Rate Risk is a Big Risk—Play Smart [VIDEO]
Guessing interest rates is not a strategy. Here’s how top community banks remove rate risk and stay profitable.
Welcome to the Top 5 Percenter™ Blog
Get Inspired in the New Year
A new year has come and gone, and what do you have to show for it? A renewed passion for your job? A workplace free of every dysfunction you can think of? How about a less-stressed, more relaxed, you?
Well, whatever you gained—or didn’t—put it all behind you and start fresh. Check out my recommended reading list to find inspiration for your personal and professional life. Whether you’re a CEO of a top-performing bank or part of the team, there’s something on my list to inspire, motivate, and help you improve your results.
Personal Development
- 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Steven R. Covey
- Change Your Brain, Change Your Life: The Breakthrough Program for Conquering Anxiety, Depression, Obsessiveness, Anger, and Impulsiveness by Daniel G. Amen
- Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes are High by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, Al Switzler, and Stephen R. Covey
- The Dark Side of the Light Chasers: Reclaiming Your Power, Creativity, Brilliance, and Dreams by Debbie Ford
- The Magic of Thinking Big: Acquire the Secrets of Success… Achieve Everything You’ve Always Wanted by David J. Schwartz
- Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life by Marshall B. Rosenberg
- The Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason
- The Success Principles by Jack Canfield
- Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill
- What Happy People Know: How the New Science of Happiness Can Change Your Life for the Better by Dan Baker Ph. D. and Cameron Stauth
Marketing
- Buying Trances: A New Psychology of Sales and Marketing by Joe Vitale
- The Copywriter’s Handbook by Robert Bly
- The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It by Michael E. Gerber
- How to Get Everything You Can Out of Everything You’ve Got: 21 Ways You Can Out-Think, Out-Perform, and Out-Earn the Competition by Jay Abraham
- Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini
- Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die by Chip Heath and Dan Heath
- Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind by Al Ries and Jack Trout
- Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable by Seth Godin
- The 22 Immutable Rules of Marketing by Al Ries and Jack Trout
- The Ultimate Question: Driving Good Profits and True Growth by Fred Reichheld
- Words That Sell: A Thesaurus to Help Promote Your Products, Services and Ideas by Richard Bayan
Leadership
- The ABC’s of Building a Business Team That Wins: The Invisible Code of Honor That Takes Ordinary People And Turns Them into a Championship Team by Blair Singer
- Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel Pink
- Enlightened Leadership: Getting to the Heart of Change by Ed Oakley and Doug Krug
- Leadership and Self-Deception: Getting Out of the Box by The Arbinger Institute
- The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable by Patrick Lencioni
- The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive: A Leadership Fable by Patrick Lencioni
- The Speed of Trust: The One Thing That Changes Everything by Stephen M.R. Covey, Stephen R. Covey, and Rebecca R. Merrill
- What Got You Here Won’t Get You There by Marshall Goldsmith and Mark Reiter
Business
- Blueprint to a Billion: 7 Essentials to Achieve Exponential Growth by David Thomson
- Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies by Jim Collins and Jerry I. Porras
- Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap… and Others Don’t by Jim Collins
- Mastering the Rockefeller Habits: What You Must Do to Increase the Value of Your Growing Firm by Verne Harnish
- No B.S. Ruthless Management of People & Profits: The Ultimate No Holds Barred, Kick Butt, Take No Prisoners Guide to Really Getting Rich by Dan Kennedy
- Profit-Growth Banking: How to Master 7 Breakthrough Strategies of Top-Performing Banks by Roxanne Emmerich
- Thank God It’s Monday: How to Create a Workplace You and Your Customers Love by Roxanne Emmerich
- Rework by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson
- Think Big, Act Small: How America’s Best Performing Companies Keep the Start-up Spirit Alive by Jason Jennings
- Topgrading: How Leading Companies Win by Hiring, Coaching and Keeping the Best People by Ph.D., Bradford D. Smart
- Winning by Jack Welch with Suzy Welch
- The Worst-Case Scenario Business Survival Guide by David Borgenicht and Mark Joyner
Sales
- Profit-Rich Sales: The Proven Secrets to Guarantee More Sales at Premium Pricing by Roxanne Emmerich and Terry Slattery
- Rethinking the Sales Force: Redefining Selling to Create and Capture Customer Value by Neil Rackham and John DeVincentis
- SPIN Selling by Neil Rackham
- The Ultimate Sales Machine by Chet Holmes
More From The Blog
Why Community Banking Matters—Especially at Christmas [VIDEO]
A Christmas reflection on why community banking matters—and why your leadership impact extends far beyond transactions.
Life in the World of Over-Regulation [VIDEO]
Top banks don’t complain about regulation—they execute around it. Here’s how the elite outperform anyway.
Why Is It So Important to Hold On to Low Cost Deposits [VIDEO]
Low-cost deposits are the ultimate margin advantage. Discover how top 5% performers attract them consistently—and why most banks fail to compete.
Can Strategic Thinking Be Taught or Nurtured [VIDEO]
Banks don’t fail from a talent shortage—they fail from a thinking shortage. Discover how critical-thinking systems like the SIR Formula build your future executives now.
A State of Gratitude [VIDEO]
A powerful Thanksgiving message on how gratitude shifts leadership presence, reframes pressure, and strengthens your bank’s performance culture.
How to Tie Everyone to Profit [VIDEO]
Most employees believe they’re top performers but can’t show how they drive profit. This episode shows how to tie every role to the bottom line, boost profit per FTE, and build a high‑performance culture in your community bank.
The Dangers of False-Attempt Sales Training [VIDEO]
Traditional sales training fails because it focuses on tactics, not transformation. Discover how to shift from sales training to sales culture and achieve lasting growth.
Master the Four Levels of USPs [VIDEO]
Escape commodity pricing. This episode shows how Level-4 USPs—proprietary, client-valued processes—let community banks command +150–200 bps and keep deposits loyal.
Stop Matching the Competition [VIDEO]
Rate matching drains margin. Install USPs that matter, differentiate, and promise explicit benefits—so buyers pay more without a price match.