I’m always getting asked for recommendations to deepen one’s understanding, or to grow one’s creative practice, or provoke one’s imagination a bit. Here's a list of the books I find myself returning to again and again. I've decided to not include research papers, as those frankly aren't nearly as readable...

THE CLASSICS

A classic overview of design thinking: The Art of Innovation - https://amzn.to/2UlfrW1

IDEO/d.school founder, David Kelley’s: Creative Confidence - https://amzn.to/3louUAG

On design’s role in business: The Design of Business - https://amzn.to/3lu2eXa

Designing organizations for creativity: Creativity, Inc. - https://amzn.to/36xRL6q

PRACTICAL GUIDES BY PRACTITIONERS

Captivating customer attention: Confessions of an Ad Man - https://amzn.to/36sU8Yd

Impactful short read on ideas: A Technique for Producing Ideas - https://amzn.to/38GSzbQ

On getting started with creative work: Steal Like An Artist - https://amzn.to/3eUzdkH

Brimming with tips from musicians: Creative Quest - https://amzn.to/36wFKOK

Brimming with tips from broadway: The Creative Habit - https://amzn.to/2UiaVrw

GREAT COMPREHENSIVE RESOURCES BY RESEARCHERS / AUTHORS

Conditions where ideas thrive: Where Good Ideas Come From - https://amzn.to/3lnyniX

Habits of creative professionals (longitudinal study): Creativity - https://amzn.to/3lnnAp5

Great study of breakthrough thinkers: Originals - https://amzn.to/3kjbkUZ

Practical habits of mind to break through: Lateral Thinking - https://amzn.to/2GT8vfV

On breaking perceptual boundaries: Deviate - https://amzn.to/3pp12q8

On the power of diverse perspectives: The Medici Effect - https://amzn.to/3eOgPtX

How to stimulate curiosity (thought provoking): Curious - https://amzn.to/3eNhifS

On the power of having diverse interests (spectacular): Range - https://amzn.to/3pf3cc1

On questioning the prevailing wisdom: The Undoing Project - https://amzn.to/2GVlwFL

On recovering from failure (very entertaining): Smartcuts - https://amzn.to/35kaWBA

BEYOND DESIGN THINKING – LEADERSHIP, ORG STRUCTURE, LAUNCHING

Designing orgs to foster breakthroughs: Loonshots - https://amzn.to/35pDs4B

Practical guide for building new ventures: The Acorn Method - https://amzn.to/3pifhNr

Balancing exploration v exploit in orgs: Lead and Disrupt - https://amzn.to/2IqQAxB

Leadership principles for driving innovation: Collective Genius - https://amzn.to/38HZAcN

SPECIFIC TO VARIOUS TOOLS / MINDSETS OF DESIGN THINKING

empathy tools: Thoughtless Acts? - https://amzn.to/3ncMA2L

define tools: Exposing the Magic of Design - https://amzn.to/3lsDJJK

improv/ideation tools: Improv Wisdom - https://amzn.to/38MCRwf

tips for prototyping and testing rapidly: (Google’s) Sprint - https://amzn.to/3eU8YuW

BIOGRAPHIES OF NOTEWORTHY INNOVATORS

Steve Jobs: The Authorized Biography - https://amzn.to/3oosmTH

A Mind at Play: How Claude Shannon Invented the Information Age - https://amzn.to/38G5eM7

The Idea Factory: Bell Labs and the Great Age of American Innovation - https://amzn.to/34R2Mjo

Dealers of Lightning: Xerox PARC and the Dawn of the Computer Age - https://amzn.to/2N9DfvS

“Surely You’re Joking, Mr. Feynman!”: Adventures of a Curious Character - https://amzn.to/3sWpW2a

The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon - https://amzn.to/2UourWW

Born Standing Up (Steve Martin) - https://amzn.to/36iWAS0

Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike - https://amzn.to/3tFVZE3

Sick in the Head: Conversations About Life and Comedy - https://amzn.to/3adOuv9

Skunk Works: A Personal Memoir of My Years at Lockheed - https://amzn.to/2PFZ07L

The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Co - https://amzn.to/31zoXsv

Hit Refresh: The Quest to Rediscover Microsoft's Soul - https://amzn.to/3dl0blf

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