May Read

Title: Indispensable! : Becoming the Obvious Choice in Business and in Life

Author(s): Cottrell, David; Nix, Robert

Call Number: 650.14 C851I 2014

Subjects: Promotions; Career Development

Number of Pages: 139

ISBN: 9780071829397

Book Description:

            Fact: When opportunity knocks in the workplace, most people don’t know how to seize it.

            This book will show you exactly how to spot-and master-your next great job opportunity. Are you ready to become the obvious choice at promotion time? You can be. The good news? It’s a lot easier than you think.

            Believe it or not, you already have the tools. Indispensable! teaches you how to use them to position yourself for job success, every time. From international bestselling author and leadership expert David Cottrell and sales guru Robert Nix comes the ultimate insider’s guide for those who want to break through and control their professional destiny. In simple, clear language-featuring informative and relatable case studies-you’ll discover how easy it can be to transform your on-the-job persona to become the person who succeeds first and fastest. No matter what your title is, you’ll be equipped to navigate the trickiest workplaces and position yourself for growth at every turn. You’ll put yourself in the spotlight and become the individual everyone else admires and wants to be.

            Indispensable! Demonstrates how to create and maintain your best image 24/7: how to project strength, smarts, competence, and leadership. It’s an indispensable road map with superb strategies for how to:

-Assess your workplace persona and perception

-Formulate a goal-oriented action plan that works

-Incorporate behavior modification to transform yourself inside and outside of work

-Identify, set, and sustain measurable goals

-Optimize your organizational skills (while decluttering your life)

            Indispensable! Is packed with tips on how to listen, how to put coworkers at ease, how to use humor to your advantage (and when to avoid it), how to participate at business functions, and how to cultivate a public persona and effortless demeanor that attracts others.

My Read:

            “Success, happiness, attitude, and effort are all choices. Your Choice….How people react to these moments in time is what separates the successful form the trapped.” –page 9 Personally, it all sounds so familiar and repetitive. It’s always our choice to be who we are. But it won’t hurt to frequently reflect and ask ourselves who we really are and/or who we really want to be as we are getting old. We might not be able to have access or control of the situations or the people surrounding us; what we do have is our interaction and reaction to them. Emotions came from the reactions. To be positive or otherwise, it’s up to you. Your Choice.

            “Take control over what you can…Never give up improving the things that you can control.” –page 16 “The Indispensable person takes action and stops making excuses.” –page 20 As the authors cruelly point out in the book that there will be always someone prettier or smarter, wiser than we are. They also state “Whatever the past, going forward is a choice.” –page 17 Did you ever ask yourself and/or wonder why our parents sent us to schools? My mother told me that good education would allow me to meet other educated people and the ability to read books means I have more opportunities to improve myself. Do you know how big your horizon is? How huge the blue sky is in your eyes? Or did you ever ask yourself such questions?

            At the end of the book the authors advise that whoever wants to become indispensable should be an eager learner, action-oriented and thankful (page121- page 126). It all makes sense, doesn’t it? Learning keeps a person alive. Being action-oriented invites focus and motivates a person to have a more meaningful life. And being thankful basically makes you a decent person.

            To me, to be indispensable at the workplace is easy. Love what you do for a living.