Looking for last minute holiday gifts? Or, finally making some time for yourself to read over the holiday break? These are some of the best-reviewed career-related books of the past year. Each is especially relevant for anyone considering a career change — or just looking to get more out of his or her work-life. Merrfeld Resumes and Coaching wishes you happy holidays, happy reading … and a very happy career!
Designing Your Life: How to Build a Well-Lived Joyful Life by Bill Burnett & Dave Evans
Amazon: “In this book, Bill Burnett and Dave Evans show us how design thinking can help us create a life that is both meaningful and fulfilling, regardless of who or where we are, what we do or have done for a living, or how young or old we are. The same design thinking responsible for amazing technology, products, and spaces can be used to design and build your career and your life, a life of fulfillment and joy, constantly creative and productive, one that always holds the possibility of surprise.”
Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance by Angela Lee Duckworth
Chris Fralic on LinkedIn called it: “an extremely insightful and well written treatise on how and why certain people excel”
Amazon: “pioneering psychologist Angela Duckworth shows anyone striving to succeed—be it parents, students, educators, athletes, or business people—that the secret to outstanding achievement is not talent but a special blend of passion and persistence she calls ‘grit’.”
Emotional Agility: Get Unstuck, Embrace Change and Thrive in Work and Life by Susan David
Amazon: “The path to personal and professional fulfillment is rarely straight. The counterintuitive approach to achieving your true potential, heralded by the Harvard Business Review as a groundbreaking idea of the year.
Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World by Adam Grant
The Washington Post: “[Grant] examines what successful non-conformists . . . have in common, all in an effort to help the rest of us learn how to do things like bust myths, speak truth to power, and avoid groupthink without getting sidelined.”
Messy: The Power of Disorder to Transform Our Lives by Tim Harford
Amazon: “you’ll learn about the unexpected connections between creativity and mess; understand why unexpected changes of plans, unfamiliar people, and unforeseen events can help generate new ideas and opportunities as they make you anxious and angry; and come to appreciate that the human inclination for tidiness – in our personal and professional lives, online, even in children’s play – can mask deep and debilitating fragility that keep us from innovation.”
