This video short video I shot of my book shelf that talks about the importance of reading and how reading can help you and your business. Please, do yourself a favor and watch this right now as you might get some ideas about how to improve yourself and your business.

Reading books has just got social. Social media that is.  Having just done a search on social media books at Waterstones I found that they were 529 books with social media in the title. Examples include The social media bible and Social media goes corporate. If we take a moment and think about what the landscape was like a few years ago one could argue that most of the books would not have anything to do with social media.

However, in today’s ever changing world, business has now become social.  The big boys are now playing with the street kids and the street kids being the people who are actually interacting on the ground level in terms of what’s going on in the market. And the big boys ie. the corporates are now having to get involved in the game and the only way to to keep up with what’s going on is to mix it up with the street kids whether they want to or not.

It will be interesting to see what the next six to twelve months will be like in terms of how we communicate especially with products like the ipad and kindle changing the way we consume our content.

What are your thoughts on consuming content from a digital perspective. Do you consume most of your information via feeds, blogs, video or even mobile.  Let us know by adding a comment or if you found this post interesting please retweet to your followers.

For the latest books on social media have a look at Waterstones social media section And a post on mashable.com. You can also check out my ebook:thesocialmediasecrets where you  Learn the secret tips, tricks and tactics to effective social media monitoring.

Every wanted to read a book about the future that talks in simple terms?  The cluetrain Manifesto is one such book.  The manifesto was written in 1999 by Rick Levine, Christopher Locke, Doc Searls, and David Weinberger.It discusses how A powerful global conversation has begun.

Through the Internet, people are discovering and inventing new ways to share relevant knowledge with blinding speed.

As a direct result, markets are getting smarter—and getting smarter faster than most companies. These markets are conversations. Their members communicate in language that is natural, open, honest, direct, funny and often shocking. Whether explaining or complaining, joking or serious, the human voice is unmistakably genuine. It can’t be faked.

You can find out more by visiting the site at cluetrain.com The book is  also on Amazon

I try and read or recommend books I think will add value to your business.  The book currently on my read list is “The Knack” Synopsis from author below:

“People starting out in business tend to seek step-by-step formulas or specific rules for success, but in reality there are no magic bullets. Rather, says veteran company-builder Norm Brodsky, there’s a mentality that helps street-smart entrepreneurs solve problems and pursue opportunities as they arise. He calls it “the knack,” and it has made all the difference to the eight successful start-ups of his career.

Brodsky explores this mind-set every month in Inc. magazine, in the hugely popular column he co-writes with journalist and author Bo Burlingham (best known for his acclaimed book Small Giants). In both their column and now their book, they tell stories about real companies facing real challenges and show readers how to apply “the knack” to their own businesses.

“Visit the website theknack for more information.