Title: Presenting to Win

Author: Jerry Weissman

Genre: business

Form: hardback

Recommended: Yes - for everyone who gives presentations.

Thoughts: Jerry Weisman coaches businessmen on the presentations they give – from the layout of ideas through to the delivery, and in this book he lays out key points to putting together a good presentation.  I often did not appreciate the voice he uses or the focus on large business and making money, but it is worth pushing through the language because the points are right on. And, if you think you don’t need to read this because you can make an awesome Power Point, that does not necessarily (and generally does not) equate with giving a good presentation. 

Tags: business

Title: Generation Y and the New Rules of Management

Author: Mark Murphy with Andrea Burgio-Murphy

Genre: business, management

Form: softcover 

Recommended: Maybe – with other books of similar focus

Thoughts: You are Gen Y if you were born between the years of 1978 and 1991. You were born to baby boomer parents and are now the young portion of the workforce. If you are older than this, you are probably managing, or will soon be managing, Gen Y employees. And for both of you, the transition is likely a bumpy ride that often leaves everyone frustrated. But, in today’s world where Gen Y will soon be ruling the workplace, it is a good idea for both of you to understand who you are and how to make it work. My guess is that if you do, you will both be amazed at how much work is done. 

This book is a quick read that lays out 6 “new rules of management.” A quick read, there are some good practical examples. It is not outstanding, but it is helpful. Honestly, I am finding these business books to be quick reads – all of them have a few good points, and when you read a few of them together, you can get somewhere. So, read this with another book or two on the same subject. (If you read just one, Not Everyone Gets a Trophy is the better one to pick of the two I am reviewing.)

Tags: business, management

Title: Not Everyone Gets A Trophy: How to Manage Generation Y

Author: Bruce Tulgan

Genre: business, management

Form: hardback

Recommended: Yes – with other books of similar focus

Thoughts: Same thoughts on being a member of Gen Y or managing Gen Y was with Generation Y and the New Rules of Managment.

This book works to debunk many of the myths surrounding Gen Y in the work place. I appreciate that in doing this, the author finds value and logic in Gen Y. For example, Gen Y will not typically look at their given job as the one in which they will retire. But it is not that they are disloyal, but that they (yes, me too) have a plan and layout in which each job builds on the last. It is a different way of looking at a career, and it does not mean that they are ignoring their career. Read this with another book or two on the same subject.

Tags: business, management

In amongst other travel, I have four fabulous camping trips this summer, three of them still ahead of me. Next week I am celebrating a decade of friendship with three friends   plus two significant others who we also love. As locations and menus and equipment lists have flown across email inboxes, I have been reminded of my childhood camping trips. 

Back in the day mom and dad did all of the planning and we participated. Certain foods were pre-made and plenty of peanut butter and jelly was packed (also on next week’s menu). Camping equipment was pulled out and off we went. Not to a camp site with a number, running water, and electrical outlets. We expected to have beaches to ourselves, to bring in all the water we planned to use, to entertain ourselves for days, and to be tired of PB&J’s by the time we left. On the Sinai we brought every ounce of shade we  would have on beaches with no trees, in Fiji we would load our gear onto our boat to go to deserted islands, and in Jordan we abandoned tents to sleep on the rocks under the night sky. 

Along the way there were a few classic mishaps when items were forgotten. In Jordan we abandoned tents, but in Fiji they were helpful items to have. On one trip we forgot the tents (and the towels) in the car. Rather than abandon the trip, we slept under the clear night sky. And in the morning I found out what heavy dew is – it felt like it had rained. In Jordan once we forgot the two pots we normally cook in. A good 4 hours from home, we came up with an innovative solution – we used Saltana’s (our German Shepard) food and water bowls, which were made of metal. So yes, my family has literally shared dishes with the family dog. And it was a fantastic trip. 

I have no idea what mishaps might happen during the upcoming camping trips, but I do know that in spite of, or even because of, them, I will have a glorious time.

Tags: camping

This blog began as a place to share with loved ones a piece of my life as it happened in a village in West Africa every summer. It became a year-round blog after my final summer in village when I decided that taking time to write about life was a good practice. It was good because it forced me to see my daily happenings in a good light – to see my coffee shops and research and writing as the beautiful things of my daily living. 

Recently I have struggled with the question of what to share in this space  and what boundaries I should or should not keep. On other people’s websites I enjoy reading humorous and deep anecdotes of friends and strangers alike. I become lost in thought and I laugh out loud. But this provides no insight into what I do here, and so I take this site one step at a time. 

Thus far, each step of this blog has added a piece of what finds its way through my mind on a regular basis. Several things that I have recently been encouraged in will be finding their way onto this space in various shapes and forms in the near future. The first of these is photography, a continual side hobby of mine. Some of my favorite images captured on digital will make their way to the new page I have added. Maybe someday this will become something more. 

Beyond my photos, I will be adding two blog categories: memories and spirituality. How often am I sent back through time to my childhood as I prepare for a camping trip, smell certain foods, prepare to travel, or have one ‘too’ many staying at my house? I love the rich images, smells, and locations these bring through my mind in an instant. Maybe you have seen my eyes daze off as my mind wanders–these will be some of the cause of that. 

Just as memories slip through my mind, so do thoughts on spirituality that start in a wide array of places: magazine articles, books, the Bible, sermons, conversations, and people’s actions. Sometimes they are clear, cohesive thoughts, and sometimes they are scattered and disjointed. Often there is a continual growing of thoughts as patterns emerge and ideas become stronger and more formed over time. Rarely is anything conclusive, awe-inspiring, or life-altering. But, they are a piece of my journey. 

If you are sarcastically wondering when I will get around to these things, time will tell. I plan to return to the practice of writing at least once week as the practice of recorded reflection is good, and one I have missed. I hope that you enjoy these additions and I that they spark thought and conversation with you. 

Tags: blog

As I drove north from Kigali today I saw signs for Volcanoes National Park, each of which had gorillas on them. This park is one of the famous ones in Africa; here you can pay good money to see gorillas that are now heavily protected. I finally asked, “Is the park near here?” You see, Rwanda is a small country, so maybe these were just signs to tempt the tourists. But moments later we passed a sign that read, 11 km this way. I was close enough to wild animals I had never seen that I could practically taste it, and I thought to myself, “Maybe next trip I will plan an extra day in Rwanda.” 

As we approach the project area, which is called Cyanika (pronounced chy-a-nika), I realized that we are practically underneath the park, and that the Cyanika region spills over to the next hill, butting up against Uganda. And that is when I connect the dots: the Batwa were kicked out of the Volcanoes National Park. 

The Batwa are pygmies who originally lived in the forest and now struggle to survive in their forced new lifestyle. Through the amazing, transformative work of MOUCECORE (Blood:Water Mission’s partner in this project), the Rwandese in Cyanika have reached out to the Batwa and are teaching them skills they need to survive. Skills like basic agriculture, nutrition, hygiene, sanitation, and how to build permanent homes. The people of Cyanika also found land for the Batwa to build homes. When able, they have provided for the Batwa. Although the Batwa still have a long way to go, my heart is full from what I have heard. 

This group of Batwa number less than 150. 

Today rain and time prevented me from visiting the Batwa. Next time I will plan an extra day in Rwanda to visit with the Batwa, who live in the shadow of the gorillas. 

[Note: this is my understanding of the situation.]

Tags: rwanda