The shift in professional CPD towards courses, journals, online resources, blogs, abstracts etc has been an educational revolution. Access is more open, formats are more varied and this has allowed companies such as our own to flourish. But there is a slight worry…. who is reading books now? Because we should be. Books are brilliant. There is no rush, no urgency to respond, they can cover great ground, the information can unfold rather than be forced at you, be re-read and of course recommended. I have come across students and course attendees that freely volunteer that they don’t read books… they read articles, and even more article abstracts, but seem to have lost the cover to cover habit. THEY ARE MISSING OUT.
Which books do you read? Hopefully ones that will make a difference. I have devoured some classics and slogged through some stinkers. I include our “reading list” here because we believe that they are books that will make a difference to your working practices, thoughts and attitudes. When asked on courses I always say that these are your “bankers”, they will get you up to speed and re-invigorate you, and they will provide you with a practical tool set to refer back to. Remember, books don’t have to be latest and greatest, or tomes of elegant academia… they just need to be full of good stuff.