Magic in the Room #51: Purpose & Performance Group Book Recommendations

April 13, 2021

The books, media, and news we consume have a profound impact on our mindset and creativity. In this episode, Luke, Chris, and Hannah discuss the books that changed their life outlooks.

We are all busy with work and juggling our responsibilities in life. It might feel like you are too busy to read, but is this preventing your personal growth? We all need more skills than we currently have if we want to reach the ascending levels of responsibility within an organization. To be an effective leader, we will need more ideas and skills to help build our view of leadership.

 

In today’s episode, the hosts share the books that were formative to them. For Luke, it was  A Failure of Nerve: Leadership In the Age of the Quick Fix  by Edwin Friedman. The book was written in the mid-nineties. Luke shares how the author was one of the first people to highlight how organizations, social groups, churches, and businesses are very similar to family systems.

 

Chris reveals why he has a library of horrible books. Any book he finds value in will be passed along to someone else. This means that all the books you see on his shelf are either unread or not deemed worthy enough to pass on. However, a small book called  The Hidden Messages In Water  by Masaru Emoto had a massive effect on him and has been passed to others many times.

 

This book can profoundly transform your worldview. The author reveals that crystals formed in frozen water reveal changes when specific, concentrated thoughts are directed toward them. He found that water from clear springs and water that has been exposed to loving words shows brilliant, complex, and colorful snowflake patterns.

 

In contrast, polluted water, or water exposed to negative thoughts, forms incomplete, asymmetrical patterns with dull colors. His research reveals how we can all positively impact the earth and our health. Chris also shares how  Blink  by Malcolm Gladwell also helped revolutionize the way he understood the world within. Reading both books in a month inspired Chris to consume more information and try to get better every day.

 

Hannah reveals that Chris once handed her,  The People Project: Your Guide for Changing Behavior and Growing Your Influence as a Leader  by Steve Laswell and how they spoke with the author on the  podcast.  The book changed how Hannah viewed coaching and what it really means to be a leader. More recently,  Fierce Conversations: Achieving Success at Work and in Life One Conversation at a Time  by Susan Scott was pivotal too.

 

The book changed how she thought about relationships. There’s a line in that book that says the conversation is the relationship. When the conversation stops, the relationship ceases to exist. Hannah reveals how this line hit her like a tonne of bricks and left her reflecting about all the people she thought she was in a relationship with, but she wasn’t talking to them.

 

When we dare to put our devices down and stop staring at a screen, books can have a huge impact on our lives and careers. The hosts of the Magic in the Room podcast have shared what resonated with them. But is there a book that has helped you shape your approach or informed pieces of your mindset? Luke, Chris, and Hannah invite you to  share  what books have inspired or impacted you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Magic in the Room #200: How to Lead through Polarities

By Sarah Whitfield • May 5, 2026
In this episode of Magic in the Room, Luke and Hannah explore the concept of polarities. Tensions like purpose and performance, stability and change, or accountability and grace that are often mistaken for problems to solve rather than dynamics to manage. Drawing on insights from Barry Johnson’s work, they explain how these opposing forces are interdependent and must be balanced over time to achieve sustained success. Through practical examples and personal reflections, they show how over-relying on one side of a polarity leads to predictable “shadow sides” such as stagnation, chaos, inefficiency, or burnout, while effective leadership requires recognizing where you are on the cycle and intentionally recalibrating. The episode emphasizes that many recurring organizational frustrations are not failures, but signals of imbalance, and offers a more nuanced approach to leadership. One that replaces rigid either/or thinking with flexible both/and awareness to improve decision-making, team dynamics, and long-term performance.

Magic in the Room #199: The Power of Mattering

By Sarah Whitfield • April 7, 2026
In this episode of Magic in the Room, Luke Freeman, Hannah Bratterud, and Chris Province dive into the concept of “mattering,” inspired by Zach Mercurio’s work, and explore why it is a foundational driver of engagement, performance, and culture in organizations. They challenge leaders to move beyond assuming people matter to actively ensuring individuals feel that they matter by being valued and by contributing value to a shared purpose. The conversation highlights how mattering differs from belonging, why it cannot be replaced by perks or efficiency, and how leadership behaviors like attention, recognition, and presence directly shape whether people feel seen, heard, and understood. Through examples ranging from workplace dynamics to broader societal trends like social disconnection, they argue that disengagement, conflict, and even poor performance are symptoms of a mattering deficit. Ultimately, they position mattering not as a soft concept, but as a measurable, actionable leadership responsibility that underpins trust, resilience, and long-term success.
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