Economic-Life Books

I've read other books about finding life's purpose and calling, but they often do not give you the tool just to do that. This book does!

I've been using the Calling Card exercises to help my family and friends discovering their life's callings. It's a very easy and effective tool to find life's calling.

Books like this do everything in their power to get your drive going. And every time I read one (which isn't often), I do feel good about myself. But in the end, I'm back on Earth a few days later. OK, I am sounding pathetic, but the truth is, there isn't a whole lot of practical advice here, just motivational anecdotes. To be frank, there is nothing wrong with that. It just needs more to distinguish itself.

It starts out promising with the part about choosing the characteristics you most want in a job. However, it goes downhill with the straight out of "Touch By an Angel" cabbie stories that start every chapter. What I really did like about this book is that it makes you reevaluate the situation you are currently in to make the most of it. It doesn't preach dropping everything and chasing after your dream because not all of us are in a position to do so. Another thing I liked is that it keeps the message short (under 200 pages). There is no need for a book like this to be 300+ pages. All in all, it's a good starter book for those looking to make a career change.

This book helped me put a Name Tag on my life's calling.
I also found out how often I am able to use it in my job (only 10% of the time).
Now I need to know what jobs I could get that would maximize my use of my gifts - so I will never have to 'work' another day.

There are 52 transcendant calling cards from which everyone can pick their gifts. There were not enough examples of how people use their callings appropriately. I would have at least wanted to see a list to match jobs to calling cards.

I highly recommend this book. I've been trying to figure out what I wanted to be when I grew up for a long time. Now I finally am able to put a name to it.
I got the book from the library, I wouldn't recommend buying it.

Get control of your career and your expectations of what career means in your life. This book does a great job of guiding you along as you question where you are in life and where you want to be. Redundant at times and interactive "take control books" usually don't appeal to me, but this one is an expection.

Davey is a great guy. He rides his bike all over Seattle. He wears really cool glasses too. I'm honored to be mentioned in the book. Dave is a great writer and philosopher. Everyone should buy this book and give copies of it as gifts to their friends.

Jake has breathed refreshing--and at times hilarious--new life into what had become a staid and boring career guide genre. And -- POP! POW! WOW! -- the result sizzles! Jake takes us through the entire career search process by talking us through it--the guy writes so well it's like he's sitting there encouraging us. Each section, and each powerhouse aside and observation, is designed so tightly and directly that every lesson and observation sticks. His use of pop examples and metaphors is vast but comes in sprinkles--just enough to land the lesson solidly and invite us to move on. The miracle is inspiration: the encouragement from the start streams through every section. He also shares a lesson most others ignore: if you're observant, positive, and don't take yourself too seriously, job and career networking is lots of fun.

I'm a business coach and organizational development consultant and I loved this book. It's perfect for many of my clients. It's fun to read, you can read it in one evening or in short bursts, and it has genuinely useful ideas and insights to help people navigate effectively and get ahead in the business world. This is a terrific book for anyone including boomer executives who want to relate better to their Gen Y business associates. You'll laugh when you read it, but the substance is the true value of the book.

I never read books like this, but I got it as a gift and then got stuck on the subway - you know how it is. As it turns out, this book is truly awesome. It inspired me to turn off "America's Next Top Model", get off of the couch, and make something happen. As a result, I finally got the promotion I've been waiting for. If you have $12, buy this book. In fact, if you only have two dollars, borrow ten from a friend and buy this book. You'll be able to pay them back soon. Trust me..

I read "Whoa My Boss is Naked" in one sitting on the way to a business trip and couldn't put it down. Not only was I completely entertained for the entire plane ride but I found myself incorporating many of the pointers Greene discussed on the very same trip. It is hard to a find a book about this subject that is so easy to relate to. I laughed out loud from start to finish and learned a lot along the way. Strongly recommended.

Funny and insightful, a not too common trait for most author's first book. I laughed out loud more than once, and picked up a few tips to use around the office.

THis is a great inspirational book for anyone suffering from a major life changing injury.

The best compliment I can provide is I'm buying more copies to give to friends. The book is thought provoking as well as extraordinarily uplifting.

A very honest emotional description of experiences while dealing with a cancer, a surgery, radiation, learning how to live with pain as a companion, learning how to live as a "gimp"--word used by the author, and many other superbly described experiences. Just the right touch, just the right doze. Very subtle and lithe. Joy to read.

Should be mandatory reading of all Medical Students and Residents. Disease process as seen and documentd by a patient. The physical, emotional, and spiritual swings a patient goes through during a long protracted illness.

This is a book about severe illness and recovery. It is a true story of hope and healing told without self-pity. Price writes of being faced with a diagnosis of severe cancer of the spine. "Some vital impulse spared me needing to reiterate the world's most frequent and pointless question in the face of disaster - Why? Why me? I never asked it; the only answer is of course: Why not?"

In the same candid, sometimes funny, yet always affecting words, the popular and prolific author tells of his battle with disease. First struck down in 1984, he suffered through surgery, days of agonizing pain and was eventually confined to a wheelchair, unable to function professionally or personally.

He later sought treatment with a hypnotist at Duke University's psychiatric department with beneficial results. Throughout, Price gives credit to the power of prayer, which he calls "the first strong prop beneath my own collapse."

This is not only the story of an illness and recovery, it is the saga of resolve when confronted with a frightening enemy, and it is a tale of family and friendships, the human network that supports us.

Highly recommended.

- Gail Cooke

This is an outstanding work about leadership in the church. It is written in such a way as to bring leaders out of their seats and into the 21st century. "A Work of Heart" will change your thinking about leading today's church.

This was one of the best books on leadership in a church setting. The book is a revelation of the heart. As you are reading, the insights that are given hit home into the chest because you can relate to the situations. It is a comforting book because of the feelings that are generated. You realize that you are not alone with the feelings that come from leading a congregation. This is one of the best ministerial books I have ever read. It would be best for a minister of course, but also elders within the church would grow from it. The book begins with a character studies of Moses, David, Paul, and Jesus. These character studies connect well with the present leader. The nature of leadership within God's people have not changed much through the centuries. God's process of developing leaders is the same. The book continues with an exploration of a leader's culture, call, community, communion, conflict, and the commonplace. All of these chapters are excellent with the section on conflict being the best. The book is a modern day masterpiece for congregational leadership. It is a book that is intended to refine and train the heart. It accomplishes the desired purpose.

It is said that before one can address a problem - or opportunity - one must understand that problem (or opportunity). McNeal certainly has understood the opportunity offered the Christian Church to reach out to a pre-Christian (not post-Christian) North American culture. This work presents a passionate appeal to transition to a missional, externally focused approach to ministry by gaining insight into how God shapes the hearts of spiritual leaders through six distinct shaping dynamics in the Christian life. These spiritually formed leaders will have drawn closer to the heart of God, thus recognizing their call to serve in Jesus' name and in His way. Excellent book. Highly recommend.

Absolutely the best book on spiritual leadership and development I've ever read! I have bought and sent numerous copies to friends involved in spiritual leadership positions. I'm sold on Reggie McNeal and the powerful scriptural insights he shares.

One of the best books on leadership I have ever read. The four brief biographies (on Moses, David, Paul and Jesus) that make up the first part of the book are extremely insightful and practical. McNeal writes with authenticity and clarity. There's not a lot of "fluff" or stuff that's rehashed from one leadership book to another. Every chapter is well worth a slow read. His dry wit also adds some spice to the read. Very good stuff.

I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who has been retrenched, made redundant, involuntarily exited from the workplace or simply disillusioned with his or her workplace. A step by step manual on how to transition or transform yourself and make a comeback. Full of tips and suggestions, if you are a career hunter, it would be useful to have this text handy. Its got some stories of individuals' experiences and therefore this should be helpful in enabling you to make a move, if you are hesitating.

I found this to be an excellent read - a real motivational book, especially for someone coming out of the .com craze. This book told of all the mood changes and feelings of anxiety that come from being downsized or from a company that has gone out of business. It also contained a good list of resources relating to where you were in your search for a new career.

Loved it. Recommend it to anyone on the edge.

Are You a Corporate Refugee? is an excellelnt resource for people who are being downsized, EAP professionals, and Outplacement experts. This book proves to be a guide for preparing for an imminent layoff and describing steps to take after the layoff. The author, Ruth Luban, does an excellent job in not only presenting a very practical guide, but addressing the full range of emotions attached to such a major life changing event.

As a career counselor, I am always searching for resources that are both informative about the psycholological impact of change and pragmatic enough to provide concrete guidance for persons navigating a career transition. This is the book I most often suggest to clients who have been laid off or are otherwise in the middle of a job change under challenging circumstances. I highly recommend this book.

On the brink of layoff, I found this book at the library among the usual collection of books on resume' building, interviewing and job search. Reading the first chapters about downsizing I could see that this book was about my story, starting with the "On The Brink" experience of knowing something drastic is about to happen soon. Turns out the book is about the internal challenges and transitions involved in loosing a job, dealing with "what to do next" and how to make the journy to the next job a rewarding one.

Now I have my own copy from Amazon which I use most every day. It is very helpful.

I don't know Paul before I got this book. This is the best business book I have read all year.

It's been responsible for helping me double my business in the last two months!

Most of the principles inside will apply to corporate businesses but I took just two of the principles in it, took action on them, and saw radical results. It's not the specific strategies that helped me see these results, it was the change in perspective on doing things that this book certainly provided me.

I recommend it to anyone who wants to grow their business fast.

Fabian Tan

I just finished reading Be Unreasonable. I read it on the treadmill, exercise bike and other stationary machines designed to get the job done. I cannot begin to tell you how much I love it.

I read a lot of these books. I'm a host, author, speaker and coach, so you can see by the nature of my work that I am passionate about helping people focus on the desired outcome and ultimately achieve it.

I am going to do something with this book I rarely do. I'm going to the gym tomorrow, and I'm going to read Be Unreasonable again. There are so many important points, I want to make sure I can take the concepts and put them into play with my organization and those I serve. Bravo, it is a masterful body of work.

One of the better self help books. I passed it along to my 2 sons and both have benefited from the power of the advice.

Entrepreneurism is at an all-time high. The days of thousands competing for a single job have been replaced by hundreds of businesses competing for the same customer.

How will you stand out?

This book gives you the courage to get out and be a little unreasonable, a little unconventional, a little unusual and go for the unknown, so you can have unstoppable business success.

I am a fast reader, and I can zip through the average business book on a plane trip. You know . . .yadda, yadda, yadda, think outside the box . . .yadda, yadda, yadda, be proactive . . .

"Be Unreasonable" is NOT your average business book. I found myself stopping every few pages to absorb the powerful concepts presented, think about what they mean to me, and generate ideas that will transform my business. This is real-world information, and Paul Lemberg shows us how real businesses have used being unreasonable to overcome obstacles and achieve remarkable success.

It is hard to pick one part of the book that is "best," but if I had to choose one chapter it would be the one on Unreasonable Thinking. Every page had me thinking of new ideas and changing the way I look at things.

Stop reading this review right now, and order your copy of "Be Unreasonable." And do not put it on the shelf with all those other books that you haven't gotten around to reading yet. Set aside some time every day to read a part of the book, then reflect on what being unreasonable can do for you. It will change your business, and your life.

And the next time someone tells you that you are being unreasonable, simply say, "Thank you!"

Cathy Stucker, IdeaLady.com

I enjoyed this book so much read it in a day which wasn't hard because it was pretty light reading, this book offeded lot of tips on how to make college life easier. I am headed off to college in the fall and Ithink it will help.

What I liked the best about the book is that it's told in students' own words -- students from a number of colleges commenting on topics ranging from how to schedule classes to handling homesickness to handling finances to getting along with that up-all-night roommate. You're getting the real scoop on college life from the people who are LIVING it, not what the admission literature says. As a student affairs professional, this is the kind of "quick read" resource I'm going to buy (on Amazon, of course) to make available to my students.

I enjoyed this book so much read it in a day which wasn't hard because it was pretty light reading, this book offeded lot of tips on how to make college life easier. I am headed off to college in the fall and Ithink it will help.

A very good read that will keep one's attention until the end. Although much of it will strike a chord as common sense, it naturally wouldn't dawn upon most for at least a year or more. Since Been There... is made up of quotes from college students, it reads more like a conversation. All the ideas are down to earth & they sound much better coming from those there than from adults who have been away for some time.

Now THIS is a really great little college book. It's literally filled with extremely useful advice from the first page to the last, all from the lips of college students who "learned" from their mistakes. Very fast and entertaining read as well, definitely an excellent buy for anybody about to enter college.

Just an extra note, this 505 tips for making college easier is similiar to the title "101 Things College girl should know" and "101 Things College guy should know."...this is a MUCH better buy for your money. The latter 2 books are the most useless excuses for books I've found...with tips like drink 8 glasses of water a day and...similiar common sense. Buy "505" instead, you'll be glad.

This is a very good and easy summer read. Each story brings back memories. Recommend it every summer or when you feel down and need a pick me up.

Ms. Bedford is one of those women who make life a joy for all those who come into contact with her or her writing. To have had her as a mother or grandmother must feel like a gift from God.

Through her short and emotionally charged stories, I found myself carried back into my youth when my Mom would work endless magic by making things herself.

The book contains three sections of stories, ones as a child, as a mother and as a grandmother. The last section is the skimpiest because Ms. Bedford hasn't been a mother as long as she has lived the other two roles.

Her stories capture and build on common elements of healthy relationships like family rituals, special places, shared experiences, favorite tokens, and powerful lessons learned together.

Often, you'll have the urge to do something similar for your children or grandchildren. Go for it! To make that easier, Ms. Bedford has included how to do various simple projects like making a pincushion, baking barefoot cookies, filling a dress up box, decorating plates, and turning clothespins into dolls.

There may also be days when you could use a little mothering. Just read this book and feel embraced by Ms. Bedford's all-encompassing love of life, people and nature. Is it any surprise that she's an enthusiastic bee keeper?

Heart warming is an overused description for books. I felt like any review of this book would be incomplete without that reference. I don't remember a more heart-warming non-fiction book.

Takes me back to my own childhood, reminded me of things I had not thought of in far too long. Wonderful!

A friend gave me this wonderful book and, now that I have read it, I have bought it for my two daughters, my mom and my aunt. The stories create such a wonderful peaceful quality that it is now my preferred bedtime reading. I read one or two stories before falling asleep and, thus, easily settle into gentle slumber. The world Faith writes about may have happened twenty or ten years ago but it still exists if we only care enought to make it happen. She has inspired me to create quiet times of appreciation of nature and family and tradition. I cannot recommend this enough.

As a long time reader of Country Living I have enjoyed Faith Andrews Bedford's stories very much. But not until I bought this book did I realize how many wonderful ideas for projects for children she incorporated into her stories. I did not begin to subscribe until 2000 but realize that her column "Kids in the Country" has been a part of that magazine for many years. And, obviously, I'd missed some great stories. Her essays are warm and witty and so very true to life. I was deeply moved many times. She taps into the world of children perfectly.

I read this book as part of a class in graduate school, and I found it to be quite practical, not only providing insights into ways that decisions can go wrong, but also steps that can be taken to reduce biases in your decisions due to errors in the process, although some of the strategies can only be effectively implemented at the organizational level.

I consulted this book because it was in two different bibliographies, one from my professor's notes, the other from Plous' book, "The Psychology of Judgment and Decision Making." What I didn't realize until after I had read this book was that it has been updated and reissued under a different name, "Winning Decisions : Getting It Right the First Time." If I were buying it again, I would order the newer version.

This book discusses ten common errors that people make in decision making, and how to avoid them. When I first saw this title, I was not that interested, because I wanted a book on how to make decisions, not on the errors that people make. After reading it, I find the information to be very useful and practical. This is one of my all time favorite books, I go back to it every so often, and even after reading it a few times I find myself making some of the errors that are discussed in the text. Hopefully I don't make as many as I used to! I know the ideas in this book have been a very substantial help in improving my decision making process, and I am getting better as time goes by. Very highly recommended!!

I write about scientific careers, and one of my favorite books is Decision Traps. I recommend this book to anyone who is facing a major career decision, and who would like to separate the emotion from the facts in the decision process. Too often we cloud our decisions with personal feelings and ill-conceived "rules of thumb." This book will help you eliminate decision shortcuts which traditionally DON'T lead to the best answer. It worked for me in my personal life as well. Really helps you understand how your mind works.

A comprehensive outline of the major 10 decision traps from decision psychology aspects.

I benefit a lot from the book's reminder on those "traps" which I have also committed some.

A good value book.

Most decisionmakers make the same kinds of error. There needs to be a frame for each problem. There should be avoidance of plunging in and relying too heavily on supposed good judgment. Drawing boundaries are part of framing the questions. Managers are apt to draw narrow boundaries.

Sometimes there is a failure to draw a boundary line. There is the sunken cost fallacy, basing current and future changes in operation on past expenditures for equipment. One is influenced by reference points in the the problem frame. Some decisions make sense through several different frames. In such a case there can be certainty that the decision is a good one.

Good communicators align their communications with the listeners' frames. Virtually all people put too much trust in their own opinions. Most people favor data supporting current belief. Wrongly we associate confidence with competence. One should be a realist when making a decision and an optimist when implementing it. Rules of thumb and other decisionmaking shortcuts are called heuristics. The disadvantages of intuitive decisionmaking are more profound than people realize.

Members of groups may agree prematurely on wrong decisions. Groups may suffer from too much cohesiveness, harmony, pressure, insulation, and strong leadership. In group think people practice self-censorship, pressure others, give in to an illusion of invulnerability and erroneous stereotyping. Groups composed of people of mixed types of personality are useful--receptive versus focused and thinking versus feeling types.

The book is written in veritable outline form, presumably to get the attention of busy managers. It has a extensive notes supplementing the text giving a student of business and other fields an opportunity to pursue related lines of inquiry.

The book was written at the end of the dot com era, perhaps as a reaction against the intense high-tech stress undergone by many people. It is now 5 years later, but the text is still relevant. After all, while the dot com era is now clearly seen as overly inflated, the technology did not go away after the crash. In fact, it has continued to improve, and no doubt the stress levels are still present for many people.

So the book's advice about maintaining a balance between your professional and social lives is very germane. It is also worth keeping in mind, when, and not if, another cycle of high technology frenzy spins up.

It was great finding a book that offered helpful suggestions in a very readable style to the problem of staying in touch without getting overwelmed by our high-tech world. Best of all was the insightful nature of the book. The distinction between balance and congruence was so important. The authors recognized the reality of human spirituality and the blows it can suffer in our wired world. A fine book for anyone who has caught the wave of techno-communication but still wants to stay sane.

The frantic pace of our world is overwhelming. Technology is able to keep us connected 24/7 and many of us have allowed it to invade every minute of our lives. No wonder we experience personal systems overload! This book really delivers what is implied in its title Dot Calm. We are all seeking to balance our work, home, family, community....you name it. Dinnocenzo and Swegan have done their research and offer practical advice on how to discover and reconnect with what is important. We can choose a better way and this book guides us in that process. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to reclaim their life.

Just as Ms Dinnocenzo introduced me to sanity and organization trying to be a telecommter in a wired world in her 101 Tips for Telecommuters, I realized a missing piece. And I found it in Dot.Calm. She explained problems that I could not put into words. But the best part of the book was her and Rick's four specific solutions for dealing with technology when you must be able to communicate with others you don't see. She addresses the real human problems in this techno world. Now I feel like a survivor who can communicate successfully and make money doing so!

I can not count the number of products and services that have come my way heralded with much hype and false promises of their value to the user. That's been especially true of self-help guides. You know the ones that promise you'll be a changed person, if only you buy the book and implement its recommendations. Well, at long last one of those books delivered on the promise. The foreword states that "you'll find these pages to be filled with practical, how-to advice .... step-by-step formulas for finding ...and keeping balance in your life." As a poster child for the insanity of the wired world, I really did not know how to break out of the strangle hold it had on my life. It became easier and easier to rationalize absolutely crazy behaviors related to my out- of- balance existence. The authors of Dot Calm were surely writing about me or so it seemed. I expect many of its readers will feel the same identification with the analysis of being over-connected, over-worked,over-scheduled, over-informed and ultimately OVERWHELMED. It's a book you'll read in one sitting and then reread many times as you take back control over your life. Thanks to the authors for delivering on their promise.