I just love British fiction.

The shopaholic series by Sophie Kinsella had me laughing out loud on many occasions.

When I read about “The Little Lady Agency” on Good Reads, I just had to check it out.  The cover of the book has an endorsement by Sophie Kinsella, so it was a slam dunk for me that I just had to check this book out from the library immediately.  Plus, I was in the mood for something very light and fun.

This book was a great choice for light and fun.

The main character, Melissa Romney-Jones, is delightfully funny and quite ingenious.  She is the daughter to a not so nice politician, and has two sisters, one older named Allegra, and one younger, named Emery.

She shares a house in London with her friend, Nelson, and works at “Dean & Daniels”, an estate agency in downtown London.  In London, they call realtors, “estate agents”. How very proper, indeed. 🙂

When Dean & Daniels merges with an American real estate firm, she loses her job due to “redundancy”.  And, this is where the hilarity begins.

Melissa is forced to find a new job, and possibly a new career.

Well, she succeeds in finding a new career, and, in fact, sets up a new company called “The Little Lady Agency” with her alter ego, “Honey”, as the owner.  Honey has blond hair and dresses in very fancy clothes including stilettos, to top it all off.  Melissa, however, is a brunette and dresses in more casual clothes, and is a little more down to earth.

When Melissa gets into her “Honey” costume, she somehow just gets it all together and is able to handle anything that comes her way.

The business is a “life management agency” aimed at helping grown men manage their lives better.

Some of the services include: helping shop for gifts, helping shop for clothes for themselves, helping with makeover tips, organizing a party etc..  Some of the situations that Honey finds herself in are quite  hysterical, but she handles everything with a great sense of decorum and grace.

Jonathan Riley is an estate agent that joins Dean & Daniels shortly after Melissa is let go.  He becomes one of Honey’s favorite clients.

I LOVE the ending.  That’s all I’ll say for now.  Such a fun read and a very sweet story!

If you love British fiction, and want something light and fun, this is a great choice.  🙂

As I have mentioned before, writing is a form of therapy for me.

Writing is such a fantastic outlet for creativity, sharing, and venting.

I think its a good idea for everyone to write down their thoughts at least a few times per week, which is my personal goal.

As I sit down to share about a day’s event or a memory or workout or recipe, I just write.  I try to write as if I’m sitting down at the kitchen table chatting with you.

Over the past few months, I have noticed that some of my favorite blogs were created by published writers. Their posts tend to be incredibly captivating and they engage the reader from the first sentence.  There’s an extra punch of something.

Well, I’ve figured it out.  Very Detailed Descriptions.

With the use of descriptors in our writing, an every day event, like sitting at the park or going to the library, can seem almost magical.

I mentioned to Mountain Man that I would like to become a more engaging writer.  He went to the section of our garage that houses our old college books, and pulled out a copy of Natalie Goldberg’s “Writing Down the Bones” for me to read.

He enrolled in a writing class during his sophomore year of college. The class was instructed to read this book to jumpstart and hone their writing skills.

I’m so glad he recommended this book.  It is easy to read, eye opening, and extremely helpful in describing the path to better writing.

Goldberg details many great suggestions for improving your writing skills. One of my favorites is to go visit any place (coffee shop, park, pool, your front yard etc….), and just write about what you see and hear.

While you’re writing, describe the scene in great detail.  Do not hold back.

Instead of saying “I’m sitting in my chair watching the trees”.  You could say “I’m sitting in my red wooden chair watching the green, yellow, and red leaves on the large trees in the front of my yellow house.”  See the difference?

I did not stop to realize the power of detail in stories, until reading this book.

“Writing Down the Bones” allows you to focus on what really makes writing spectacular.

I can see why Mountain Man kept this book in his collection for so many years.  Its a great reference tool to utilize on your journey to becoming a masterful writer and storyteller.

Highly recommend this book for anyone looking to improve their writing skills.

I am also learning from one of the master storyteller’s, Ray Bradbury, in his Zen in the Art of Writing book.

I just finished a riveting book tonight, called “Crazy for the Storm”, by Norman Ollestad.  This book is the definition of a “page turner“.

A few weeks ago, I was at a swim meet, and one of the Dads sitting in our area had just finished this book on his kindle.  He remarked about what an amazing book he had just finished, so, of course, I had to ask.  I already had a list going for my summer reading list, but am always willing to add another great story to the list.

I’m so glad I added this one.

In a Nutshell

The book is Ollestad’s memoir of the plane crash that he endured when he was eleven years old.

There were five people on the plane, including his Dad and his Dad’s girlfriend, flying from the Santa Monica Airport to the Big Bear Airport in the San Bernardino Mountains.  Ollestad was the sole survivor.

Normally with survival stories, they will only discuss the disaster and survival story, but this one also chronicles the author’s life with his Dad growing up.  The stories mainly focuses on the year between 10-11 (the year before the crash).

Raised By a Thrill Seeking Father

The chapters switch between the plane crash and stories about what it was like to be raised by his daredevil Dad.

Ollestad’s Dad was always searching for the biggest wave to surf or the steepest slope on the stormiest day to ski.  He brought Norman (little Norman as he’s referred to in the book) on some of his crazy adventures.

The adventures include a trip down to Mexico to surf the biggest waves, and a trip to some of the tallest mountains in Utah for skiing during blizzard like conditions.

Ollestad’s father taught him that you are truly alive when you are in a moment where your life is hanging in the balance.  This could include surfing eight foot waves or tackling black diamond ski runs at the age of four.

Surviving a Plane Crash

It is heart wrenching to read about what Ollestad endured to get himself to safety after the crash.  The story is so beautifully written, you really feel as if you are on the mountain after the crash with him.

Its amazing how vivid the memories are for Ollestad after all of these years.  The crash occurred in February, 1979, and the book was published in 2007.

After the story is told, Ollestad discusses visiting the site of the plane crash 27 years later in the epilogue.

The epilogue is so powerful in itself as you witness Ollestad finally gaining come closure from the event.  He actually travels up the mountain to where the plane crash took place and finds a piece of the plane still there on the mountain side.

Making Sense of it All

As the book winds back and forth from his life with his father to the crash, I felt like I was on Ollestad’s journey with him trying to figure out what made his Dad tick, how this affected his childhood years, and how it would ultimately affect his parenting choices as well.

The journey is a profound one, and, in the end, Ollestad recognizes that without the thrill seeking trips that his father took him on at such a young age, he might not have survived the crash. Ollestad gained many survival skills from these trips and was able to utilize those skills to get himself off the mountain to safety.

Ollestad now has a son of his own and discusses a heartwarming skiing trip where he comes to understand why is father pushed him hard on the slopes and other areas of his life.  His father believed that the rewards of pushing the limits outweighed the risks, and allowed him to remain above all of the nonsense of “normal” life.

Surfing

Surfing has been on my bucket list for some time now.

With all of the talk in this book about the waves at Topanga Beach, being inside the tube of a wave, and riding it to the beach, I decided I need to move this up higher on the bucket list and take action sooner rather than later.

I told Mountain Man that we need to plan a trip to Santa Cruz to start to hone our surfing skills (or, more like, learn how to surf)  :).  I also told Mountain Man that he needs to read this book asap.

You know those books that you just want to discuss with someone immediately…..this is one those books.  Enjoy!

Perfectionist.  Passionate.  Strong Personality.  Believes in Achieving the Impossible.  Set on changing the world. Minimalist.

These are the first words that come to mind when I think about Steve Jobs.

As you might have gathered, I just finished the Steve Jobs Biography, by Walter Isaacson, this afternoon.  Wow, what an incredible book and an extraordinary life.

There are so many fascinating insights, struggles, complications, and triumphs covered in this book.

I was completely captivated the whole time, and this is a 600+ page book, so thats saying something.

Isaacson’s Intimate Writing Style

Isaacson’s writing style is wonderful, and really makes you feel like you’re taking a stroll through Jobs’ life, and in some parts, like you are in the same room as Jobs listening to him reflect on his life.

I really enjoyed how Isaacson lists the cast of characters in Jobs’ life at the beginning of the book. Issacson gives a little snippet on each person that had meaning in Jobs’ life to set the stage for what is to come in the story.

It made me consider how all of our lives are made up of characters (our friends, family, work colleagues etc…) that all play a role in the story of our lives.  These characters each help to mold our lives in different ways.

Its fun to think of my life as a story and to look at each person in my life as a contributor to my personal growth.  This is probably a very healthy way to approach life and gain as much as I can from my interactions with others (ie: instead of being frustrated with someone, think “opportunity for growth”  🙂  ).

This book is so chock full of the details surrounding the history of the personal computer, and the personal life of Steve Jobs, it is difficult to capture it all in one post.

I thought I would outline my main takeaways from this book and list a few tidbits about Jobs that you probably did not know.

My Takeaways from this book about Steve Jobs, Apple, and Leadership

Steve Jobs was an exceptional person with a complicated personality.  His drive and passion for Apple products are responsible for creating the world’s first personal computer.

His relentless pursuit of perfection became his defining quality.  The lengths he would go to in order to ensure that the different Apple products were the best of the best were extraordinary.

Yes, he threw tantrums.  Yes, he belittled people in public.  Yes, he worked his team to the bone.  Yes, he might have been quick to say an idea was bad (he used more colorful language than “bad”) before hearing a developer out, and then turn around and implement that “bad” idea. Yes, he might have used charisma to get his way.

But, through it all, no one had his passion.  Without his passion, Apple would not have become a reality.

I believe the world is a much better place with a company like Apple to look to for guidance.  Jobs believed that companies should focus on a few very high quality products, rather than push out many average products.

If all companies maintained their focus on the development of the product to best serve their end user, the world would be a much better place and filled with significantly less junk and clutter.

Jobs believed that meetings should be filled with sharing ideas and communicating face to face, rather than hiding behind a powerpoint presentation that had been memorized.  He truly enjoyed the exchange of ideas focused on developing quality products, but wanted the ideas to come from the heart, rather than a prepared presentation.

Towards the end of the book, Isaacson discusses how Jobs has his son, Reed, join him in a three day meeting with senior management and publicity experts to deal with an Ipad problem.

Jobs talks about how those meetings that Reed witnessed were some of his most effective meetings ever, and how he is so glad that Reed was able to be a part of them.  This took place in the last few years of his life.

The Wonderful Apple Retail Stores

When you walk into an Apple store, Jobs’ belief in minimalism and perfection is so evident.  Jobs’ hope was to create a maximum statement through minimalist techniques with the stores.

In the book, Isaacson discusses the unbelievable detail Jobs put into the design of the Apple stores.  When he presented the idea to the Board of Apple for retail stores where customers could touch and feel the products, no one was in favor.  They pointed to the failure of the Gateway retail stores.

But, Jobs was not one to take the answer no very well, and was able to convince them to set up some retail stores.  Well, as we all know, that was a multi million dollar idea.  So, even when something had been tried before, that really doesn’t count, because Jobs had so much more creativity and drive than most people, that whatever he touched would most likely become incredibly effective and the best anyone has ever seen.

Because his passion ran so deep, he had to make many sacrifices along the way, but I think when you have his level of drive, it is difficult to hold back and temper that drive and passion.  If he did, he wouldn’t be completely fulfilled.

I wonder, if Paul Jobs had not introduced Steve to electronics, if his passion would have been focused elsewhere.  I believe I speak for millions when I say, thank goodness his passion was for computers and developing A+ companies.

I can say, as an avid user of all Apple products, with my iphone, macbook pro, ipod, and ipad, I wholeheartedly want to thank him for being the incredible, second to none visionary that he was for 35+ years.  He will be missed.

Things you Might not Know about Steve Jobs

• He lived the first five years of his life in San Francisco. Then, his parents, Paul and Clara Jobs, moved the family to Mountain View, where he spent the rest of his childhood years
• His father, Paul, was a machinist and taught Steve how to rebuild electronics like radios and tvs in their garage
• He attended Reed College for a six months, then dropped out, although, he did audit classes for another year and half.  During this time, he audited a calligraphy class and credits the fonts in the Apple computer to what he learned in this class.  I had never thought of auditing a bunch of classes. Nice idea.  Jobs was not one to follow the grain, so creating his own college plan was not at all surprising.
• He met Steve Wozniak in 1969 when he was just 14, and later, in 1976 would release the Apple I computer.  In 1976, Wozniak left HP to join Steve at Apple and the company is founded.
• Jobs and Wozniak went on to create the Apple II computer in 1977 and by 1979, 50,000 units were sold.
• The Apple Computer is widely credited with being the first personal computer introduced to society.
• In 1985, Jobs is ousted from Apple due to his inability to control is temper and work together with the board of directors.  I did not know this and was surprised that Jobs was kicked out from his creation, but in reading through the details in this book, it is understandable.
• In 1986, Jobs purchases the Graphics Group, which later becomes Pixar.  I did not know this, but Jobs was the executive producer for Toy Story!  I had always only associated him with Apple.
• Early 1990, Jobs meets Laurene Powell, who is a student at the Stanford Business School at the time.  I love hearing “how they met” stories.  In this case, Laurene was asked by a business school friend to go see a presentation with several top tech guys from Silicon Valley.  Laurene went up to the first row and happened to sit right next to Steve Jobs.  Apparently, they chatted a bit, then he went on stage.  After his talk, he ran after her in the parking lot to ask her out to dinner that night.  And, the romance begins.  How sweet.  🙂
• In 1991, Jobs marries Laurene Powell in Yosemite and celebrates with a vegan mountain shaped cake in the solarium at the Ahwahnee Hotel.  One of my all time favorite spots.  Love, love, love the Ahwahnee.
• Jobs and Powell have three children together, Reed, Erin and Eve.
• Jobs has a daughter, Lisa, from a previous relationship, who is about 10 years older than his other children.  Jobs has a tumultuous relationship with Lisa, but seems to reconcile in the end as indicated in the biography.
• Jobs loved having discussions and solving problems with people on long walks around his neighborhood.  I agree with this one.  Walking really helps the brain work out issues.
• In 1997, Jobs is asked to come back to Apple to run the company once again.  He accepts and turns the company around like nobody’s business, bringing the company back to profitability within about a year.  His passion for Apple drives him to take charge and take care of business.  He is one of the most focused individuals I have ever read about or met in my life.
• 2005- Jobs negotiated the Disney purchasing Pixar deal. I always wondered when and how that happened.

Conclusion: Steve Jobs Biography

I highly recommend this book.  It is incredible to read about the world changing development of the personal computer and the man behind this phenomenon.

Isaacson had personal access to Steve for several years and learned much about his life on walks around Silicon Valley.  Because of his close relationship with Steve as his biographer, he really captures an intimate look into the life of this revolutionary figure.

 

Recently, a friend of mine highly recommended the book, “ScreamFree Parenting”, by Hal Edward Runkel. The tagline is “Raising Your Kids by Keeping Your Cool”, which perfectly describes what you will learn from this very insightful book.

I made the assumption that this would be another book with more rehashed parenting ideas, but was pleasantly surprised to find out that it is full of fresh tips on keeping the calm between you and your kids.

Parents Need to Grow Up

Runkel focuses on the parent “growing up” and not being so reactive to their kid’s behavior.  One of my favorite examples in the book is about a Mom with her 12 year old daughter.  The daughter is being very dramatic and emotional about some of her Mother’s rules.

Instead of yelling at her daughter in reaction to her unpleasant behavior, she says that she remembers what it was like to be a 12 year old and that it was hard to not get worked up over simple situations.  Basically, the Mom was indicating that she understands what she’s going through, but she was not going to change her mind.  The Mom never raised her voice during the exchange.

As soon as you open your mouth with a calm tone and offer some understanding, while still remaining firm, your child will have more respect for you, and the situation will be under control much quicker.

The All Important Tone of your Voice

When I was working in Investment Management 10 years ago, I remember having the tone of your voice discussion with my co-workers and Director.  The truth of the matter is that 90% of your message comes from your tone, not the actual words that you use when your communicate.  With our clients, it was important to remain calm and steady when discussing their portfolios and answering questions.

I think this is so important to keep in mind with our kids as well.  If we are screaming at our kids and losing our cool several times a week with them, we have stooped to the maturity level of a kid.  There is no reason to lose our patience by yelling.

We will be much more effective if we stay calm and firm in our interactions.

Welcome Consequences into your Home

Another example I really enjoyed was with a teenage daughter and her Mom.  The Mom had been trying to get her daughter to walk to school for the whole year.  She would walk from time to time, but it was always a struggle to get her daughter to get ready in time and start her walk to school.  She would delay and delay until her Mom was leaving for work and could drive her door to door to school.

One morning, the Mom was failing again in her attempt to have her daughter walk to school, so she decided to introduce a time frame to this daily event.  She said that she was leaving for work in 10 minutes and if she wasn’t ready by then, she would have to walk to school and risk being late.

Ten minutes went by, and her daughter was still not ready for school, so the Mother left for work.  At lunchtime, the daughter called the Mom at work to ask her what they had for lunch at home.  The daughter had not gone into school at all that morning!  Instead of the Mom blowing up, she calmly told her daughter to get to school and accept an unexcused absence because she was not going to write a note for her.

It turns out that if you have an unexcused absence at her school, you are not allowed to attend school events for that week.  It just so happened that the Homecoming Dance was that week and the daughter had been looking forward to this event for months.  This was a huge consequence that the daughter and Mother would have to endure to drive a point home.

Do you think the daughter will ever risk being late to school again and being handed an unexcused absence?  I don’t think so.

I think this point of enforcing tough consequences is so difficult to implement.  There have been a number of times where Mountain Man and I have needed to take back privileges from our kids due to bad behavior, but I will give in because there’s a special event during the punishment time.

This book serves as a wonderful reminder that following through with a consequence serves both parties better in the long run.

We want to raise self directed adults

In the first half of the book, I became very teary eyed reading Runkel’s outline of the attributes of a self directed adult.  I became so emotional rather quickly because this list represents exactly what I hope for my kids as they grow into adults.

Runkel points out that one of the most important traits we can teach our kids is to take responsibility for their actions.  This responsibility is one of his main tenets for becoming a self directed adult and becoming an incredible example for those around them.

I love Runkel’s eight characteristics of a “self-directed” adult so much, I just have to share them with you below:

• “He knows and pursues what he wants in life
• She gladly seeks counsel from others, but ultimately makes up her own mind
• He demonstrates integrity, a consistency of his beliefs, desires, words, and actions
• She holds people accountable for their actions (including her parents), but does not blame others for her own problems
• He does not let others blame him for their problems
• She gladly and quickly takes responsibility for her decisions
• He welcomes criticism as feedback, but does not automatically accept it as truth
• She takes care of herself in order to be available to others without needing them to take care of her”

I could not have listed a better group of traits to represent what I want for my kid’s to embody.  Just imagine if the majority of the people in this world embodied these traits…it would be incredible.

I absolutely adore “ScreamFree Parenting”, by Hal Edward Runkel, and think you will too.