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Discussion on: Top 10 Books Every CTO Should Read

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ben profile image
Ben Halpern

I've read 4 of the first 5. Great list.

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Mark

Out of curiosity, which have you read? I have only read Rework. I started Phoenix Project, then got caught up in other endeavors and meant to come back to it.

I would love have a mapping and a road map whenever I see articles listicles on great books. You go to a webpage and import your library, pick topics or books that you're actively reading, and then generating a visualizations that help highlight key items. I could see having a "directory" listing of major topics(think of pushing through the table of contents for each book through an NLP processor and creating tags). Then to take it a step further, I would like to see a directed graph of how books relate to each other. IE, See how topics are referenced throughout each book. Then you can embed this content in your article, and not only do you see a great list of books, but you can view just how important they are!

The reason for this hopefully is relate able, I have a hard time understanding whether or not I have enough information to even begin reading a specific book. I find it important to have just enough context on a topic before I jump into "the gems". I love taking samples of each book to gain some some insight, but I often find by time I finish the sample I've either moved on or found it not as relevant. If I saw upfront just how the books or authors are connected to what I've already read, it may help recognize what I stand to gain from reading each book.

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Brad Ledford

I used to try to be "efficient" in this manner when reading, Mark, but I've since given up and now I just read, every day, and everything that anyone I trust or admire recommends. I typically try to buy the hard bound version and then I just trust that a) I won't remember all of the lessons in first or even the second read and b) I can re-read the book when something I read later triggers me to revisit the subject. Since I may not get around to that for some time, I like having the physical copy as a durable reminder to pick it up and revisit.

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Gregory J. Stein

This is great advice. I cannot say I frequently re-read my books, but when something "triggers me to revisit" a passage, I can ground the material in an experience in my own work/life, which helps me to internalize the lesson.