Resources

Looking for resources to support your life changes?

Going through major life transitions can seem daunting when you don’t have adequate information and support. Our list includes Merideth’s personalized thumbnail reviews of books, websites, organizations, and tools which she and her coaching clients have found useful. Please feel free to explore.

Change in general

Being effective at work

Business strategy and networking

Career and job change

Organizing yourself and your stuff

Change in general

	You Can Heal Your Life by Louise L. Hay A powerful walk through of a proven process to let go of past hurts, love yourself and make room for what you most want in your life.
	Mastering Life’s Energies By Maria Nemeth An easy-to-grasp way to lean into positive change in your life with ease by a thought-leader and founder of the Academy of Coaching Excellence.
	The Law of Attraction: The Basics of the Teachings of Abraham By Esther and Jerry Hicks A valuable resource for introducing how to understand and work with the Law of Attraction to manifest what you want for your life.
	Transitions – Making Sense of Life’s Changes By William Bridges This book outlines the three phases of making a transition: an ending, a new beginning, and the time in-between. I especially found useful the idea of the “Neutral Zone,” the time between the ending and beginning when you feel the need to go within and regroup. He characterizes this as a necessary part of the change process. It is very useful if you are in a transition and are feeling frustrated with yourself because you are not feeling productive.

Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway By Susan Jeffers, Ph.D.n A great resource for working through the fear and resistance that may be keeping your from what you really want in your life. A short, quick read.

How to Be an Adult – A Handbook on Psychological and Spiritual Integration By David Richo A short, simple treatment of psychological development in adults. Includes discussion of fear, anger, guilt, values, personal boundaries and intimacy. A deceptively simple book with an odd title that makes a wonderful reference for your library. I found the discussion of loss to be particularly compelling.

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Being effective at work

Great on the Job By Jodi Glickman As a contributor to Harvard Business Review, former investment banker at Goldman Sachs and MBA grad from Cornell, Jodi is a master communicator. Here, she offers simple, three-step processes to successfully communicate in any business situation. Packed with real-life examples and a tear-out cheat sheet, this book is a valuable resource for any working professional.

Bringing Out the Best in Yourself at Work – How to Use the Enneagram System for Success By Ginger Lapid-Bogda, Ph.D. The Enneagram is an amazing tool for understanding your own natural tendencies as they relate to the many varied patterns of thinking, feeling and acting of others. This book helps you figure out what Enneagram style(s) you relate most to, and then applies the styles to such workplace situations as giving and receiving feedback, dealing with conflict, and creating high-performing teams. An excellent, easy-to-follow treatment of the Enneagram, which can be a very complex subject.

Leadership on the Line – Staying Alive through the Dangers of Leading By Ronald Heifetz and Marty Linsky A compelling look at becoming a leader, regardless of your position within an organization. An interesting perspective on how to perceive leadership and grow your potential.

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Business strategy and networking

The Go-Giver: A Little Story About a Powerful Business Idea By Bob Burg and John David Mann A game-changing, quick-read parable about how selling is really giving. This book is a great resource if you resist selling your product and/or services. It gives you a whole new way to look at it that is empowering, uplifting and practical.

365 Thank Yous: The Year a Simple Act of Daily Gratitude Changed My Life By John Kralik A quick, enjoyable read about how cultivating gratitude can transform your life, through the story of how writing thank you notes for a year+ improved the author’s outlook and situation dramatically.

Small Business Administration – www.sba.gov
A wealth of resources for small businesses. Find your local chapter; low-cost/free classes offered. Check out the training calendar for your closest location.

Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center – www.rencenter.org
Organization that provides low-cost, high quality courses for those who are considering self-employment or are already in business for themselves. An excellent resource for new entrepreneurs.

Minding Her Own Business – The Self-Employed Woman’s Essential Guide to Taxes and Financial Records By Jan Zobel, E.A. Jan teaches a one-day class that outlines the information in this book. If you find the whole bookkeeping/accounting subject confusing, Jan makes it easy. I suggest taking her course and reading the book. For more information: http://www.janztax.com/Seminars/tax_seminars.htm

Business Network International – www.bni.com
A great networking organization for small business owners. Founded on the principle of Giver’s Gain, it’s a one-person-per-professional group with chapters around the globe, where you meet weekly, pass each other leads, and practice your elevator pitch.

One Page Business Plan – www.onepagebusinessplan.com If the idea of writing a business plan intimidates you, this is the tool for you. Using the book, software or online version, you can easily put together a simple yet robust business plan in a minimal amount of time, that will help you get focused on what’s most important so you can get the results you want from your business. They have several versions of their book, two favorites are: The One Page Business Plan for Women in Business and The One Page Business Plan for the Creative Entrepreneur.

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Career and job change

Elevations – www.elevateyourcareer.com
Easy, fun and comprehensive, this tool helps you identify career options that appeal to you and that are good fit for your values, skills and innate talents. The results help you compile a description of your ideal job, and include buzzwords to use in your resume. Click on the link above to purchase the Elevations for Career Choice and Career Change  Online and enter “EA38” for the System Administrator code on the User Info screen.

Working Identity – Unconventional Strategies for Reinventing Your Career By Hermina Ibarra I love the way that Hermina Ibarra describes the career transition process as an evolution rather than a thunderbolt. This is an insightful book describing, among other things, the importance of experimentation in career change. A valuable perspective that helps you feel hope and possibility as you move forward.

Do What You Are – Discover the Perfect Career for You through the Secrets of Personality Type By Paul D. Tieger and Barbara Barron-Tieger If you know your Myers-Briggs personality type, this book can be helpful in identifying careers you may be especially interested in and draw satisfaction from. Good examples.

I Want to Do Something Else, But I’m Not Sure What It Is By Ron and Caryl Krannich, Ph.Ds This book focuses on helping you figure out what your next career move will be, by helping you develop your career vision. It includes a section on jobs with a bright future and other demographics.

Women for Hire – the Ultimate Guide to Getting a Job By Tory Johnson, Robyn Freedman Spizman, Lindsey Pollak A good, general overview of the job change process. Good information about resumes, cover letters, networking and interviewing.

Resumes that Knock ‘Em Dead By Martin Yate A great resume-building manual, with lots of sample resumes. Easy to read, process, and get on with your life.

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Organizing yourself and your stuff

Getting Things Done – The Art of Stress-free Productivity By David Allen If you’re feeling like you don’t have time to think the big thoughts because you are constantly mired down in your To Do list and the various half-finished projects around your home and office, this book may be for you. David Allen explains a method for gathering, categorizing, filing and organizing your To Do’s in a way that is, once implemented, easy to maintain. It’s a different way to look at organizing, and is very powerful.

Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui By Karen Kingston If you are a bit curious about Feng Shui and have an issue with clutter in your home or office, this is a quick, easy-to-follow book. Karen Kingston talks about how clutter can keep you from getting what you want in your life. I had a huge garage sale after reading this book!

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To discuss how coaching can help you with a career change or business planning, please contact Merideth at (510) 864-0249, or send her an email by clicking here.