bookshelves: fiction
I really have no idea when I read this book. I read all of the Louis L'Amour books starting in grade school and enjoyed all of them. This is one of the best. ]]>
bookshelves: currently-reading
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bookshelves: personal-development
Extremely useful ideas on how to actually get organized, stay that way, and keep up with all the things to do in every aspect of life. This book is about the nitty gritty details of running a tight ship.
It certainly doesn't read like a novel, but the information is very valuable. Over the last year my life has become much more complex. Using the techniques from GTD I've been able to keep a much better handle on all of it. ]]>
bookshelves: personal-development
This is a handy little e-book. I read it because I had read an interview with David Allen (author of Getting Things Done) and that interviewer suggested that Zen To Done was the minimal one had to read to get started on GTD. I ended up reading Zen to Done kind of in parallel with GTD and it helped me to understand the concepts.
In GTD the approach is to just jump right in, take a couple of days, collect everything, process it, and from that point on continue with the GTD method. Zen To Done is all about slowly developing the habits that enable one to accomplish high levels of productivity as outlined in GTD. It's a short read that's worth the $10 download and the time to read it. ]]>
bookshelves: project-management, software
SCRUM is a process I had heard a lot about but I hadn't ever really learned about. I'm glad I did learn about it, how it works and how it came about.
The main idea is to enable development teams to focus on development without distractions or interruptions from management or anywhere else.
The most helpful part was the section on empirical process control and how such an approach is the only way to deal with creative development. The defined process approach can never work; despite what they may have taught in school.
Some of the writing in this book is quite lacking. There were many sentences and sometimes even entire paragraphs that flat out didn't make sense. Also other times it felt like a concept was just abruptly dropped halfway through the explanation. ]]>
bookshelves: life, personal-development
This book helped me to understand people, relationships, and many other important aspects of life on a much deeper level. I can't think of another book where I encountered so many "aha" insights. One really opened my eyes; the explanation on how our personal lenses can lead to people experiencing the same situation, disagreeing about what transpired, and yet both can be right. There were so many more insights here and there too. Things like valuing the differences in any relationship but especially in marriage along with how everyone seems to excel at confessing their spouse's sins. I also hadn't previously understood how compromise is a low form of win/win nor the true value in seeking first to understand others.
We've been going over some newer relationship/emotional development books at work and they've been fine, but not nearly as useful to me as was this book. The character ethic and principles based approach is spot on.
I had read most of it a few years ago and now I reread much of it and finally finished the last couple of habits. Despite all I've learned in the time between to the two readings I still found it just as helpful. ]]>
bookshelves: faith, lds, religion, youth
This is a marvelous book packed full of wit and wisdom. President Hinckley's teaching and example have always hit home with me and this book is a shining example of why. The message is so upbeat yet remains honest, realistic, and useful. My favorite chapter was the one on Be Positive. It includes this passage:
"...I am suggesting that we look for the great good among those with whom we associate and live, that we speak of one another's virtues and positive qualities more than we speak of one another's faults, that optimism replace pessimism, and that our faith exceed our fears."
And this quote from his father:
"Cynics do no contribute, skeptics do not create, doubters do not achieve." ]]>
bookshelves: lds, youth
I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. The doctrine is right on and the supporting stories and personal experiences fit perfectly. ]]>
Reggie
voted on the book list Best Books Ever
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bookshelves: history, lds
This book is very well organized. It has 12 chapters, each focuses on one important virtue illustrated by the life of one or two people. It's a short read that I enjoyed very much. ]]>