter Hastings shows readers how old school business structures are being replaced by more innovative and constructive ideas in the book “The Post-Managerial Era of Capitalism.”

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The Synopsis

Traditional business management was the machinery of control for industrial organizations that had sprawled beyond the oversight of their founders, an organizational innovation that became a profession and a science. The aim was the stability and predictability the financial sector demanded. But control brought increasing costs: (1) slow response to market changes, leaving established firms behind innovative newcomers; (2) bureaucratic inertia that strangled flexibility; (3) disengaged employees who felt their creativity and agility stifled. These failures weakened firms and lowered economic productivity. In the Kuhnian framework of scientific revolutions, the management paradigm entered crisis mode. Consistent with the Kuhnian framing, businesses are moving beyond management. Self-organization and enterprise flow are revolutionizing business models. Interconnected ecosystems replace bounded industries. Experimentation and feedback replace traditional strategic planning. Dynamic, autonomous teams replace hierarchies of authority. Liberated companies embrace dynamic cohesion rather than the rigidities of business administration. They operate in a post-managerial era.

The Review

This was a powerful, straightforward and insightful read. The author does a remarkable job of covering both the history of management from the nineteenth century factories to the modern day, as well as the new integrations of various technologies into the field. The level of detail and education the author is able to incorporate into the book was astounding considering the fast pacing of the book overall. The author’s writing style took on a commanding and informed tone throughout the book, allowing readers to feel engaged in honest discussion with the author rather than talked “at”. 

The heart of this book was in the direct way of approach the author took to the subject matter and the emphasis on self management. The ability to move with the changing needs of a customer based and do so without constant overhead decisions slowing down the process is a valuable bit of knowledge for companies moving forward, as is the integration of technology like digital networks. The way emphasis is placed on elements such as empathy in a company’s hierarchy was inspiring as well, putting focus on the workers making a company successful instead of the 1% at the head of it all.

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The Verdict

Memorable, thought-provoking, and enlightening, author Hunter Hasting’s “The Post Managerial Era of Capitalism” is a must-read nonfiction business book. The fast pace of the book’s core material, the use of diagrams and charts for educational purposes, and the ability to reference this book time and time again are just a few reasons why the author’s book works so well, and why the need to change perspectives on how to grow a business and manage it need to happen now. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!

Rating: 10/10

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About the Author

Hunter Hastings is founder of The Value Creators, a business education brand that aims to bring a new perspective on value creation to the young professionals and young entrepreneurs operating the new breed of digitally enabled companies.

Never Fire Anyone: A Leader’s Guide on How to Lead People Not Companies by Mark Kenneth Morgenfruh Review

On By authoranthonyavinablogIn reviewsLeave a comment

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own. 

Author Mark Kenneth Morgenfruh shares the power of leading a business by working with people and not focusing on the company’s optics and bottom line in the book “Never Fire Anyone: A Leader’s Guide on How to Lead People Not Companies.”

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The Synopsis

Delightfully obvious, just like All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. This book takes some unique and colorful perspectives on Leadership, Business, Talent, Communication, Artificial Intelligence, Contradictions, DEI, Giving Up, Slowing Down, Forgiveness and the Stupidly Obvious. A lot we may already know, but forget to practice.

When you grow up in Vineland, NJ you grow up everything Philly. Broad Street Bullies. Today’s Brotherly Shove. Sarcasm that can almost pierce skin. It really is the City of Brotherly Love. Tough Love. Mark Morgenfruh lives and writes in blunt, colorfully-worded, provocative and logical Philly-style prose. Not everyone’s cup of tea, to be sure.

But if you can get past the initial cold-water shock, and believe kick-ass leaders can be taught to stop the avoidant “happy talk” that’s fatal to teams and organizations, the level of success you’ll have is obscene.

Let’s disagree. Let’s even get angry. Then when all the cards are on the table, let’s talk it out and solve problems, lead others with clarity, and go have an ice-cold beer when it’s all done for the day.

The Review

The first thing that stood out about this book was the author’s straightforward writing. The unapologetic way the author confronts the need to step up as a leader in business was powerful to feel, covering everything from the bias that exists when hiring, to being able to be empathetic to others in a work environment, and even how to confront and properly work with those who may be underperforming in their duties. 

The author’s honesty and bold writing style really do a great job of connecting with readers. Authenticity and accountability seem to be two cornerstones of the author’s leadership philosophy, tackling the truth behind why DEI in the workplace is so important and why it needs to be appropriately utilized to maximize potential and foster a culture of growth. The book also tackles topics such as AI integration and so much more.

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The Verdict

Detailed, compelling, and thought-provoking, “Never Fire Anyone” by author Mark Kenneth Morgenfruh is a must-read nonfiction book on leadership and business. The practical applications managers can apply to their leadership skills, and the way the author relates to those in management positions and connects with them to confront the things that make life difficult, make this book invaluable and well-written. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!

Rating: 10/10

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About the Author

Mark Morgenfruh is an HR practitioner with more than 30 years of experience across mergers and acquisitions, strategic planning, compensation and benefits, cultural transformation, organizational development, performance metrics alignment, and HR technology. He is a trusted Senior Advisor to multiple organizations, offering expertise in human capital due diligence, post-close integrations, total rewards design, and HR strategy, delivery, and technology.

Since 2017, he has successfully operated his own consulting practice, building on a foundation of leadership experience from executive roles in prominent global and domestic organizations.

Recently publishing his first business book, Never Fire Anyone, Mark has started to distill more than three decades of observations and experience into his first of what he hopes will be many creative works. It is a brilliant new model and way to think about how we should stop leading “companies” and start to lead the people that are the cause of success.

https://amzn.to/47s3q6j

Palms Up Leadership: Developing Our Future Leaders by Rich Plumery Review

On By authoranthonyavinablogIn reviewsLeave a comment

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own. 

Author Rich Plumery shares a new take on leadership development in the book “Palms Up Leadership: Developing Our Future Leaders.”

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The Synopsis

Palms Up Leadership: Developing Future Leaders is not just another business book—it’s a transformative leadership manifesto designed for today’s rapidly evolving professional landscape.

In this compelling work, Rich Plumery draws from a wealth of experience shaped by real-world adversity, elite performance environments, and high-stakes leadership roles. At its core are the Palms Up tenets—Enable, Engage, and Embrace—a simple yet powerful framework that empowers leaders to navigate complex challenges with authenticity and purpose.

Plumery masterfully integrates principles from servant leadership, project management, sports psychology, elite military team-building, and entrepreneurship to offer a fresh, actionable approach to leadership development. Whether you’re a C-suite executive, a team leader, or an emerging talent, this book equips you with practical strategies to:

  • Cultivate a thriving and resilient workplace culture
  • Empower others through clarity, trust, and collaboration
  • Address pressing challenges like wisdom loss, remote work, and AI disruptions
  • Lead with integrity, purpose, and impact

If you’re ready to lead boldly, build better teams, and shape the next generation of leaders—Palms Up Leadership is your essential guide.

The Review

This was a truly insightful and compelling nonfiction book. The author wrote in a way that felt honest and personal while also conveying essential lessons along the way. The impact the author’s late brother had early on in his career, as well as the foundational work that went into his businesses, made the experiences that were put down on the page that much more impactful and meaningful. These lessons included things like making the minimum decision necessary to keep things moving, which was paired with a personal interaction with someone who caused him to rethink how reactive actions can have adverse consequences if not thought through carefully.

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The theme and foundation for both this book and the method of Palms Up leadership that stood out for this reader was the concept of servant leadership. The concept was new to me, but it was so inspiring. The idea of selfless leadership is so unheard of by so many companies these days. Yet, the concept is beneficial both morally and monetarily, allowing employees to feel wanted and appreciated and motivating them to contribute more to the company. Leadership is meant to work with and serve the community, including the one within a business, and the author’s expertise and strategies really do a great job of aligning with that.

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The Verdict

Memorable, insightful, and engaging, author Rich Plumery’s “Palms Up Leadership” is a must-read nonfiction business and leadership book. The fast pacing of the book, the action-driven steps the author lays out to help develop this unique brand of leadership, and the personal nature of the author’s experiences will keep readers invested and connected to the author and the journey this book takes them on. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!

Rating: 10/10

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About the Author

Rich is a published author, thought leader, and international speaker who presents on various topics, including business recovery, performance management, and his Palm’s Up LeadershipTM brand of servant leadership. Rich has been a founder, investor, and operator in several successful businesses, including one of the first voice-controlled computers, a tactical supply company supporting elite military units (with partners who were some of the plankowners of SEAL Team Six and Red Cell). He also owned and operated a sports performance coaching business that served hundreds of professional athletes across the NFL, NHL, MLB, and MLS. He applied what he had learned from his expert coaches and other world-class specialists, such as Greg Roskopf, the man who retooled Bryson DeChambeau, to develop elite corporate coaching skills.

Being an obsessed problem solver, Rich is passionate about developing a new generation of leaders to help us improve our corporate cultures. At this point in our history, we are dealing with many new dynamics, such as pandemics forcing remote work environments, global work sharing, emerging Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies, and an aging workforce, which is continually draining our wisdom bank and jeopardizing quality in many of our key industries, including manufacturing, engineering, construction and healthcare.  Rich presents his solutions to these challenges, based on his unique experiences in the corporate and entrepreneurial worlds.

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https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/palms-up-leadership-rich-plumery/1147996088?ean=9798349539824

Intentional Retention: The Essential Guide to Human Resources for Leaders by Sean Barnard Review

On By authoranthonyavinablogIn reviewsLeave a comment

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

Author Sean Barnard shares his personal experiences and teachable moments to show how managers and leaders should treat and interact with their employees in a time where turnover is a constant in the world of employment in the book “Intentional Retention: The Essential Guide to Human Resources for Leaders”.

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The Synopsis

National Bestseller!! The best employees don’t stick around just because they like your product, you, or their coworkers. Turnover is the pandemic of today in the world of employment and there don’t appear to be too many cures. Leadership is rarely taught and the pressure on untrained managers and owners leads to the pitfalls that come with a revolving door of new faces who don’t stick around long enough to earn an annual bonus. Or they do stay, and you sometimes wish they wouldn’t? Sean Barnard instinctively knows how to help leaders at any level get the most out of their team members and can show you innovative ways to increase retention from the first chapter. From a middle-class background in southern England to the C – Suite in Charlotte, North Carolina, Sean tells his story in a way that leaders at all levels can easily relate. His first book is a firsthand look inside every aspect of how to manage people. He understands what it’s like to be unmotivated as an hourly employee and what it takes to turn that into a loyal and happy team player who roots for the success of everyone around him, including the company he works for. Sharing a career that spans living in three countries, leading teams from Europe to the Caribbean and the United States, the reader will hear his story, with blunders, pitfalls to avoid and the huge wins that came along the way. With a genuine commitment to telling his story, readers will walk away knowing how they will be the leader they want to be and the leader their employees deserve.”

The Review

This was a fantastic blend of memoir-style storytelling and guided education on management and leadership skills in the modern world. The importance of taking the time to learn how to speak with your employees or your team members in our modern world not because it is required, but because it is the right thing to do becomes a cornerstone early on in the author’s book was truly moving to read about, as it sets the tone for the author’s experiences and lessons immediately.

To me, the author really was able to cover a wide range of topics under the banner of leadership. From establishing excellent communication early on to determining one’s core values and even the recruitment process, the book does a great job of detailing and showcasing each step easily. The balance of personal storytelling and education that each chapter boasts was a helpful tool in relating to the reader and showcasing how leaders can always grow and learn themselves as time goes on.

The Verdict

Memorable, engaging, and thoughtfully written, author Sean Barnard’s “Intentional Retention” is a must-read nonfiction book on business and leadership that you won’t be able to put down. The inspiring and enlightening nature of the author’s work and the captivating steps that readers can take to improve their leadership skills and how the author was able to relate it to our modern workforce made this a captivating read. If you haven’t yet, be sure to grab your copy today!

Rating: 10/10

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About the Author

Sean Barnard serves as Chief Operating Officer for privately held North Carolina based Smiles Ahead LLC. His role oversees 5 brands of dentistry that include Burrow Welchel & Culp, Orthodontics, White & Johnson Pediatrics, Charlotte Pediatric Dentistry, Signature Smiles Orthodontics and Dogwood Family Dentistry. His international career spans from Europe and the Caribbean to the U.S. and includes C-Level suite positions in gaming, hospitality, manufacturing, and healthcare.

Starting his career as a casino dealer in England in 1979, he moved into junior management before emigrating to the Bahamas in 1984. In 1991 Sean was recruited to join a management team opening one of the first casinos in North America to be built outside Las Vegas or Atlantic City.

Sean enjoyed several leadership positions within the gaming and hospitality industry and worked throughout the United States. As Senior Vice President of one of the largest casinos in the U.S., he was responsible for over a 1m sf resort with 1500 employees, close to $250,000,000 in annual revenues and over $85m in EBTIDA. Sean served as President of the Missouri Gaming Association and on several non-profit boards before ‘retiring’ in 2014.

In 2016, the introduction to Dr. Dustin Burleson led to Fifty-Eight LLC, a consultancy that grew in reputation and size with a range of clients across the US. Sean has been a keynote speaker with a presentation that challenges how we all think of HR and leadership.

• Sean is a Society for Human Resource Management Certified Professional and Certified Kolbe Consultant.

https://www.sean-barnard.com/

Leading In The First Person by Shawn Abrams Review

On By authoranthonyavinablogIn reviewsLeave a comment

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

Ray Croc once said, “The quality of a leader is reflected in the standards they set for themselves.” Often a leader is unable to lead until they learn to lead themselves in the right direction first. A sense of self will help a leader get a sense of others. That’s the goal author Shawn Abrams hopes to give future leaders in his novel, Leading in the First Person. Here’s the synopsis:

Leading in the First Person is a must read for those in leadership positions and those who would embrace it. The cover of this book holds the 5 Lead statements that leaders must concern themselves with on the way to success. Reading this book will allow you to: 

• Recognize critical leadership mistakes and how to recover from them quickly 

• Successfully lead your life instead of following it 

• Build rather than just maintain relationships 

• Shape your vision and influence others to follow it 

• Review effective mentoring and coaching techniques 

Leading is an act but leadership is a discipline! It’s hard work and sometimes unforgiving but very necessary. 

What really stuck with me reading this book was the core concept of a leader isn’t telling someone what to do, but inspiring them and motivating them to do something. As a writer that’s the goal I set out every day with my stories, to inspire and motivate people to pick up a book, get lost in a story and see the overlying theme and message the novel implies. Shawn Abrams does an amazing job relaying this concept to his audience.

Using personal stories to relate to the subject, the author delves into everything from the power of secrets, overselling and respect vs courtesy. It shows future leaders and aspiring leaders how to not only separate themselves from the pack, but to lead others to be the best possible version of themselves. It’s written in a relatable way, while relaying key information that is crucial for future leaders everywhere.

Overall this was a brilliant, well written novel filled with critical details and great techniques leaders everywhere should have. It’s a novel of trust, honesty and the best way to motivate others and instill a sense of self in your leadership skills. If you haven’t yet be sure to pick up your copy Leading In The First Person by Shawn Abrams today!

Rating: 10/10

ABOUT THE BOOK AND THE AUTHOR

Leading In The First Person by Shawn Abrams

This book represents a movement of leaders who are not afraid to lead themselves first and others well!

This is Shawn’s first book. He has served his country, his community and now he wants to serve leaders the world over with this message: Lead In The First Person. He is passionate about leadership, relationships, business development and customer service.

Summary about book

Don’t live your day, lead your day! 

Don’t follow your problems, lead them to resolution!

Don’t just parent your children, lead them!

Don’t find someone else to lead you, lead yourself!

Make your next goal to read and implement the findings of  this book!

Leadership is a skill that not everyone has. But it is a skill that can be taught and learned and constantly improved upon, given the right direction. Good leadership can save companies and relationships.

Learn the difference between managers and leaders.

In his book, Leading in the First Person, Shawn Abrams uses the experiences he has gathered through several years of army service, working in corporate America and through non-profit work as well, to show you what it means to lead!

Get a copy today. 

SHAWN ABRAMS

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This book will explore why leaders fail. Develop and improve your team’s performance by

improving your relationships with them. Identify ways leaders sabotage their success.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07FYVNW87/ref=x_gr_w_glide?caller=Goodreads&callerLink=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/41035083-leading-in-the-first-person?ac=1&from_search=true&tag=x_gr_w_glide-20

https://abrams360media.com/