RESOURCES RECOMMENDED BY AYSE BIRSEL

BOOKS, PODCASTS, WEBSITES THAT INSPIRE ME

There is a pile of books I keep behind my desk. My favorite books. Here they are, for your enjoyment—

For anyone who wants to know the secret to happiness, this is one of my favorite books of all time. The Happiness Hypothesis, Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom - Jonathan Haidt

Dorie Clark is like my compass. When lost, I open her books to find my way through business. Stand Out: How to Find Your Breakthrough Idea and Build a Following Around It - Dorie Clark

I didn’t know I was one of these women until I read this book. How Women Rise: Break the 12 Habits Holding You Back from Your Next Raise, Promotion, or Job - by Marshall Goldsmith and Sally Helgesen

If you’ve heard me talk about dichotomies or how to create longterm and unique value by making opposing needs and wants co-exist, you need to read this book. Opposable Minds: Winning Through Integrative Thinking - Roger L. Martin

Nancy Duarte is a great storyteller and visualizer. If you’re a public speaker, you need her clear thinking in your toolbox.  Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences - Nancy Duarte 

Ralph Caplan is a Smithsonian Design Mind, or in other words, a national treasure. If you want to understand why design matters read him (a few laughs guaranteed along the way). By Design: Why There Are No Locks on the Bathroom Doors in the Hotel Louis XIV and Other Object Lessons - Ralph Caplan

Adam Grant makes business human. Give and Take: A Revolutionary Approach to Success - Adam M. Grant Ph.D. 

This is my favorite book from my mentor Marshall Goldsmith. What Got You Here Won't Get You There: How Successful People Become Even More Successful - Dr. Marshall Goldsmith

If you’re curious about which websites designers are inspired by, I collected them in this article: 21 Websites Designers Love That Can Spark Ideas for Non-Designers. If you like the websites, you might want to try my Instagram picks: 21 Instagram Feeds Designers Love That Can Spark Ideas for Anyone.

There are three new newsletters I subscribed to more recently that I would add to the list—Dorie Clark’s newsletter, Michael Roderick’s Daily Email, Whitney Johnson’s newsletter. 

I love listening to podcasts. A big part of my life in New York is walking places and listening to podcasts (I don’t have a car). These days I listen to How I Built This with Guy Raz. A good episode to get started is SoulCycle: Julie Rice & Elizabeth Cutler. Follow these two amazing women with a hero of mine, Eileen Fisher: Eileen Fisher. Speaking of my heroes, listen to my interview with Debbie Millman on my Design the Life You Love podcast. Continue with RadioLab, my favorite podcast and one of my favorite episodes, Mr. Bliss. The 1st few minutes of the podcast with South Pole adventurer Aleksander Gamme is to die for. And if you want to catch up on the week’s news but do it while having fun, and know why I laugh out loud on the streets of New York while walking by myself, subscribe to Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me!