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Summary: Will Change the Way You Thing About Work
Review: I first read this book (an earlier edition) in 1983 after graduating from college. I had a marketing degree and no idea what to do with it (other than knowing I didn't want to sell copiers). There was also a recession on and most of my fellow marketing graduates WERE selling copiers.Fortunately, I got hold of this book and never thought about work the same way again. It made me realize that work should make the best use of the skills I love to use. That work should be fun and fulfilling. This was a very different concept than what my elders had taught me (all Depression kids). To date, I've periodically purchased new versions of Parachute when I've been in transition periods and redo the exersizes. I always get new insights and ideas. I am now in a career that I love but am entirely open to looking into a new one as my life and interests change. Some people have commented that this book can be overwhelming (there are a LOT of exersizes) My experience is, the more you put into it, the more help you will get from it. However, don't let the book intimidate you. My attitude is, whatever you do with this book--even if you just skim the chapters and use the resource section at the end, it will still help you in many ways.
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Summary: Easy to use and understand
Review: The small workbook summarizes everything from the large textbook into a easy to use format. I got much more, quicker, from the workbook than I did from the textbook.
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Summary: Parachute went from 560 pages to just 235 in this edition.
Review: For much of 1998, The 1998 What Color Is Your Parachute? was the second best-selling business paperback in America. But, at 560 pages, I had a feeling people weren't reading it, except in bits and pieces. Its size was just too intimidating. So, for the 1999 edition (now out) I rewrote the entire book, summarizing where I could, writing shorter sentences where I could, and as a result, reduced it to just 235 pages in the main body of the book. Much more manageable. Here's a typical reaction from a reader: "For the past 20 years, I have purchased or been given a copy of your annual edition/rewrite. In my opinion, the 1999 edition is the best, easiest to read, briskly written, humorous, personal, practical, jam-packed with hints and helps, and 235 pages, excluding the appendices. You have returned the book to the reader and now for the first time in many years, I will strongly encourage people who buy this book to read the entire thing. I am in awe of the masterpiece you have produced." (Jim Kell, Texas)
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Summary: it was a great help in relocting a job when i lost one
Review: its an excellent book . got a lot of practical tips on handling job interviews. more importantly i felt comfortable knowing that there are others like me who have struggled in the past and have made it once again. thank you once again , Richard Bowles
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Summary: Excellent
Review: I would put this book on the short list of books that any job seeker should read, along with "Knock Em Dead Resumes," "The Job Vault," and the "Vault Reports" career guides.
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Summary: Now more than ever, a "must read" for job hunters:
Review: "What Color is Your Parachute" has long been a classic to recommend to job hunters and career changers, and this year's (the 1999) edition is even better. A bestseller in general, and the best-selling job-hunting book in the world, "Parachute" offers intelligent, informed, and compassionate advice on finding a job. If you ever bought a previous edition (author Richard Bolles has written one annually since 1970) and had trouble working through it, or if you've heard others criticize "Parachute" for being too unwieldy or impractical, then take a look at the 1999 edition. It's more concise and user-friendly, pointing out, for example, the easiest methods of job hunting as well as those that require a little more work. It also has simplified checklists such as "Ten Tips for Impatient Job Hunters or Career Changers." Best of all, readers are not shortchanged by the shortened version. Those wishing to benefit from the wealth of knowledge that Bolles has to offer can find sections that were dropped in this edition at the author's website (the address of which is listed in the book.) Not surprisingly, one of the sections on the web is about using the Internet to find a job. No matter how much time or energy you have to spend on job hunting, you will no doubt benefit, as many of my clients have, from "What Color is Your Parachute." Now more than ever, it offers some of the best and most basic advice for job hunters and career changers of all kinds.
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Summary: Taking charge through self analysis
Review: Everyone who works (and who doesn't?) should read this book. I consider it the most important book of its kind on the market today, and one of the top five books that will influence your daily life simply because so much of who we are is governed by what we do for a living. To effectively use the book, you must do the tasks that are outlined within it. This takes time, but is well worth the effort. What you learn about yourself may surprise you. It will certainly be useful when you go on interviews or consider changes in your career path.
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Summary: can't live without it
Review: Of all of the job hunting books out there-this one is the most complete and the most useful. It covers what strategies work and which ones don't. (And more importantly why!) It explains the practical methods and efficient ways to put your best foot forward and get the job you want. Since I have graduated from college, I have only submitted 8 resumes and I have always gotten the job and salary that I want. I am sure that I am not typical, but the suggestions that are in the book are useful for any job! It was the best graduation gift that I have ever received (1996 edition). Take a hint, there must be something to this book if there is a new edition every year!
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Summary: Should be on ANY- and EVERYONE'S list of must-reads!
Review: This book significantly influenced my career outlook and planning from the time I first read it 8 years ago. The exercises took quite a bit of effort, yet the results have permanently shaped the way I think about what I want to do with my life, no matter what my job at the time happens to be. I find myself returning to the insights gained from "Parachute" every few years and am amazed that the essential qualities I identified through the book remain consistent, no matter where I'm working or what I'm doing. By applying the ideas in this book, you're better able to figure out how to find the right sort of work based on who you are, what you believe, and what you like to do. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to prepare for what will surely be unpredictable times in terms of job security, career prospects, and employment in general in the next decades. This book will help you create a personal compass, a guide so you can find your way amidst uncertainty.
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Summary: Still the best of its class
Review: If you're looking for a job, thinking about looking for a job, don't want to think about looking for a job but know you'll have to soon, or even have a job but find yourself wondering "Is this what I really want to do with my life?", this is the book for you. And even if you have a job you like, in this dynamic business world you're never sure if your job will be here 6 months from now, so this is a book for you too.
From the first edition, Bolles has focused on the job-seeker: what do you like to do, what do you want out of life, what are your values, and how can you turn what makes you uniquely you into a job? This perspective is increasingly valuable as the business world changes: the traditional "job" is fading away, employees are valued for their talents rather than their job skills, companies merge and re-form, and entrepreneurship is everywhere. Updated every year, the book has kept pace with the transformations in the workplace, and it's a valuable resource for a modest investment.
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