You may remember that two years ago, I presented a synopsis of Simon Sinek‘s best-seller, Leaders Eat Last:  Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don’t (New York:  Portfolio, 2014) .  He is described as an optimist, and touts inspiration as his key deliverable in business. Sinek’s TED talk, “How Great Leaders Inspire Action,” is the third most-watched of all time, with nearly 29 million views.  You can watch it by clicking HERE.

So, this weekend, his newest book released on September 13, has already cracked the business best-seller list.  The book debuted at # 5, published by the Wall Street Journal (October 1-2, p. C16).  It is entitled Together is Better: A Little Book of Inspiration (New York:  Portfolio, 2016).

The book is already in the top 20 in three different business book categories according to Amazon.com.  Here is how that site describes the book:

“Life is a series of choices. Do we go left or right? Jump forward or hold back?
 
“Sometimes our choices work out for the better…and sometimes they don’t. But there is one choice, regardless of every other decision, that profoundly affects how we feel about our journey: Do we go alone or do we go together?
 
“It is the courageous few who ask for help. It is the giving few willing to help others. We can all find the courage we need and know the joy of service – the minute we learn that together is better.
 
“Filled with inspiring quotes, this richly illustrated fable tells a delightful story of three kids who go on a journey to a new playground and take a stand for what they believe. The story is a metaphor for anyone looking to make a change or wondering how to pursue their dreams. And the message is simple: relationships – real, human relationships – really, really matter. The stronger our relationships, the stronger the bonds of trust and cooperation, the more we can accomplish and the more joy and fulfillment we get from our work and personal lives.
 
“The three heroes are archetypes who represent us all at various points in our lives. Their main challenge is the same one we face every day: How can we find the things we’re looking for? According to Sinek, if we each do our part to help advance a shared vision, we can build the world we imagine.
 
“In addition to the story itself, Sinek shares such profound lessons as: 
 
· A team is not a group of people that work together. A team is a group of people that trust each other.
 
· Fight against something and we focus on the thing we hate. Fight for something and we focus on the thing we love.
 
· Working hard for something we don’t care about is called stress. Working hard for something we love is called passion.
 
· A star wants to see himself rise to the top. A leader wants to see those around him become stars.
 
“This book was designed to be given as a gift to someone you want to inspire, or to say thank you to someone who inspires you.”

We will wait and see if this becomes a book that we present at our First Friday Book Synopsis.  As of this writing, it is not yet on the New York Times business best-seller list.  And, I don’t like books that are based upon fables.

Stay tuned.