Careers Books

This new edition of Carol Showalter's book is excellent. I encourage everyone to read it and learn how to control their weight and be disciplined in their lives.

It works if you discipline yourself to stick with the plan. Having a group participate is helpful. The original version with the workbook is better.

The 3D book worked really well for me. I have arthritis so I wasn't able to really do much of any workouts to lose weight. With the help of this study I lost 25 pounds in three months which I thought impossible. It helps to do it with a friend to hold you accountable for the progress but it can be done alone. Biblestudy with short daily devotionals, charts, hints and tips help you to get the discipline you need to lose the weight you want and become a better follower of Christ.

This book is a must read!! If you know anyone that has credit or financial issues, teenagers about to graduate from HS and college age kids-this would be a great gift for any occasion. Kids need to be informed now before they go out and start opening credit accounts they will later regret. They need to be educated on how to establish and maintain a great credit rating. Parents can use this as a guide. Buy it and read it for yourself. I am happy I have this book and look forward to sharing it and all that I have learned from it.

I've read many books on credit and this is one of the better ones. I like the fact that you can read what applies to you if you choose. You don't have to read the entire book from front to back but i'd recommend it for complete understanding.

It's very easy to follow, up-to-date, comprehensive. Highlights- a great chapter on credit scoring and improving your score; a good section on finding a good credit counselor; establishing and re-establishing credit, negotiating with collectors and I liked the tests after each chapter. The only thing I would have like more of is some negotiating tips but overall it's good.

I'd recommend Liz Weston's Your Credit Score as well.

I read this book and was amazed by the amount of information it gave. This author hits every area of credit that people need help with. Everything from credit scores to id theft is covered here and in great detail. It even gives little quizes at the end of each chapter to help you retain the info. The best part is that the chapters are so well segmented that you can just flip to the area you need help with and go from there.

This book by far is the best credit guide out there today. The ones I've read in the past just touch on certain things here and there, but this author really gives you what you need. I'm buying copies for each of my college children. It is highly recommended!

I found this book very helpful and honest. It builds upon knowledge that you may already have on credit repair, and is a great resource for someone just tackling their credit.

This book is definately informative. It not only helps you understand ways to repair your credit, but gives you knowledge of how to make responsible decisions in using credit. It covers every aspect of credit from the major players, credit scores, and how to reestablish and establish credit.

I've bought several books for my study of the Foreign Service and the vast majority are hard to slog through. This one was engaging, written by numerous personalities about their experiences from different relationships with a Foreign Service Officer. I was able to finish it in one evening.

I found that this book did a good job showing what life in the Foreign Service is like. I am in the military and there are a lot of similarities. Highly recommended for perspective Foreign Service family members, friends and applicants.

This book was invaluable for people interested in joining the foreign service. I was considering doing so myself, but after reading this book - and much, much more information and reading matter on the life of a FSO - I was able to decide that it was just not for me. Then again, someone could read this book and be quite moved by it. I certainly hope so. This book did not diminish the great respect I have for FSOs and their families, and in fact I think it increased said respect.

The one qualm I had with this book should not really be considered as such. I had one issue in that it was heavily weighted towards stories of the wives of FSOs, and that domestic partners of all other kinds were seriously underrepresented. However, through reading this book, its introduction, and numerous websites on the issue, the truth seems to be that this is one of those facts about life in the FS right now: the demographics are frighteningly skewed towards a three to four person family with the husband the FSO and the wife following him and taking care of the children. If that offends you in any way, then read this book and see if you could live with it - this will give you some idea of what the FS experience is.

This book is full of relatively worthless and obvious quips about living abroad.
There is an entire section devoted to grocery shopping and how it is different in various countries.. no duh. There is also a massive section about Foreign Service wives carrying on about their kids.
Most of the accounts in this book are written by Foreign Service spouses and provides very little insight into the Foreign Service.

This book is simply key in helping you understand what a life in the Foreign Service is like. Several essays provide different insights into the ups and downs of living overseas and the unique challenges of the Foreign Service. You simply must read this before considering that career, and more importantly your spouse must read it also. Arguably, the spouse gives up more to join the Foreign Service. Until I read this book I was on the fence but not too far into the text I decided this wasn't for me or my family, which is really a great thing. If I relied on the State Department view I would have exerted significant time and effort only to find out later or too late. Some critics complain the book is too whiny, and it does come across like that at times. But look at it this way: if you read all the negatives and are still motivated, then the Foreign Service would be incredibly dense to NOT take you.

One of the interesting takeaways for me was that your will likely be evacuated sometime in your career. If you or your spouse can't deal with the thought of flying the wife and kids out of a dangerous country, sitting on C-130 troop seats while the other stays in a dangerous situation, the Foreign Service isn't for you. If you don't mind living like a king overseas and living like a pauper in Washington, the Foreign Service may be for you. If you have to have fast access to pop-tarts you may think twice. If the thought of you or your kids contracting dysentery or other crazy diseases with less than great medical care bothers you, think again. If your spouse has career aspirations you need to seriously consider this option. Before you order that subscription to The Economist, get this book first.

A pretty good read. Sometimes the author really puffs himself up and that became rather annoying at times. He could leave those parts out of the book and it would be just as good if not better. If you can see past his huge ego, the style is interesting enough to finish the book in two or three sittings. I would have given it more stars w/o this flaw.

This book serves as a great roadmap to becoming a top IT leader, because it covers the entire spectrum of topics that one should either know or be aware of in his or her quest to become a CIO. Many IT publications may provide articles on some of the topics covered in the book (such as how to manage expectations with your staff), but this book is unique in a number of ways:

1) It is written from first hand knowledge and experience. Every topic, ranging from Methodologies, to IT Governance, to Contract Negotiation includes a "What Did I Do to Prepare?" section, where Gregory candidly recounts examples of things he did in those categories.
2) Every section of the book provides recommendations and advice for aspiring CIOs.
3) Some topics (such as learning golf for business purposes) may not have been obvious for aspiring CIOs. Topics such as learning golf for business is rarely, if ever, in trade magazines.
4) All of the information in the book is well referenced, and there are very interesting statistics gathered from impressive sources.

I actually just finished taking a Graduate level course taught by Gregory himself using this book. I can say that Gregory is a very knowledgeable, experienced, candid, and friendly guy, and the information in the book and the tone of this book demonstrates that.

With his advice and the tips from this book, I have already made a few improvements to my personal IT career path. I feel that most people's IT careers can benefit, too, with the advice from a solid mentor and tips from this book. I highly recommend this book!

I'm not too sure about current CIOs, but this book proves to be very informative and concise for a junior IT executive like me aiming for the top IT post. Unlike some IT books which focus on stories and leaving you to ponder how you can relate to them, this gem of a book addresses key issues and tells you straight to the point what CIOs of established companies feel and how they react to these issues. In addition, Smith has given his own input and experience in the form of easy-to-follow guidelines which anyone can put to use immediately.

I'm glad I did not miss this book.

When I was offered the job of CIO, I only had 1 week to prepare for the interview. I purchased this book immediately based on the exerpts that I read on line. What an amazing and helpful book. Mr. Smith's pointers and recommendations helped me tremendously! It assisted in preparing me for the interview and even though I am now working as a CIO I still review it. I liked his points on the IT Governance Structure document - somthing that I plan to put in place here, I also read with interest his tips on the first 100 days in the job. I also like the statistical data that were included in each chapter. What was also particularly helpful were his personal experience. I like how the book gives direction to aspiring CIOs and new CIOs. I highly recommend this book.

The information contained in this book are not exactly revolutionary. You want to be a CIO? Get an MBA from top notch school, be technically proficient, get project management experience, work on large scale projects, get experience with large scale budgets, and work on your soft (communication and interpsonal) skills.

What sets this book apart from other books with similar title is the source of its information. They are from CIOs and recruiters who have experience placing CIOs.

Too often, many books on becoming a CIO are based on guesses and speculations of the authors who do not have full comprehension of the topic. The author of this book purposely do not use his own conclusions, he merely gathers information and analyze them in an objective fashion.

If you want to read a book on becoming a CIO based on a solid research and survey of relevant professionals, then this book will provide credible, albeit common sense, suggestions.

Absolutely uninteresting, I'm returning it. Did you know that you have to get enough sleep, eat well, and exercise? If not, learn it from this book.

Over the years, I've bought, oh probably like a dozen of these books (from this series, I mean) and, with the exception of Managing High-Tech Enterprise, found them completely unhelpful and uninteresting. Always self-contradictory, unintelligent, and droning, they remind me of the "self-help" book genre -- which is to say, politically-correct, vapid tripe that the publishers probably believe will sell in any quantities and no matter how bad, simply because people look forever for advice and will probably buy and keep buying. Very disappointing; I'm through with this series.

This was my first time reading the Harvard Business Review books. The book is made up of 8 topics by different authors. I'm not used to this format so the topics felt short and leaving me wanting more.

The topic on "Overloaded Circuits" is fantastic. Dr. Hallowell describes ADT or Attention Deficit Trait. Similar to ADD but entirely created from the environment, ADT is a new condition brought about recently by the new technology that is pervasive in business today. Ever feel overloaded by the constant emails, phone calls, mobile phone calls, and "crackberry" alarms? Ever multi-task to a point where you feel like your work product is rarely adequate? I could go on about this topic but don't want to steal Dr. Hallowell's thunder. It's a must read. He also wrote an article on CNet News named "Why can't you pay attention anymore?"

Other topics such as "managing your boss" and "how to play to your strengths" provide a few new tips. My hang-up with the book is that some topics felt out of place such as the first topic on how leaders move up to the CxO level and the topic on getting advice from your boss.

I'm mad as heck, I am going into my 5th week of school and I have yet to recieve my book or a response to the e-mail I sent letting the seller know of the situation. By the time you resolve this matter the semester will be over. I have to beg and borrow from students that don't care to share.The reason I order from Amazon is because of the great deals, a whole cheaper than the school book store when funds are low! It's a shame you get card number and you have my money just like that, but you make a error, and you move slower than molasses in the winter time to refund my money or the book. Whats up with that? :( Somebody needs to let me know what's up? This is unexceptable. SHOW ME THE MONEY!

Many people advocate life long learning and the process of reaching your full potential, but generally no one knows how to do that. This book is designed for individuals from middle school to retirement age and provides them with step by step assessments, worksheets and exercises to reach their potential.

This book is broken down in five subject topics, and fifteen chapters to provide an easy systematic approach to personal and professional development. The five subject matters are: Developing Your Potential in Emotional, Intellectual, Physical and Social realms with the fifth unit entitled Developing Your Action Plan.

This book has been wonderful in meeting the needs of four different educational and training areas. First as a personal self help book. Second as a textbook for a college level one-hour class entitled Professional Image Development offered through the Johnson County Community College in Overland Park, Kansas. Third as an in-house book for career and personal growth seminars within private industry. And fourth, as a resource book, accessible to all employees, checked out from a Corporate Learning Center library.

The book does not have religious growth. The authors state that religious growth is outside the realm of the book. This makes the book perfect for the diverse workforce and student population.

The book does have a companion guide for instructors: Reaching Your Potential, an Instructor's Guide.

On this helpful cassette CD, Louise Hay provides a powerful psychological tool for healing oneself. She explains the power of memory and emotion in the healing process; she talks about her own life, how she was abused as a child and how she overcame this trauma through the application of understanding and forgiveness. It also discusses the principles of personal transformation and contains a beautiful healing meditation that includes sections on how to forgive oneself and others, how to let go of negative thoughts and how to become the optimistic, joyful and created person that we were all meant to be. Hay has a powerful reassuring voice and her words exude confidence, insight and optimism. I highly recommend this CD to all who need psychological support in physical or mental healing. In my experience it has been most effective. Also listen to her tape Meditations For Personal Healing, a series of meditations that covers all the important aspects of life and Self-Esteem: Motivational Affirmations For Building Confidence and Recognizing Self-Worth.

Since 1988, I have listened to Louise on cassettes. In 2003, the cassettes wore out and I now am the proud owner of 21 of her CD's and several of Louise's books. Her personal story is inspiring to me. She teaches that your thoughts can be your best friend or your enemy! And how you can change a thought! For almost 20 years, Louise has been of great assistance to me in helping me get through some rough times and move on to a happier life. On this CD, she really explains how to heal yourself and this CD has been a big help to me!

Lost my original one and so I had to re-order it. It helps me calm down and sleep, and also the ideas are very healthy.

This audio CD is very relaxing. Hay has a nice, gentle voice and is easy to listen to. I also find her message quite credible and helpful.

Speaking as another graduate of the Neighborhood Playhouse who actually studied with Sandy (as well as continuing to study with him in his private class after graduation), I had some reservations about Larry Silverberg's book. Acting is experiential, not intellectual. Larry Silverberg implies that Sandy's technique can be learned from a book and practiced by amateurs. That was never Sandy's intention. Learning the Meisner Technique is an organic process that requires the guidance of a trained teacher. Preferably, this should be someone whom Sandy actually trained as an actor and as a teacher.

The problem with expressing "the reality of the doing" in writing seems almost self defeating. To put it bluntly, you've got to do the work. Sandy once said, "You know those books, AN ACTOR PREPARES and ACTING: THE FIRST SIX LESSONS? Tell you what, you learn to act and then read those books to see if they knew how to act." Read Larry Silverberg's book and SANFORD MEISNER ON ACTING to see if this is the Meisner Technique seems to suit you. Then you will need to make the commitment to study and learn first hand. Be warned, it requires talent and hard work.

The vital issue is to acquire a viable technique to be able to work on a professional level. Sandy's technique is time proven, providing you learn from the right teacher. Above all, Sandy knew that acting can be painful at times and the actor's life is a hard one. However, he wanted acting to be a healthy process. "Acting is fun," he used to say, "don't let that get around." It becomes fun when you begin to know what you're doing.

Just remember, that reading about the process is not the same thing as doing the work itself.

For the record, Sandy Meisner was the greatest teacher of any subject that I ever encountered in my life. He was truly one of a kind.

My dad bought me this book after hearing about it on National Public Radio and, at first, I was a bit skeptical.
I mean, who really wants to waste time reading another boring 'How to' book on how to get a cool job?

But really, this book isn't like that at all.
It's factual of course, so you don't have to worry about how much of it is just hot air.
But it's also very comical, interesting, and respectfully realistic.
Not a candy-coater, but in no ways a dream crusher.

What more could you ask for <3?

I don't like bad language but like what this book has to offer. I purchased it for my daughter who is embarking on her new career after college. This is a good read.

Most career books I've read try to herd us into the same jobs without thinking out of the box. There are tons of other interesting, fun and well paying jobs out there that rarely seem to get mentioned. This book lists quite a few examples. It was a blast to read. It really helps expand your thinking and it makes the thought of a career change actually exciting!! And the income figures given are realistic too. Most other career books are way too low for whatever reason.

A great book and a great read!!

I was expecting this to be a lot more in-depth than it actually was. Though it profiled a lot of careers, so many classic ones were missing (lawyer and doctor for example). While it was nice to get an example schedule and salary, I wish there were more tips for achieving the jobs examined.

This book is great! It really opened my eyes to a lot of careers I never would have even heard of.

While heavy in theory this is a very important book that is worth the time and effort required to read it. It is a book that belongs on the reading list of every high school and trade school teacher, college instructors and career counselors, and on the desks of all mentors and CEOs - and politicians. That's right - ALL educators, ALL CEOs and ALL politicians. It is a concept that needs to reach students, protégés, parents and all segments of the workforce. In today's educational, business and political environments, the concept of true excellence has disappeared - and I can't help but believe it is because of a total ethics breakdown beginning with educators, business and political leaders, and sifting down to their students, managers, and employees. It all boils down to this: "You only get one chance to make a first impression," so why not do it the right way?
Yes, it is hard to fight the system, to do things the right way instead of bowing to pressure, greed, political compromise -- and a fear to be different. The critical decisions we need in order to meet today's challenges are made with an understanding that to do what's right often takes "guts" - in politics, in business, and in the workforce. (The review is author of "Top Cops: Profiles of Women in Command" and "Personal Publicity Planner: A Guide to Marketing YOU")

Having worked for America Online 6 years ago (right before that I worked at a restaurant by the murrah building in okc when it was blown up by mcveigh), I feel I have a pretty good perspective on this kind of stuff. Quoting Gasset "The mass crushes beneath it everything that is different, everything that is excellent, individual, qualified and select...anyone not like everybody runs the risk of being eliminated.."
The book in a sense tells about two types of people. Those who care about others, and those who care about themselves. Unfortunatly in a world where the competitive nature of man always leads to violence (be it physical, or of the subtle, mental sort) the bad will almost always win out. Having lost a number of friends (literally) due to the operant conditioned nature of life today, and through the media forcing kids to be "cool" to fit in (...)
Anyway, the issues presented in this book, which essentially are an argument against Skinner's promotion of "blank slate" minds that are to be conditioned through "experience", are good ones...however, if you truly understand that you can never, ever do enough to combat the hate and the evil that is so prevelant in the world today, you might want to not read this book...however, if you are aloof and like to buy products and watch movies that the critics agree are "explosive" and, if a sequal "twice as explosive as the first", you might find this book interesting...but probably a bit too academic, and will feel that it should be reserved for Intellectuals or whatever...(...), what do i know.

An excellent read for career and human resource professionals. Written by three very eminently qualified professionals, it provides an in-depth study about professionals and the choices they make. Using illustrations from the medical and journalistic professions, it gives a reader a focused and clear understanding of what good work is all about.

I was intrigued by the title of this book and really wanted to like it, but found myself struggling to stay focused while reading it.

The three contributing authors have impressive academic credentials and I suppose this work will be used in university classrooms throughout the country, but I think the people who really need to hear the message that technology, economics and ethics can (and should) co-exist will not be attracted to this format.

The authors define people who do good work as: "People who do good work, in our sense of the term, are clearly skilled in one or more professional realms. At the same time, rather than merely following money or fame alone, or choosing the path of least resistance when in conflict, they are thoughtful about their responsibilities and the implications of their work."

The authors spend a lot of time discussing Journalism and Genetics and how ethics and good work in these two arenas are under seige from a market-driven economy. They offer up solutions on how to restore good work to the world and they share their methods of studying good work and their interviewing protocols, but the subject matter is just too academic for the average worker who struggles with ethics v. economics.

Maybe the book will reach university professors...and they'll share it with their students...and they'll go out into the world and strive to do 'good work.'

Let's hope so.

Howard Gardner has forever altered the landscape of American education through his development of the notion of "muliple intelligences," which says that people (including children and adolescents) can be "smart" in various ways. If reading, writing, and 'rithmatic aren't a person's strong spots, he may still be very bright in other areas. When Gardner first began studying and writing about multiple intelligences, it seemed revolutionary. Now it defines the accepted mainstream in how adept teachers conduct their classrooms.

When such a great mind decides that he wants to turn away from multiple intelligences theory and put his energies elsewhere (for the rest of his life if he can find the funding), it is worth noting what that area is. Gardner has explicitly said the subject of "Good Work" (both what it is and how we can foster and encourage it) so interests and engages him that he could study it for decades to come. It seems to me that suggests it's not a bad idea to inquire what "Good Work" is all about.

Gardner and his colleagues wonder what work that is both excellent (of the highest quality, no cut corners) and ethical (of the sort that makes you proud to look yourself in the mirror and announce what you do for a living) looks like and where it thrives. Their approach is simultaneously scientifically rigourous and achievably applicable.

We live in a time when the corporate model of profit through any means (or any means that won't turn away most consumers) dominates the business mindframe. We need a new paradigm and vocabulary for discussing what success is all about and how it can be reached. Gardner and his partners have begun that great work.