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How Full Is Your Bucket?
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Hardcover, Expanded, Anniversary Edition, 160 pages
Published
August 10th 2004
by Gallup Press
(first published July 6th 2004)
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I read this book for a Strategic Leadership group I'm a part of at work, which I only reference because I know that I probably would not have ever chosen this book to read on my own. However, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it and how applicable it is not only to your professional life, but to all relationships and interactions with anyone you may encounter.
The premise of this book is that in all interactions, we are either filling up someone's bucket or dipping from it. In other words, y ...more
The premise of this book is that in all interactions, we are either filling up someone's bucket or dipping from it. In other words, y ...more

Is a review that isn't completely upbeat dipping from the author's bucket? I like the basic premise of this book. On an individual level, I agree with the authors. There are some serious energy-suckers/bucket dippers in the world. I plan to do my best to minimize my bucket dipping. I also really enjoyed thinking about the ways one likes to be acknowledged and appreciated. I have to tell my boss in a few weeks how I like to be acknowledged and this book gave me perspective on what I like. Also th
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Just a bunch of general statements, like "positive feelings make people feel happy and live longer. Working in a positive environment makes workers more productive." Just okay!
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My friend said she thought this book was a cheesy way to get people to remember what they learned from their mamas. But I didn't get that vibe at all when I was reading it. If anything it kind of read like a parable. Things are remembered when they are related to something else that is a familiar concept. The whole bucket and dipper thing was just a tool in making the point and to help it linger longer in case it didn't completely stick.
There are many practical applications of the main message o ...more
There are many practical applications of the main message o ...more

Good, quick read to get ready for the school year. My principal assigned this for the staff to read so we can implement some of the practices and the general idea of the book at school this year. Looking forward to seeing how my students respond to this and how we can work as a class to become bucket fillers.

I think I’m going to give up on reading self-help-development books. Well, maybe not “give up completely” but keep to 1 every 15+ books.
It might just be me, but it seems that they all regurgitate the same messages over and over again. Different authors just have a different way of delivery, content is very similar.
This one I thought was ok for 2 reasons.
1. It is very short.
2. What I assumed the book was about was not what it was about at all, so intrigued I kept on reading.
My thought based ...more
It might just be me, but it seems that they all regurgitate the same messages over and over again. Different authors just have a different way of delivery, content is very similar.
This one I thought was ok for 2 reasons.
1. It is very short.
2. What I assumed the book was about was not what it was about at all, so intrigued I kept on reading.
My thought based ...more

Personal Response:
I thought this book was one of the better books I read so far this year. It definitely made me think a little about myself and how I should be way more positive with life. I also thought this book was kind of short, because it was only about 80 pages.
Plot:
How Full Is Your Bucket by Tom Rath is a book about how to use positivity. The first section of this book is all about negativity. According to this book, the North Koreans would take all of the positive letters the POWs di ...more
I thought this book was one of the better books I read so far this year. It definitely made me think a little about myself and how I should be way more positive with life. I also thought this book was kind of short, because it was only about 80 pages.
Plot:
How Full Is Your Bucket by Tom Rath is a book about how to use positivity. The first section of this book is all about negativity. According to this book, the North Koreans would take all of the positive letters the POWs di ...more

This book is a short, easy read. While the "bucket" concept is a little bit cheesy, I get the overall point...and it's a good one. We should try to project positivity toward others, thus increasing our own positivity. Too often, in our workplaces and our lives, we hear only the negative and none of the positive. Research has proven this is bad for morale and bad for your health. A good read for those of us struggling with too much negativity.
...more

This is just what I needed to start the school year. I am looking forward to introducing it to my 8th grade students. The book is focuses on asking the question, "How full is your bucket?" In order to fill your bucket you need to spread a positive attitude to co-workers, family, friends, and strangers. It is amazing how a positive attitude can influence someone. So ask yourself in every interaction you have, are you filling their bucket or dipping from it. If you are filling it, you are also fil
...more

A concise, upbeat self-help book that shows how optimism and positive social interactions can change your life.
"Bucket filling" is an analogy used by the authors, backed by loads (heh) of anecdotal & scientific evidence, to represent how giving pointed individualized praise to those in your family, friends and work can lead to far-reaching mental and physical benefits to productivity and health.
While I love reading feel-good books like this - especially ones so well-organized, backed up by resea ...more
"Bucket filling" is an analogy used by the authors, backed by loads (heh) of anecdotal & scientific evidence, to represent how giving pointed individualized praise to those in your family, friends and work can lead to far-reaching mental and physical benefits to productivity and health.
While I love reading feel-good books like this - especially ones so well-organized, backed up by resea ...more

This book was a gift from my boss. Common sense information as to how words of encouragement & kindness reap better results than negative responses in both the work world as well as in the home. The small book can be read quickly and is only about half filled with actual reading material. The final half is mostly references and “how to” advice with forms that can be used in the workplace. It’s a shiny cover that probably attracts easily & sells well for gifts. Reminded me of those “cheese moving
...more

One hundred and twenty eight pages.
Almost every alternate page of a quote with a picture of a bucket.
It is then your spidey senses begin to tingle.
May be this is one of those books that comes out with few words, a lot of wasted space and points of wisdom which are either too philosophical or outright idiotic.
The question is on which side does it gravitate towards more?
The good or evil?
How FULL is Your Bucket? written by Tom Rath and Donald Clifton is a pathetic potpourri of parochial Panglossian ...more
Almost every alternate page of a quote with a picture of a bucket.
It is then your spidey senses begin to tingle.
May be this is one of those books that comes out with few words, a lot of wasted space and points of wisdom which are either too philosophical or outright idiotic.
The question is on which side does it gravitate towards more?
The good or evil?
How FULL is Your Bucket? written by Tom Rath and Donald Clifton is a pathetic potpourri of parochial Panglossian ...more

Rath and Clifton pull their title and theme of the book from a metaphor for personal interaction--a bucket and a dipper. In each interaction you have with another person you either fill that person up or take away from them.
Let me start by saying that I have worked for several people over the years that would have greatly benefited in their business from reading and applying this book's principles. people, especially employees, need specific recognition and/or praise. Rather than constantly fo ...more
Let me start by saying that I have worked for several people over the years that would have greatly benefited in their business from reading and applying this book's principles. people, especially employees, need specific recognition and/or praise. Rather than constantly fo ...more

This book was a great reminder that we all need more positivity in our lives. As a child, I feel that I was much better at filling other people's buckets and making them feel loved and appreciated, and it's something I have failed to do as consistently as an adult. There were some fascinating studies shared in the book that showed just how much of an impact positive feedback and validation can have on an individual. I left this book with a new resolve to be better at filling others' buckets and
...more

It has been way too long since I finished a book and this one was only read because of work.
That being said having to read this for team building has been a very positive experience. I'm fascinated by the Strength Finder's material and love learning more about myself and those around me.
This book is largely a light dipping into cognitive therapy focused on the work environment. It's a short easy read. A lot of it is common sense but it is backed up by scientific studies without getting technic ...more
That being said having to read this for team building has been a very positive experience. I'm fascinated by the Strength Finder's material and love learning more about myself and those around me.
This book is largely a light dipping into cognitive therapy focused on the work environment. It's a short easy read. A lot of it is common sense but it is backed up by scientific studies without getting technic ...more

The book that I read is How Full Is Your Bucket? Written by Tom Rath and Donald O. Clifton.The authors explain that everyone has an “invisible bucket”, this bucket is constantly being filled up with positivity or negativity depending on our interactions with others that shape us. We can either fill one another’s buckets, or we can dip from them. It’s an important choice that influences our relationships, productivity, health, and happiness. This book provides very useful information that could l
...more

A short, breezy book about making every interaction we have with one another "count" towards someone's bucket. Using the analogy of a bucket, the authors share the idea that everyone has an invisible bucket that others either pour into or they deplete. The idea is that when we have a full bucket, we perform better and live better lives. I read this for a professional development group and it is a good reminder that everyone benefits when we are positive and kind to one another.
...more

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I love this book. It's a very easy and quick read. I like the strategies they suggest and would like to try them.
...more

Jan 26, 2020
Anahid
added it
Inspiring and practical

Choosing the simple metaphor of a bucket and a dipper, the grandfather and grandson duo of the late Don Clifton and Tom Rath have produced an indispensable gem for enhancing the personal quality of a human life. In this very concise but profound book, Clifton and Rath combine empirical evidence with common sense to make the reader understand the effect, importance and impact of human interactions.
Even a passing and inadvertent interaction that transpires between two human beings possesses the mi ...more
Even a passing and inadvertent interaction that transpires between two human beings possesses the mi ...more

Going through life with a short, handy, happy philosophy – particularly one as affirming as the concept in this book – is very nice. However, a fine line separates simple from simplistic. Although some readers will enjoy the breezy easiness of this approach, others might find it to be just a first step toward becoming more upbeat. Donald O. Clifton, a pioneer in positive psychology, and his co-author and grandson, Tom Rath, developed the “bucket” and “dipper” theories of happy emotions, based on
...more

I completely agree with the central tenets of the book--the world is a better place when you put positive energy into it instead of negative. However, the author took it a bit far (really, your positive attitude is responsible for beating cancer? So people who die from cancer just didn't have a good attitude?) and leans on platitudes.
Though different authors, both sets of writers are affiliated with Gallup which made reading this after reading First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greate ...more
Though different authors, both sets of writers are affiliated with Gallup which made reading this after reading First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greate ...more

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.

When working on my master's degree, this was one of the many self-help books I purchased and read. It is a very quick read and can be read apart from Now, Discover Your Strengths. However, I found that reading this book after reading Now, Discover Your Strengths, provided the additional framework needed to qualify "what" I was doing, and in turn, allow me to say, "NO." A very hard work to say, especially with my occupation in churchwork.
The nice thing with the book is it also includes a code fo ...more
The nice thing with the book is it also includes a code fo ...more

This is a good simple book to explain the meaning of Do Unto Others. If you can read it without buying it, all the better! The educator's version has good lesson plans in the back -- but seems like they want you to buy all their support materials. With a little creativity, you can create your own materials and save yourself some money.
It is a good reminder with practical suggestions for helping you take charge of your own positivity and how to be be a positive influence with others. ...more
It is a good reminder with practical suggestions for helping you take charge of your own positivity and how to be be a positive influence with others. ...more
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Mentor Texts: Mariah's Third Saturation Book Review | 1 | 3 | May 09, 2016 05:41AM |
Tom Rath is an author and researcher who has spent the past two decades studying how work can improve human health and well-being. He has two books slated for publication in 2020, Life's Great Question: Discover How You Best Contribute to the World and It's Not About You: A Brief Guide to a Meaningful Life, published in partnership with Amazon Original Stories.
In total, Tom's 10 books have sold ...more
In total, Tom's 10 books have sold ...more
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“The lesson here is clear: If you want people to understand that you value their contributions and that they are important, the recognition and praise you provide must have meaning that is specific to each individual.”
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“Instead of celebrating what makes each child unique, most parents push their children to "fit in" so that they don't "stick out." This unwittingly stomps out individuality and encourages conformity, despite these parents' good intentions”
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