Peak Careers

Professional Development for Career Practitioners

Book Reviews

The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters

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By Priya Parker

You know when you read something and realize that you were doing some things right but you didn’t know why? Yep, that is how this book felt to me so many times.

Priya walks us through the various parts to gathering, whether it is a simple meeting, family get-together, or a wedding. You really need to be clear about the purpose of the gathering as that will define who is invited, how you invite the, how you greet them, and what you deliver. And oh yeah, how you close. It is all about the purpose and being clear in your own head what that means.

I loved her chapter, Never Start a Funeral with Logistics. Her story about every one being so sad and mournful at a funeral and the first thing the funeral director did was “the bathroom is down the hall…the family would like you to attend a get together at _____”. What people REALLY needed to hear first is recognizing some feelings / emotions.

When I read this I was preparing to do a two-hour long zoom-workshop and realized that the 1st thing I was doing was introducing myself and going over the agenda. I changed it a bit and did a poll that engaged people first and still made the point about what we would be talking about. Hmmm….that was pretty smart. Thanks Priya.

I then had them introduce themselves, where they worked, and some pivotal point in their own career development. Another Priya thing. Many of these folks knew each other but probably did not know a past pivotal moment in their lives.

There is so much more to gathering that we take for granted. If you are the host, you have a responsibility to be clear about the purpose, keep the purpose forefront so that those people who know the purpose and stay engaged, do not get “sidelined” by someone who either hogs the show or does not stay focused on the purpose (which might simply be to get to know each other better). The host has the responsibility to keep the gathering going in the right direction. (i.e. staying on the agenda for a work meeting comes to mind to me).

But, the host can not take over a meeting either – there is a balance and the author does a great job at breaking down these roles, again from something as simple as a family / social get-together to setting up a United Nations meeting.

I enjoyed this book which we discussed in a small book-club I am in. Oh yeah, never end with logistics either. Do logistics 2nd to last and end with a summary of what happened.

Elephantoms: Tracking the Elephant

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By Lyall Watson

The author grew up in South Africa spending time in the bush hoping someday to see a wild elephant. One day, he and a group of other 12 or 13 year old kids saw one and it changed Lyall’s life. From then on he was obsessed with learning more about this great animal.

He ends up going to college to study more but his love is in the bush. He shows us how elephants great memories help them navigate their shrinking world…how they actually mourn for the loss of one of their own…how they care for each other, and much more.

One of the coolest things I learned was their low-level sound communication that is below what humans can hear and can transmit for miles.

So many interesting small stories within this book, I loved it and have a great appreciation for how amazing this animal is and how concerned I am for their shrinking numbers.

Journey on the Crest: Walking 2600 Miles from Mexico to Canada

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By Cindy Ross

I hiked the Washington section of the PCT in 1981 for 400 miles and was “hooked” on long-distance hiking. Since then I have completed about 1800 miles of the trail by doing sections of 110-200 miles at a time. Cindy hiked the trail from Mexico to Oregon in 1982 and then finished it in 1984.

She did a great job at describing the feelings and emotions, and the physical parts of hiking long distance. I loved it. I also enjoyed that I had hiked much of the trail over the years and could clearly picture where she was most of the time. In particular I enjoyed the Oregon and Washington sections for some reason. Maybe because I did those early on and the reminiscing was great. Maybe because we were hiking both around the same time period as well.

If you are a long-distance hiker, you will enjoy this book with the various characters who walk the PCT with Cindy.

Greenlights

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By Matthew McConaughey

The actor Matthew McConaughey is quite the introspective guy. He really marches to his own drummer and was willing to give up millions of dollars in “rom-com” movies just so he would not be bored. He has taken off in an RV and drove around the country, sped off to the Amazon (which he thought at one point was in Africa), and then he eventually went to a remote site in Africa…just to explore himself.

He is a thinker and a person who is on a mission to improve himself in anyway he can…all while doing it his own way.

Fun book to read and I have more respect for Matthew now than I did before.

Mountain Madness: Scott Fischer, Mount Everest & a Life Lived on High. By Robert Birkby

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I met Bob Birkby back in my days in Seattle, 1980-81. Friends of some friends… I was even somewhere around 300 miles on the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) in the summer of 1981 with these “friends of Bob” when Bob and Carol (she’s in the book) hiked up to our camp. It was wild to see someone we knew on the trail after 3+ weeks of hiking.

Turns out, Bob had a friend of friend, who was Scott Fischer. There have been a number of books about Scott, like Jon Krakauer’s Into Thin Air and others, which often were the “persona” of Scott Fischer the mountaineer. Bob wanted to write a book about Scott Fischer the person.

Clearly Scott Fischer was one of those people who would take over a room when they arrived, with a huge personality and lots of stories. He was also an optimist and a person who truly loves the mountains. Not like me where I like backpacking in the mountains…he wanted to be on the TOP of the mountains.

I loved this book as it captured the intensity and beauty of being in the mountains and on top of them. The drive and commitment to climb mountains like Everest is something I have no interest in, but love to read how others are motivated to do it. Because Bob has done some climbing (not like Scott), he gives the reader the insight as to how ti feels to be up there.

By interviewing many of Scotts friends and climbing partners, you get a real inside feel to who he is and what motivates him. Lots of people die in the mountains above 20,000 feet. Shit happens there that does not forgive. Scott is one of them.

If you like the mountains and if you’d like to know how mountaineers think, read this book. It was a great read that I could not put down.

Switchers by Dawn Graham

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As a career coach, I loved this book. It reinforced the work I do with my clients – helping them create a value – added statement highlighting their skills. The author also does a great job talking about the importance of networking to break into new industries. Networking is important for all career changers but critical to switchers…people changing industries.

Switchers book

Scattered throughout her very practical advice were great quotes like, “job search is not fair” and then she reinforced the fact that you need a mindset change, not wasting energy complaining it isn’t fair. It isn’t sometimes, get over it, change your thinking.

“Failure is NOT the opposite of success, but rather a necessary stepping stone to attain success” Switchers (people who are switching industry or types of jobs) need to accept failing occasionally and look at them learning opportunities. *Note: which fits in well with the Happenstance Theory I embrace.

And two favorites, “You can’t steal 2nd base and keep one foot on first”  and “If you chase two rabbits, both will escape” which was her point about having one plan (no plan B) and putting yourself out there focusing on the best option you want.

She is a realist too, and if that plan does not work out after you have really tried, been persistent, and taken her advice, then sure, you can change plans, but be “all in” on one to start.

A couple of other tidbits I really thought were good is the mindset that the hiring manager is not necessarily trying to hire the BEST person, their instincts are to avoid loss. Switchers are a bigger risk for them and you have to be prepared to deal with their concerns when you go into the networking and interviewing process.

Negotiating.  Having a negotiation on salary at the offer actually STRENGTHENS the relationship with your boss – builds relationship and you get to see how you will work together and what kind of support is there. I had not thought of negotiating in this way but really see the wisdom. I think I have tried to say something similar to my clients but this was brilliant.

Her thoughts on networking were strong as well. We (career coaches) all know the importance of networking to build relationships, but her book really drove home the importance for people who want to switch jobs. I loved her term “Micro-networking” which is all the little things you can to strengthen relationships. i.e. “liking” on social media / bringing cookies to a meeting / keep track of b-day’s / attend events and make the rounds / repost articles and offer a summary. Create ambassadors (vs just networking).

There were so many great thoughts presented here with actionable steps at the end of each chapter. The strengths of the book are in mindset changes, branding, networking, and networking. (Yes I repeated that last one on purpose).