By: Jenn Burnett on October 11, 2018
Having recently returned from our Hong Kong advance, I was reminded of a truth that I had unearthed while living abroad: that I learn at least as much about myself when traveling cross-culturally than I do about the culture which I’m visiting. That knowledge doesn’t come without some reflective work. At first I just…
By: Digby Wilkinson on October 11, 2018
How to talk about books you haven’t read – Pierre Bayard “Long my imprisoned spirit lay Fast bound in sin and nature’s night; Thine eye diffused a quickening ray I woke, the dungeon flamed with light; My chains fell off, my heart was free, I rose, went forth, and read no more!” I loved this…
By: Shawn Hart on October 10, 2018
https://youtu.be/qwOdU02SE0w This is a clip by Cal Newport that gives an example of what his precursor book, “So Good They Can’t Ignore You,” was emphasizing. It is an interesting perspective. In his book “So Good They Can’t Ignore You,” Cal Newport challenged the reader to do 5 primary things: Develop rare and valuable skills Create…
By: Karen Rouggly on October 10, 2018
When I was a child, I was fascinated by the book, Jimmy and the White Lie, by Bartholomew.[1] The book is centered around Jimmy, who broke the neighbors window by sending a baseball through it. Instead of telling the truth, Jimmy decided to hide the truth, which turned into a white blob that got bigger…
By: Nancy VanderRoest on October 10, 2018
Pierre Bayard (a French professor of Literature) shares an insightful perspective in his book, How to Talk About Books You Haven’t Read. Bayard’s book is an interesting read ~ or non-read, depending on how you look at it. The author opened a door (along with Garfield as he spoke to us in China) about the…
By: Mario Hood on October 10, 2018
At first, it appears ironic that a professor of literature advocates not reading but as you dig deeper into the book and understand who Pierre Bayard is, the elation of a student skipping out on reading assignments quickly wanes. As a French based professor of literature, Pierre Bayard is an acknowledged non-reader and proud of…
By: Colleen Batchelder on October 10, 2018
Cal Newport, best-selling author and professor at Georgetown University challenges his readers to understand their goals, their purpose, their worth and the value of their time. He plunges them into a world of intelligent thought, cognitive disciplines and personal boundaries, and challenges them to become introspective before creating influence. The author responds to the busyness of…
By: Rev Jacob Bolton on October 10, 2018
Growing up we didn’t play video games. My parents didn’t let us get anything more hi tech than an old school Nintendo, so while peers of mine in middle and high school were playing Super Nintendo, Sega, and even PlayStation, I was playing Tecmo Bowl and Paper Boy. My brother and I didn’t really think…
By: Jennifer Williamson on October 10, 2018
When I was kid I used the watch a cartoon called “The Jetsons” about a futuristic family that zoomed around town in mini-aircraft, had robot servants, and could make dinner with the push of a button. It seemed like of world as fictional as that of Harry Potter, but in fact, much of what I…
By: Digby Wilkinson on October 8, 2018
Where to start? Having arrived home from Shanghai, sleep is elusive and the need to work through a painful moment at the 2018 Advance in Hong Kong is preying on my mind. It needs to be exercised by writing. The anguish began on the second day as I sat with someone I did not yet…
By: Mike on October 7, 2018
Cal Newport’s Deep Work is a strategy book for leaders who want to make sense out of chaos, free themselves from unnecessary distractions, and improve their concentration while working. Newport’s premise holds that multitasking “kills productivity” and promotes shallow work that is ineffective and decreases the global leader’s efficiency in the marketplace.[1] I related negatively…
By: Dave Watermulder on September 23, 2018
As I scrolled through online commentary and reviews about Judith Glaser’s book, Conversational Intelligence: How Great Leaders Build Trust and Get Extraordinary Results, one came up that reflected my own thinking. It said simply, “good concept that could have been summarized in one essay.”[1] To be clear, Glaser has written a book that is chock full…
By: Kyle Chalko on September 21, 2018
Judith E. Glaser presented some information in her book Conversational Intelligence that has the potential to change the way leaders think about each of their interactions. Glaser’s defines Conversational Intelligence is the ability to connect, navigate and grow with others. It gives us the ability to influence the interactions we find ourselves in the every…
By: Jake Dean-Hill on September 20, 2018
Judith Glaser’s book, Conversational Intelligence: How Great Leaders Build Trust and Get Extraordinary Results, is incredibly insightful and full of valuable information about how our brains respond to conversations that create trust and ones that create distrust. She describes conversations as “dynamic, interactive, and inclusive. They evolve and impact the way we connect, engage, interact,…
By: Trisha Welstad on September 20, 2018
Not long ago I had a conversation with a colleague about an upcoming event I was planning. He had some information to communicate regarding a particular detail of the event and we discussed logistics overall. Part way through the conversation he paused. Then he said, “Trisha, I want you to know that I trust you.…
By: Dan Kreiss on September 20, 2018
Sure I can. When my cohort calls me out in a Zoom meeting and Jason puts me on the spot, my amygdala is ‘locked & loaded’. That means I rapidly descend into the ‘fight, flight, or freeze’ mode of brain function according to Judith Glaser. At least this book helped me understand what I was…
By: Harry Fritzenschaft on September 20, 2018
While I acknowledge my sociological designation as a Baby Boomer, I would say that reading is fundamental to all learning. Adler admonishes us towards active reading, where we “catch” more of the author’s material in direct correlation to the amount of effort (or activity) we invest in the process.[1] Of course, as Adler has…
By: Wallace Kamau on September 20, 2018
As I reflect on how far I have come as a person, the one factor that has been key to my growth in different aspects of life, has been reading. I recognize like the preacher in the book of Ecclesiastes 12:12 that to the making of books there is no end, which encourages more reading…
By: Andrea Lathrop on September 20, 2018
This book was a sobering read. Sobering is the best word I have to describe my realization of how little I know about reading and how much of it I have to do in this program. It is not that I don’t like to read. I have loved to read since I can remember. Books…
By: Rhonda Davis on September 20, 2018
As a young girl, I devoured books. I would spend hours reading. Of course, I am an only child, so I was often driven to stories to find playmates. In these stories, I would find countless friends. I discovered a lot about myself and was free to explore worlds that didn’t exist except in my…
