What Next? The Complete Guide to Taking Control of Your Working Life

Rating:
Summary: Put Your Eggs in This Basket
Review: A recent survey asked 1600 workers why they would want to retire from their jobs. To pursue a dream led all other reasons by more than 2 to 1. In her latest book, What Next? The Complete Guide to Taking Control of Your Working Life, Dr. Barbara Moses provides the opportunity for workers at any point in the work life to live authentically and turn their dreams into reality. No other book on the market can provide individuals with the awareness, options, skills, and understanding necessary to deal with the bewildering array of challenges and opportunities in today's shifting work world. A virtual bible of resources, this book features self-assessment tools, quizzes, examples, guided exercises, diagnostic instruments, career wisdom based on tough realities, and tips on how to keep from getting derailed and how to overcome career challenges such as burn-out, boredom, and lack of passion.

Dr. Moses, called a Career Guru by Fast Company magazine, believes that the key to both successful career growth and life choices is for individuals to arm themselves with protective skills and act as their own career activists. She identifies 12 career strategies starting with building on your own skills, talents and strengths to finding a mentor to learning how to deal with disappointment, stressful situations and pressure. In addition she identifies eight key motivators that often work in combination or can contradict each other, but can assist individuals to find the best possible match between what drives them and a suitable work environment.

This book is not only of value to individuals at various stages of work life, but is a powerful resource for professionals such as coaches, mentors, human resources personnel, and others who are in a position to influence the career development of their clients, colleagues and co-workers. The attractive style of the book with its top quality photographs and illustrations make it an excellent gift for graduates whose parents are wondering and worrying about the future course chosen by their "I'm taking a year off to go to travel with my roommate" son or daughter. But if parents start to read it before passing it on to their progeny, they too will find ideas, practical suggestions, and wisdom that can impact their own work life. It's likely that buying two copies will be necessary.

Rating:
Summary: Be Your Own Executive Coach
Review: In the five years that Peer Resources has provided a Find-A-Mentor service, requests for mentors have come from students starting a career path, employees changing jobs, veteran workers seeking different opportunities, and executives hoping to build a better career path. What tied this diverse group together was that they typically shared the same reasons for seeking a mentor: (1) finding a way to transfer their dreams into practice; and (2) finding a way to live a more authentic life in their work.

Working with a mentor or a coach is an excellent choice for accomplishing either of these goals, and in her latest book, What Next? The Complete Guide to Taking Control of Your Working Life, Dr. Barbara Moses provides the mentoring and coaching necessary to help people learn to live authentically and turn their dreams into reality. No other book on the market can provide individuals with the awareness, options, skills, and understanding necessary to deal with the bewildering array of challenges and opportunities in today's shifting work world. A virtual bible of resources, this book features self-assessment tools, quizzes, examples, guided exercises, diagnostic instruments, career wisdom based on tough realities, and tips on how to keep from getting derailed and how to overcome career challenges such as burn-out, boredom, and lack of passion.

Dr. Moses, called a Career Guru by Fast Company magazine, believes that the key to both successful career growth and life choices is for individuals to arm themselves with protective skills and act as their own career activists. She identifies 12 career strategies starting with building on your own skills, talents and strengths to finding a mentor to learning how to deal with disappointment, stressful situations and pressure. In addition she identifies eight key motivators that often work in combination or can contradict each other, but can assist individuals to find the best possible match between what drives them and a suitable work environment.

This book is not only of value to individuals at various stages of work life, but is a powerful resource for coaches, mentors, human resources personnel, and others who are in a position to influence the career development of their clients, colleagues and co-workers. The attractive style of the book with its top quality photographs and illustrations make it an excellent gift for graduates whose parents are wondering and worrying about the future course chosen by their "I'm taking a year off to go to travel with my roommate" son or daughter. But if parents start to read it before passing it on to their progeny, they too will find ideas, practical suggestions, and wisdom that can impact their own work life. It's likely that buying two copies will be necessary.

Rating:
Summary: Basic, Re-hashed information...
Review: Much of this book is available for free on web sites such as Montser.com and Career Builder. If you can find it used great, but I do not recommend it new.

The sections about writing cover letters and resumes are pretty standard. Again, this info is just a click away if you use Google. For goal setting, read something by Zig Ziglar or the likes. For working on your self-esteeem read Jack Canfield or the classic book by Jason McClure, "How to find your dream job and make it a reality."

BTW, as I am writing my review I noticed that the four 5-stare reviews below appear to be written by the same person. Note that they are from the same state and the same day! Shame shame. Padding reviews is not cool.

Rating:
Summary: Above average
Review: The formula for the current career management books is: (1) start with self assessment (accomplishments, skills, values, strengths); (2) analysis of where you fit best -- what tyep of profession, organization, etc.; and (3) how to manage career challenges.

As this formula goes, "What Next" does a decent job. It is populated with a variety of assessment tools, it covers the basics, such as resume writing, cover letter writing, interviewing, negotions.

What holds the book back, in my opinion, is that it does not provide anything more than the basics -- surely, it's nicely illustrated and well written, but so are many other books in the field. If you are looking for a concise, to the point and practical guide, I recommend WetFeet "Job Hunting A to Z".