Wish I could have read this book years ago!

People Tools: 54 Strategies for Building Relationships, Creating Joy, and Embracing Prosperity by Alan C. Fox
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Imagine that you have a happy, rich uncle who is kind enough to share with you his secrets of success. (Wouldn’t we all like that!) Meet Alan C. Fox, author of People Tools: 54 strategies for building relationships, creating joy, and embracing prosperity and your new favorite uncle.

So much of a successful life, no matter how you define success, has to do with people skills—hence the book’s title. Uncle Alan has thoughtfully crafted a creative mash-up of Emotional Intelligence, The One-Minute Manager , and The Lazy Man’s Guide to Enlightenment, with illustrative anecdotes from his own life. He focuses the people tools both inward and outward, giving a balanced perspective.  Though you may recognize some of the strategies (Make Lemonade, Smiley Face, Dangle a Carrot), a different perspective can be interesting, and who can resist finding out how to Have a Nonversation? Then there is Fall Backward into the Hands of Fate, which I thought was going to equate to my own Jumping Off the Cliff, but it doesn’t.

Alan Fox has thoughtfully made it easy for you to know if he will make a good guide for you. Here’s his first paragraph in the Introduction:

"When we experience joy in our lives, what else do we really need? This is the most important sentence in my book, and the reason I put it first. If you are like my mother you have already skipped to the last page to find out where we will end up. I will tell you now. The last sentence in my book is the same as the first."

Miss Em highly recommends People Tools.
(I received a review copy from the publisher.)


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