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The Hungry Spirit.
Beyond Capitalism - a Quest for Purpose in the Modern World
by Charles Handy

The Hungry Spirit. Beyond Capitalism: a quest for purpose in the modern world. This "is an inspiring book - sometimes provocative, always intensely personal, and ultimately full of hope. It is certain to spark controversy and debate where ever it's read."

This book is worth reading for the personal preface alone! Here Handy begins with the question: "can capitalism be made more decent and its instrument, business, work more obviously for the good of all, everywhere?"

Part of Handy's answer to that question is the idea of "proper selfishness", a similar point to Seligman's view of Authentic Happiness - that of living a meaningful life.

Handy defines proper selfishness as:

"the search for ourselves that, paradoxically, we often pursue best through our involvement with others. To be properly selfish is to accept a responsibility for making the most of oneself by, ultimately, finding a purpose beyond the bigger than oneself.

The Hungry Spirit is an inspiring book that challenges conventional wisdom, and proposes a life based on values which are far more enriching than many of those attributed to free market capitalism.

For example, Handy outlines what he calls "the doctrine of enough" - a challenge to capitalism's cry for "just one more". Certainly a call for us all to re-assess our lives, re-condidering how and where we invest our time and money. For businesses and individuals "bigness....can lead to a lack of focus, too much complexity and, in the end, too wide a spread of control. We have to know when big is big enough."

This is a book guaranteed to challenge and provoke!

Some Suggestions to Get the Most From this Book.

We have no hesitation in recommending The Hungry Spirit, just as we've been happy to refer to Handy's thought-provoking work in several places on our site. Take a look at some Happy Manager pages which have used the wisdom of Charles Handy:

Stress Management Tip: Enough is Enough

Business Vidoes for the Busy Manager

Define Leadership Excellence? Easier said than done.

Quotes About Leadership: 3 Things Successful Leaders Have in Common

Or look at our other recommended Charles Handy books....

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Interested in other books on leadership and management? Then click here for Books on Happiness and Management: the Happy Manager Bookshop. You'll find many of the books on offer, with up to 30% discount off list price.

One final thought. Good-value management or self development doesn't need to cost a fortune. If you want a new copy of our recommended books, just follow the links to Amazon and look for a bargain. Of course many charity shops also stock books like “The Hungry Spirit”, so you may find an even better bargain there. Why not build up your professional library whilst contributing to some worthy causes?