Annie, CEO – Annie is a perfectly primed systems-challenger, with experience in starting businesses, community leadership, impact-investing, and commercial business.
I have many favourite reading resources. I’m thankful that we live in a time where information and ideas can be so freely shared. I’ve chosen Reinventing Organisations by Frederic Laloux. I remember when I first read this about 2.5 years ago it awakened and gave language to a stack of idea I’d been playing with. I remember thinking “this is great, but is it really possible?”
TDi has begun its ‘teal journey’ and we have a long way to go, but I now not only believe it is possible but it is the future. We’ll be left behind without this type of thinking and practice.
Anna, Deputy CEO – Anna leads TDi’s business in the Pacific, approaching everything she does with curiosity, generosity and professionalism which means she takes our partners to thoughtful, impactful, long-lasting solutions.
Ripples from the Zambezi was recommended to Annie and I by an Australian farmer, living and working in Vanuatu. We were sitting under the shade of his verandah trying to translate our work into his context, when he interjected and asked if we’d read Ernesto Sirolli’s book. Turns out we shared a lot more in common than we’d thought. Since that time, I’ve recommended this book to everyone who is curious about good development and unintended consequences in social change.
Isaac, Senior Consultant – as our ‘facilitator extraordinaire’, Isaac has a metaphor, case study, quote, or book reference for any situation an entrepreneur is facing.
Mine is The War of Art by Steven Pressfield.
A lot of my favourite authors said that this was their favourite book, and they weren’t kidding – it’s a gem. This book will make you uncomfortable in a good way, and teaches you how to get difficult things done. When people start to lose momentum in their startup, this is the book I buy them.
Carlo, Senior Consultant – with a varied history in human resources and operations, Carlo is equal parts passion and profession, and he works closely and genuinely with our partners.
My favourite reading resource at the moment is the Stanford Social Innovation Review – an incredible magazine and blog rather, than a book. Given my masters, I tend to struggle to sit down with a book at the moment, and so the SSIR is my go to source for cross-sector solutions to global problems and an inspiring world view of the social impact ecosystem.
At TDi we make a conscious decision to see the strengths in systems rather than focusing on the deficiencies and viewing them as challenges or problems. We refer to this as an assets approach. What some people might see as ‘problems’ we view as opportunities to design more creatively and innovatively.
This latest article from SSIR is a wonderful example of why this approach is so powerful for our international and local work: https://ssir.org/articles/entry/cocreating_with_the_base_of_the_pyramid#
Shannon, Head of People, Culture & Process – the whole world could be collapsing, and Shannon would keep her cool, which is why she keeps the TDi ship running tight.
Mine is Brene Brown’s Dare to Lead… no surprises there probably! I’ve been following Brene Brown and her various books and talks for some years now, mainly from a personal perspective post having children. I apply her techniques and learnings everyday at home as well as at work.
When her latest book, Dare to Lead came out, I was quick to grab it. Her tips around vulnerability in the workplace, ‘Paint Done’ and giving and receiving feedback are so practical and useful. We are now implementing them as common practise at TDi.
Erin, Senior Consultant – with a natural inclination to understand ‘why’ and connect with people, Erin is good at getting to the root cause of problem or finding lateral opportunities.
I’ve had to narrow it down to a top two. Thinking Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahnerman and Deep Work by Cal Newport.
Thinking Fast and Slow is about how our brain works when we make decisions, which is both interesting to understand, and has also been SO helpful in my work. Navigating human behaviour is the hardest part of any job, but especially when trying to understand why more people aren’t socially and environmentally conscious. I believe that this book is key to helping unlock social and environmental change at scale, through change in behaviour at scale.
I like Deep Work because it presents a work practice that resonates with me in our increasingly distracting world. I have implemented the tips in this book to great benefit of my work output.
Ash, Associate – a proud Aboriginal woman and passionate about working for her people and country, Ash is our cultural conduit and an incredibly passionate program manager.
A Short History of Progress by Ronald Wright. It was a lecture series on societal collapse that travelled across 5 Canadian cities. I know from my own personal experience that when you make the same mistake more than once, you start to look at new ways to do business, this applies to life as well. This book is a great example of how we should learn from history and ensure our society doesn’t meet the same fates. It asks us questions that I face every day working in social enterprises and Indigenous Affairs – Where do we come from? What are we? and most importantly, where are we going?
Elisa, Bookkeeper and Executive Assistant – Elisa uses equal parts heart and mind in her work which make her a grounding force for the TDi team.
I first read Utopian Man many years ago, but it sticks in my mind still today. It’s a fictional telling of the life of E.W. Cole, the mind behind Melbourne’s famous Cole’s Book Arcade (which operated from 1883-1929). I think he is a great example of ‘Do good and make money’.
His arcade sounds like a place of wonder, with a fernery, musical band, confectionery stalls, monkeys and over two million books all offered at fair prices because he wanted to create an inviting place that everyone could access, not just the wealthy. However, as a practical man, he made his money from his printing press (which he also used to print thought leadership pieces).
I’ve read elsewhere about how he was able to connect to people through emotion and sincerity which is why he was able to influence. So, I like that he influenced people to think differently through wonderment. If I had a time machine, I would love to go back and see the arcade!
Liv, Associate – Liv brings an entrepreneurial ‘hack’ and spiritual lens to everything she does, and has an ability to instantly connect with our partners.
How to Lead a Quest: a handbook for pioneering executives by Jason Fox – this book combines entrepreneurial Hutzpah with big systems thinking. I love that it enables genuine delivery around new strategic thinking. So often great ideas fail to translate properly to the management plan.