Every season, the Next Big Idea Club editorial staff reviews dozens of upcoming books to identify the most exciting, must-read nonfiction titles. We start with a broad pool of nominees, and then share them with our curators—Adam Grant, Susan Cain, Daniel Pink, and Malcolm Gladwell—to identify a small handful of finalists and, ultimately, two official season selections.
Today, it’s our pleasure to share our list of seven finalists for Season 23! Without further ado, the new books we’re most excited about right now are…
The Friction Project: How Smart Leaders Make the Right Things Easier and the Wrong Things Harder
By Robert I. Sutton and Huggy Rao
The causes and solutions for five of the most common and damaging friction troubles: oblivious leaders, addition sickness, broken connections, jargon monoxide, and fast and frenzied people and teams. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by co-author Bob Sutton, in the Next Big Idea App
The Great Wave: The Era of Radical Disruption and the Rise of the Outsider
By Michiko Kakutani
An urgent examination of how disruptive politics, technology, and art are capsizing old assumptions in a great wave of change breaking over today’s world, creating both opportunity and peril. Read our Book Bite summary
The Holocaust: An Unfinished History
By Dan Stone
A University of London professor draws on Nazi documents, but also on diaries, post-war testimonies, and even fiction, urging that, in our age of increasing nationalism and xenophobia, it is vital that we understand the true history of the Holocaust. View on Amazon
Languishing: How to Feel Alive Again in a World That Wears Us Down
By Corey Keyes
The Emory University sociologist who coined the term languishing—low-grade mental weariness that affects our self-esteem, relationships, and motivation—explores the rise of this phenomenon and presents a comprehensive guide to flourishing in a world that demands too much. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Corey Keyes, in the Next Big Idea App
Same as Ever: A Guide to What Never Changes
By Morgan Housel
A renowned financial journalist shows how we can use a newfound grasp of the unchanging to see around corners—not by squinting harder through the uncertain landscape of the future, but by looking backwards, being more broad-sighted, and focusing on what is permanently true. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Morgan Housel, in the Next Big Idea App
Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection
By Charles Duhigg
A fascinating exploration of what makes conversations work—and how we can all learn to be supercommunicators at work and in life. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Charles Duhigg, in the Next Big Idea App
Uncertain: The Wisdom and Wonder of Being Unsure
By Maggie Jackson
Uncertain examines various modes of uncertainty-in-action, from creative reverie to the dissent that spurs team success. Step by step, the art and science of uncertainty reveal being unsure as a skill set for incisive thinking and day-to-day flourishing. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Maggie Jackson, in the Next Big Idea App
The Key Ideas in 15 Minutes
“If you are going to get anywhere in life, you have to read a lot of books,” Roald Dahl once famously said. The only trouble is, reading even one book from cover to cover takes hours—and you may not have many hours to spare.
But imagine for a moment: What if you could read a groundbreaking new book every day? Or even better, what if you could invite a world-renowned thinker into your earbuds, where they personally describe the 5 key takeaways from their work in just 15 minutes?
With the Next Big Idea App, we’ve turned this fantasy into a reality. We partnered with hundreds of acclaimed authors to create “Book Bites,” short audio summaries of the latest nonfiction that are prepared and read aloud by the authors themselves. Discover cutting-edge leadership skills, productivity hacks, the science of happiness and well-being, and much more—all in the time it takes to drive to work or walk the dog.
Go Deeper with a Next Big Idea Club Membership
The Next Big Idea App is free for anyone to try—and if you love it, we invite you to become an official member of the Next Big Idea Club. Membership grants you unlimited access to Book Bites and unlocks early-release, ad-free episodes of our LinkedIn-partnered podcast. You also gain entry to our private online discussion group, where you can talk big ideas with fellow club members and join exclusive live Q&A sessions with featured authors.
For a more focused learning experience, we recommend a Hardcover or eBook Membership. Every few months, legendary authors and club curators Malcolm Gladwell, Susan Cain, Adam Grant, and Daniel Pink select two new nonfiction books as the must-reads of the season. We then send hardcover copies straight to your doorstep, or eBook versions to your favorite digital device. We also collaborate with the authors of selected books to produce original reading guides and premium video e-courses, 50-minute master classes that take you step by step through their most life-changing ideas. And yes, it’s all available through the Next Big Idea App.
Learn Faster, from the World’s Leading Thinkers
Whether you prefer to read, listen, or watch, the Next Big Idea is here to help you work smarter and live better. Wake up with an always-fresh Idea of the Day, the perfect shot of inspiration to go with your morning coffee. Then dive into one of our Challenges, hand-picked collections of Book Bites that form crash courses in subjects like communication, motivation, and career acceleration. Later, watch the playback of an interview with U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, Stanford psychologist Jennifer Eberhardt, or philosopher John Kaag. And be sure to check the “Events” tab in the app, so that you can join an upcoming live Q&A and personally chat with the next featured thought leader.
If you’re hoping to grow as a person or as a professional, we hope you’ll join us and tens of thousands of others who enjoy the Next Big Idea. Get started by downloading the app today!
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