Ep 251: Leadership Books Worth Reading This Summer (2026)

Seven books. One summer. A few of them might change how you think about leadership.David Wheatley, co-founder of Humanergy and host of the Humanergy Leadership Podcast, wraps up the season with his annual summer reading list for leaders. This year's picks span decentralized leadership, AI, gender dynamics in the workplace, coaching philosophy, team performance, and how people build a life worth living.The books on the list:Turn the Ship Around by David Marquet — a classic on leader-leader culture that keeps coming back into the conversation for good reason.The AI-Driven Leader by Jeff Woods — the book Humanergy has been recommending all year for leaders trying to get a practical handle on AI.The Only Woman in the Room by Lisa Davis — not just for women. David interviewed Lisa earlier this season; this is a good companion listen.The Score Takes Care of Itself by Bill Walsh — a look at what actually goes into building a winning culture, from the coach who rebuilt the 49ers.And It Was Beautiful by Phil Hay — the story of Marcelo Bielsa at Leeds, and a counterpoint to Walsh worth reading alongside it.What Great Teams Do Great by Humanergy — if you haven't read it yet, it's 98 pages and worth every one of them.What to Make of a Life by Jim Collins — his newest book. If you know Collins from Good to Great or Great by Choice, you know what to expect: rigorous, research-driven, and worth your time.Drop your own summer reading recommendations in the comments.Humanergy is a leadership development company based in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Learn more at humanergy.com.Learn more about Humanergy's work: https://www.humanergy.comJoin the Humanergy community on LinkedIn.Sign up for our FREE leadership workshops.