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Five Great Books for Social Activists

This is just a quick sort of public-service announcement dedicated to some books activists, working in nonprofits or not, might want to read. These titles are not always easy to follow, but contain powerful lessons for activists. Do you want to know how to raise more money, set up a new program, or start a social marketing campaign?


Well, first of all you need two things: (1) A clear goal, (2) some relevant technical knowledge or training, such as training in the basics of social marketing. Assuming those two things are in place, reading one of these books, and applying the lessons therein, will give better results.


DeBono's Thinking Course (Edward DeBono) - A summary of many tools and techniques for thinking about problems, evaluating information, and generating new ideas.


The Creative Problem Solver's Toolbox (Richard Fobes) - A detailed methodology for defining (yes, you need to do that) and solving problems, with notes on how to evaluate ideas for potential effectiveness and negative consequences.


How to Think Like Einstein (Scott Thorpe) - A complete system for generating new ideas and solving problems, based rather loosely on the way Einstein reportedly approached heady scientific problems.


I'll add more titles and explain just how the content can be applied to dealing with the challenges facing nonprofits, small to huge.



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