My esteemed and always highly regarded readers, I sit down to write to you again from a little shack at the entrance to Calvillo, a Magical Town in the state of Aguascalientes, as I wait to begin the training that has brought me to these parts.

My visit coincided with the arrival of an army of boy scouts gathering this year for the national troop Camporee. In other words, the group meets to carry out activities and strengthen Mexico's scout educational program. Sitting by the window, I watch a contingent arrive under the pack leader's direction. With a couple of signals, the leader puts all the cub scouts getting off the bus into an orderly line: children from 10 to, I estimate, 16 years old, taking advantage of the school break to enjoy these activities.

It is striking that even in organizations as basic as the scouts, leadership is essential to managing people correctly. Leaders are largely responsible for matters ranging from a company's positive workplace climate to sensitive issues such as staff turnover and team performance.

Since today is Book Day, I want to share 7 essential reads—in the opinion of yours truly (S.S.S.)—for every organizational leader:

  1. 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (D. Covey): An absolute baaaasic. This is a go-to book for leaders. You may or may not entirely agree with it, but there is no doubt these pages offer readers substantial learning toward success. Move from dependence to independence and then interdependence.
  2. The Greatest Salesman in the World (O. Mandino): A book I encountered at a very young age. Although its premise is that “we are all salespeople,” its universal principles and their application are essential for leaders: love, success, perseverance, daily effort and more.
  3. El desafío Starbucks (H. Schultz): This is fundamentally a business book and a must for every entrepreneur. What matters is how it prioritizes organizational values, loyalty, passion, daring and the role leaders play in creating that culture. If you have not yet considered your organizational philosophy, this is required reading.
  4. The Samurai Leader (B. Diffenderffer): this book explores Samurai philosophy applied to business. I know it sounds overused—there are countless films on the subject. It discusses values every leader needs. Pay attention!
  5. Emotional Intelligence (D. Goleman): The father of EI (IE), in his award-winning book, establishes and explains the foundations of emotional intelligence and its impact on teams. Every leader must not only understand this book but apply it, because putting it into practice is the difficult part.
  6. Fish! (S. Lundin): Based on the workplace philosophy of a famous fish market in Seattle, this book discusses 4 basic principles:
    1. The attitude depends on you.
    2. Have fun at work.
    3. Share your joy.
    4. Keep close to your clients.
  7. Liderazgo (J. Valdano): A brilliant book for sports fans. Mr. Valdano shares lessons and experiences from the playing field, focusing on leadership and the clear objective of creating high-performance teams. This book is a goal scored from midfield!

Now, dear reader, the decision to read these books is in your hands. Many, many others are excellent, perhaps even better. But, taking advantage of the occasion and surrounded by thousands of Scouts, I wanted to share the books that changed how I thought about, viewed and understood leadership at different points in my life. If you would like to share your own selection, I am listening: jesus@jesussanchez.com.mx

Rock´n roll people!!!