Are People Still Reading Books?

This past spring, when in California for the Conversation Among Masters Conference we spoke about publishing books, how many books are indeed published every year, and what the future of print books looks like, especially in the day of the Internet, blogs and audio. According to technorati, there are 71 million blogs online, that we know of. There has to be a reason, right? And yes, some of them have to be good as they're consistently attracting readers. Does this replace reading books? Can it ever replace reading books?

I am a book junkie, there’s no question about it and can never get enough to read, for my profession, life, or to feed and nourish my imagination but truthfully how many are still reading and how often? By virtue of you reading this blog, you're reading, yet how many books have you read this year?

My clients’ lives are so busy, that by the time they get home, spend time with the family, do whatever needs to be done at home etc, they have no energy left other than to perhaps walk the dog, and go to sleep.

Many collect books to read on their holiday as that’s the only time they have to pick up a book, but what are they missing?

I maintain that those who can read and don’t are functional illiterates; don’t as in never, by choice, not sporadically as time allows. There’s a difference. There is so much richness to books, all literature in various forms, that our world would be very mundane without the concepts, mental images and perspectives that come out of books of any kind.

As long as there are readers, there will be books written and published.

A few years ago a colleague challenged me to read a minimum of four books a year. For me never a problem! I read that a month. The caveat was to read books in areas I didn’t know anything about, not in relation to my work or hobbies or anything I already knew. He wanted me to grow in knowledge and awareness and one way to do it was to pick up a book about something or someone I knew nothing about. Talk about an eye opener!

How many do that on a regular basis I wonder? When you buy a book, a non-fiction book (assuming you do buy some non-fiction) is it about something that will increase your awareness of the rich world we live in? Ultimately, especially in my line of work, it gives me context in areas I never took into consideration before. How rich would your life be if you learned something new or about someone who made an impact in some way in this world that you never even thought or heard of? The more you learn the easier it will be to lead.

So now I’ve taken this one step further. I’m reading 4 books a year minimum on subject matter I have no prior knowledge of…am reading 4 new blogs a week to see what’s out there and commenting on them as well. The community of interactive dialogue because of that is blowing me away. Try it. And let me know your thoughts if you’ll share them. I'd love to hear.

Best!
Donna Karlin

*Note: Click here to sign up for our free newsletter Perspectives in Brief for tips on the run... to run with.

It's a Launch!

Well, it's finally happening. After a truck load of emails, and trust me when I tell you there is NEVER a shortage of emails in my inbox, we’re finally launching our newsletter Perspectives in Brief. We’ll have a home for it at http://www.perspectivesinbrief.com/, for those of you who sign up after tomorrow’s post so you can read what was sent out in the past.

And as comments keep coming in to this blog, through my weekly posts on Fast Company Experts, and through published articles and interviews, I realized I had to do a few things differently as well as add a few. So to meet those requests, I created a self-coaching program that will give people a piece of me even when they can’t (for whatever reason) have a piece of me and secondly set up a system by which I could be more accessible through phone or technology for laser and lightening round sessions.

We just launched “It’s All About You…and Others”. Click here to check it out! Soon to be released is our Time Mastery program, “If I Could Save Time in a Bottle”. Stay tuned. We'll let you know when that one's going to launch.

As of tomorrow, the first broadcast of Perspectives in Brief will be sent out to subscribers. It’s a short sweet, to-the-point 'tips to run with' and think about that can be delivered through your in-box or Berry. The way I look at it, anything longer than what you can read in an elevator is too long for a newsletter. To sign up, fill in the form on the sidebar of this blog to get you going. More in-depth and detailed articles, book recommendations etc will be posted here on Perspectives.

We’ve reserved a few days a month for laser and lightening round sessions. I believe executive coaches need to rethink how they work with many clients. Life coaches are a different realm altogether, but in this fast paced chaotic world when sometimes you might need a half hour to an hour reality check, brain storming session or removal of a roadblock, one session just might do it. And if you know it’s possible to book as you need, then you’ll get what you need.

For those solopreneurs, business people or those new coaches who are up-and-comings and need some help in designing a practice that works for you, hour long lightening round sessions will give you the chance to pick my brain and create something that speaks you, not a clone of someone else and to look at marketing, target audience etc. Let’s get you jumping into the deep end with an eye on the sky, OK? To find out more about how to book Lightening Round and Laser sessions with me, email us and we’ll get right back to you!

It’s time you asked for what you want, not just accept what you’re getting. But that goes for life too, does it not?

Best!
Donna Karlin

Hearing Yourself Think

My colleague Susan Meyer posted a blog on a similar topic. I wanted to share her view with you so edited this to add a link to her blog and some comments. It seems as if many of us are observing or interacting with those who only hear their own voices and have a difficult time hearing their own silence. In being this way, they not only don't let the rest of the world in, but stop others from being heard as well. It gives a whole new meaning to the expression "Silence is golden" I wonder what that person experienced in order to have come up with that remark?

"When I became quiet, they could hear themselves" - Byron Katie

As a coach we not only have to ask the right questions to evoke awareness and answers but we have to give clients the space to think. In the physical sense, I ask clients "When do you get out, go for a walk, clear some space not to escape the world but to let the world in?"

This is the same in dialogue, having the mental space to let thoughts in, to formulate, think, create, just 'be' or hear yourself think as you bounce conversation of someone else. There's nothing like someone finishing your thoughts as if they could read your mind. I don't know about you, but clairvoyance isn't a common thing, though many people think they know exactly what it is you're going to say and don't hesitate to make that known. People like this are in a dialogue of the deaf. They're not hearing you; waiting for you to complete a thought or idea. They're taking half an idea and moving it in another direction and putting it in the "It's all about me" context. People like this validate something about themselves or their past, negating where you're coming from in the first place and absolutely not hearing you in any way shape or form. People like this feel who they are and what they have to say is more important. They don't care that they might be cutting you off, throwing a punch line into a story out of context, making you stop dead in your verbal tracks or even caring about what you might be thinking or feeling. It's about them….them speaking, being heard or having to validate everything you say based on their experiences, not yours.

I always wonder how insecure that person was in order to behave that way. Still, in the scheme of things, it doesn't matter really, as that's their way of being you have to deal with….or not. Choices come to play in cases like this. Do you really want to spend any time with someone who doesn't acknowledge you have a relevant thing to say outside the realm of their worlds? Are you in any kind of relationship where you come away from a conversation feeling frustrated, exhausted and ignored at the same time? Ask yourself why and when you figure out the answer, then figure out why you're still in it. You just might find your contact list shrinking but your energy and enthusiasm for everyone in your life growing in leaps and bounds.

Best...
Donna Karlin

*Note: In "The Emotionally Intelligent Coach" blog, my colleague Susan Meyer says "It seems to be true that the louder you get and the longer you talk and the more often you interrupt, the less likely you are to have anyone actually hear what you have to say. Silence adds a great deal to any conversation. Thoughtful reflection allows the time to digest the thoughts and ideas of your conversational partners and to add something of value."

Click here to read the rest of her insightful post

Makes you think doesn't it?

The Many Shapes and Forms of Critics

Are you working for or interacting with someone who is constantly and consistently critical? No matter what you do there’s always an element of something wrong with it? Bullies come in all shapes and forms and are very prevalent in the workplace even at the highest level of leadership which is why, when going on an interview it’s just as important for you to interview the people in the organization as it is for them to interview you.

Critics make you feel about an inch tall. They criticize everything you do and even if the piece of work is great, find a way to criticize how you do it. Often they begin the sentence with “Yes, that’s good, however I would have done it this way…” and begin to describe in great detail how many ways you screwed up.

Often these individuals operate from a position of secrecy. The more information they hoard the easier it is to pull apart the numerous ways you didn’t meet their expectations and didn’t produce. When this behavior continues, you start feeling “Why should I bother if it’s going to be redone anyways and even if it isn’t I certainly won’t get credit for my work.” Eventually, hopefully sooner than later, you start looking around for another job and leave.

When looking to move to another job, one of the key points to look for is staff turnover. If the organization has a revolving door, then run the other way. If this is happening a level below leadership and the powers that be aren’t doing a thing about it, then run faster.

If you’re in a position where you have to deal with a verbal bully, then have some responses ready at the tip of your tongue. Don’t become them and bully back, as what would be the point in that? However show the individual you will not tolerate derisive behavior and challenge them on it. For example a way to respond is “Are you sure you meant to say that?" Would you like to rethink that perhaps?” Nothing like getting clarification as to whether or not they intended to be a bully. To shock them into awareness and not own their words, a good response might be “Did you really say that or was I imagining it?” Then walk away. A verbal tug of war doesn’t get either of you anywhere but if you take the high road and let go of the rope, then there’s nothing to war with. When you answer in one line, toleration-eliminating speech, they eventually back off.

As an organizational leader it’s paramount you keep an eye on the communication style of your managers. If this is at all prevalent you need to nip it in the bud before you end up in a staff exodus, for along with the people who end up walking goes corporate memory, knowledge and wisdom. As well, the possibility of generation wisdom when people are afraid to speak up is severely diminished. Bullying goes well beyond inappropriate behavior. It also speaks to organizational wisdom and excellence.

Bottom line is, if you accept this kind of behaviour, then you’re giving away your personal and organizational power to someone you least respect. What does that say about how you respect yourself?

Best..
Donna Karlin

A Global Dialogue

I was doing a search for a few blogs I'd written way back when and came across a blog I'd written almost 2 years ago today titled "A Milestone…..All of a sudden there were 50….and then there were 51! I wrote "Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d have regular readers from 50 countries coming by to read, comment and email their three cents."

That was the halway point between when I started blogging to now. Two years since that post I am now celebrating readership from 108 countries and territories! To say I'm blown away at how far reaching a blog can be is an understatement. To tell you how rich a dialogue can be when one has comments and insights from people from across the globe is indescribable. I am honoured and grateful that you take the time to read and write me and hope you stay for a long time to come.

If there is a topic or conversation you'd like to have and for me to write about, please suggest that too.

I will write more over the weekend, but for now would like to welcome our new readers from Bahrain, Fiji and Vietnam. Make yourself welcome!

Best to you all...
Donna Karlin

Thinking Traps vs. Mental Flexibility

A while ago I asked the question "What are you tolerating?" I wrote of one toleration where people habitually come into meetings late. That results in everyone else having to wait around, push back the rest of the day and other people's appointments to accommodate disrespectful behavior. This week I'd like to talk about another toleration; that of draining thoughts and beliefs.

Holding onto old ways of doing things, paradigms and processes that are no longer applicable can bring an organization down. Often, leadership, especially a leader who founded the company way back when and perhaps taught by a mentor from a generation past, wants to stick to methods that were tried and true. That doesn’t mean everything has to be scrapped and changed but if you're dealing with thoughts and beliefs that are draining you because you're in a constant tug of war with automation, technology, methods, and new "whipper-snappers" who want to do things the 'new-fangled way', not only will you be fighting them but you’ll have an inner tug of war going on that will spiral all of you downwards.

You end up tolerating this for many reasons, one of which is because you’re not sure how to modernize or change that paradigm without looking 'stupid' (or so you think). Those become thinking traps or patterns of thought that become roadblocks to success. These thinking traps don't serve you any more. It's time to revisit, upgrade your thinking, personal operating system or whatever you want to call it.

When you get into thinking traps you’re no longer making decisions that are best for your lives and/or organizations. It has nothing to do with how intelligent you are. It has to do with how quickly you can integrate new ways of thinking that will serve you better. It’s mental flexibility.

Are you tolerating a leader who is stuck in a thinking trap? Could you be the one who might be stuck? Before you jump in to answer on instinct...give it a thought for a moment or two. Care to share?

Best..
Donna Karlin

Perspectives for the Summer

Over the summer months we tend to spend more time playing than inside reading so to reflect that, I'll be posting shorter, to the point posts. This is the time of year when I do more program and model creation as well as seeking out like-minded blogs and articles and wading through the many books I've been asked to review.

How you'll benefit from this is to be the first to find out what it is I'm launching, creating and to be able to benefit from launch discounts, tips and pointers and other blogs to peruse that will give you the insights you're looking for.

Today I'd like to quote a blog I came across which really resonated with me.
Nic Askew writes... When your company must show itself naked...Exposing Company Soul...

"It occurred to me that if a company doesn't know its own essence, its reason for being perhaps even its soul then it will, as a result, spend most of its time and money re-inventing itself to react to the world.

It will always be telling the market what it thinks it needs to hear in order the convince that market to act how it wants. That sounds frustrating and expensive.

And I'm not sure that such a company could ever possess the sense of wonder & curiosity that would act as a lighthouse to customers, employees, ideas, funding etc. That also sounds no fun at all. Why do it, why run such a business?" Click Read On for the rest of the article..

The same concepts goes for individuals, though, doesn't it? If we can't articulate what it is we want in life, work, relationships, any of it, we too will be in reactive mode and let life's circumstances dictate our roles within it. Is that what you want? You can fall into a life based on everything and everyone else, or create it.

Best..
Donna Karlin

*Note: Welcome subscriber from Bahrain. 105 countries and territories and counting!