NBS recommends life-changing reads
How To Save Your Own Life
By Michael Gates Gill
P839
MANILA, Philippines - In his heartwarming memoir How Starbucks Saved My Life, Michael Gates Gill shared the story of starting live over in his fifties. As he traveled the country speaking about his first book, he found that certain parts of his story especially resonated with readers. The response he got was overwhelming and some people even thanked him by saying, “Mike, your story literally saved my life.” Michael shows readers how he discovered true happiness and how they can do the same. It lies not in yielding to “fate,” but in finding the strength to reach out and help others and to start our lives anew.
Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us
By Daniel H. Pink
P1135
Most of us believe that the best way to motivate ourselves and others is with external rewards like money—the carrot-and-stick approach. That’s a mistake, Daniel H. Pink says in Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, his provocative and persuasive new book. The secret to high performance and satisfaction—at work, at school, and at home—is the deeply human need to direct our own lives, to learn and create new things, and to do better by ourselves and our world.
Drawing on four decades of scientific research on human motivation, Pink exposes the mismatch between what science knows and what business does—and how that affects every aspect of life. He demonstrates that while carrots and sticks worked successfully in the twentieth century, that’s precisely the wrong way to motivate people for today’s challenges. In Drive, he examines the three elements of true motivation—autonomy, mastery, and purpose—and offers smart and surprising techniques for putting these into action. Along the way, he takes us to companies that are enlisting new approaches to motivation and introduces us to the scientists and entrepreneurs who are pointing a bold way forward. Drive is bursting with big ideas—the rare book that will change how you think and transform how you live.
Food Rules: An Eater’s Manual
By Michael Pollan
P465
Michael Pollan, our nation’s most trusted resource for food-related issues, offers this indispensible guide for anyone concerned about health and food. Simple, sensible, and easy to use, Food Rules is a set of memorable rules for eating wisely, many drawn from a variety of ethnic or cultural traditions. Whether at the supermarket or an all-you-can-eat-buffet, this handy, pocket-size resource is the perfect guide for anyone who would like to become more mindful of the food we eat.
Women & Money: Owning The Power To Control Your Destiny
By Suze Orman
P415
In this groundbreaking book, Suze Orman, the nation’s go-to expert on all things financial, investigates the complex dysfunctional relationship women have with money.
With her signature mix of insight, compassion, and soul-deep recognition, Suze Orman equips women with the financial knowledge and emotional awareness to overcome the blocks that have kept them from acting in the best interest of their money—and of themselves. At the heart of the book is The Save Yourself Plan: a streamlined five-month program that delivers genuine long-term financial security. But what’s at stake is far bigger even than money—it’s about every woman’s sense of who she is, what she deserves, and why it all begins with the decision to save yourself.
Girl On Top: Your Guide To Turning Dating Rules Into Career Success
By Nicole Williams
P845
Nicole Williams is the tell-it-like-it-is career expert who you wish could fight your work battles for you. But with her ingenious approach-taking the tactics used to land a man and applying them to your career-you’ll be able to handle any work situation and come out on top. Here, Nicole introduces twenty tried-and-true dating rules such as “Don’t Give Away the Milk for Free” and “Don’t Waste the Pretty” and reveals how they can be applied just as effectively in the office.
Among other topics, Nicole dishes on how much to reveal at work as well as what to put up with from your boss (and, more importantly, what not to). She tackles everything from having the money talk to leaving them wanting more on a job interview. And sprinkled throughout Girl On Top is fashion advice (“Top Ten Commandments of Style”) and checklists to determine if you need to get a life.
Nicole’s keen insight and candid advice will teach you how to recognize the good guys from the bad, win the kudos of those who matter, and create the career of your dreams.
Letters To Sam
By Daniel Gottlieb
P295
When his grandson was born, Daniel Gottlieb began to write a series of heartfelt letters that he hoped Sam would read later in life. He planned to cover all the important topics — dealing with your parents, handling bullies, falling in love, coping with death — and what motivated him was the fear that he might not live long enough to see Sam reach adulthood. You see, Daniel Gottlieb is a quadriplegic — the result of a near-fatal automobile accident that occurred two decades ago — and he knows enough not to take anything for granted.
Then, when Sam was only 14 months old, he was diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disability, a form of autism, and suddenly everything changed. Now the grandfather and grandson were bound by something more: a disability — and Daniel Gottlieb’s special understanding of what that means became invaluable.
A lovingly written, emotionally gripping book that offers unique — and universal — insights into what it means to be human.
