Lori Gottlieb

4.11134 learners

In this raw, unflinching memoir, seasoned therapist Lori Gottlieb pulls back the curtain on psychotherapy—by stepping into the client’s chair herself. When her long-term partner abruptly leaves her, refusing to raise her young son, Gottlieb is thrown into grief, self-doubt, and existential panic. Forced to confront her own unprocessed pain, she seeks treatment with Wendell Bronson, a wise, no-nonsense therapist who challenges her to look beyond anger and denial. Interwoven with her journey are stories of four clients: John, a narcissistic screenwriter masking crippling grief over his late son; Julie, a newlywed professor fighting terminal cancer; Rita, a 69-year-old planning to end her life if she doesn’t find meaning by 70; and Charlotte, a 25-year-old paralyzed by anxiety and alcoholism. As Gottlieb guides her clients through darkness, she learns therapy is never one-sided—healing happens when both therapist and client embrace vulnerability, confront truths, and choose to grow.

Patrick Lencioni

4.4531 learners

Through a gripping fictional narrative of DecisionTech, a once-promising Silicon Valley startup spiraling into chaos due to a fractured leadership team, Patrick Lencioni reveals the five interconnected dysfunctions that derail team performance: absence of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of accountability, and inattention to results. Follow new CEO Katherine Petersen as she uses no-nonsense team-building exercises—from vulnerability-sharing sessions to heated, constructive debates—to dismantle these barriers and rebuild a cohesive, high-performing team. Beyond the engaging story, the book breaks down each dysfunction with clear, actionable strategies, including team assessments, conflict-resolution tools, and accountability frameworks. Ideal for leaders, managers, and team members alike, it turns abstract team theory into a practical guide, showing how overcoming these universal hurdles can transform underperforming groups into units that prioritize collective success over individual gain.