change Books

This book does have some startling things to say, in the direction of getting us to think in new ways about the impact of the death of one's parents. I think most people could benefit from reading it.

My mom passed away 3 months ago. This book came out just in time. Death benefits are real and the harvest has begun!

Dear Joy,
Here is an edited version of your letter that I'd be grateful for permission to include on my website. Please change anything you wish, and get back to me. I wish you the very best in your exploration.
Jeanne Safer

Like your mom, mine was a powerful and painful part of my life. I adored her and was terrified of her rejection and abandonment, and desperately needed her approval and love. I have to admit that even thinking about trying to process my feelings about her brings up fear of hurting her in the spirit world, which it totally nuts! But I am willing to excavate the mine of emotions in order to finally let her go--both for my benefit and hers. I did not know this until I read your book. It touches on issues that I was not even aware of because I dissociated them. I know my work as an artist will become much more powerful through this inner work. I am also planning to show the book to my therapist and use it in my therapy. A lot of women who have issues with their dead mothers will benefit. All this because of your taking the risk to write your story.

Meredith C, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

This is a letter that I wrote after reading Death Benefits. The book has openned my mind to a new way of viewing my relationship with my mother and has helped me to use the process to begin healing. I am so blessed to have found her book and heard her story.I also formed an online group in order to help others and welcome new members.

Joy C.Hellman
N.C.

Healing Through the Death of a Parent MSN

This was a great book for my needs having just lost my two parents in a short time. I am hopeful and
looking forward to the future.

This book really touched my heart and after discussion with friends about it, I learned that so many shared the sentiments of the author but did not have the courage to talk about it because it would appear they don't love their parents or wish them dead. The author makes very important and courageous points regarding emotions and how a new phase in life really starts once our parents have moved on. It is valid, emotional and so very true. I felt a lightness and freedom after reading it and feel more comfortable sharing this info with my friends. I am not happy that my parents are deceased but I am truly joyous about the new life I discovered after I stopped having to structure my life around their care and well being. It is was a freeing and liberating feeling to focus on my own needs and the needs of my children, when in the past, parents needs were so demanding and time intensive, I was always living feeling guilty about not serving them enough or guilty about not being able to focus on kids. It was simply too much for an only child. I am thankful for this book ~ It is a treasure

Ms. Day and I have a few things in common. We both had our major crisis at age 32. We both had to fight for our child. I fought to keep mine alive. She fought to keep custody of hers. Both single mothers raising our child. She is correct when she says that crisis can be positive. However, over the many years, (I'm 66) I have seen women deny, deny, deny and end up, in a few cases, homeless.

I am not an intuitive, but am a sensitive. All my life I was able to 'see' things and have them turn into reality. I 'saw' some very strange events coming in my life that could not possibly, in a thousand years, occur. Yet they all did. Every one of them. Very few things surprise me now.

Trying to help people when you see their crisis coming is not always successful. Unlike Ms. Day, I do not work with rich clients, companies, etc. I have, over the years, warned my employers about events coming down the pike. Some listened, some didn't.

I have had clients over the years and still do, but I do not charge for my services. It is a pact I made with the Spirit World long ago. They will help me 100 percent if I do not collect money for their help. If I do, I chance losing my ability to see. It doesn't bother me that I am not wealthy or live the kind of lifestyle Ms. Day does. The Spirit World has kept me whole, healthy and happy all these years.

I would like to see her write a book that is current that speaks to what is happening now with regard to housing losses, job losses, gas prices, and what the future holds. She needs to take the gloves off and really lay it on the line. She doesn't sugarcoat things, but she needs to get down and dirty about people taking responsibility for their lives. Her stories are very interesting. I just wish we knew what happened to the father in San Francisco. Did his wife return and take their daughter back?

I did very much enjoy her book. I just wonder, if she was such a powerful intuitive, why she didn't save money over the years she was married to her millionaire husband. Why she didn't see the divorce and child custody battle coming.

I may have to break down and write my own book soon. Of course all proceeds from the book would go to charities. My clients, over the years, have begged me to do this. Maybe it's time.

When a disaster directly affects us--an earthquake, a hurricane, a car accident on the freeway--we respond in different ways. Writing as a widely consulted expert on adapting to change and crisis, author Laura Day explains four different reactions to crisis: denial, anxiety, rage and depression. Most of us experience one or more of these typical reactions as we respond to the sudden setbacks and unexpected difficulties of our lives.

Yet instead of these largely negative reactions, Day believes we can train ourselves to respond to a crisis with positive energy, transforming what might have seemed disastrous into a life-changing experience that fills us with hope, vision, and fresh energy. The difference is not the depth or difficulty of the experience, but rather our attitude as we encounter it.

Counselor to the star and guest on major TV shows, Day believes instead of fearing change, she believes, we should learn to expect change and be empowered by it. The worst of circumstances can be transformed if we are willing to adjust our perspective.

As Day writes on page 77, "To be effective in your life...you need to grow from your experiences, rather than being derailed by them." This is the primary thrust of Welcome to Your Crisis, as the author teaches us that even a major disaster can become a stepping-stone to personal growth.

Many of her ideas are not new, yet she explains them with a fresh voice. Readable and easy to understand, her prose keeps you moving forward, turning the pages and continuing to learn.

Decide who you want to be, Day insists, rather than letting the difficult moments of life define you and limit your future. Transform the negative thoughts, attitudes and feelings
that you encounter into warmer, more confident beliefs and values.

"Good lives are not easy," Day writes on page 219, "they require daily acts of adaptation, courage, and love." Clearly, the author supports the idea that all of us can learn to face our challenges in these ways--and by doing so we can improve our own lives and the lives of those we encounter.

Armchair Interviews says: Thought-provoking information.

I felt guided to this book by a higher power -- and boy, am I glad I listened to that voice. (Or rather, to those Voices!) For so long, I was burning my candle at both ends, to steal a line from Edna St. Vincent Millay. And nothing seemed good enough, until my own personal crisis arrived. Well, needless to say, this book was -- as you can tell from the cute little life preserver on the cover art -- a lifesaver! Many blessings to you, Laura.

Life Changing.

Crisis or not, this book will help you find a new path if you let it. Your true path. The simple tools and ideas in the book provide immediate direction. Hope. Energy. I'm a big fan of this author, I absolutely adore "The Circle" and "Crisis" takes her work to great new heights.

It is personal and practical and immeasurably powerful.

Thank you, Laura Day.

Laura Day narrates her own journey out of a crisis ... first through the tragic loss of her mother at 14 ... and then the devastating divorce that left her life in tatters ... to its gifts of healing and intuitive ability and career as a writer and speaker. Laura Day has been there herself ... a crisis ... and the stakes have been high ... but she pulled herself out of it ... and now shares the tools that became her lifeline. Day addresses the unique response styles and how you can make them work for you in a crisis. Best of all she has set up a website for this specific book with resources and group support so you need not go through this alone. I first met Laura Day at a Circle workshop on the East Coast in 2002 and returned to her work when she published the Crisis. More than any other self-help book on the market, this is stunning in its brilliant simplicity. No New Age blame game, no woo-woo, no magical thinking. A great tool to have in a self-help tool kit that keeps you empowered with YOURSELF.

Day emphasizes the gift of a crisis because you cannot go back to the past. This is the best advice in the book. It is like an old episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation where Captain Jean-Luc Picard is given a chance to return to his youth and change destiny. Instead of having the trauma of a fight in a bar that lead to his receiving an artificial heart, Jean-Luc averts the disaster. Good? Not really because when he returns to the present he discovers that his life has been mediocre rather than stellar. In fact, he is a low-level ship mate who is not seen to have any leadership ability! The gift of his crisis was the development of impeccable judgment and calculated risk taking. Jean-Luc opts to go back and claim his sacred wound and returns again the Star Fleet legend and Captain of the Enterprise. This old storyline depicts Laura Day's wisdom on why the rock bottom of a crisis can actually be starting point of a brand new life that outshines the old.

Absolutely inspiring. Great material for those out there who are looking to achive personal growth in life and business.

Bob Quinn explores what it takes to be in the "Fundamental State of Leadership", stressing it is more about who a leader is than what a leader does to be effective. Eight practices are introduced which illustrate the creative tensions that exist in the leadership role. This book makes you think. Where each leader will come out on each of the 8 dimensions will depend on your own style and strengths, but the book serves as a great discussion/think stimulator to aid in the growth of your leadership ability.

Many books have great ideas about how to lead change but this one is exceptional. Mr. Quinn provides great case studies / examples using Appreciative Inquiry to reframe decision making and facilitate the always difficult task of transforming organizational culture.
While the book is a bit heady it does provide some refreshing insights on how to lead change without going crazy.

Base on my understanding of the American society, I am not surprised that this book, like Quinn's previous book "Deep Change," doesn't get as many reviews as it deserves, but I am confident that this book, and Qinn's trilogy, will become classic down the line.

This book would seem esoteric for the society that is addicted to data and techniques, thinking that what we need is more information and skills in order to lead. It does require the reader to be more mature to understand the content at a deeper level. In my case, my understanding of Systems Theory helps a great deal. In fact, this book fills the gap that is missing in the systemic leadership books that I have read.

Edwin H. Friedman's A Failure of Nerve: Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix is one of the books that I like best on leadership and systems theory. However, even though it describes the sickness of the societies, organizations, families, etc. extremely well, it lacks the recommendation for the leader to develop the systemic quality to transform the society, organization, or family he or she is leading. Quinn's books fill the gap right on the spot.

As a Chinese living in America for 16 years, my concern is seeing the rampant reductionism in this society that seems to be leading America to gradually becoming like a third world nation that I escaped from. Books like this, though few, give me hope. America has a bright future if more leaders can chew this book, and its two siblings.

Walking naked into the wilderness. Being willing to talk about the elephants filling the room. Recognizing the trunk growing on my own face. Letting yesterday's organization go, those cozy perceptions that make our own inaction seem to be the safest way. Taking the road less traveled. Questioning my supervisor in an open, warm and respectful way---rather than complaining about him or her over lunch with a friend. Realizing the more of us who believe we are responsible for the organization we are part of, the more real that organization will become. That we are co-creators of our work reality--that there is no Them doing bad things to US.
These were many of the thoughts that emerged through my exploration of Robert Quinn's book Deep Change.

It is very challenging for me to evaluate Building the Bridge as I had the great privilege of Dr. Quinn including my story and some of my experiences once I faced my own fears at work several years ago.

There is no question in my mind, however, that Robert Quinn is a man of great wisdom and great gifts which he freely shares in a warm, personal and authentic way. After finishing his books I feel as though I have had a long conversation with a man who wants me to fulfill the purpose of my life. Such unselfishness is so rare in our age of narcissism and self-aggrandizement. I found his approach helped coax me toward being a more authentic, honest, and courageous leader.

No other author has brought me such insights in such an inviting and comforting way.

Jeremy Fish, M.D.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0714844012/ref=cm_cr_rev_prod_title
A simple question: "what for?" should be ask for designers. What exactly a process of design means and how it works or could work in contemporary global civilisation? It help get a consciousness of designers role in modern world.

Excellent vision and unhappy scenarios are show us. How could we do this? It's time to change!

Robson Quinello

An excellent look at the challenges and possible solutions facing the human race. My only complaint is that the book is a bit dated, but its perspective is future proof. The concept of the Institute without Boundaries is especially interesting.

Bruce Mau's previous book - "Life Style" - was a pivotal publication that had something very fundamental to say about the practice of design. The argument woven into this survey of Bruce Mau Design's portfolio derived its edginess from an underlying, existential dilemma. On the one hand, Mau wanted to do justice to design's capacity to give "style" to sprawling, viral "life" (originally a very Nietzschean concept, later taken up and politicised by Foucault and Deleuze). On the other hand, there was the fear for the domestication of his practice to the status of banal, lifeless purveyor of images and artefacts - global capitalism's lingua franca. This tension between subversion and acquiescence turned "Life Style" into a poignant testimony.

Massive Change is, I am sorry to say, a much less compelling read. It takes its cue from Life Style's key idea - design is able to reformat the very principle of life - but dispels the darker, problematic side of the equation. Indeed, although Mau would like us to believe otherwise, the book's perspective is squarely utopian. In adopting as its motto theme "Now that we can do anything, what will we do?", it echoes the pragmatist voluntarism of the peer-to-peer movement. But the dissonances - P2P's paradoxical (symbiotic/parasitic) relationship with capitalism - have been filtered from the echo. What remains is the suave message that technological progress - shaped and harnessed by design - will be able to solve all our problems if we only want it to.

So, although Massive Change promises to bring us a "wildly unexpected view of the future", it really doesn't reach beyond the intellectual horizon of, say, a special issue of Scientific American on "Key Technologies for the 21st Century". The material is conventionally organised in sections that review the state of the art in urban planning, transportation, energy, information, material sciences, military technologies, biotech etc. Only two chapters discuss governance issues ("market economies" and "wealth and politics"). The relatively meager substance comes from short interviews with a series of "experts" in the disciplines surveyed. The selection is very US-centric and contains quite a few usual suspects (Dean Kamen, Stewart Brand, Lawrence Lessig, Jaime Lerner, Hazel Henderson etc).

By now we are also well acquainted with Mau's cinematic and fractured style in book design. "Massive Change" doesn't break any new ground compared to previous volumes (not only Life Style but also S,M,L,XL (with Rem Koolhaas) and the Zone series of books). What was once truly refreshing is becoming stale. By the way, the short interviews are printed on glaringly yellow pages, which I find positively ugly.

All of this is disappointing. I can think of two explanations for the intellectual and stylistic flaccidity exhibited in this volume. First, we are missing the incisiveness and depth that Mau's sparring partner Sanford Kwinter brought to "Life Style" (In my opinion, Kwinter's three-page lead essay was worth the price of that book). I am not sure what happened between Mau and Kwinter, but the latter is almost completely absent from this volume.

Then, although this is not be obvious at first sight, "Massive Change" is not really a Mau book. In fact, it has been largely put together by Jennifer Leonard, one of the students from the inaugural year of the Institute without Boundaries (a newly established postgraduate education programme whereby students spend a full year in the Mau studio). So, although Mau's name figures prominently on the cover, inside we learn that the Institute led the research, development, design and production of Massive Change.

I can't recommend this volume. "Massive Change" is a missed opportunity.

Bruce Mau is more than a designer. He is a futurist who has swapped fatalism for idealism. His vision of the future is based on facts, but you feel his undertone of optimisim. Massive Change is an utterly interesting read from cover to cover. The structure of the book and the writing style makes it a great resource of information. Massive Change is a necessity for the bookshelf of every intellect and every dreamer.

This book takes issue with how the teaching business is the only business where it's practitioners, teachers, expect and are expected to work in isolation. Mr. Schmoker does not take issue with teachers, nor does he blame them for this problem. Rather, he blames the institution of teaching for the problem.

The book outlines how to take a school and bring improvement to it through regular teacher collaboration. There are many, many facets to this, and I cannot get into them here. But I do recommend this book to teachers who are interested in dramatically improving their entire school.

Great book. I did not see addresssed the WHY ARE KIDS SCORING LOW in schools of low sociaeconomic students. How do you account for this besides blaming teachers for using "regrograde and ineffective methods of teaching in urban and rural areas?" I thought that was very weak. Also, what you suggest looks doable but why don't schools from high socioeconocimic areas have the same testing problems as those you sight in your book? WHY don't these kids learn? Why don't we look for some of these answers? It feel punative for teachers of schools that score poorly. It's not the kids. It's the lack of life esperiences that hold them back. This is totally test driven. I doubt that these kids who will have better test scores from Result will be better educated. It's just a political move, at best.

I listen to the CDs during my comute and it helps to reinforce the 7 habits of highly effective people.

It's difficult to give enough praise to what Stephen R. Covey does. I love reading his books and almost anyone will benefit from browsing through the different stories about how people had the courage to face their problems and change by engaging in positive behavior. To state the obvious, 'Living the 7 Habits' is an inspiring read. I would urge a bit of caution, however, in that the laboratory of the real world may not cooperate much with a person living the seven habits. On the other hand, Covey never says it's easy and he at least indirectly reminds the reader that incorporating the seven habits into one's life is an enormous amount of work.

Some of the stories are funny, some are quite sad, and they all demonstrate how the people who were challenged by life had to grow in some way. Living the seven habits is tough, and the reader cannot expect the world to play along, but trying is worth the effort, and the rewards from doing so can be more satisfying than a person ever imagined. I think the people that Covey wrote about in the book would agree.

In addition to about 300 pages of very readable, relevant stories about overcoming adversity and finding a better way of living, the book invites the reader to share stories that are similar to the ones in the book by writing the Franklin Covey Company. Covey also has a Q&A section at the back of the book which is insightful and fun to read. Altogether a very worthwhile book. econ

The audio is delivered in a monotone that almost puts you to sleep. Not a good thing while driving

This is real.

It's difficult to give enough praise to what Stephen R. Covey does. I love reading his books and almost anyone will benefit from browsing through the different stories about how people had the courage to face their problems and change by engaging in positive behavior. To state the obvious, 'Living the 7 Habits' is an inspiring read. I would urge a bit of caution, however, in that the laboratory of the real world may not cooperate much with a person living the seven habits. On the other hand, Covey never says it's easy and he at least indirectly reminds the reader that incorporating the seven habits into one's life is an enormous amount of work.

Some of the stories are funny, some are quite sad, and they all demonstrate how the people who were challenged by life had to grow in some way. Living the seven habits is tough, and the reader cannot expect the world to play along, but trying is worth the effort, and the rewards from doing so can be more satisfying than a person ever imagined. I think the people that Covey wrote about in the book would agree.

In addition to about 300 pages of very readable, relevant stories about overcoming adversity and finding a better way of living, the book invites the reader to share stories that are similar to the ones in the book by writing the Franklin Covey Company. Covey also has a Q&A section at the back of the book which is insightful and fun to read. Altogether a very worthwhile book. econ

I've been listening to Stephen Covey for years, and I think he's one of the wisest observers of the human spirit around.

While all of his programs are inspiring, Living the 7 Habits is probably the most moving - because it brings the 7 Habits to life, by showing how people have used them to change their lives for the better.

I was so moved hearing some of these stories, and even more moved when I realized that, thanks to Dr. Covey's wonderful guidance, I can bring the same wisdom and insight into my own life.

It's pretty clear that I was already familiar with the 7 Habits when I heard this, but you don't have to be - I recommend this as an excellent starting point for anybody who is encountering this way of living for the very first time, as well as for people like me who have heard and read a lot about it but can still use some help putting it to work on a day to day basis.

And what a generous program it is - nine compact discs long, but it doesn't even cost $30 ... even less with discounts!

Tinkering Toward Utopia is simply the best brief introduction to the history of educational reform in the US available. Anyone with a genuine interest in historical explanations of why grand schemes of school reform fail and why "crisis" is the way the US has tended to view its need for school reform, will be rewarded by this clearly written account. The book substitutes complex historical analysis for the usual simple-minded polemics of writing on education, but the authors do not weigh the book down with a lot of historical evidence and inpenetrable footnotes. I highly recommend this book for anyone who cares about the prospects of reforming public schools in the US.

Having read Tinkering Toward Utopia for one of my graduate classes in administration at the GSE at Rutgers, I would summarize that the book is excellent, but a little bit dated.

Tyack & Cuban present a well-done overview of the American educational system, from its beginnings in the early 20th century through the mid-1980's. Their theme, "tinkering toward utopia," is an interesting take on addressing school reform throughout the century and sheds light on the problems and pitfalls of "overpromising" and "hyperbole" that have existed--and continue to exist--in American education. Overall, the text is easy to read and is replete with well-developed examples.

My only caution is that although the ideas presented continue through and are valied in modern times, the examples and data contained in the work are, for lack of a better word, dated--11 years in public education, especially with 5+ of those years overshadowed by NCLB, is a long time of increased levels of accountability that are missing in what could be "a century (and a little more) of public school reform." One would hope that a revised edition be published in the near future with a chapter or two specifically devoted to those last 5 years of the 20th century and the transition into the 21st.

However, overall, the text is excellent and highly informative.

If you are looking for a general history of American public education, look elsewhere. However, if you are interested in an examination of *why* American education is the way it is, then this book is for you. Tyack and Cuban delve into questions that should concern anyone with an interest in educational reform, such as: What has driven our desire to change education? Why do some reforms work while others don't? Their examination of these questions alone is worth the read, and their style (concise and clear) makes the reading itself a pleasure.

Just as someone said below, "Good book for a report but not for pleasure reading".

The history of public school reform in the United States has been characterized by institutional inertia and myriad failed attempts at wholesale change. Although policy elites, educators, school pundits, and the lay public regularly disagree about why we have intractable schools, David Tyack and Larry Cuban, in Tinkering toward Utopia, argue that a careful and complete understanding of schools as institutions has long eluded those who attempt to effect change in schools. The authors also claim that incremental change in education is a natural and viable phenomenon, not a symbol of a failed system. By rendering these arguments through sociopolitical and historical lenses, they present a comprehensive take on the stagnancy of school reform.

Although the word tinkering can connote clumsiness or incompetence, the authors use it in an equivocal sense in order to argue that educational change for better or worse has been piecemeal, largely due to what they call the grammar of schooling. Radical reforms, such as merit-based teacher pay and open classrooms, have repeatedly failed to make a lasting impression on schools largely because they have attempted to alter the structural and behavioral regularities that are entrenched in the notion of what constitutes a "real school." The argument, although effective, is nothing new: Sarason's (1971) illustrative example of the "man from outer space" immediately comes to mind. However, Tyack and Cuban take this argument to another level by diagnosing many failed reform efforts as "too intramural" (p. 108), and incongruent with external forces (e.g., college admission requirements, labor market needs).

How the grammar of schooling was engendered and why it has remained seemingly immutable is the real thrust of the problem. Like good scholars, Tyack and Cuban do not ignore political dimensions. They soundly argue that despite the ostensible claim that centralized governance of schools by experts would forever "take the schools out of politics," technocratic control of schools actually had just the opposite effect in practice, for the act of devolving power to a single group has the word politics written all over it. Furthermore, the structural regularities that exist today (e.g., age-graded schools, egg-crate classrooms, departmentalized high schools) secured their places in the schooling schema long ago by first gaining the necessary political support, and then by demonstrating that they were efficient and easily replicable. Crystallized school traditions have essentially become the blinders that prevent the universe of alternatives to be considered.

Tyack and Cuban clearly expose their advocacy of the classroom teacher as a critical change agent. Their argument is lucid and point-blank: schools change reforms. "Once the schoolroom door was shut, most teachers retained considerable autonomy to instruct the children as they saw fit" (p. 115). Unsurprisingly, thwarted attempts to introduce change from the outside were typically ones which grossly misunderstood or failed to take into account teacher perspectives. The authors describe reforms as blueprints meant to be altered, not followed indiscriminately, and they buttress this notion with empirical evidence detailing how reforms have been tempered, marginalized, or even rejected by teachers. While careful to avoid the emotional arguments such as the oft-cited teacher-as-unsung-hero plea, they extend a clarion call to empowerment of those who work closer to the front-lines of education.

As a caveat, Tyack and Cuban caution readers not to judge the success of reforms by frequency, longevity, and even fidelity of implementation. Rather, those who understand the value of local differences and teacher concerns, and more importantly, that schools are simply not "wax to be imprinted" (p. 83) but rather highly dynamic and idiosyncratic institutions, will be best able to wield the elusive wand of change.

Haven't gotten a chance to read it yet. I glanced through it and it seems helpful in preparing my personal vision statement.

This book was bought for my neice. I already had it and believe me, after you read the first two chapters you know this book isn't just a lot of mumbo jumbo. Instead of giving you reasons why your life is messed up it actually helps you evaluate your life where it is at right now. You'll gain insight about your behaviors and how they affect your decisions. You'll understand how you invite people to treat you the way they do. It's not all roses but it's great information if you really want to make a change in how your life is going. There are so many "well, duh..that makes total sense!" moments in this book! It's a great read. I also have the workbook (which really is a WORK book).

Reading this book could be your first strategic move towards improving your life. Dr. Phil is really good in showing the readers how to make effective changes in their lives. At least you get a more realistic view on what works and what doesn't. It's all about getting to know you better and creating your own experiences. This is as powerful a book as Stephen Covey's "Seven Habits of highly effective people". If you like Dr. Phil's TV show, you'll also enjoy reading and benefiting from this thought provoking book.

Even though this book was written in 1999, I only came across it in 2005, and took my time to read it. It has been very helpful in identifying why I sometimes do what I do, and what I need to change. It is true that one size does not fit all, and that is why this book is written in a "coaching" manner of asking the right questions in the assignments so that we take time to reflect on these questions so as to gain a greater awareness of ourself.

Just by knowing the 10 Life Laws itself and the Strategy already highlights what we need to do with our lives:

Life Law #1 - You either get it, or you don't.
Strategy: Become one of those who gets it.

Life Law #2 - You create your own experience.
Strategy: Acknowledge and accept accountability for your life.

Life Law #3 - People do what works.
Strategy: Identify the payoffs that drive your behavior and that of others.

Life Law #4 - You cannot change what you do not acknowledge.
Strategy: Get real with yourself about your life and everybody in it.

Life Law #5 - Life rewards action.
Strategy: Make careful decisions and then pull the trigger.

Life Law #6 - There is no reality; only perception.
Strategy: Identify the filters through which you view the world.

Life Law #7 - Life is managed; it is not cured.
Strategy: Learn to take charge of your life.

Life Law #8 - We teach people how to treat us.
Strategy: Own, rather than complain, how people treat you.

Life Law #9 - There is power in forgiveness.
Strategy: Open your eyes to what anger and resentment are doing to you.

Life Law #10 - You have to name it before you can claim it.
Strategy: Get clear about what you want and take your turn.

It is important to read this book reflectively rather than critically. In a sense, there is nothing new under the sun, and the principles laid out in the book are not new, and used by counselors all over. Let this be healing to your bones, and do not rush through the assignments. It would also be good to have someone to go through it together, so that you can share with one another, like in group experience therapies.

Taking responsibility for one's actions is the theme of this book. Basic truths stand out in McGraw's ten principals. We are accountable for our own lives and create our own experiences. Find out what works, get real with yourself and what you want, make careful decisions. Our perception filters the world. Life's imperfections are managed, not cured; and we teach people how to treat us. Forgive and heal. The concept is empowering.
Trish New, author of The Thrill of Hope and South State Street Journal.

The book arrived on schedule and in good condition. You can't ask for anything else.

I'm a fresh MIT graduate, and found this book a fun and insightful read. Much like other reviewers, I think this book has a nicely balanced and realistic view of innovation, stemming probably from the authors' extensive experiences. After the ridiculous amount of innovation hype at MIT, this was like a breath of fresh air that put all of that into a proper context. The book considers *both* radical and incremental innovation, whereas all my other sources have pounded me with only radical innovation. Both have their place in business, and this book has down-to-earth advice about how managers can deal with them. It also helps me as an engineer to know how my work fits into the bigger picture.

So the general message and organization is good, but I give this book 3 stars because of the writing. The book is *full* of un-insightful one-liner anecdotes/examples, which dilute the message and make this a long and confusing book to read. It's difficult to get through it.

A random example: " [p. 233] ... Driving innovation into the business mentality requires learning and change. Dell learned what was important to succeed in its innovation strategy, and worked hard to ingrain the learning into the business mentality and culture."

That last sentence sounds ok, but really it adds nothing. In fact it's really distracting. Those anecdotes are taken entirely out of context and given no further support. In the end I don't understand anything that really went on in the minds of Dell, Apple, Nokia, etc. etc. etc. after reading a whole book's worth of those one-liners. Nothing in those anecdotes proves - heck, indicates - how exactly *that* strategy brought the company out of a problem or *caused* success. Tired (from reading those examples every two sentences) readers might believe the message, but critical ones will recognize it as over-simplified fluff.

This book just needs a new version. The authors need to radically cut down on the number of examples, and add in some exciting detail to the ones they keep. After I marked all the important parts in the book (about 1/4), the book is making a lot more sense on a second quick read. Now it's finally clear enough that I can critically think about what it's trying to say.

The term "Innovation" has been used so much in recent years that it's become cliche. Humans have been innovative for over 30,000 years, before the day of the first fire pit. People have always utilized innovation. But now it's is more vocally emphasized in the business realm because of ultra-competitive global market forces, and because we've reached the stage where technology enables change at a more rapid pace. "Innovation" is a Mantra. For lack of better words, creativity, adaptability, and innovation have always been vital. They've always been used by the successful: the winners; the victors. Innovation has always been mandatory. Survival: both literally and figuratively.

Authors Tony Davila, Marc Epstein, and Robert Shelton list 7 rules for innovation. This book uses matrices and tables to detail the different choices and the positives and negatives of choosing these various options. There are three types of innovation: 1) Incremental 2) semi-radical and 3) Radical.

Of the tons of information in this book, some things noted are the case study of the Coca-cola company and it's drop in sales, to Individual employee motivation in the "pay-performance relationship." Why do incentives for employees fail at times? Because they are overused. What can inhibit and actually kill creativity? "Fear, Failure, and Fairness" affect calculated risk taking by individuals, staff-teams, and entire companies. As for Radical Innovation, what is the motivation for radical innovations? That groundbreaking new idea, invention, product, vaccine, or piece of technology? Answer: intrinsic motivation.

One example of the types of innovation is a combination of them, such as in "Ersatz Radical Innovation." Ersatz is when a company (e.g. Apple) combines two forms of semi-radical change to create of successful product that changes an entire industry.

One case study enumerated how a company can focus too much on
innovation and lose site of the goal, such as in the case of Xerox PARC. The creative process must have the crucial ingredient that's equally vital: commercialization. It's a symbiotic relationship. Another very relevant issue discussed is the Outsourcing of Innovation. Which developments should be kept in-house? Which should be shared and outsourced? Innovation is so critical that it can't be outsourced entirely, so partial and selective outsourcing (sharing) is done under the proven concept of "partnering." Innovation is obviously borrowed, and oft-times today, it's outright stolen.

Perhaps a lot of this new focus on "creativity," and "innovation" and "adaptability," and "co-operation" is because of the recent rise of China, India, and other parts of the world. Game Theory's concepts are sprinkled about in this book because Game theory is an underlying and also an explicit element in economics, business, and calculated risk taking. Because of the theoretical and applicable strengths of
Game Theory we see innovation and adaptability + Game Theory.

This book deserves more attention. The writing style is
reader-friendly and keeps your interest. The authors provide
numerous case studies, stats, tables & figures, theory, and
practicality, and specific ways on how to survive and thrive in
today's world. Great book that more people should know about.

We recommend this book to everyone involved in innovation. Whether you're involved as a creative thinker, a promoter of new products, a manager guiding the innovation process or an investor evaluating an innovative company, there's gold here for you. Authors Tony Davila, Marc J. Epstein and Robert Shelton compress a mass of research and experience in innovation practices into a set of rules and guiding principles. Then, they use stories, lucid explanations, charts and careful definitions to illustrate how these principles work. A few of these concepts could have been expanded profitably - for example, how to tell in practice when radical innovation is needed, how to determine if you're innovating too much or too fast, and how to sort out the best ideas without discouraging the creators of the rejected concepts. That's the only caveat; everything else is fascinating and immediately applicable.

Many executives decide they want more innovation from their organizations . . . but aren't quite sure how to encourage that result. Relax. You can read and apply Making Innovation Work, and you'll do a lot better.

The authors clearly understand today's best practices in innovation both for breakthroughs and for on-going incremental improvements. They take what seems amorphous to many and make it as concrete as is desirable to do.

The basic approach entails helping readers to understand that the processes you use to innovate determine what kind and how much innovation you will accomplish. From there, the book focuses on how to use a process that permits all of the kinds of innovation to prosper that the company's strategy pursues.

While many such books exhort everyone to go for breakthroughs, Making Innovation Works also explains when it's appropriate to have a more defensive innovation strategy . . . but to stay in the game . . . rather than to fall behind by being too defensive.

For me, though, the book really hit its stride in chapter six where the appropriate measurements are described to identify how your innovation process is doing. The book became even more impressive in chapter seven where incentives for innovation are explained. Chapter eight on how to learn innovation is perhaps the most pivotal section in the book. Chapter nine on creating a supportive culture for innovation was also solid.

I was pleased to see that Making Innovation Work looks beyond just innovating products and processes. The book also addresses business model innovation, perhaps the most important subject for innovation.

The only weakness I found in the book came in describing business model innovation and how to pursue it. The authors have too narrow a view of what's involved in business model innovation. They need to become more familiar with the less frequently cited best practices in business model innovation. Although their bibliography on innovation is a marvelous one, I was surprised to see how thin it is on the subject of business model innovation.

Until a better overview of how to manage innovation comes along, Making Innovation Work will be the standard reference.