Title : Never Eat Alone: And Other Secrets to Success, One Relationship at a Time
Author : Keith Ferrazzi
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Connect for the Joy of It All!
Never Eat Alone is a rare, detailed glimpse into how those with no special access can connect to those they want to meet. For many people who are good at connecting, this activity becomes a way of life. It's a profession and a hobby. As such, connecting can become all consuming. Many will find that aspect of Mr. Ferrazzi's story to be unattractive. But I found his candor in this regard to be refreshing.
If you step back from his enthusiasm for connecting, the mental attitudes and processes he describes are just what everyone needs to use who wants to be better connected and accomplish more.
All of us know more than any one of us. If you take two equally talented young people in any field, the one who is better at connecting will live a more successful life than one who tries to go at everything as a lone ranger.
I have known dozens of master connectors. They all do some variation of what Mr. Ferrazzi describes in this book. Here is how I would distill those lessons:
1. Decide who you want to meet to further your objective of accomplishing more.
2. Learn more about the person.
3. Find what you can do to help that person in an area where they care.
4. Develop a strategy to meet briefly face to face.
5. Share what you want to do to help when you meet.
6. Stay in touch with more ways to help.
7. Attend events where other master connectors attend and link into fields which are not naturally yours by becoming acquainted with these master connectors.
8. Study those who are very good at this.
If you keep in mind the sheer pleasure of making a difference as you do this, you'll soon be a superb connector. I recommend undertaking this task on behalf of something you are passionate about such as a charity you support.
One of the best parts of this book is that Mr. Ferrazzi is generous in sharing his mistakes. The world doesn't end for you as a connecting queen or king if you offend a poo-bah. You just pick yourself up and do better next time.
I liked his humility about his limitations in other fields. Peter Drucker would have approved of Mr. Ferrazzi's decision to work on what he has a talent and love for, connecting, rather than try to become more competent at things that are difficult and unpleasant for him . . . like quantitative analysis. The story about how he got his start at Deloitte is worth the price of the book.
Another strength of the book can be found in the excellent description of why people find President Clinton to be so compelling in person.
Skip books about networking and relationship building. Read Never Eat Alone instead!
Title : Now Habit: A Strategic Program for Overcoming Procrastination and Enjoying Guilt-free Play
Author : Neil A. Fiore
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : A top book on procrastination
Once in a while a book comes along that makes perfect sense. This is a book written by someone who is extremely wise on this subject. A sage-like quality about it. No surprise that Neil has studied this subject for years. The quality in this book shows.
Nearly all the books I've read have failed in their mission to get the reader motivated.
This book is different. Everyone is unique and everyone has their own entry points. For me I loved the idea of designing one's day around what one really enjoys, leisure, hobbies, exercise etc. Then peppered around this one build's half hour slots of time to do some work towards one's goal.
This book builds on the ideas given. Not neccessarily in chronological order. More a 3D model. A layer that also really clicked for me was that instead of focusing on finishing this task, project, goal one has a series of starts. One Starts towards the goal for 30 minutes. Then after this a reward, some fun in life. Then back to the next 30 minute session.
What's reccommended is to take a 2 minute pre-project focus to get the mind in the right vibration(my word) before beginning.
Procrastinating uses up valuable energy. It's a protection of sorts, but it takes energy to procrastinate. The stories of clients in the book makes one feel that this is more common that we tend to think. Some suffer more than others. For me it's been around for 75% of my life and got worse over the last few years.
Having taken voluntary redundancy last November, I thought starting a new career was a simple affair with all this time available. It wasn't time, it was an out of control procrastination junkie. However, it's not always so obvious. In Barbara De Angelis's book Confidence, she speaks of 3 types of confidence, behavioral, spiritual and emotional. In my view if you've got procrastiation as the savior of your pain, you will most assurely lack behavioral confidence in yourself.
This will be money so well spent. It's like having an expert right in your hands, helping you every step of the way.
For me I realised that I wasn't living a life of fun, I was still waiting for something to happen before my life begun.
Title : Change Your Thoughts Meditations: Do the Tao Now!
Author : Wayne W. Dyer
Rating : 2 Stars out of 5.
Summary : This is an acquired taste
As meditation is a personal thing and everyone is drawn to different methods I thought I'd share a bit more about this cd.
It's basically a two line reading of each essay(81 essays) followed by a very loud "DAOOOOOOOOOOOOOO".
Think "AUM" but substitute DAO.
Personally, it's too loud and in my face. I was hoping for a gentle reading of each verse as I have the book and have really enjoyed it(see my review).
This is just an opinion as I know a lot of people like the "AUM". Duz it come with de AUM? No, it comes with the "DAO".
Title : Getting It Done: How to Lead When You're Not in Charge
Author : Roger Fisher
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Solid Advice for the Most Common Business Problem
Whenever I meet with bright, motivated business people who want to improve the world, they always complain about others in their organizations who will not cooperate in a change process. Get those reluctant people on board the progress train, and the more positive future will soon arrive. Almost never do these complainers realize that their own habits, perspective, and behavior are contributing to delaying the progress by making others oppose the initiative.
Getting It Done is a wonderful book for helping each of us see ourselves as part of the problem and part of the solution in situations when many people must cooperate. That's a first in my experience.
The book builds on that valuable perspective by suggesting what skills we each need to improve, and how we can implement a process that will lead to genuine, effective progress. That is very critical, because most improvements occur because someone has designed an effective process to ease their implementation. In new areas, by definition, there is seldom such a process. My suggestion is that you try this one if you have no other.
I also liked the way the authors went on to generalize about how lateral leadership (influencing peers) provides lessons for when you are the boss. The same lessons apply here as well. Influencing people through genuine involvement leads to both better solutions and to better implementation.
If you only read and learn to apply one book this year, Getting It Done should be that book. My reasoning is simple. If you cannot help those you work with to make successful collaborations, you and everyone around you will always operate at a low level of effectiveness. Also, your work day will be filled with stress, conflict, pressure, too much to do, and worry. That's not the way you want to live. Getting It Done can help you develop the skills to get the benefits of how all of us know and can do more than any one of us. When you are able to get that benefit from being in an enterprise, life becomes very interesting, rewarding, and meaningful. You will also feel good about living closer to your potential as a person.
Title : Goals! How to Get Everything You Want - Faster Than You Ever Thought Possible
Author : Brian Tracy
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : I read it seven times!
I've read about fifty self-help books and this is the best.
Brian Tracy can say in one page what other authors (notably anthony robbins) will spend a whole chapter on.
Title : Unleash the Warrior Within: Develop the Focus, Discipline, Confidence and Courage You Need to Achieve Unlimited Goals
Author : Richard Machowicz
Rating : 4 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Some good ideas here, worth a read
It's not that easy to evaluate and review `self-help' books, as what I find useful is probably not at all useful to someone else. I guess it depends on what your perceived `problem' is, or more positively, what is `your area of desired improvement'.
I liked this book, I found it very helpful. This book deals with fears that are preventing you from becoming the person you wish or be or attaining a target that you are aiming for in your life.
The approach is very aggressive as you would expect from the title and front cover. Machowicz encourages you to `live life aggressively'. Machowicz draws on his experience as a Navy SEAL, and tells us about how he went through some very extreme situations that inevitably lead to fear and how he developed mechanisms to cope with and conquer that fear. It is a macho approach and in some places reads very much like the true to life novel by Andy McNab, `Bravo Two Zero'. However, I don't think that should put readers off, there is some very useful insights here. Take the CARVER matrix for example. This is a target evaluation method of military origin. Machowicz applies it to everyday life. If you enter `Waging Project Management Warfare' into a search engine you will find an article where an attendee of one of Machowicz classes applies the principle to software development!
There is definitely as much value in reading this as in relying solely on the works of desk bound psychologists.
I also liked the fact that it was written relatively recently, 2002. The context is relevant. I have read seminal works that were written nearer the turn of the last century, and although the content of these is beyond reproach they are very dated and increasingly hard to relate to the present and the type of problems encountered in today's world.
Some of the author's quotes come from such diverse works as Dune, by Frank Herbert. He refers to the training of Paul Atreides where he is taught that `fear is the mindkiller'. As a part-time Sci-Fi fan, I am encouraged to read a self-help book that values some of my favourite literature.
Throughout the book Machowicz refers to his self-defence style called Bukido. This comes across as a bit of a blatant sales pitch, but does nonetheless encourage the curious to enter `Bukido' into a search engine to see what it is all about. You might want to do that before you buy the book! Machowicz seems to be aggressively following his own advice, and is also now a TV star I believe hosting `Future Weapons' on the Discovery channel. Maybe that in itself should suggest that there is something of value in this book. However, reading the output of famous people telling us `how to become successful' does not always work. I'm thinking of the book by Noel Edmunds, `Positively Happy'. It is also very hard to determine if you should take the cynical, and possibly accurate viewpoint, that the author is more interested in selling his product, in this case his book and his training courses, than he is in the altruistic intent of making you a better person.
The author's intentions and motivations aside, I picked some ideas from this book that I liked and am actively making use of them. Although I have completed the book I still want to review some of the sections at a later date. So for me there was some useful ideas here and so I give it a four star rating.
Title : Screw It, Let's Do It: Lessons in Life (Quick Reads)
Author : Sir Richard Branson
Rating : 4 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Easy way to learn from the best
There's no debate about it- Sir Richard Branson is one of the most successful entrepreneurs of our time and a role model for so many.
Im a big believer that if you want to be like the best, you need to learn from the best. This book helps you do just that.
Great business and life concepts are easily explained. And at a bargain price- what more do you want?
Other Related Resources:
1: http://www.celebitchy.com/22932/tony_romo_and_will_smith_surprise_students_at_high_school_pep_rally/
2: http://www.eventective.com/blog/weddings/2008/11/20/i-do-taking-weddings-to-the-extreme/
3: http://www.jaysonjc.com/2007/06/21/teamwork-explained/
4: http://www.krishnade.com/blog/2007/build-your-employer-brand-by-creating-an-inspiring-workplace/
5: http://www.pyxlb0mb.com/male-exercises/
