Book Reviews
Getting Real
Getting Real by Susan Campbell was the first book I read when I started coaching school. Of the scores of self-help, psychology, neuroscience, coaching theory, and coaching practice books I have read since then, this one remains the most valuable. Every few...
A Guide to the Good Life
For many years now, a popular pathway to a better life—at least among the Western liberal set—has been Buddhism. Buddhism, which in its pure form, is secular—there is no deity--offers a complex and detailed pathway to reducing one’s suffering. Suffering, according to...
Coaching to the Human Soul: Volume 1
Coaching to the Human Soul, Volume 1 is the first of a four-volume exploration of ontological coaching. It is technical and written for coaches and those interested in the theoretical and professional application of ontological coaching. It is a tremendous...
The Last Word on Power
The Last Word on Power provides the essential core of ontological coaching. It is a difficult book—one full of jargon and non-intuitive concepts. It is easy to think you understand it until you try and put it into practice and discover that you don’t know how...
Fierce Conversations
Fierce Conversations is one of a small handful of books that I consistently recommend to my clients. This book is best suited to managers and leaders in profit and nonprofit organizations, but any person who lives and works with other humans—which is to say, all of...
Responsibility Rebellion
Ramsay provides a good overview of the current thinking about what makes for a happy, productive, and fulfilled life. He argues that to achieve a good life, one must develop personal mastery. Personal mastery requires that we learn how to manage our minds, challenge...
The Power of Vulnerability
Brené Brown’s TED talk is the story of everyone’s life path—whether you know it or not. For those who mourn the fact that life didn’t come with an operating manual, this short talk is your answer. Millions have watched her talk, and I have, at some point in my...
Feel the Fear. . .and Do it Anyway
Fear can stop you cold. It is maddening—because the fears that stop you will not draw blood or put you in the emergency room. Asking for a raise, giving a presentation, telling your spouse how you feel, returning a broken product, telling a direct report that...
The Evolution of Beauty
What is a book on evolutionary theory doing on a life coaching website? Or, how could this book possibly make a difference in your life? Well, it might not. But then again, it might. We, humans, tend to forget that we are biological creatures formed by several...
Personal Development (Self-Help) Book Reviews
There is an extraordinary number of self-help and personal development books written each year to help you lead a better life and be a better you. Some are pragmatic and how-to, others wise and insightful, and still others uplifting and inspiring. And some aren’t...
Atomic Habits, James Clear
Atomic Habits: Tiny Changes Remarkable Results; An easy and proven way to build good habits and break bad ones. James Clear. Random House Business Books (2018) I read Atomic Habits, James Clear’s book on how to break bad habits and create new ones, out of...
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