Categories: Articles

The Most Valuable Book You Ever Read

As BookCamp Toronto is about to start, it go me thinking about what, exactly, books are and what they really mean (why do people love them so much)?

Lately, some very smart people (like Jeff Jarvis – author of What Would Google Do? and Blogger over at, BuzzMachine), has pleaded for the modernization of books and the book publishing industry. Jarvis commented at the O’Reilly Tools of Change for Publishers conference in New York City this past year that for books to make it in a world of new media, they have to be findable, clickable, editable, commentable, updatable, searchable, linkable, etc…

It makes perfect sense, or does it?

Is it possible that books hold a two-step layer of appreciation, where that initial phase (the one where you simply read the book) is a very personal and intimate experience? It could be one of the few things in our world of online social networks and constant tweets that you share solely with yourself, and once that phase is complete, the discussion and sharing about your emotions (both online and in places like real-world book club meet-ups), is the part that needs to focus more on the new media and social aspects we’re seeing online?

Books are going to have to figure out their way in this new world where individuals co-create, collaborate and manipulate their own media.

Still, books hold tremendous value to most people. They are objects to be honoured, cherished and even passed down from generation-to-generation. It is still the primary way we – as a society – preserve our stories, cultures, history and intellect.

In getting in the mood for the BookCamp Toronto unconference, I wondered:

What was the most valuable book you ever read?

I’m still grappling with the question, so I figured your most powerful read might inspire me.

Mitch Joel

Mitch Joel lives at the intersection of technology, business transformation and consumer culture. He is the Executive Director of Next Era Institute, a strategic intelligence platform helping leaders understand the forces reshaping business, technology, culture and society. The Institute identifies which shifts matter, explores their wider significance and translates them into strategic direction and momentum. Mitch is also a globally recognized keynote speaker. He has delivered thousands of presentations across both B2B and B2C industries to organizations including Google, Walmart, LEGO, Shopify, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and Unilever. Strategy Magazine has called him “one of North America’s leading visionaries.” Mitch built his career by working directly inside the waves of change that reshaped modern business. He founded and built a digital marketing agency that worked with some of the world’s largest brands and was later acquired by WPP, where he served as President of a firm operating in 25 countries with almost 3,000 employees. Mitch is the bestselling author of Six Pixels of Separation and CTRL ALT Delete, and the host of Thinking With Mitch Joel, one of the longest-running business podcasts in the world. His writing and commentary appear in outlets including Harvard Business Review, Fast Company and Inc. Magazine. He is a member of Dr. Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches and was named to the Thinkers50 Radar. Mitch also hosts Groove – The No Treble Podcast, documenting the oral history of electric bass players. Mitch is also Co-Founder of ThinkersOne, a platform that enables companies to bring personalized thought leadership from world-class experts into meetings, events and off-sites in focused 15-minute bursts.