Fuzzythinking

Fuzzy Thoughts of David

Michael Hyatt’s Leaderbox – First Impressions

If you want to see what a Leaderbox looks like, here’s my unboxing and first impressions:

I told myself I wasn’t going to do it. I told myself it was too much money. But then, I received a 10% off coupon for Michael Hyatt’s Leaderbox and I thought I’d revisit my initial decision.

After thinking about Leaderbox some more, I ended up joining.

What caused me to take the jump? Basically, the coupon came at the right time.

In a previous blog post, I wrote about reassessing how I read. I realized that if I was going to learn deeply, I had to read differently. So, fewer books.

I also realized physical books would help in my quest. I am able to make notes in a physical book. I can highlight and underline. At the end of each chapter, I can give feedback or write out a summary. For learning, I decided I would focus on physical rather than electronic books.

Leaderbox provides the tools I feel I need. Each month Leaderbox provides two (physical) books, a 21-day reading guide, a facebook group, and some quote cards. The Reading Guide asks questions about the day’s reading and provides a place for notes. The Facebook group provides an opportunity to learn from others. My hope and expectation are that my learning will be deepened and my thinking will be challenged and expanded.

The other aspect of Leaderbox that will be helpful is Hyatt’s team choosing the book. If I want to learn deeply and think differently, my reading must challenge me. I tend to gravitate toward the same type of books. I’ll browse through Amazon, see something that looks good, and then purchase.

Having someone else choose the book means I may end up reading a book I would normally avoid, which is good. If I am going to expand my thinking, I need to be challenged in areas I tend to ignore.

I could have decided to purchase a similar product from other companies, but I felt the books (at least the ones I knew about) Hyatt’s team provided were of higher quality. For instance, one of the books for March,The CEO Next Door: The 4 Behaviors That Transform Ordinary People into World-Class Leaders, as of this posting, hasn’t even been released. I received the book two weeks before the release. The authors expand on their Harvard Business Review cover story.

 

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Comments

4 responses to “Michael Hyatt’s Leaderbox – First Impressions”

  1. Chris Avatar
    Chris

    Just curious; now that you’ve had your subscription for a while, what are your thoughts? Do you believe it was a good investment? Are you deriving value from the subscription?

    Did you ever consider the Next Big Idea subscription?

    Thanks in advance for sharing your current point of view on this.

    Reply
    1. David Avatar
      David

      Hi Chris. I’m finding value. Finding the time can be a challenge, however. While it only takes maybe 30 minutes to read the daily assignment, there are times I still get behind. I have a fairly long reading list and at times I’m reading books for projects I’m working on, plus spiritual masters, etc. It all adds up.

      The reading guide is really good and has plenty of room for notes, plus points out actionable items. I find the leader’s guide makes a good review where I can keep some key takeaways and actionable items. I don’t find the Facebook group all that helpful though.

      What is REALLY valuable are the books themselves. The books aren’t the normal bestsellers, but some of them are extremely good. There’s only been one book that hasn’t ‘connected’ with me in some way.

      I wasn’t familiar with the Next Big Idea subscription, but it looks promising. From what I saw on their website, the one advantage of LeaderBox is the quality of books. Not that the Next Big Idea Subscription’s books aren’t good, they just seemed like the “usual suspects”. The Leaderbox folks try to pick books that may not be on the bestseller list but are still high quality.

      I find the Next Big Idea price a lot more attractive and having two books a quarter would certainly more doable as far as time is concerned. I may check it out at some point. However, I can’t say enough about the quality of books I get from Leaderbox. That, in my opinion, is the main advantage and value.

      Reply
      1. Chris Avatar
        Chris

        David – thank you for the favor of a reply.

        I hear what you’re saying regarding the quality of the books and perhaps, LeaderBox providing a more curated experience that surfaces titles that you otherwise may have missed out on.

        Given the high price tag for LeaderBox it’s helpful to hear feedback from folks like yourself who have some real skin in the game.

        Thanks again for sharing your thoughts.

        Reply
        1. David Avatar
          David

          Hi Chris – Since the Big Idea Club sends out two books a quarter, it is much cheaper. LeaderBox sends out two books monthly. The Big Idea Club ends up being $26.88 per book. I just noticed that LeaderBox has changed their subscription models opening up a few other options. With their most expensive option you are paying $37.50 per book. Their least expensive comes in at $31.60 per book, but you have to commit to 50 boxes.

          I may sign up for the free trial to see Big Idea’s videos and other extras. I am still debating whether to continue with LeaderBox after my subscription ends. If I had a list of the curated books, I probably would. While the leader guide is extremely helpful, I don’t seem to have time to really dive as deeply as I like. That being said, I see how diving deeper into the Leadership material would be very helpful.

          Two of the recent Leadership books were “Willpower Doesn’t Work” and “The Leading Brain.” Neither one, as far as I know, were on the best seller list. Both are excellent. Also, if it wasn’t for the LeaderBox curators, I wouldn’t have discovered the book “Rest” which has really transformed my life in a few areas. I’ve also recommended “Rest” to others and they have found it helpful as well.

          I’m not trying to convince anyone on LeaderBox. It is expensive. It can be time consuming. Yet, it fulfills the reason why I got it; deepen my understanding of leadership, self-management, and exposed to books I wouldn’t normally gravitate toward.

          Hope this was helpful – David.

          Reply

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