Read 30 Books in 2012

Rambly, but I will give this author a pass since I tend to enjoy most of his writing. The self-help nerd in me appreciates him taking a stab at the genre.

Fascinating the way he can break down the story of a group or individual & explain their relative success or failure. Especially coming from an American culture where a self-made man or woman seems to be the dominant social paradigm. Opportunity plays a huge part in all that.

Published in 1997, this book can’t help but be technologically outdated. Despite that & being too new age-y at times, it has a lot of useful information. Like:

Questions to ask of ppl who do what you are thinking of doing: How did you get into this work? What do you like/dislike most about it? What do you do in a typical day? What type of ppl do you work with? What are they like? Who are your clients/customers? How much autonomy do you have? What is the salary range for this type of work? Who else should I speak with about working in this industry?

It also emphasizes the importance of networking, a skill I would like to develop but feel a bit disingenuous about possessing since I’m not a proactively social person to begin with.

We can all pay lip service to the importance of sleep, but this book takes you into the how & why. From the way our ancestors slept, to the repercussions of sleep deprivation in combat, to the circadian rhythm elite athletes exploit for improved performance. This book covers it.

“You may be powerfully affected by, say, family relationships or political events, and then become totally frustrated when you try to translate these experiences into art. What has happened is that you’ve been touched emotionally or intellectually, but not visually.” Mystery solved.

This is the second time I’ve read this book (the first time was years ago) & the biggest takeaway for me this time around is an exercise she describes as “Build Up Your Tolerance for Solitude.” I didn’t find it to be that, exactly. Mainly because I think I’m pretty cool with solitude by now; but I find the exercise helpful in quieting my racing mind by stopping & giving it free reign for a change.

Here’s how it works: go into a room alone for 10 minutes with your thoughts until a goal materializes. This is the opposite of meditation, although in a kind of contrary effect, it becomes meditative to me. I do it when I get home from work & it provides the transition I need to shake the day off & get on with my life. I do it with closed eyes so my surroundings aren’t a distraction.

_{You can go as long as you want & are able—10 minutes is a starting point.}

I had low expectations—(blame the title & the cover); but this book dispelled any preconceived notions. It has a great deal of substance for something so chatty. This book gave me many issues to ponder, the depth & breadth of which may not have occurred to me otherwise.

A cute little inspiring book telling you 1) steal like an artist 2) don’t wait until you know who you are to get started 3) write the book you want to read 4) use your hands 5) side projects & hobbies are important 6) the secret: do good work & share it with ppl 7) geography is no longer our master 8) be nice (the world is a small town) 9) be boring (it’s the only way to get work done) 10) creativity is subtraction.

Helpful without being overwhelming. If I ever boulder again, I will make sure to keep my hips close to the wall (to sustain more weight in my legs), my feet turned out (for better balance), & my arms straight most of the time (to reduce muscle fatigue). Also I learned this activity is really more about footwork than upper body strength.

I discovered I have some rigid core beliefs, & that if these rigid core beliefs are reframed as flexible preferences instead, the flexible preferences will lead to more realistic expectations & reactions.