What to read

The 6 Types of Working Genius: A Better Way to Understand Your Gifts, Your Frustrations, and Your Team
Patrick Lencioni
Matt Holt Books, 240 pages

The author of the bestselling Five Dysfunctions of a Team is back with yet another book that invites executives and managers to rethink how they go about their business. This one also has relevance for rank-and-file workers and those seeking to advance their careers. Weaving his insights in and through his usual storytelling style, Lencioni builds to a model and assessment that help identify where one’s gifts are best put to use in a way that maximizes both productivity and personal fulfillment — and that’s a win-win for both employees and management. As always, Lencioni’s works provide edifying boardroom reading.

The Exorcism Files: True Stories of Demonic Possession
Adam Blai
Sophia Institute Press, 224 pages

The devil is not one to mess with. He’s evil, he’s a deceiver, and he only seeks to lead us to hell. Demon expert Adam Blai knows this well from his research and his experience assisting priests with exorcisms. Here he details real-life cases of demonic oppression and possession. He describes how the victim arrives at that state — usually beginning with unhealthy interest in the occult, the paranormal, or New Age practices. The good news is that although the devil seeks to destroy souls, he is powerless over those who remain faithful to the Church and sacraments. An excellent book, perhaps not for the faint-hearted.

Living Calm: Mastering Anger & Frustration
Dr. Ray Guarendi
EWTN Publishing, 160 pages

Everyone experiences anger and frustration sometimes, and business leaders perhaps more so than most. Such emotions are occasionally justifiable, but often they are not, or at least healthier and more productive responses are available. Ray Guarendi explains how to distinguish between righteous and unrighteous anger, when “venting” is healthy and when it is not, and how to cope better with those annoyances and disappointments that “get to us.” He focuses on training virtues — such as patience, charity, self-control, humility, and forgiveness — to predominate so that peace rather than anger reigns. His advice may be just what the doctor ordered.