We say this every time, but this edition of Rally Reads is from an absolute legend. It's the incredible Zoe Amar.
If you’re new to the concept, Rally Reads is a series of blog posts where we ask the people who’ve left their mark on us to share the books, documentaries, articles or films that have had the biggest impact on their careers and their thinking. And to explain why.
Zoe is director of Zoe Amar Digital, a digital and AI consultancy for charities. She is the co-author of The Charity Digital Skills Report and co-host of the leadership podcast Starts at the Top, which Paul’s appeared on in the past.
Many people claim to be influential. Zoe genuinely is. We’re very excited that she agreed to our request to tell us all about the things that have influenced her.
Enjoy.
Catalysts for Change: Books That Changed My Perspective
Home Deus by Yuval Noah Harari. I read this book when it came out in 2016 and it completely changed how I think about technology. 2016 might seem like decades ago in digital terms but Haraari’s analysis of how AI will reshape us as humans and cause a profound shift in society still rings true. Whilst AI will bring new opportunities, Harari predicts it will also create unemployment. I am not sure that the future will be as bleakly apocalyptic as Harari thinks. Yet, much as I’m excited about AI, I do worry that it will create new forms of social injustice and that our sector will have to pick up the pieces. Are we ready to do this?
Towards the end of the book there is a mindblowing section about how we need to rethink what intelligence and consciousness looks like as AI becomes more advanced. Again this might sound like something out of Minority Report, but if we look at how AI is becoming incorporated into our business as usual, to the point where we are not always aware that we are using it, at the very least we need to look at how we are delegating decisions to these tools and re-evaluate how we as humans can make a difference.
Whilst not everyone agrees with Harari’s predictions, his book is a brilliant series of provocations about what humanity’s future could look like if we passively adopt technology.
Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman. This is a sobering look at how much time we really have on this planet (hence the title) and how to make the best use of it. I’ve read a lot of time management and productivity books over the years and this one changed how I use my time. Burkeman argues that our obsession with productivity and efficiency is ultimately a distraction from our own mortality. This is not to say that we should give up on managing our time, rather that we should stop chasing future goals so relentlessly and instead try and enjoy the present more.
The main thing I took from this book is that life is where you put your attention, and your north star for this is defined by your purpose. Not long after reading this book a close friend and colleague of mine died, which brought home the lessons from it. I think every day about how short life is and try to focus on what makes life feel meaningful, and say no to the things that don’t.
Party Lines: Dance Music and the Making of Modern Britain by Ed Gillett. I’m a huge dance music fan so I was excited to read this. It’s a compelling analysis of how dance music changed the UK’s political and economic landscape, tracing its evolution from free festivals in the 1970s through to acid house and how it became part of mainstream culture. However I don’t think you have to be a die hard dance music head to enjoy this book. It’s really about how communities are formed and whether they can maintain their ethos and culture once they move from being subcultures to becoming commercialised. It’s about dance music as a community that embodies resistance and offers freedom, and analyses how this has played out across musical genres from rave to jungle to grime. I will never look at a dance floor in the same way again after reading this book.
Wild Hope: Healing Words to Find Light on Dark Days by Donna Ashworth. Things in our sector, in the UK and globally feel especially bleak at the moment. At times like this we need to grab any hope where we can. I bought this book a while ago when I was going through a difficult time, after watching Ashworth read her poems on Instagram. Her poetry is about wisdom gained through pain and loss, and how you can distil that into a form of resilience which is about being compassionate and even vulnerable, whilst being absolutely rooted in clear sighted knowledge of who you really are. I keep this book in my office and dip into it when I am feeling lost or need an energy boost.
Looking ahead to what’s on my reading list for the coming months, I can’t wait to read Mongrel by Hanako Footman, which is about the interconnected stories of three young women of Japanese heritage. As someone with both Chinese and English heritage I’m also looking forward to reading The Half of It: Exploring the Mixed Race Experience by Emma Slade Edmondson and Nicole Ocran.
Thanks again Zoe!