Review: The Power of Respect

The Power of Respect - Priceless !

The Power of Respect

This book is a good revelation of how something that cost absolutely nothing can make a huge impact in our life. Though for many of us, Respect is a part of our culture and our family values, the book helped me see it in a wider perspective. It shows how Respect is in play in all dimensions of life - family, work, education, business, leadership and self.

Overall, the book was a mixed bag for me. I really liked certain aspects of the book:

1. A powerful message, a revelation of sorts
2. Some interesting stories
3. Good layout with quotations spread throughout

However there were other aspects of the book that I didn't enjoy as much.

1. There are plenty of good stories in the book, but many of them are short and not drawn out enough to be memorable or have lasting impact.
2. Lot of redundancy - the message is repeated way too often. The book could have been 50 pages shorter without losing any value.
3. Some of the chapters remind me other books, which cover the respective topics much better. For instance, Chapter 2 reminded me of the "The Well-Behaved Child: Discipline that really Works" from John Rosemond and Chapter 3 of "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus".
4. There are way too much statistics and they only add noise. IMPO, most of them were useless. Deborah tries to prove every point with stats, which to me is unnecessary.
5. Most of the stories are in the American context. Deborah - there is a world outside of America too. Are you only writing for the American people? If only you had tried to look outside, the book could have had a more universal appeal.

In conclusion, the message in the book is powerful. It serves as a great reminder of how a basic element of human values - Respect - has such an important place in all dimensions of our life. I learned a great deal from this book, but it could have been more interesting.

My rating: 3/5

P.S.: I received this book free of cost from Thomas Nelson Inc. under their Book Sneeze program. I would like to thank them for offering me the opportunity to review this useful book.

The Noticer - Simple yet Powerful

The Noticer is a story of an enigmatic sage, called Jones, who mysteriously appears in people's lives at critical junctures, and helps them just when they need it the most. He completely turns around their life by offering them a different "perspective" to their situation. That explains the tag line "Sometimes, all a person needs is a little perspective".

It consists of short stories that describe how Jones goes around a small town helping people struggling with problems such as poverty, troubled relationships, failing business, doomed career, and hopelessness. I did find the book falling short of expectations in the story-telling department. At times, the stories take you to a high and then drop you abruptly. They were a bit on the shorter side, occasionally a bit repetitive, not so effective in creating visual imagery, and the characters not well carved out well enough. Even after reading the entire book, I hardly have a mental image of Jones. It also left me a bit confused. Was it an auto-biography or a fiction or a combination of two?

Despite the shortcomings, each story offers invaluable insights on dealing with life's problems. I believe it's a great book, and anyone who reads it will find at least 2-3 useful takeaways. I had more -

1. What is it about me that other people would change if they could?
2. There's a difference between a mistake and a (wrong) choice.
3. Whenever you face a problem in life, remember "the best is yet to come".
4. The 4 love "dialects".
5. Life's "big picture" is made of "small things". The small things can make a big difference in the final outcome.
6. There's a difference between deciding to do something and actually doing it. The Seagull example was really effective in conveying this message.

It's a short, yet powerful book, filled with wonderful wisdom. A few hours spent reading this book can make a huge difference in your life. Just a caveat, don't expect it to be an thrilling page-turner. And don't keep it aside after reading it. Spend some time on introspection and see how you can apply the wisdom to make a difference in your life and that of people around you.

Good job, Andy !

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P.S.: I received this book free of cost from Thomas Nelson Inc. under their Book Review Bloggers program. I would like to thank them for offering me the opportunity to review this wonderful book.