Resources Books

Great tips and ideas for motivating others, especially in the business world. Some of them include, "Know Where Motivation Comes From, Teach Self-Discipline, Stop Criticizing Upper Management, Keep Giving Feedback, Get Input from your People, Accelerate Change, Don't Confuse Stressing Out With Caring, Manage Your Own Superiors, and Manage Agreements, Not People." If you want to become a great leader, I highly recommend this book.

I've listened to these CD's more than once while driving. There are lots of great tips - and a couple opened my eyes to some areas where I had been stuck. Not every point was new to me. I have recommended it to others and shared some of the individual points with friends.

Steve Chandler drives home the keys to becoming a great leader in a way that is easy to understand and implement. This should be required reading for anyone in a leadership role. David Otis Author of "Walk Fast, Talk Loud and Smile."

If you are a reader on leadership, Steve Chandler is not stranger to you. In "100 ways to motivate others:", he condenses several years worth of work into a handbook for the new generation of leader.
Do not be confused by the fact that the book is not large. Steve has crammed years worth of fundamental truths about motivation and management into a compact tome.
The hardest part of using these techniques is making the initial leap of faith that these steps actually work. And they do work. If you buy a book on motivation or leadership this year, it must be this book.

Steve Chandler and Scott Richardson are no strangers to helping people become better leaders - these tips are the result of many seminars and books they have done in the past. The book is able to give many real life examples from those seminars of situations in which these suggestions really made a difference.

While other management books drone on and on for long chapters, often losing sight of the aim, this book is very straightforward. 100 separate tips. Each tip is short, concise, but immediately useful. Try reading just one tip each day. Put a post-it on your monitor, reminding you to think about it. Find ways to apply it. Like anything else in life, you'll find some tips that don't really apply to you - but others that are amazingly helpful. As you collect those helpful tips, you can really find your work environment becoming more and more smooth.

Many things in here are things you know - but you never practice because you're just too busy or frustrated. For example, the book says to focus on one thing at a time. We know that when you focus on something, you tend to do well. But in modern offices, you have your email beeping, your phone ringing, people stopping by, and more. You try to multitask. Usually this somehow gives you the sense that you're achieving more - but in reality nothing is done as well, and people that you interact with feel short changed. A key message here is to slow down, focus, organize your priority list and really take care of issues. You feel much more relaxed at the end of the day, the people you work with feel like you really paid attention to their issues, and often you get far more done.

One issue I had with the book is they gloss over some issues. In a few tips on time management, for example, they talk about how everybody in the world only has 24 hours in a day and it's silly to complain you don't have enough time for your workload. I'm not sure what THEIR workload is like, but at my job, there honestly is NOT enough time in a given day to do all the tasks I need to do. In essence I need to find more people to help me, and to take on some of those tasks so I actually have a good match between what needs to be done and how many hours I can stay awake. It would have been nice if they'd talked about that, vs making it seem like this couldn't be a problem.

That being said, the book really does have quite a number of gems in it, and is well worth reading multiple times.

It has been said there are three approaches to dealing with mistakes: Dumb people make mistakes and do not learn from their mistakes; smart people learn from their mistakes, and really smart people learn from the mistakes of others.

Dr. Deryl Leaming provides that third approach in a way. This is not to say he made mistakes in his many years as a college administrator, but his excellent book does provide the reader the opportunity to learn from his significant experience.

He has been there, done that, so to speak, when it comes to leadership in heading a program.

His latest work deals with all the key aspects of being a university department chairperson -- legal issues, faculty matters from hiring effective faculty to dealing with faculty problems, and student matters.

Through the tips in his book he provides experience-based advice that can be of significant benefit to the new or even veteran department head.
He has been a university professor, department chairperson, director of a school of journalism and dean of liberal arts. The reader of this second edition of his academic leadership book can learn from his experience to avoid mistakes in leading a department.

He covers a great deal of advice on procedures, including a number of forms that will be useful.

This second edition is a good read and provides practical advice, particularly for the new department chairperson.

REVIEWER: Ralph J. Turner, Ph.D., professor emeritus, Marshall University
lph J. Turner, Ph.D., professor emeritus, Marshall University

This second edition of Academic Leadership: A Practical Guide to Chairing the Department is an extraordinarily comprehensive treatment of ways to address the variety of challenges facing department chairpersons in institutions from all types and sectors of higher education. The author, Deryl Leaming, provides an inviting and accessible style of writing that joins abundant references from relevant authorities with occasional episodes from his personal experience of several decades as chair and dean at some four different institutions. The result is a preeminently practical primer that will give new department chairs a valuable roadmap to success in a notoriously difficult position. It is excellent reading for those contemplating serving as a department chairperson or other academic leader. The volume is so comprehensive that even experienced chairpersons will find the book to provide a helpful review of ways to meet their responsibilities and challenges.

This new volume is almost twice as long as its predecessor, offering an expanded treatment of issues raised in the first edition and reflecting more emphasis upon the complexities of today's financial realities. Major sections deal with common concerns about leadership, handling matters of department vision and management, addressing legal issues, contending with a large variety of faculty and student matters, as well as attending to one's own career. The 30 chapters are compact and quite accessible. All are useful and contain lists of web and print resources. I particularly appreciated the units on sexual harassment and the implications of the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as the one on dealing with chronic low achievers. Some 17 appendices provide helpful examples of different policy guidelines and methods of communication.

Anker Publishing has a large variety of often-expensive volumes for academic leaders. Some overlap and others lack originality or comprehensiveness. By contrast, this is a stand-out value that will set a standard for some time to come.

Dr. Leaming is truely a gifted writer and instructor. He has given more to his students than some are capable of comprehending. The books he has written and his experiences throughout his life make him a special gift to all who read his work or get to know him. He is an extremely precious gift to his students. He goes out of his way to encourage and teach his students. He makes sure his students are preparing for life within their current level,but more importantly,for their future endeavors. A gifted person who only wants to share what he knows in the hopes of helping others.

I wish the dean had given me this book a year ago. It would have made my life much easier. The book is easy to read and has solid ideas on how to be a more effective chairperson.

If only I could get some of the administrators of my university to read the book!

I am not only new to academic leadership, but I am new to this country. Deryl Leaming's book has served as an enlightening guide for me, and has helped me earn the assistance and respect of my faculty. This book is among the best investments I have made in my academic career. Thank you.

This book is clear, concise and easy to follow, whether you are starting from nothing or you are bringing your current policies and procedures up to standard. This book is the second book in the series and should be used with "Establishng a System of Policies and Procures". It takes you through the steps of bringing your policies and procedures into compliance and into the Process and Procedure Improvement Cycle, based on Deming's PCDA cycle. This is a must read for the procedures analyst and for the CEO who believe in continual improvement.

For optimal result buy the set of 4 books:
1. Establishing a System of Policies and Procedures
2. Achieving 100$ Compliance of Policies and Procedures
3. 7 Steps to better Written Policies and Procedures
4. Best Practices in Policies and Procedures

You will not be disappointed. This set is well worth your time and money.

I bought and used all four of Stephen Page's policy and procedure books. From the very first day, I was able to get up and running on a project that was very demanding and challenging. Not only did he provide examples, but he was always there for advice when I hit a rough spot.

I HIGHLY recommend these books!

Dana Rosenboom

Of the three books that the author has published on policies and procedures this one is a masterpiece, and is essential to anyone who works for a company that employ TQM, ISO 9000 or FDA GMP.

Where his first book, Establishing a System of Policies and Procedures, provides a roadmap for new policy writers, this book takes the subject to a much higher level by providing a process that encompasses communications and training strategies, a compliance plan, and continuous improvement. These align seamlessly with ISO 9000, as well as FDA GMPs, and is consistent with the TQM Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle. In addition, the self-assessment and auditing approaches set forth will assure policies and procedures that reflect a mature organization that is focused on quality and continuous improvement.

Among the highlights of the book are the numerous checklists, real-life examples, and an underlying strategy for the development of a comprehensive and complete system of policies and procedures, and a means to assure compliance. I particularly liked Appendix C, Cost of Quality, and the succinct description of tools and techniques in chapter 11.

Another strong point is the complexities of marrying policies and procedures writing with a continuous improvement cycle and auditing are handled in a structured, logical sequence. This is no small feat for a writer, and it is one of the reasons this book is so valuable. This book sets a standard in the field and is one that I'll always recommend to colleagues and clients.

I was impressed with the amount of useful information included in this book; everything seems to have been well thought out. It would appear that the author has "lived" his words and this is what makes this make book so useful to me. Because I know that when I implement his ideas that they will probably work. His case study is also very meaningful as he very carefully explains how to go from a labor-intensive procedure and go through process improvement, metrics, and arrive at a streamlined, high cost saving, new procedure.

I have bought all four of his books on procedures and this book is what makes it all worthwhile. Though I found that each book is unique in its own way and that you really need all four to write a good system of policies and procedures.

I would definitely recommend this book. He has a 40-step plan of action at the front of the book that gives you an A to Z approach to the development of any policy or procedure or process. I have printed this list and I keep it tacked on my walls.

Jim T. Armstrong

Of Steve Page's 4 recent books, I found this one to be the most interesting. It contains all kinds of ideas for projects.

A communication strategy is obviously Steve's speciality. He knows how to use the various methods to the most advantage.

His idea for a compliance plan is a clever take-off on process control plans. He also adapts other quality tools, such as scatter and pareto diagrams to use with documentation. However, you would need another book for more details on the tools themselves.

Auditing is another of Steve's specialties which he shares with his readers.

I wish he had gone into more detail on determining the cost of documentation. He no doubt knows how to calculate it, as best as one can. He gives a detailed example on how a new (purchasing) procedure saved a company money, but not enough on the cost of producing the document itself.

I would definitely recommend this book to all who work with ISO 9000 compliance.

I have purchsed many copies of this delightful book for grandchildren and others. I have read it to first through fourth graders in our neighborhood elementary school who loved it also. Older children and adults appreciate all the double entendres in Deedy's stories.Illustrations are great,too.

I'm so glad a friend of mine recommended this book and that Amazon had a copy. I bought one for my new little niece. I only wish I had this book when I was a child. I would have read it again and again.

I've used this book in the classroom and have found students telling me when we've discovered where something comes from it's just like in Agatha's Featherbed. The book is remembered and students love the story. The ending comes as a wonderful surprise. What a wonderful modern day O'Henry adaptation for the Gift of the Magi. This book could be used for comparison to the O'Henry story. I read this book with my students year after year and each time I enjoy it a little more. It is too bad it is out of print. I think it's a remarkable book full of humor. It spurs students to inquire about where things come from. The author should know she's made an impression on me as well as my students. Thank you Ms. Deedy. The illustrations rank as a Caldecott. Thank you Ms. Seeley.

I love, love, love this book. I love to read it to children. I love to read it myself! I have given at least six of them as baby shower gifts and have just ordered another one to give. Children love it for its fun story; but,as they get older, they keep liking it on different levels--just for its beautiful illustrations alone, for its word play (which they understand more and more of as they progress so there is always some "new in it", for the side pictures that teach us where things come from, and so much more. As an adult, I never get tired of reading it as I do so many other children's books -- even good ones -- that I feel like I could recite in my sleep. If you were allowed to give 10 stars, I would give this book that many! I cannot say enough for it. Sadly, it is usually not available in bookstores anymore...BUT, Amazon has it!

If everything comes from something, where do the feathers in a feather bed come from? This dilemma (or rather the dilemma of six naked geese) confronts Agatha as she snuggles down for the first time in her brand new feather bed. The geese whose feathers she's sleeping on are not happy with the current state of events, and tell Agatha so. Seeing the justice of the geese's complaints, Agatha makes the geese warm, fluffy white coats to wear until their feathers grow back.

This story loses much of its charm in a summary. The best part of the story is the idioms it uses. Agatha is a spinner and a storyteller: "She can spin a yarn better than anyone I know". That quote is just one of the many examples of the common phrases that take on a new meaning when talking to geese. That is what makes this book so special. Other than that, the story is told well; it flows nicely and is easy to read out loud.

The illustrations are beautiful, but different. They abound with detail, and on each page is a box with a picture of a raw material, and what it is made into. (Cotton boll, cotton. Dinosaurs, fossil fuel.) The pictures are very expressive, very detailed, beautiful, and fun. A great story.

Loggie-log-log-log

Workers these days are like snow shovels in a South Carolina blizzard - not enough to go around. Some of the causes are simple statistics: economy up, unemployment down, working-age population falling, employers' demand outstripping supply. But others are cultural. Large corporations, the traditional source of jobs, are often perceived as uncaring engines of depletion, exhaustion, and downsizing. The young are choosing options, from lifestyle to stock, while workplace veterans opt for the dignity of early retirement over the desolation of forced termination. Employers' alternatives are stark: expand their supply, increase their appeal, or prepare for shortfalls and belt-tightening. Recruitment, retention, recession - remorse.

Were companies to examine their own assumptions on hiring and firing, they would find a pervasive and self-destructive premise: old is bad. But as Beverly Goldberg argues in _Age Works_, employers - indeed, society as a whole - have built this premise on an ill-considered, ill-defined congeries of prejudices and presuppositions. Believe it or not, Americans age 55 and above take fewer sick days, adapt to new technologies successfully, and are more loyal to their employer than are their colleagues thirty years younger. And perhaps more importantly, they may be the only untapped workforce available. As hidebound organizations throw fortunes at untested youth, others more far-seeing (including Travelers, GTE, and Baxter Health Care) actively recruit, train, and depend upon senior workers. In a shrinking labor market, corporations and their HR departments may find a surprising competitive advantage in coaxing older employees away from the brink of an often sterile and impoverished retirement.

Eager to dismiss this challenge to their standard practices, naysayers and doomsayers will demand proof. Fortunately _Age Works_ reads more like a position paper than a business book, and like any good position paper, it's loaded with facts. Age Works is the ideal volume for anyone itching for a statistical analysis of the American workforce 1950-2050, in all its hues and strata. Arguably Goldberg's love of statistics verges on addiction, but in the pharmacy of authorial dependence, statistics are a pretty benign habit. More distracting, although again less than fatal, is the book's policy-wonk style. Goldberg stands foursquare in the school of tell-`em-what-you're-going-to-tell-`em, tell-`em-, tell-`em-what-you-told-`em, and _Age Works_ sometimes reads like an executive summary that cannot bear to end.

Nonetheless, _Age Works_ is a cogent, serious, undeniably well-supported piece. Even those who resist the proposed solutions (admittedly the book's weakest section) will find the diagnosis difficult to dispute. Like it or not, America's workforce will continue to grow smaller and grayer over the next twenty years. And by the time the population bounces back, corporations' hiring practices will have appealed to all ages - or to none.

I read Age Works with great interest since I have been involved with this problem for 25 years and have recently published a web site exclusively for older workers. It is a free non- profit referral service. Go to seniorjobbank.org

For a decade we've heard a steady chorus of despair about the graying of America--that graying means paying, in the words of one leading credit. Beverly Goldberg, in this carefully researched, tightly argued, fluidly written, and ultimately extremely important book, shows us a different path. She demonstrates that older Americans are a potential boon to the economy and to the bottom line of forward thinking companies. She shows that they are a group that brings considerable experience and great stability to those that will make use of their talents. And she supplies a roadmap for how we can get there--as indivuals, as companies, and as a society. A great read and a great contribution to the growing body of literature about navigating what may well be the great demographic transition in our country's history, the aging of America.

Since the idea of totally retiring is not something that appeals to me, I found the suggestions for building different kinds of flexible work arrangements very thought-provoking. The numbers in the first couple of chapters will help build a compelling case for allowing those who want such arrangements to have them. I also found the stories of those who wanted out fascinating-they are an indictment of companies for the ways they handled downsizing and mergers. It clearly is time for all businesses to rethink their dealings with the people who work for them and to reconsider the value of older workers.

If managers think they have problems attracting and retaining human capital in today's economy, they haven't seen anything yet. Get set for the massive wave of retirements over the next ten (10) years. Beverly Goldberg conveys a compelling picture of why managers need to learn the value of recognizing, retraining, and retaining older workers. Age Works is a wakeup call to those caught up in the wastefulness of our "throw away" society. Older workers are a precious resource that can ill afford to be squandered. Ms. Goldberg demonstrates a better path and presents concrete ways for managers to benefit from the graying of America.

The Alphatales Library is a great tool for introducing letters to young children. Each book has extra ideas for parents and/or teachers, a practical page that asks to find items beginning with the letter, and a cheer for each letter as a way to review with energy and enthusiasm.

I teach students with various levels of social and cognitive skills. Alpha Tales stimulate and educate all! Alpha Tales and the suggested lesson guides printed on the back inside cover of each book benefit children of diverse learning styles. C. Hodgins

I bought this set for my preschool/kindergarten class to help them learn their ABC's. These books have short stories filled with fun characters which keep the audience entertained. The large pictures on each page make it easy for students to see them during story time. Even my own 6 year old daughter, who ALREADY knows the alphabet, enjoys reading these books.

If you are trying to teach kids the alphabet this is a fun way. They actually do have a seperate book for each letter. Some alphabet series combine some of the letters at the end, because they are more difficult to write about, but these have actually achieved what so many before have failed at, they make complete stories about even the most difficult letters (for example - X) and it is still fun. It doesn't seem like a stretch. I also love these because they read like any other story, not like something educational. This way it doesn't bore children. My daughter really likes them and she thinks they're funny. I always let her be my critic because she has a very short attention span and gets bored very easily.

I'm an intermediate elementary school teacher...I bought these books for my son, when he was three. He loved them so much that I also bought them on cd. He would fall asleep at night listening to these stories...I think he memorized them at first, but he was really reading by 4. In nursery school, and now in kindergarten, I send in the book which corresponds to whatever letter of the alphabet his class is learning. His teachers love them too. I also bought the handwriting book that goes with the series, but that seems more difficult, or for older children than the books themselves.

A well written, easy to read, empowering text affirming the Christian's authority in prayer, stressing the believer's ability to utilize the power, which is indwelling through the Holy Spirit of God, in overcoming any adversity in life.

This book shares a concept in prayer that is badly needed in the body of Christ today. The average Christian does not realize the authority and power that is our's through Jesus' name. This information put into practice will turn prayer wimps into prayer warriors.

Learned a lot about praying with authority and the importance of daily praying for ourselves, our families and our country.

This is the best book on prayer I have ever read.

Scripturally based, Prophetically Decreed, of a God Ordained Ministry. Good for the Soul, the Mind, and the Heart. Learn from a teacher of a
"Five-Fold Ministry." - Believe and Receive -

A Good Read for one searching for more of Jesus Christ and a learning tool for one being raised into more knowledge in the Spirit of The Lord of Hosts.

There's a Supernatural element to be released by Praying in and with the Authority given by the Blood of Jesus. The Power of God can overcome all forces through the hands, feet, and mouth of the Believer, in The Name of Jesus. He has given us that Authority. Read how God directs His Apostles, Prophets, and all Priest-hood believer's in decrees with that Authority!

An Excellent Book for the Warrior of God, for the Gap-Stander, for the Mid-night Prayer Warrior. The Sword will come alive in you after you embrace this message.

In His Service

Breakaway is a refreshing, common sense book that provides fresh, new ideas about performance improvement, and the value of employees. This book describes how important a competitive edge is in today's market place, and provides the tools to help you succeed!

Breakaway lives up to its promise (and premise) of delivering value and expertise fast and clean. No-nonsense, practical, with suggestions of surgical precision to guide organizational transformations.

Don A. Johnson
Principal,
The Clarity Group, Inc.

Breakway was clearly written by an author who has been in the trenches, growing a company and working with people. From its elegant organization to its intuitive set of theories Breakaway reinforces what we all know to be true - that a principled approach to business will achieve the best results. This book should be on every business person's must-read list.

Breakaway is a must-read book for anyone in the corporate world who has responsibility for human resources, employee development, sales and marketing management, and for top corporate executives.

The main theme of the book is that in order to break away from the competition in today's ever-changing economy, an organization must effectively develop employees to deliver value to the customer faster than the competition does. After analyzing how organizations currently train employees and the deficiencies associated with this type of training, Fred goes on to define a new method for bringing employees to proficiency faster and more successfully than traditional training methods.

The first several chapters of the book document a new model for human performance and the three rules for accomplishing peak performance. The first rule - Establish a proficiency threshold - describes how to determine the point at which an employee is equipped to deliver the promised value to customers quickly. Fred clearly describes the questions that managers must ask in order to define the proficiency threshold and discusses the relationship of the proficiency threshold and the value chain.

The second rule - Accelerate the accumulation of experience - includes a discussion of how people really learn, describes the four phases of learning, discusses how traditional training methods leave the accumulation of experience to chance, and how to manage the accumulation of learning. Using an example of training copper splicers to become fiber optic cable splicers, Fred demonstrates how to successfully manage the accumulation of experience in relation to training.

The third rule - Measure the cycle time to threshold proficiency - describes the metrics used to measure the how fast an employee can be trained to arrive at the proficiency threshold. Fred goes into some detail on how to measure the overall proficiency of the organization, and redefines the learning curve as the proficiency curve.

In the last half of the book, Fred describes how to "put it all together". Recognizing that no two companies are the same, Fred compares and contrasts the styles of two very different companies. What emerges is that there is no set of rules for achieving organizational proficiency, rather there are a set of key concepts that managers must be aware of in designing fast, effective, successful development programs.

In summary, this book is very readable, indeed it is designed "...for the business leader, to be read in the time it takes to fly from Chicago to San Francisco or Denver to Miami." True to one of the key concepts, the book is clear, concise and to the point.

About the author:
Charles L. Fred is a thought leader in performance improvement and an expert in learning speed. He is the founder and CEO of The Breakaway Group, which provides seminars and workshops to teach the concepts described in Breakaway. Formerly the CEO of Avaltus, a leading provider of e-learning services, he has also directed major change efforts in both the manufacturing and service industries, has consulted to successful companies around the globe, and has been a frequent speaker to major business forums and groups of senior executives over the past twenty years. Once a nationally ranked NCAA track athlete, he continues to compete in corporate races across the country. He lives in Centennial, Colorado, with his wife, Julie, and their three teenage children.

Review by Richard D. Turnquist.

What has really changed in our world in the last two decades? Time has sped up and surpassed all the other busienss variables in importance. These days time is more important than money.

To win in business, you must break away from the pack and stay ahead by serving your customers extraordinarily well. "Speed-to-proficiency is more than a theoretical advantage; it is the most devastating competitive weapon in a world where the competitive forces of scale, automation, and capital are subordinate to the power of a proficient work force."

I enjoyed this book, right from the first sentence -- "This book is designed for the business reader, to be read in the time it takes to fly from Chicago to San Francisco or Denver to Miami." Breakaway is an easy read with a vital message. Read it.

This is a book on Google's back end business aspects. It is not concerned with searching to find information. Instead it is on directing more attention, more business to your web site. The book is divided into two major themes, first working to make your site more Google friendly, and second working with Google's paid services including advertising on Google's site using programs like Google AdWords and AdSense. There's a chapter on Google's elusive Page Rank system that talks extensively about Google's philosophies on links and how they affect Page Ranking.

This book took my business, AUDIN Web Design, to new heights. Now anyone can just type in AUDIN Web Design in Google (or Yahoo and MSN, for that matter) and find me. This book allowed me to master Google, the juggernaut of search engines. If you cannot tame that tiger, you will not survive in the market place. My company, AUDIN Web Design, has helped many small business get ranked on Google. This is my bible. I carry it around wherever I go. I advise everyone to read this book before consulting a professional about your online search needs. You could get ripped off if you are not wise about your choice of Company. This book has given me such confidence with the Google juggernaut, that my company now offers a 100% money back guarantee policy. A lot of companies can't offer that because they don't know what they are doing. Read this book and get informed. It could save you lots of money, yes money, the stuff you work so hard for. The stuff makes the world go round.

Since Google is currently master of the universe you need to understand what Google is looking for when it ranks web pages. This book not only does that but goes into detail of other Google services like froogle, adsense and adwords. I highly recommend this book to anybody trying to build a presence on the web.

"Building Your Business with Google For Dummies" by Brad Hill is one of many options for learning Google's tools. This one is focused on using it to promote business websites.

You might not need this book. To find out, go to Google's website, and create an account. Look at the FAQs, testimonials and the help areas. Much of what's in Hill's book is logical, but is organized in as sensibly as any I have seen. I need this book for that reason. It saved me time from having to learn this information in a too slow trial-and-error way.

You'll learn a few important things about Google, and how to help them help you attract traffic, sell products, or create interest in your website.

AdWords
I have an online e-commerce site, and need to know Google. As a smaller business, I can't compete with the major companies in being listed in categories I feel are important. That's where Google AdWords comes in. It allows me, for a fee per click, to compete.

Hill's explanation of strategies and process is solid. There are ways to lose money, and he helps show how to test keywords, use ad groups, edit ads, and how to bid intelligently. He also looks at the premium service that allows big businesses to use oogle with less worry about click-through rates.

AdSense
AdSense, the tool that places Google ads on websites based on the page's content. While I only make a few cents when a vistor clicks through an ad, it helps me provide a service to my customers who do not feel my site met their needs.

Hill explains how AdSense makes money, and warns against cheating.

Increasing Your Page Rank
No one knows Google's formula for ranking pages. The most important factor is having useful information, being linked on other like-minded sites, not abusing the process.

Hill tells you what page rank means, and how to avoid mistakes many webmasters make. This includes tips on design, domain choice, keyword use.

Using Froogle and Google Catalogs
These are two features I have never used. Hill gives a good overview of this Google tool, which provides exposure to those websites selling products in a catalog-style, or through AOL and Yahoo shops.

I fully recommend "Building Your Business with Google For Dummies" by Brad Hill.

Anthony Trendl
editor, HungarianBookstore.com

This book was very helpful in teaching novices how Google works with online businesses in order to make the businesses more profitable and also make Google move valuable. The techniques were easy to apply.

Ed
http://www.imonitsoftware.com

Jim Kouzes en Barry Posner schreven in 2002 de bestseller The Leadership Challenge, 4th Edition , waarin ze 5 practices beschreven voor voorbeelding leiderschap:
1. model the way
2. inspire a shared vision
3. challenge the process
4. enable others to act
5. encourage the heart
In Christian Reflections on The Leadership Challenge graaft het duo, maar ook een aantal andere bekende christelijke schrijvers over leiderschap een spade dieper en reflecteren hun eigen geloof en observaties aan de practices. Het initiatief hiervoor kwam van John C. Maxwell (INJOY), gevolgd door Ken Blanchard (o.m. The One Minute Manager), Bill Bright, Kevin Myers, Nancy Ortberg en Andy Stanley. Na een introductie van de vijf practices door Kouzes en Posner pakken de anderen een practice bij de kop, diepen die uit met bijbelteksten, voorbeelden uit de christelijke praxis van kerk, gemeente, liefdadigheidsinstelling en bedrijfsleven. Vele mensen werden geïnterviewd, zodat een field guide for leaders ontstond. Christian Reflections ontnuchtert menig ingesleten paradigma van seculiere leiderschap-auteurs en brengt leiderschap terug naar haar joods/christelijke wortels.

I had to read this book for a class. I am glad that I did since it has been an amazing book. Great stories and a real easy read to help you understand the ways of being a leader.

Thanks for your great service. The book was delivered quickly and in excellent condition. I enjoyed doing business with you.

Having read and reread dozens of books on leadership, I've always found The Leadership Challenge to be among the best. I was certainly intrigued to see Christian Reflections on The Leadership Challenge and my curiosity paid off in a delightful read that contains both inspiring stories and introspective challenges.

As I read about the Willow Creek Axis group donating hundreds of pairs of shoes to the homeless in Chicago, I wept.

As I read about John Maxwell writing out his "I am what" so "I do what" which results in "what", I was challenged and did the same myself.

Having just read the book, 7 Triggers to Yes, I was inspired to read that, "Leaders keep hope alive... Hope is attitude in action." As 7 Triggers showed that inspiring hope is a powerful trigger used to influence and presuade and isn't that what leaders do.

The book is a quick read (one night for me), but I do believe that the reminders of the principles in The Leadership Challenge are excellent and the inspiration coming from these varied individuals is uplifting. I think you'll enjoy this book.

James Kouzes and Barry Posner are business professors at Santa Clara University, but are better known for authoring what has become a cornerstone in business and leadership theory: "The Leadership Challenge." The book has enjoyed numerous printings, leading to "Leadership Challenge" seminars, "Leadership Challenge" based consulting, and spin-off books on "the Leadership Challenge." "Christian Reflections on the Leadership Challenge" is a book that revisits the time-tested leadership paradigm, and features prominent practitioners of the Christian faith musing on what the five dimensions of leadership look like in a Christian context.

The book is divided into seven chapters. The first--and lengthiest--of the chapters is authored by Kouzes and Posner and is an introduction to "The Leadership Challenge" for those who have not read it. Yet, even thought the basics of the leadership paradigm are introduced, the faith component of leadership is heavily interwoven throughout this chapter. The examples of people who have successfully displayed a characteristic of successful leadership were all active in parish ministry, faith-based charities, or secular business-people whose faith influenced workplace decisions. This chapter was well-written and served as a valuable introduction to the remaining chapters.

Each of the following chapters is authored by a prominent Christian and gives his/her reflections on how a leadership skill and faith interplay. John Maxwell (former pastor and author of numerous leadership books) reflects on "Model the Way," the habit of (a) determining your own personal values and (b) aligning your actions to reflect those values. Maxwell provides a very well-structured chapter in which he demonstrates not only a thorough understanding of aligning values and action, but lays it out in such a way that it is clear that he has made the concept his own. Showing pastoral concern for the reader, Maxwell organizes his chapter around five objectives that will aid the reader in exploring his intrinsic values and how to allow these values to surface in the workplace.

The next chapter is authored by David McAllister-Wilson (president of Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, DC) and concerns "Inspire a Shared Vision," the habit of (a) discovering your vision for the future and (b) communicating that vision in an inspiring way. For a well-respected academic, this reader was surprised at the abstract and emotional the chapter was written. Granted, the subject matter deals prominently with relationships and inspiration, but there was surprising little in the chapter that was concrete. Amidst musings on the personality of Jesus and anecdotes that went for the "you-had-me-at-hello-effect" were genuine gems of practical wisdom I wish McAllister-Wilson would've fleshed out more. Reading this chapter felt like a wasted opportunity to learn from one of the best; instead this reader felt "talked down to."

Next, Patrick Lencioni (businessman and author) illustrates what it means to "Challenge the Process," that is to (a) embrace changes to internal functioning and external opportunities and (b) experiment, risk failing, and learn from these events. Lencioni provides the best-written, most concise chapter of the book as he out-right challenges the reader to examine his motivations for leading, challenging processes, and intrinsic determination. He is not abusive toward the reader at all, but makes it clear that leadership is often sought out for the wrong reasons; the reader is advised to first see to it that pride is sufficiently restrained. Once it is, challenging the process is a natural by-product of passion and courage. Helpful illustrations of Lencioni's successes and failures in challenging the process illustrate larger points and make the author more relatable.

Following Lencioni, Nancy Ortberg (member of the pastoral staff at Willow Creek, suburban Chicago's most prominent mega-church) shows how "Enabling Others to Act" has played out in her life. This is the habit of (a) building coalitions and teams and (b) giving power away to trusted team-members. This reader felt it necessary to read Ortberg's chapter multiple times. At first, abstract emotion and pointless (yet heart-warming) anecdotes appeared to prevail; after several readings, the chapter proved to have more depth than originally thought. Like McAllister-Wilson, Ortberg provides helpful advice on leadership through team-building, but finding these gems requires a lot of digging.

Finally, Ken Blanchard (businessman and author) reflects on "Encouraging the Heart," that is, the habit of (a) showing genuine appreciation for good work and (b) strengthening bonds by celebrating achievements. While the subject matter lends itself well to emotional sentimentalism, Blanchard resists that temptation and provides a nice balance between inspiration and practicality. Structuring his chapter to argue that leadership is an "inside-out" art, Blanchard provides practical day-to-day tips while holding up Jesus as the ultimate "One-Minute Manager" (what would such a book be without a cheap plug?).

Finally, Kouzes and Posner close out the book recapping leadership and the importance of credibility. This final chapter whets the appetite for more wisdom and practical advice.

As with any anthology, "Christian Reflections on the Leadership Challenge" contains the good, the bad, and the ugly. Fortunately, the reader will find a great deal of the former and not so much of the latter two elements. This book is recommended for those who find themselves working in a church/faith-based not-for profit, but is also applicable for those who hold to the Christian faith and desire insights on how that faith can manifest itself in the secular workplace. Also, those who would like a taste of "The Leadership Challenge" in under 130 pages will also find this book beneficial. In all, recommended.