Finished December 13
The Power of Nice: how to conquer the business world with kindness written and read by Linda Kaplan Thaler and Robin Koval
The authors and the CEO and the president of Kaplan Thaler Group, one of the fastest-growing ad agencies in the US. They cite their own experiences as well as those of others to illustrate how being nice doesn't mean being walked on, but means being respectful and thoughtful of others. They talk about saying "yes" and how it doesn't always mean that you committ yourself to doing yet another thing, but that it can also mean helping those asking to find the right person that can help them. The examples given here are great at illustrating how the concept works, and the "nice-cubes" offered throughout give workable exercises to help you down the path of niceness.
The book encourages us to be more aware of how our behaviour affects others and to act in a way that we can respect in order to feel good about ourselves no matter what happens. I try to do this, but found ways to think about being nice that I can work harder at.
A great, thought-provoking read with insight and humour.
Showing posts with label Attitude. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Attitude. Show all posts
Monday, 13 December 2010
Thursday, 27 May 2010
Great Book for Success
Finished May 24
The Power of Pause: how to be more effective in a demanding, 24/7 world by Nance Guilmartin
This book has got to be one of the most insightful business books I've ever read. The advice given here is simple, they have a good plan to get you going, and I can see how it will really help.
I'm always looking for ways to communicate better, and be a better manager, and this book has got stuff I can take and work with right away. It will take practice (as she tells the reader) to make this stuff a habit, but I can see how you can get better at it.
Essentially, it is about not reacting to statements, actions, etc. right away, but taking a "pause" to think about what you don't know about the situation, the people involved, or the background, and asking yourself how to find out more about those things before reacting. The question to ask yourself is "What don't I know that I don't know" which sounds a bit Zen, but when you think about makes so much sense.
There are additional steps to this system involving rephrasing, seeing the big picture, and knowing your triggers that are also very sensible. This is some advice I can really work with.
The Power of Pause: how to be more effective in a demanding, 24/7 world by Nance Guilmartin
This book has got to be one of the most insightful business books I've ever read. The advice given here is simple, they have a good plan to get you going, and I can see how it will really help.
I'm always looking for ways to communicate better, and be a better manager, and this book has got stuff I can take and work with right away. It will take practice (as she tells the reader) to make this stuff a habit, but I can see how you can get better at it.
Essentially, it is about not reacting to statements, actions, etc. right away, but taking a "pause" to think about what you don't know about the situation, the people involved, or the background, and asking yourself how to find out more about those things before reacting. The question to ask yourself is "What don't I know that I don't know" which sounds a bit Zen, but when you think about makes so much sense.
There are additional steps to this system involving rephrasing, seeing the big picture, and knowing your triggers that are also very sensible. This is some advice I can really work with.
Wednesday, 16 September 2009
Great Business Book
Finished September 16
The No Complaining Rule: Positive Ways to Deal with Negativity at Work by Jon Gordon
This short but good book talks about ways to deal with negative energy and attitudes, not just in the workplace, but also in life in general.
Using a fictional situation, the book follows an HR director of a company dealing with problems that can be traced back to negative attitudes at work. The company must find a way of dealing with the current situation and ensuring that the employees engage in more positive actions and attitudes.
In her personal life the HR director, aptly named Hope, is also dealing with a long period of negative energy that has resulted in poor relationships with her family and an unhappy life.
She not only uses the tools she learns from an encounter in her personal life at work, but also with her family. She does her research as well and comes up with a plan to get rid of the energy-sapping complaining that goes on. By focusing on only those complaints that have real substance and looking at the solutions for those, she can ensure the employees at her company are engaging with each other in a more positive way.
The book provides tools and a website to assist with resources to help implement the ideas in the book in your own situation.
A useful tool for every manager's bookshelf.
The No Complaining Rule: Positive Ways to Deal with Negativity at Work by Jon Gordon
This short but good book talks about ways to deal with negative energy and attitudes, not just in the workplace, but also in life in general.
Using a fictional situation, the book follows an HR director of a company dealing with problems that can be traced back to negative attitudes at work. The company must find a way of dealing with the current situation and ensuring that the employees engage in more positive actions and attitudes.
In her personal life the HR director, aptly named Hope, is also dealing with a long period of negative energy that has resulted in poor relationships with her family and an unhappy life.
She not only uses the tools she learns from an encounter in her personal life at work, but also with her family. She does her research as well and comes up with a plan to get rid of the energy-sapping complaining that goes on. By focusing on only those complaints that have real substance and looking at the solutions for those, she can ensure the employees at her company are engaging with each other in a more positive way.
The book provides tools and a website to assist with resources to help implement the ideas in the book in your own situation.
A useful tool for every manager's bookshelf.
Saturday, 1 August 2009
A Way of Looking at Life
Finished July 28
The Joy of Appreciative Living: your 28-day plan to greater happiness in 3 incredibly easy steps by Jacqueline Kelm
I've actually had this book out of the library for a while, reading it slowly and had to break away from it at one point to think about what it was saying. I started doing the daily appreciations, got off track and am only now getting back on.
For me, this book was about attitude, that is maintaining a positive one. Many other authors have touched on the idea of a gratitude list, but this plan also includes weekly visioning and monthly assessments. Reflect not on what you don't like in your life, but on what you want more of. Just figuring that out might take you a while, and for me it is something I am still thinking about. This plan isn't hard to do, but you do have to commit a small amount of time daily to get real results out of it.
The Joy of Appreciative Living: your 28-day plan to greater happiness in 3 incredibly easy steps by Jacqueline Kelm
I've actually had this book out of the library for a while, reading it slowly and had to break away from it at one point to think about what it was saying. I started doing the daily appreciations, got off track and am only now getting back on.
For me, this book was about attitude, that is maintaining a positive one. Many other authors have touched on the idea of a gratitude list, but this plan also includes weekly visioning and monthly assessments. Reflect not on what you don't like in your life, but on what you want more of. Just figuring that out might take you a while, and for me it is something I am still thinking about. This plan isn't hard to do, but you do have to commit a small amount of time daily to get real results out of it.
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