2016
Cats don't worry about what others think; they follow their instincts, leap with confidence, and always land on their feet. In this wise and whimsical guide, Mary Hessler-Key's "Jazzie the Cat" shows humans how to follow her feline example and take charge of their careers and their lives. Through thirteen simple lessons drawn from her life as a cat, she takes readers through "purrfected" techniques for motivating a start-up venture, taking more initiative in their jobs, or defining the next step in a career transition.
An increasing number of people are working independently within organizations or starting their own businesses. They need practical advice they can digest quickly and put to use immediately. Jazzie offers up the basic tenets of an entrepreneurial approach to life and work in an accessible format that's both humorous and profound. From doing what comes naturally, to finding the right niche, to improving their strategy, to listening to "the meowing within," Jazzie's advice helps would-be entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs everywhere find their place in the sun.
More engaging and down-to-earth than other career guides, The Entrepreneurial Cat combines the enthralling illustrations of an award-winning artist with the enlightening insights of an experienced consultant for readers of all ages and career levels. The book concludes with a do-it-yourself "Cats-Can" section that gives readers the space to evaluate their talents and goals and poses thought-provoking questions that spur creativity, spark motivation, and inspire the formulation of successful career strategies.
2023
2013
There are two times when youre alone in life: one is when you die, and the other is when you present to senior management.
Rick Wallace, CEO, KLA-Tencor
If you are in middle management, you live with daily ambiguity, lack of control, and even chaos. To get anything done, you must present your ideas to decision makers, and those presentations can be brutal. Careers and projects can come unwound in a matter of minutes if a presenter at the top level doesnt know the rules.
Fear in the middle creates fog at the top, and bad decisions are made. The stakes are highone presentation can make or break a careerbut the rules are utterly unclear. Or at least they used to be.
Speaking Up is an indispensable resource for anyone who needs to know how to present to those higher up the chain. It offers revelatory insights into the minds of the men and women at the topinformation that is crucial to understanding what theyre looking for from presenters. Tactics and techniques that work well with peers, subordinates, and immediate supervisors may actually work against you when presenting up the chain.
Psychologist and coach Frederick Gilbert shows why these high-level presentations are about one thing: delivering information to help extremely talented, highly stressed people make good decisionsfast.
Gilbert focuses on three simple rules for speaking up: (1) know the people, (2) get to the point, and (3) improvise. Based on ten years of research and hundreds of interviews, Gilberts book is unique in featuring extensive comments from executives explaining exactly what they want and dont want in a presentation, as well as midlevel managers stories of triumphs and tragedies and what they learned as a result. This a must-read book for surviving high-stakes meetings.