Tag: advice

advice, business

Pacing for Growth

SerendipityMarie

Pacing for Growth: Why Intelligent Restraint Drives Long-Term Success is a business leadership advice book from a woman with 3 decades of business consulting experience. It presents the benefits of and provides learning strategies for, what it terms, the “intelligent restraint” model. The well-written, easily consumed prose of Alison Eyring makes it worth a read, whether you run a team, business, or are just curious about your own personal growth.

Her advice model is based on evidence-driven methods culled from years long studies with a variety of companies. But it shines most in readability through the use of Eyring’s own endurance running journey as a metaphor throughout. It excels over similar business and leadership books in its clear use of a strong research design and execution for developing the strategies it presents.

The model of “intelligent restraint” is built on an understanding of one’s own capacity and capabilities and leveraging both through exertion and restraint. This particular delivery of the model is laid out with a combination of personal experience, relevant company stories, bullet summaries, and self-reflection questions and exercises. It is ideal for both a corporate or organizational training. It could also be perfect for a book club focused on leadership or self-help books.

The model described is clearly one that could be fleshed out even more beautifully in a longer, more novel-like approach. However, this 180 page version works well.

I received my copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

advice, Non-Fiction

You Can Jump If You Want To

SerendipityMarie

Watching my niece’s gymnastics competition – I use the term “competition” loosely considering I changed her diaper less than 3 years ago – I’m struck by the difference in the little girls’ faces as they jump from the balance beam. They are all the same age. They all have has similar classes. Yet, there is a hesitation and almost fear on the faces of some, while others leap without much of a glance at the ground. I was reminded of these girls while reading “When to Jump” by Mike Lewis.

Lewis has built a sincere compilation of both his own career change and the stories of over 40 other individuals who take that step into the unsure world of a new career. He organizes it in a way that lays out how to plan one’s own career move. The variety of starting points and landing points is vast. Each individual’s story is short and to the point, making this an easy to read and widely applicable volume. If you are considering a career change and want a way to organize the chaos that decision may bring there is plenty here you will find useful.

The only flaw to this collection is the sampling bias for the stories. Like many business or self-help books of it’s kind, the advice is taken from individuals who succeeded in the observed changed. There isn’t a separate sample of individuals who did the same or similar and wished they hadn’t or had to go back to their old ways even if they wished they didn’t. I raise this critique simply to say the book offers great encouragement for those who want to plan a “jump.” But it does little to remind readers of the adage wherever you go, there you are.” Like many of the 40+ individuals detailed in the collection and the girls who leaped headstrong into their gymnastics dismount, who you are will determine a lot about how you view your landing.

I whole-heartedly recommend this volume to anyone considering a career jump. It certainly provides a well-considered path to doing that jump wisely.

I received an advanced copy of this book through a LibraryThing giveaway. A copy of this review is available on Amazon (once the book is available for Sale), Goodreads, and LibraryThing. The copy I reviewed has been placed in a little free library for others to enjoy.