BizBook Nuggets

Coaching Is for Everyone: New Book by Terri Levine

I've known Terri Levine for years; she's one of the most successful life coaches around, as well as being prolific in her work. Besides this new book being released May 1 (buy it then and get the superb bonuses), she's published 9 other books.

Coaching Is for Everyone: Learn How to Be Your Own Coach at Any Age
by Terri Levine

"To manifest your fullest ability and become a great self-creator, you need a superstar coach. Terri's the coach of coaches, who teaches coaching from the highest point of view with the most insight, knowledge and wisdom. Reach & drink deeply of her wisdom. Then go out and become a great coach, also." -- Mark Victor Hansen, Co-creator, #1 New York Times best selling series "Chicken Soup for the Soul"

In her new book Coaching is for Everyone, Terri helps people evaluate their strengths and weaknesses identifying old patterns of behavior and replacing them with techniques that will help them live happier more fulfilling lives.

"Whether you want to improve your relationships, lose weight or increase your productivity at work, you're never too old to learn how to turn your life around", says Levine.

Levine is one of the country’s top certified professional life coaches.  In Coaching is for Everyone Terri Levine shares:

The Milkshake Moment by Steven S. Little

The Milkshake Moment: Overcoming Stupid Systems, Pointless Policies and Muddled Management to Realize Real Growth by Steven S. Little

The story I’m about to tell you is true.

A few years ago I traveled to Baltimore, Maryland, for a speaking engagement.  Anyone who travels for business knows that it is hardly glamorous. After 9/11, however, it became even more frustrating, and it keeps getting worse.

I don’t think I’d be overstating it to say that business travel today is horrific: irretrievably lost luggage, annoying security searches, perpetually oversold flights, infuriating rental car policies, frazzled counter staff . . . I think you get the picture.

Despite all the traumas of travel, I decided a few years ago to always keep a smile on my face. The way I look at it: if the business travel industry gets the best of me, they win and I lose. I just can’t allow that to happen.

I keep a smile on my face by keeping my eye on a prize. My prize at the end of every business travel day is a vanilla milkshake . . . a thick, gooey, luscious, indulgent vanilla milkshake. I’m talking a hand-dipped, old-fashioned, malt-shoppy kind of milkshake. I don’t just like ’em; I love ’em. Both my career and my mental well-being literally depend on them. The image of that milkshake is the proverbial dangling carrot that gets me through even the worst travel day.

Groundswell, by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff

There's an interesting interview on Lee Odden's Online Marketing blog with Charlene Li, vice-president of Forrester Research about her new book written with Josh Bernoff, Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies

Companies worldwide are trying their best to make sense of the emerging landscape of social technologies and the new book Groundswell does a fantastic job at just that.

We met Charlene at BlogHer Conference last year, and she's one of the most knowledgeable experts on blogging and social technology research. In her interview with Lee, she mentions several CEO blogs that are well done, and some of the problems inherent in executive blogging.

Read the interview, and buy the book, if you want to understand what's coming next for using social technologies for marketing large and small.

5 Keys for Life and Career Success

Straight Talk for Success: Common Sense Ideas that Won't Let You Down, by Bud Bilanich

April 22 is the launch day for this new book full of common sense advice for successful living. Buy this book on April 22 and you'll receive many bonuses listed here. Here's what Bud says about his book and its message:

If you’re like most people, you want to build a successful life and career but you’re not sure exactly how to go about it.  My new book, Straight Talk for Success, can change all of that.

I am an executive coach, keynote speaker, leadership consultant and author who has spent the years studying what it takes to succeed in your life and career. I have found that successful people share five traits in common. 

1. Successful people are self confident.
   2. Successful people have positive personal impact.
  3. Successful people are outstanding performers.
   4. Successful people are excellent communicators.
  5. Successful people are interpersonally competent.

Rules for Renegades by Christine Comoford-Lynch

This book rocks. I knew it was going to be part autobiographical, part business, part career-oriented. After all, the sub-title reads, "How to make more money, rock your career, and revel in your individuality." I didn't know it was going to be so profound.

I'd never heard of the author, Christine Comoford-Lynch, before I picked up the book. And I wasn't sure that this wasn't a kind of "look-at-me-ain't-I-wonderful" story. But the book more than delivers quality stories and life lessons. Comoford-Lynch is a real authentic "player" in a man's world of venture capital and high-tech.

I'll admit I was attracted to the book for the title - and I'm probably not the only one. Who among us doesn't feel they too are a rebel? (Even while we sip our Starbuck's...) Especially those of us who have forged our own paths into self-employment at home on the Internet...

But this woman - well, she went from high-school drop out, to monk, to being one of the few women to work at Microsoft in the early days, to multimillionaire. Christine Comaford-Lynch dated Bill Gates, Larry Ellison and other powerful figures, and she also faced humiliation by association with a con-artist guru.

Rules for Renegades is full of life lessons including some excellent ideas for networking and facing rejection. Read it for fun, for business tips, for personal development. But be sure to read it. I loved it.

egonomics: by David Marcum & Steven Smith

Have you seen first hand how ego gets in the way of performance, results, and good decisions?

You're not alone. For the first time, a couple of consultants have measured the costs of ego to the bottom line.

David Marcum and Steven Smith have just published egonomics: What Makes Ego Our Greatest Asset (or Most Expensive Liability), Fireside, (2007).

I love the name egonomics - what great branding by combining ego (notice the small "e"...) with economics, a trend started with the book Freakonomics.

If you're a coach or consultant working with organizations, you've seen the detrimental affects of ego.

Branding Books: What you need to know to get known

Recently Denise and I (The Blog Squadtm) did some research for a workshop on Branding and Blogging. I'd like to share some books on branding you'll want to read. Even if you already have a name for your business, it's never too late to find a good/better/best name for your information products and programs.

Here's a list of our favorites:

POP! Stand Out in Any Crowd, by Sam Horn (I love this book!)

The Anatomy of Buzz: How to Create Word of Mouth Marketing, by Emanuel Rosen

Hot Button Marketing: Push the Emotional Buttons That Get People to Buy, by Barry Feig

The Elements of Persuasion: Use Storytelling to Pitch Better, Sell Faster & Win More Business, by Richard Maxwell & Robert Dickman

Waiting for Your Cat to Bark?: Persuading Customers When They Ignore Marketing, by Bryan & Jeffrey Eisenberg

Career Distinction: Stand Out by Building Your Brand, by William Arruda and Kirsten Dixson (listen to our interview with William Arruda)

Get Slightly Famous: Become a Celebrity in Your Field and Attract More Business with Less Effort, by Steven Van Yoder

Any other branding/marketing books you'd like to add?

Wharton Economic Summit Promises Business Discussions on '07 Challenges

For all you executive coaches and consultants, here's a conference which sounds interesting for top quality business information:

The Wharton Economic Summit in Philadelphia April 12 & 13 will feature 70 Speakers to discuss Economic Challenges in ‘07. If you're interested, pre-registration is open until April 8th online at http://www.wharton.upenn.edu/alumni/wharton125/events/finale/phila-registration.cfm

Goldsmith: What Got You Here Reviewed Briefly

If you are an executive coach or a consultant, you're familiar with the books, articles, and prolific work of Marshall Goldsmith. And there's a reason. In my view, he is quickly becoming this century's leadership development expert, with a stature reminiscent of Peter Drucker.

But I gush. If you've heard Goldsmith present at a conference, you'll recognize some of his stories and humor in his books. He is down-to-earth, funny, clear and authentic. I won't go on and on; this is after all a blog post, so here's my point:

Buy and read Goldsmith's latest book, What Got You Here Won't Get You There (Hyperion, 2007).

It doesn't matter if you work in a different field or you're not an executive. If you have a pulse, you will recognize yourself as participating in at least one of his "20 Habits That Hold You Back from the Top (p. 40)."

Goldsmith has an uncanny ability to recognize the challenges of interpersonal behavior, often leadership behavior. They are egregious everyday annoyances, that on the surface, appear to be normal; some of them even contribute to our success in getting ahead. But in the long run, they make the workplace more noxious than it needs to be.

And these bad habits, at higher levels of responsibility, will actually deter us from having continued success.

If you want to learn more about these bad habits and what you can do about them, order the book today on Amazon. I'm making it easy for you to order by including the link here, yes, right here; and yes, it includes my affiliate link so that I can profit greatly, at least a few pennies. But you will be far, far richer after reading the book and applying a few steps.

P.S. If you are working in the field of executive coaching or consulting and need material for your ezine, you can purchase an article based on Goldsmith's principles of coaching and other research about bad bosses here from www.CustomizedNewsletterArticles.com:
Good Boss, Bad Boss: 20 Bad Habits Leaders Should Stop Doing Now.

Why I Haven't Posted Recently

It's not that I don't continue to read 2-3 business books a month; I still do. But I've stopped posting regularly on this blog, in favor of two of my other blogs: CoachEzines.com and Build a Better Blog.

It's gotten to be too much with the 10 blogs total that Denise and I write on as The Blog Squad.

I also want to direct readers to the blog 800-CEO-Read. They have a regularly updated blog about what the savvy business person is reading, authored by several great writers. When somebody else does a better job than you do, I say, refer and outsource!