Mommy-CEO: 5 Golden Rules

Rating:
Summary: Full of common knowledge
Review: For anyone who has read any books or trade magazines on child raising, this book is full of redundancy. I chose it for more information on ideas for my preschoolers, but there wasn't much availble here. The lesson I learned was to check out the library book first, then buy if I'm truly satisfied. All in all, not very helpful.

Rating:
Summary: Mommy-CEO
Review: As a work-at-home mom who owns an on-line internet business ..., I am always looking for good advice on how to better manage my work time and family time. Mommy-CEO provides clear & easy tips for doing just that. Plus, it wasn't one of these long dissertations about doing it. I don't have the time to read a long book about how to better juggle all the different roles I fill in my business & family and I appreciate that Jodie Lynn didn't write that kind of book. She understands that people who need her book most don't have the time for a lot of pleasure reading.

Rating:
Summary: Revised Book Is Best One!
Review: There are many places on the Internet that have the older version, which is out of print now, for sell. Buy the REVISED BOOK because it is the best one of the two. I tried to buy the new one from several places, including here at amazon.com from various sellers. The new and the used by sellers are not the REVISED EDITION. I have several copies of the out of print version which is the 1997 book. I'm here to say, it's not even close to being as good as the revised one. Oh sure, they both have some of the same ideas, but the ISBN:096591254X, has hotter tips for today's parents plus a list of awesome recommended websites at the end of the book. There seems to be more information about getting moms to take out time for themselves (kind of like Dr. Phil says: self matters). The author is driving home the point that all moms are the real CEOs and we need to speak up in order to put down our foot regarding getting help from other family members. The author says that if we do ask for help, it will eliminate resentfulness in our own life and family life. The 5 Golden Rules are the icing on the cake in this newer 2001 book as it instructs us to get our whole family into a team effort thinking pattern. We need to think team spirit and follow through with delegating. I strongly agree. As soon as I began to ask for help and started running my home life a little more like a business, I actually found time for me. Now, I have the time to exercise at least three times a week and I DON'T FEEL GUILTY anymore. The highest praise should go out for this new 2001 book. I love all of the tips from the many families who are struggling with raising kids right along with the rest of us. It makes me feel better about my parenting style.

Rating:
Summary: Great Insight! Especially for 9-year-old's and younger.
Review: Great insight into elementary school aged children especially 9-year-old's and younger. Most of the tips in the book are basic and will always need revisiting but they stand out because it's other parents doing the asking and most of the answering. It makes parenting skills and family problems not seem so odd. My 9-year-old daughter loved the book and has told her little friends about it. She has enjoyed the personal stories that Mrs. Lynn has sprinkled throughout the book. I did not really get into the older version as much as the revised one. In fact, make sure the REVISED EDITION, printed in 2001, is the only one you buy - especially if you are thinking of getting a used one. The older book is ok, but the new one has what seems like more of a variety of what we are facing on a daily basis. With all three kids, ages, 2, 6 and 9, it is perfect! I can go to the back of the book and use the easy index to look for a specific problem for each child and even use other subjects that may seem older or younger to find more than one way to try a skill. To me, the whole point of the book is to not so much looking for specific challenges but rather reading through the lines and the message of the 5 Golden Rules. One of the most interesting parts is the study where the 4,000 working women answered a survey of whether to work outside the home or not in order to be happy with your life as a Mommy - CEO. Mrs. Lynn doesn't say you should or shouldn't; she says to believe in God, take care of yourself, put your best foot forward with children and family and "treat your children the way you want to be treated." The this the first one of her 5 golden rules and that's what we did in our parenting class while using this book. We read the 5 golden rules first, one at a time, along with the first example, and discussed how we could make those sink into our current life. So we would read, discuss, put the book down, write about our own situations and then discuss it again afterwards. I think if you fly through any book, hunting, pecking and in desperate need of an answer, it's best to go get a book on that specific problem you are having. If it's more than one problem, you better get to a counselor or parent educator who can dig deeper. Anyway, our parent educator, who has read a lot of books and instructs parents all of the time, loved this book and she had us break it up into sections by doing assignments and putting the book down, and talking to each other about how a rule or tip could help us in other areas. If you can't find a group, find a partner or two to help with a sounding board type of communication to get the most out of any book. I would suggest churches, school book clubs, parent book clubs and libraries, buy Mommy-CEO, (don't forget it needs to be the revised edition), in bulk and let the leader facilitate the group on topic matter. The best thing we enjoyed was that the author is fair to both men and women and seems to take what she says to heart with a warm and sincere interest. Her keen input makes moms feel important, respected and smart. Motherhood is made up of a lot of dirty work and gets pretty depressing after so many diaper changes, car pools, dance lessons, dish washing, cooking and still finding time for mom. Now, I don't feel so small and overscheduled with other stuff. I feel like a real CEO, and just as important as any male or female business CEO and am thrilled that a family columnist, mom, author, speaker and individual has pointed it out to all care givers. ....WE WILL BE GRATEFUL FOREVER!


Rating:
Summary: Not for an infant
Review: This book is not exactly what I had expected. As a new mother with a 2 mo. old baby, I was looking for a book with advice for the everyday challenges of an infant. Mommy-CEO is not one of those books. Mommy-CEO is a wonderful book filled with advice for the common problems with a 2-12 year old. I will definitely keep this on my bookshelf for when my son is a bit older.

Rating:
Summary: No short cuts!
Review: After getting the book for a shower gift along with a Pregnancy Journal, I tried to read it in a hurry. It seemed like an awful lot of work. My mom said I was being lazy and wanted short cuts. That made me upset and I decided to reread the book from cover to cover. Afterwards, I was very much surprised to find out that she was right. I wanted a quick fix into my already overwhelming problems with my children, and Mrs. Lynn says to "Treat Your Children the Way You Want to be Treated," which I thought we were doing but really was not. If you buy this book or get it for a gift, take the time to do yourself a HUGE favor and read it from cover to cover. It's well worth the time and will make a difference in your family life if you will allow it to. There is no other rating for this book than five stars and if ten was allowed, I'd vote for ten! Don't cheat yourself or your family, read the whole book to the very last page and then reread it again. The insight runs from a little about pregnancy to teens but almost the whole book is set to help us in everyday life with toddlers to the 10-year-old. This is where I am in my life and it's been a great help. Buy it and even reread it as I had to do because there is no short cuts in parenting and with my busy life, I had to find out the hard way. I love the note and journal space at the end of each chapter. I wished more authors would do this. It allows readers to stop and take the time to journal an idea or question about yourself or your children, kind of like a Mommy Journal. I wrote my notes in pencil so erasing or changing my thoughts would be easier. THANKS JODIE LYNN!

Rating:
Summary: Didn't Like
Review: I didn't like this book very much. I bought it because of the good reviews (...) A waste.

Rating:
Summary: CEO of Home
Review: The title of the book may lead moms to believe that it will show you how to be a better CEO of whatever you do, thus connecting you better in a work "outside" the home to an "inside" the home situation. But if you will read the description of the book from the publisher, you will see it is about "home" life and she says, All moms are working moms." I wished Amazon would put up some of the introduction from the book online as they do for other books. The introduction tells us exactly what the book is about and may clear some questions. It is not a book about what to do after you quit work to stay home with your children and it has never been about that. The reason I knew it before hand is because I saw an interview on TV with Mrs. Lynn where she said the book was about "parenting prevention." Which means, it might prevent some families getting off on the wrong foot in parenting and to getting back on the right track and by keeping us there. It is simply telling moms (and anyone) who takes care of children how to deal with specific everyday parenting challenges as in some of the more common problems that many of us simply miss in our crazy mad and rushed world. Mrs. Lynn offers parents a place in her book to share their own experiences about a specific problem which is called TIPS (Tuned In Parents Sharing). Some of the topics are colic, potty training, back talk, taking out time for yourself without feeling guilty, how to help with homework, getting kids to read, smoking teens, TV limits, breast feeding, choosing a preschool, etc. There are plenty of tips from a wide variety of parents who have been there and done it along with 7 doctors who throw in their two-cents worth as professionals and parents. I found the book to be excellent and right on cue for many of my own family problems and especially for ages 2 to 12. It does not tell one how to STOP WORKING OUTSIDE THE HOME and all of a sudden become a STAY AT HOME MOM. It offers insight into caring and sharing everyday life with children while getting them introduced into becoming a responsibile and loving individual for helping to make all of our home life easier. Everyone is expected to be successful for the benefit of the entire family. This in turn will help to elimante many conflicts for bigger problems. Actually, I found the suggestions and tips from other parents to be enlightening and Mrs. Lynn's personal insight to be more real than most other parenting experts I've read. She really stresses to stop overscheduling our children and to get them set doing their own chores. These two things are so important that they might truly be the secret key to having a more healthier family and happier kids. Mommy-CEO has made a big difference in our house and yes, some of the tips are simple, but probably like me and my husband, who assumed our kids should have known certian things and we assumed, we knew them as well. We both appreciate the fact that the author allows us to see inside her own personal household and makes fun of her own challenges. This is in rare form from a syndicated columnist and leaves no doubt into her views on believing in admitting our mistakes and getting off our power trips as parents. Both sets of our parents wanted their own copies to keep at their homes and my husband was surprised and pleased, and so was I. We all agreed that the Motivating Kids For Positive Cooperation was one of our favorite parts. I am writing this review for only one reason and that is because of all the books I've bought, there have been very few to keep my attention and really speak to my heart. Mrs. Lynn does this by offering moms the right recipes in the 5 Golden Rules which connects us to the well deserved title CEO. She has made parenting easier for us and made me realize I am a CEO in my home and everyone else is a contributing member with their own personalities and ideas. The bottom line is if anyone doesn't feel better about the ups and downs of raising kids after reading this book, and feel better about themselves, maybe professional help is what you need and that is exactly what the author suggests. She tells you upfront that the book is not for everyone and certainly does not replace professional nor medical help - or even other books on specific topics---But that maybe as a former teacher and a current parent educator - she might help in some way. THANK YOU Mrs. Lynn!

Rating:
Summary: Big Dissapointment
Review: I was really excited to read this book after reading the reviews and the description. The five golden rules are all basic and do deserve to be revisited and reinforced, especially as we get caught up in the day-to-day struggles of parenthood. But the tips were all basic information that I've read in many other parenting books, such as the "What to Expect" series. I had been expecting more, especially based on the title, about the transition from the (paid) working world to the parenting world and managing all the different hats a mommy has to wear. It is really a compilation of tips from parents versus a reference guide.

Rating:
Summary: Helping mate to keeping your sanity.
Review: Mommy Ceo is a helpmate. It is a great guide for new parents who have never had to deal with children before and children's constant stages of testing parent's love for them. It addresses all stages of development until they are out the door. Common sense is needed in all relationships and a habitual show of consistant loving guidelines given by the parents to the children is ever needed. Mommy CEO reinforces these techniques and gives the parents professional resources for more in depth help. Plus, the author is open to all questions. If you have an immediate problem, e-mailing the author will get you a quick response. I had a concern for my grandson in kindergarten and she e-mailed me in return within 24 hours. I have given the book to many parents who have appreciated it and have used it as a guide in their families. I recommend it for all households.