Book review: Large Print Adult Coloring Book by B. Paulson

This coloring book contains a nice variety of designs birds, butterflies, dragonflies and flowers. The designs are pretty and done with large clear lines. There is a total of 31 different pictures and 65 pages. For each images there are three pages of text. I like the designs, but I did not like that back of the image is not a blank page but the text with an inspiration saying which are visible. If you want to transfer the design to another piece of paper with a lightbox to keep the book clean or to use designs as a templates for other crafts (stainless glass or quilting) the text makes it difficult.



The paper take pastel pencils very well. Wet markers do bleed through a bit to other side of the page. The designs are well suited to coloring - they do not have a lot of shading of their own (if there is a lot shading it makes difficult to color). None of the design are too small to introduce coloring.



I like the templates for the bookmarks with designs at the end of the book. The page on the the bookmarks also had writing. So if someone wanted to cut the bookmarks out they would have a pretty design on one side and cut up text on the other side.



Overall, beautiful designs. The change I would make it leave the back of each design blank and have less text overall.



I was provided a copy of this coloring book for evaluation and review.



You can find it on Amazon by following this link.









AshopZones review ★★★★☆

Book review: My Mother's Secret: Based on a True Holocaust Story, by J.L.Witterick

It is hard to get through this book without tears in your eyes. Once I started reading it I could not put it down.



The book is inspired by the story of Franciszka Halamajowa who saved fifteen Jews by hiding them in her house for 20 months. She also hid one young German soldier defector. Before World War II Polish town of Sokol had six thousand Jews, only 30 of them survived the war. Half of them were hidden in Franciszka house. One family was hidden in the pigsty, the second family in a hole dug in under the floor boards, and the young soldier was hiding in the tiny cubby hole in the attic. None of them knew of the others until the German soldiers left Sokol in 1944.



The story is intricately weaved together from different points of view. We hear about the same events from the point of view of Franciszka's daughter, then from the point of view of the people she saved.



Why did Franciszka do it? She had no special affinity with the Jewish people. She just did what felt right. She knew that if she did not do it they would be facing certain death. She had no special affinity to German soldiers, yet she knew the young German soldier who did not want to follow orders to kill Jews was also facing death. She was just doing the decent thing. How wonderful would the world be if every person just did the decent thing?



This is a wonderful book, well told and inspirational. I am grateful to the author for sending me a review copy of the book. It moved me!





You can find it on Amazon by following this link.





AshopZones review ★★★★★

Book review: How to Design and Make Bracelets with String, by Isabella Forrer

I found this guide very helpful and easy to follow.



The first part of the guide shows step by step examples of how to make string bracelets by tying various knots (half knot, half hitch, square knot, open square knot, butterfly knot, switch knot, alternate double half hitch). The extras section provided several methods for adding beads to the bracelets. The second part of the guide covers necklaces, braided jewelry, and on-line resources for string and beads.



The guide's instructions are clear, each step includes an illustrated drawing which shows exactly how to place the strings. The author included many nice photos of the completed bracelet so you have an idea of what you will get at the end. Anyone can make bracelets, however it will take some practice to make them as nice as even as the author's bracelets!



I was looking for a project that would be fun to do with a group of youngsters (boys and girls) and making string bracelets was a big hit! Everyone enjoyed tying knots and exchanging bracelets at the end. I could not have done it without this little guide!





You can find it on Amazon by following this link.





AshopZones review ★★★★★

Book review: When can you start? How to Ace the Interview and win the job, by Paul Freiberger

This book is a keeper! I found ideas and suggestions in this book to be interesting, practical and useful.



Paul Freiberger covers the interview process from many different angles. "When can you start" covers interview questions, salary negotiations, and preparation, preparation, preparation.



The book divides potential questions into three categories (1) tell us about yourself (2) perform some task related to your experience (3) quasi-philosophical conundrums. I work in the technology field, where the puzzle type questions are common, so I found that section most useful to me personally. I have a better insight now in how to approach these questions. It helped me re-orient my goal from trying to solve the puzzle in the exact way it was meant to be solved to showing that I am a creative out of the box thinker. I am much likely to be successful if I am not flustered because I don't know how the exact solution to the puzzle. The fact that I can morph the puzzle was a revelation.



The book makes it clear that most questions do not have the right and the wrong answer. The interviewer is looking to see how the candidates reacts, thinks, and behaves rather than getting a specific answer. "When can you start?" not only provides some sample questions and answers, but also helps you prepare for questions you have not anticipated.



The interviewer is looking to see if people will enjoy working with you. The book helps with what to stress and what to avoid to give the interviewer a positive answer to this question. The interviewer is trying to find out whether you will succeed in your job. "When can you start" tells you how to make it obvious that you will. Even the questions about your weaknesses can be turned around to be positive.



Almost as important as the question the interviewer asks the candidate, are the questions that the candidate asks the interviewer. This is another chance to highlight your strengths and your preparation. The book provides a long list of good question which can be starting point for forming your own questions.



I found a section on phone interview techniques quite useful. Ideas and techniques for keeping track of people during a phone group interview were funny and helpful at the same time. Phone interview, according to the book, is an open book test. And the book makes sure you fully take advantage of having helpful materials at your hands.



There is a long chapter on salary negotiations. It is very explicit with suggestions on how to put off the salary discussion and turns specifics into ranges. All these techniques are designed to make the other side make the first offer. The book also helps you recognize the situations when you can't avoid being first.



Confident people are judged to be competent. Using this book as part of your preparation for an interview will make you more confident.



Table of Contents



Introduction

1. Preparation: An Oxygen Tank for the Job Interviewee

2. Design Your Research Manual

3. Master the Informational Interview

4. New Rules for the Phone Interview

5. The Only Question You Must Be Able to Answer

6. (Don't) Tell Me About Your Weaknesses

7. How to Succeed in a Panel Interview

8. Where Does the Law Draw the Line?

9. Trick Questions

10. Say "Thank You" and Mean It

11. The New Interview, Courtesy of Google and Others

12. Turn the Tables: When It's Your Turn to Pose Questions

13. A Guide to Salary Negotiation

14. More Linchpins for Success

15. The Ideal Interview



I am grateful to the publisher for sending me a review copy of the book, I enjoyed reading it, and I especially appreciated the new perspective I now have on the puzzle interviews.



You can find it on Amazon by following this link.







AshopZones review ★★★★★

Book review: If I Should Die Before My Dog by Joe Connolly and Cathy Connolly

This book turned out to be even more useful and practical than I expected. I thought it would a list of suggestions, a check list of options I should consider for making the best possible arrangements for the canine member of the family in case the owner dies or is not able to take care of their dog.

 But this is not what this book is about. The person who writes most of the book is the pet owner with thoughtful and useful prompts from the authors. The purpose of this book is to share the information about your dog likes, dislikes, habits, health, and so forth with the person who will be taking care of the dog after the owner is no longer able to do it. I am attaching a photo of a typical page, this randomly selected page is on Grooming.

 The questions on the page prompt the owner to fill out whether the dog like warm or cold bath, if the dog has sensitive skin, what shampoo he likes, whether he takes baths at home or at the groomer, address of the groomer if applicable, if he likes or does not like to be brushed... Every possible topic is covered with the same amount of thought and detail. This book is 102 pages. More than half of them are pages that the owner needs to fill out. This book is meant to be given to the next care taker. 



The information in this book is sure to make the life of the dog easier during the transition period. There is no way to replace the loved one, but keeping the routine the same would ease the transition.



I received an evaluation copy of this book for review purposes from the owners, and it over exceeded my expectations. I recommend it to every pet owner.





You can find this book on Amazon by following this link.







AshopZones review ★★★★★

Book Review: BrandingPays: The Five-Step System to Reinvent Your Personal Brand by Karen Kang

The author of the book has a very impressive background as she worked for Regis McKenna who did brand positioning for Apple. And who has done a better job branding than Apple? Karen Kang transfers what she learned about branding companies to the idea of personal branding. Branding yourself.



Ms. Kang uses a phrase "a cake with icing" when she talks about personal branding. The cake is your expertise, your knowledge, your experience. The icing is your personality, your image, your smile. Icing make people like you and trust you. Without the cake the person has no substance, only fluff. Both the cake and the icing are needed to do well in whatever you undertake if you want to be very successful.



The author explains why just having the core qualifications are not enough. The key to success is to let people know the qualification you have. She recommends that each person thinks of themselves as a product. And how you position "the product" is not constant, it varies depending on three key factors: target audience, your strength, and competition.



Suppose your goal is to get a promotion. To determine your target audience you would examine who can influence your promotion: obviously your direct boss, but there might be other players. Then determine the problem/opportunity that is important to the influential people and what strength you have to address that problem. As your work on addressing this issue, keep them in the loop. If you do not have all the information about the decision makers you need to do homework. For example, if you are going for an interview learn who you are interviewing with, look them up on Linked in, Google search them, learn about the company. When you describe your strength highlight those that are more relevant to that specific company or person. It is a lot more effective than having a generic pitch about yourself. Each company gets a lot of qualified candidates. Try to find something unique about your skills relevant to that specific company that will make you stand out from the competition. If you have little experience, stress you have a fresh point of view. If you are older, stress your long record of achievement. If you know foreign languages and you are interviewing with multinational company stress that skill even if it may not be immediately applicable to your job. Prove your expertise by using specific examples from the past. If you don't have enough experience build it up by volunteering, teaching, finding a way to increase experience even if you don't get paid for it. After explaining the general approach the author gives several specific examples.



An interesting concept in "Messaging" chapter is what the author calls "The elevator pitch". The elevator pitch is a set of talking points that succinctly answers "What do you do?" or "Tell me about yourself". You never know when the opportunity will arise to tell someone about yourself, and you want to think through what you would say to take advantage of this opportunity in the best possible way. The author provides a template of key points to cover in this message for 5 seconds, 30 seconds, and 60 seconds option of the pitch. Sample pitches for people with different backgrounds help to put this lesson in context. What else can you do with your Elevator pitch? Use it in your LinkedIn profile.



Speaking of LinkedIn, Ms. Kang has a whole long chapter on Social Media and branding. It contains a lot of nice tips from what should be included in your profile to why you should not change your profile photo often.



Through her book Ms. Kang stresses again and again that to help you reach your goals it helps to have influential supporters. The authors spends quite a bit of time of talking how to identify and form relationships with individuals who can advocate on behalf of your brand.



To summarize the gist of the book is that people will not take you seriously if you only have social skills, but everyone is a lot more helpful to the people they like. Ms. Kang recommends not to just focus on growing your core skills, but spending time on relating to people and cultivating relationships especially with career influencers. Her book will help you to form a plan of action.



You can find it on Amazon by following this link.





I receive a review copy of this book for an honest and unbiased review.



AshopZones review ★★★★★



Table of content:



Introduction



The Importance of Reinventing Your Personal Brand

What's Inside BrandingPays

My Story



Chapter 1



Take Charge of Your Personal Brand

Branding a Political Candidate

What Is Personal Branding?

Personal Branding Myths

What are the Benefits of Personal Branding?

Rebranding Throughout Life

Your Goal for Branding

The Branding Journey

Every Brand Needs Cake and Icing

Personal Branding Assessment Questionnaire

BrandingPays System: Five Steps to Your Cake and Icing



Chapter 2

Step 1: Positioning

Position Yourself for Opportunities

What Is Positioning and Why Do It?

What Is Your Goal?

Positioning Triangulation

Positioning Statement

Who Is Your Target Audience?

Problem or Opportunity Statement: What do they need?

Value Proposition: How can you provide the solution?

Differentiation: Why are you the best one to provide it?

Evidence: How can you prove it?

Sample Positioning Statements

Chart Your Position

Iterate to Hone Your Positioning

Chapter 2 Summary

Chapter 2 Action List



Chapter 3



Step 2: Messaging

Message for Clarity and Impact

The Elevator Pitch and Your Evidence

Sample Elevator Pitches

Different Value Messages for Different Audiences

Back Your Positioning Claims with Evidence Messages

How the Positioning Statement Can Feed Your Linkedin Profile

What Is Your Tagline?

Chapter 3 Summary

Chapter 3 Action List



Chapter 4



Step 3: Brand Strategy

How to Develop Your Brand Strategy

Brand Strategy Platform

Key Brand Descriptors

Sample Brand Strategy Platforms

Chapter 4 Summary

Chapter 4 Action List



Chapter 5



Step 4: Ecosystem

Ecosystem: Leverage Influencers to Establish Brand

Taking It to the People

What Is the Brand Ecosystem?

The 90/10 Rule

The Brand Ecosystem Model

Take Time for Relationship Building

Four Keys for Strong Ecosystem Relationships

Identifying Influencers

Managing Your Ecosystem Relationships

A Word About Networking

Chapter 5 Summary

Chapter 5 Action List



Chapter 6



Step 5: Action Plan

Build Your Brand Action Plan

A36o-Degree Brand

Brand Improvement

Brand Communication

Four Phases of Brand Communication Using the Ecosystem Model

Brand Action Example

Lessons from Rebranding an Entrepreneurial Company

A Word of Advice for Entrepreneurs

Chapter 6 Summary

Chapter 6 Action List



Chapter 7



360-Degree Branding: Vision, Symbols, Words and Dei

The Care2 Story: Rebranding from the Inside Out

Vision or Thought Leadership Branding

Your Look, Your Image: The Basics

Branding in Multimedia

Chapter 7 Summary

Chapter 7 Action List



Chapter 8



Portable Branding and Social Media: Getting Started

Why You Need to Be in Social Media

Choose Your Social Networks

Own Your Online Real Estate

Your Google Search Results

Your Avatar

To Blog or Not to Blog

Should You Promote Your Personal Brand or Your Business Brand Online?

Online Reputation Management

Do a Few Things Well

Chapter 8 Summary

Chapter 8 Action List



Conclusion



Reinvent Your Brand for New Opportunities

Four Stories on Overcoming Diversity Challenges in Personal

Branding and Life

Book review: The 5th Dimension Password Keeper by Michael E Pipkins

We are all familiar with a problem of trying to come with good strong passwords for various web sites we use and then trying to remember them. The author's goal is to solve both of these problems.



People have used ciphers to encode messages for ages. To decode a message you need to know a cipher and a key. A cipher is a source of letters which are used to substitute the letters in your text, and a key are the rules which use you to make the substitutions.



The authors adapted this standard encoding technique and applied it to password generation and an aid for recollecting passwords. The book contains a brief 7 page explanation of how this cipher works. It is written in a simple language which is easily understood by people who are not familiar with any encryption techniques. The rest of the book provides 104 pages which you can use to generate and keep track of your passwords. Each of 104 pages containing its own cipher and with the use of the same key (i.e. your rules) you would have a 104 different passwords. The length of the password and the position of the letters is your key. As long as you don't mark the book to expose the rules you are totally safe even if someone sees a page for a specific web site.



Once you make a commitment to his approach, you will not be able to remember your passwords without this book as they will be random strings of letters and symbols. The author of the book offers a pocket edition of the password keeper on his web site (currently $2.94 including shipping), which allows a person to keep 15 most used passwords (3 computer logins, 3 emails, 9 websites) in a wallet. The tables on the 15 pages of the pocket book match the first 3 tables for logins, the first 3 tables for emails, and the first 9 websites in the full size book. So when you create your passwords in the full size book you need to keep in mind which passwords you want to include in your pocket size guide and put them first. If you don't want to use the pocket guide, you can use a copier to copy and shrink those pages to take with you.



There are situations where this approach does not work very well. For example, several web site I use impose very strict rules on passwords. For example, some require the password to have one capital, one number, and one special character. Your key may not generate a string that follows those rules. I also ran into some website that do not allow special characters, which are included in the cipher tables, so you might not be able to use the string generated by the key. The author anticipated such situations by suggesting writing down the exception below the table, such as "replace the first character with a capital" or "replace the third character with x", which does not decrease security by much. I agree. However it makes the rules more complicated and marries you to the book even more.



This is a very secure way to generate passwords. The downside of this approach is that you become totally dependent on this book, and if you forget to take your cheat-sheet with you when you travel chances are you will not be able to get into your own accounts.



You can find this book on Amazon by following this link.







AshopZones review ★★★☆☆



The author provided me a review copy of this book for an honest and unbiased review.