What is real? What lasts? This is what this book is about—a good look at the fertile soil we need to plant our lives in; at the anchor that can secure us amid a sea of superficiality and the winds of destructive changes. Here are stories of people who tried what they thought would make them complete and fulfilled, only to find themselves wanting more. And in their emptiness and brokenness, they discovered what’s real. Come, join me in this pursuit of the business of living. It is my prayer that as you read these stories, you will be inspired to make your own journey in search of the real thing and discover what really matters above all else.

"Based on the viral Harvard Business Review article, bestselling author Anthony Tjan argues that leaders have a new imperative: you must have competent people on your team--but more importantly, they must also be of high character. As a leader you need to help develop and mentor for character further. Until now, we have only had ways of assessing competency in business, but we must also have the tools to help us judge, develop, and lead good people. Author of the bestsellingHearts, Smarts, Guts and Luckand venture capitalist Anthony Tjan offers insight into and a methodology for developing character, first in yourself and in those around you. Good people are your organization's most important competitive advantage. We all know that finding good people is difficult, as being good on paper doesn't always translate to being good in practice. While competence is necessary, Tjan argues that "goodness" is just as crucial as what's on a resume--and that a fantastic resume can never compensate for mediocre character. Yet most people who are in the business of finding and developing good people still focus on the "what" more than the "who" of the individuals surrounding them. Tjan writes that character is a lifelong proactive commitment that, like any skill, can be exercised, honed, and developed. Only when leaders learn to develop these qualities in themselves and others will great and lasting change take place throughout an organization. Good Peopleestablishes a new understanding of goodness--a word we use frequently in business without always understanding what we mean. Tjan also profiles "good people" who are extraordinary leaders and motivators in their fields, providing insights from Tony Hsieh of Zappos, Beth Comstock of GE, Dominic Barton of McKinsey, author Deepak Chopra, M.D., Dean Nitin Nohria of Harvard Business School, Army General (ret.) Stanley McChrystal, jazz pianist Herbie Hancock, and a range of everyday unsung heroes. Packed with practical, often surprising advice, Good Peopleshows that the most transformative changes in business and life come down to the people we choose, and who choose us, and the values of goodness we have in common"--

In the first two volumes of On What Matters Derek Parfit argues that there are objective moral truths, and other normative truths about what we have reasons to believe, and to want, and to do. He thus challenges a view of the role of reason in action that can be traced back to David Hume, and is widely assumed to be correct, not only by philosophers but also by economists. In defending his view, Parfit argues that if there are no objective normative truths, nihilism follows, and nothing matters. He criticizes, often forcefully, many leading contemporary philosophers working on the nature of ethics, including Simon Blackburn, Stephen Darwall, Allen Gibbard, Frank Jackson, Peter Railton, Mark Schroeder, Michael Smith, and Sharon Street. Does Anything Really Matter? gives these philosophers an opportunity to respond to Parfit's criticisms, and includes essays on Parfit's views by Richard Chappell, Andrew Huddleston, Katarzyna de Lazari-Radek and Peter Singer, Bruce Russell, and Larry Temkin. A third volume of On What Matters, in which Parfit engages with his critics and breaks new ground in finding significant agreement between his own views and theirs, is appearing as a separate companion volume.

The fundamental question in business and in personal life is the same: what really matters? In this book, one of America's most widely admired business leaders distills a lifetime of experience, including failures as well as successes, to reveal his answers. John Pepper, president, CEO, and chairman of Proctor & Gamble for a combined 16 years, underscores the importance of continuous change, innovation, and renewal as prerequisites for growth and sound leadership. In "What Really Matters", he suggests that a preparedness to alter perspective, rethink assumptions, or change course is central not only to understanding customer needs and keeping costs under control but also to developing talent, organizing global businesses, and supporting communities. While he discusses specific business tactics, he notes that they all centre on fundamental tenets: listen to and respect the customer, engender personal accountability and passionate ownership, encourage diversity, and create a vibrant, trusting institution that incorporates employees and their families. In his own years as an executive, Pepper has demonstrated that a profitable business can create and sustain a culture that shapes, and is shaped by, ethical behaviour. His profoundly important advice and counsel belong in the lexicon and practice of every leader.

In a breakthrough Organization Man for the twenty-first century, bestselling author Art Kleiner reveals that every organization is driven by a desire to satisfy a Core Group of influential individuals and explains why understanding this group’s expectations is the key to success. When corporate leaders announce, with seeming sincerity, “We make our decisions on behalf of our shareholders,” their words are taken at face value. But as recent news stories prove, this imperative is routinely violated. In Who Really Matters, Art Kleiner argues that the dissonance between a declared mission and actual operation can be seen at organizations large and small. All organizations have one motive in common. Every decision—which projects to back, who to promote, or how to spend money—is affected by the perceived wants and needs of a core group of people “who really matter.” The composition of the group can differ from organization to organization. Often, the most senior people in the hierarchy are members—but not always. Sometimes, the people who “matter” can extend far down the corporate ladder, or even reach outside the company to include key customers, labor union leaders, and stockholders. Kleiner gives readers clues about how to identify a core group’s real mission by observing its day-to-day actions, listening to the fundamental message it sends employees, examining its management of new members; understanding the ideas that shape its policies about management, money, and the way the world works; and avoiding the taboos governing the way it operates. Whether you’re a member of the Core Group—or want to be—this deft, engaging blend of argument and observation, anecdotes and advice, is the one guide you’ll need to achieve your career goals and aspirations by navigating the hidden pathways in any organization, large or small.

Winners in business aren't the ones who do the most things; the winners are the ones who do the most important things Be the Best at What Matters Most is about the one essential strategy for business leaders, entrepreneurs, owners, managers and those who want to be one. Simplify, focus, and win by outperforming all your competition on those things that create real value for the customer. This is about substance, not flash, and the ultimate "wow" factors of high quality performance, consistency and relentless improvement. Thought provoking questions, activities, and action steps are built into every section of the book Author Joe Calloway, an International Speakers Hall of Fame inductee, has been a popular business speaker for thirty years and worked with hundreds of companies to help them create and sustain success Be the Best at What Matters Most will help you and your team focus on taking the actions that maximize results, growth, and profit.

Something very unusual is occurring on this planet right now. You have no doubt noticed it. It may be producing a more than normal amount of challenge and disjointedness in your life, and perhaps even some major upheavals. You are probably noticing it in the lives of others as well. For a while you may have thought that this was all just your mind playing tricks on you; that things were not really happening any differently, and that you’re just a little tired, a little overcommitted, a little oversensitive. But now, as each day presents itself with obstacles mounting and challenges increasing and more and more personal issues coming up to be faced and healed, it is apparent that all of this is not an illusion, not an exaggeration. So you may be asking, "Why is all this happening? What am I doing wrong?" And here’s the answer . . . You’re doing nothing wrong. AND . . . there is something very unusual going on right now in your life, and all over the planet.

Through arresting narratives we meet a woman aiding refugees in sub-Saharan Africa, facing the chaos of a meaningless society and a doctor trying to stay alive during Mao's cultural revolution - individuals challenged by their societies and caught up in existential moral experiences that define what it means to be human.

Series Summary The What Every Catholic Should Know series is intended for the average faithful Catholic who wants to know more about Catholic faith and culture. The authors in this series take a panoramic approach to the topic of each book aimed at a non-specialist but enthusiastic readership. Already published titles in this series include: literature, salvation, mercy, being Catholic, God, and philosophy. Book Summary "The need for this book is perennial, but it is especially acute today, when both faith and reason are on life support in our culture, which is increasingly hostile to both, or at least to the classical or traditional forms of both….In this culture it is essential that Catholics and other Christians know the intellectual weapons and strategies of the enemies of religious faith and the defensive and offensive intellectual weapons that defeat them. Philosophical arguments are needed. They are weapons in the intellectual dimension of spiritual warfare, a warfare which is just as real and just as much a matter of life or death as physical warfare." Just what is philosophy? Is there objective truth? Is self-knowledge possible? What is being? What is man's relation to nature? Is it possible for human reason to know God? If there is a God, why is there evil? What is happiness and how can we achieve it? If you've ever wondered about the answers to any of these questions, this is the book for you! These and dozens of other crucial questions are asked and answered in this easy-to-read book by one of the best-known philosophers alive today. Every Catholic should own one book on philosophy. This is it.