Secret to Well-Being Is the Connection Between Health and Emotions

Renowned psychotherapist and Leonia, New Jersey author Dr. Harriet Haberman is announcing the publication of her new book - Emotional Wisdom: A Compassionate Guide to the Messages Hidden in Your Feelings.

Dr. Haberman notes, “In these uncertain times, the significant information in Emotional Wisdom is needed more than ever before. The stress of recent economic events can easily play havoc with our health.” Although ongoing emotional upset may not be the single root cause of an illness, there is now abundant evidence to prove that unresolved feelings can be a major contributor to bodily distress and most health-related issues. Emotional Wisdom offers a unique method of healing that involves simple, effective skills for interpreting the unseen world of feelings and the priceless information they contain.

“Emotional Wisdom teaches the skills needed to unlock these emotional messages and supports us on the path to inner peace,” states Dr. Haberman. Emotional Wisdom offers the reader an effective, compassionate approach to psychological well-being and is based on Dr. Haberman’s over 30 years of experience as a psychotherapist and licensed clinical social worker. Dr. Haberman’s concepts evolved from guiding the healing process with hundreds of clients as they transformed their lives with authenticity, self-compassion and personal contentment. Dr. Haberman adds, “My purpose in writing this book is to provide the general public with the opportunity to benefit from this healing method. I hope the readers, especially during these difficult times, will explore the positive life-changing possibilities that can occur when they tap into the reservoir of wisdom concealed within their emotions.”

Emotional Wisdom: A Compassionate Guide to the Messages Hidden in Your Feelings includes new concepts for emotional healing, numerous case examples and an exercise at the end of each chapter to help the reader integrate what they have learned. The book has received numerous endorsements, including one from Harville Hendrix, Ph.D., renowned author of Getting the Love You Want: A Guide for Couples, founder of Imago Relationship Therapy, and frequent guest on the Oprah Winfrey show.

Emotional Wisdom: A Compassionate Guide to the Messages Hidden in Your Feelings is currently available for purchase through Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, and http://www.harriethabermanphd.com.

About Dr. Harriet Haberman:

Dr. Harriet Haberman is a licensed clinical social worker, and is available for radio, television and newspaper/magazine interviews. Dr. Haberman received her Ph.D. from Rutgers University and has been in the field for over 30 years and in private practice for more than 25 years. As part of her postdoctoral studies, Dr. Haberman has completed clinical training and certification in Body-Centered Transformation, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), guided imagery healing techniques, hypnotherapy, Imago Relationship Therapy, Radiance Breathwork, and Schema-Focused Cognitive Therapy. Dr. Haberman conducts seminars and lectures at corporations, schools, clubs and non-profit organizations.

Whimsical Tale Teaches Young Readers Values That ‘Stick’

When it comes to creative problem solving, nothing beats a child’s imagination and a little help from mom. In her new children’s book, “The Day My Peanut Butter Lost Its Stick” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com), Elena Tait invites young readers to follow a whimsical story of a little girl who discovers one of her favorite foods has lost some of its gooey appeal.

When five-year-old Abby realizes her peanut butter has lost its stick, she knows it is up to her to solve the problem and restore order in the world of tasty, spreadable foods. With the help of her mother, Abby visits the local library and magic shop to try and fix her “sticky” situation. Even though she seeks the advice of very knowledgeable adults, the answer still eludes the determined young sleuth. Abby returns home, where she concocts a brilliant plan to solve her problem and return her peanut butter to its original stickiness.

“The Day My Peanut Butter Lost Its Stick” is a lighthearted story with two important messages: count on friends to help with messy problems and stick to a problem until a solution is found. Colorful characters come through for Abby in this entertaining tale. Her mother; best friend Janie; Mrs. Berner, the librarian; a magician; and her brother Tanner are all part of the solution process.

A fun and educational tale, “The Day My Peanut Butter Lost Its Stick” is the perfect reading level for children in first and second grades. The unexpected dilemma offers life lessons to young readers in an engaging way.

About the Author: Elena Tait is a first-time author. A single mother of two teenagers, she builds houses with Habitat for Humanity and creates original works of art in her pottery studio. An elementary school staff member, Elena enjoys tapping into the children’s imaginations for inspiration for her books. “The Day My Peanut Butter Lost Its Stick” is her first book. She has since written two more that will soon be published.

Mary Soliel Honored as Two-time National Best Books 2008 Award Finalist

Groundbreaking Book Awakens Readers to Meaningful Coincidences
Mary Soliel’s debut non-fiction, I Can See Clearly Now: How Synchronicity Illuminates Our Lives, has been chosen by USA Book News as a Finalist in both Best New Non-Fiction and Best New Age Non-Fiction categories of the National Best Books 2008 Awards.

USABookNews.com, the premiere online magazine and review website for mainstream and independent publishing houses, announced the winners and finalists of the National Best Books 2008 Awards (NBBA) on October 20, 2008. Jeff Keen, President and CEO of USABookNews.com, says of the awards, now in their fifth year, “The 2008 results represent a phenomenal mix of books from a wide array of publishers throughout the United States.”

“I feel very honored that my book is being recognized, and am especially excited to know that more readers will find their way to my message,” says Ms. Soliel. Her book provides a significant and magical way of looking at life through synchronicity. The famous psychiatrist Carl Jung coined the term synchronicity and regarded coincidences as being actually meaningful. Soliel delves into the mysteries of this phenomenon and describes through her own personal experiences, how we are being guided, validated, and blessed with the power of meaningful coincidences. She explains that these very signs can be used to help us create the lives we desire.

“After people read I Can See Clearly Now, they are noticing stunning synchronistic occurrences right away,” says Soliel. She adds, “Signs are constantly occurring for all of us. It’s a matter of whether or not we are noticing them. This book is helping readers to take notice, which is life-altering and uplifting for them.”

Mary Soliel is a visionary, teacher, healer, and self-described “synchronist.” Born and raised in Michigan, she moved with her family to New Mexico nearly a decade ago, and presently lives near Boulder, Colorado with her two children. Visit her online at http://www.marysoliel.com.

‘What the Heck Do We Do Now? Families Facing Alzheimer’s’

Carefree Senior Living Press, based in Santa Barbara, announces the release of its first book by local author and Alzheimer’s care professional John G. Bloomer. The book, notably titled “What The Heck Do We Do Now? Families Facing Alzheimer’s,” offers practical advice to navigating some of the uncharted waters of Alzheimer’s and Dementia Care. It touchingly looks at “real” situations families face when the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s impacts their lives. Unlike almost any book on the market today, it also offers advice and information about licensed residential facilities specializing in the care of these gentle souls.

The book is a narrative of three families and their experiences with this dread disease. Along the way it demonstrates why certain choices are better than others. The information is integrated so family members do not have to read through list after list to see how the information fits their circumstances.

As Jackie Marston, current Vice President of Carefree Senior Living in California, Executive Administrator of Villa Alamar Care facility, and fondly referred to in local circles as the “dementia diva,” sums up:

“Finally, a book that touches the heart, and is a reference manual for families as they begin the uncertain journey through Alzheimer’s. The twists and turns and mistakes and successes are described as they happened without exaggeration. Anyone who finds themselves caring for those with this disease should give this small book a read.”

This handy publication offers guidance for families and caregivers dealing with dementia, Alzheimer’s and memory loss and helps move them from a place of fear to a place of peace. How to handle “embarrassing” social behaviors, directing those with memory loss, obtaining legal and medical advice, conservatorships, finding assisted living facilities, and disease prevention are all described for the layperson.

Author, John G. Bloomer, describes his personal story of Alzheimer’s:

“My wife and I entered the world of Alzheimer’s Disease 22 years ago, with a tearful call from her mother who was sure something was wrong with her brain. Hearing her plea for help, I immediately thought, what the heck do we do now? Much of this book is the result of our experiences, both negative and positive, in attempting to care for and protect her.”

This is a book of passion! Mr. Bloomer is called upon to speak and counsel hundreds every year. As the incidence of Alzheimer’s disease increases astronomically, the demand for practical applied information of this subject has never been greater.

Accountability Crisis in U.S. Business and Political Arenas

High performing teams know and use a "secret" language to get results. An international consulting firm, Dynamic Results has released their new book, "Winning with Accountability: The Secret Language of High Performing Organizations" (Cornerstone; October, 2008, Perfect Paperback: $14.95). The book exposes methods Dynamic Results has used to boost the performance of their client organizations worldwide.
Dynamic Results outlines clear, concise methods and case studies that identify:


The language that indicates predictable relationship and project failure
The language that insures high performance
The four required components of an accountable dialogue
That "leaders" can come from any part of the organizational chart
In a time when the world is having to reinvent its economy, "Winning with Accountability" offers readers immediate take away tools that will improve their very next interaction, thereby increasing organizational performance. Using the principles outlined in this book, readers become leaders in creating high accountability in any organization, regardless of where they may fall on the organizational chart.

Dynamic Results' co-founder and Managing Partner, Henry J. Evans, created "Winning With Accountability" to offer uncomplicated concepts to improve the communication and performance of individuals when they are making or requesting commitments. The result is higher organizational performance.

Evans says, "This book is a quick read, providing reminders of business concepts that can be applied every day to encourage accountability at all levels within an organization."

Designed to fit in a briefcase and be absorbed on a plane ride, the book describes the methods that are taught in the firm's four hour Accountability Workshops and delivers them in a form that takes about 90 minutes to read. Evans says, "Our job as a firm is to take years of clinical research and complex business strategies and re-tool them to become easily absorbed and rapidly applied by increasingly busy executives."

What our clients are saying about the methodology: "At adidas we speak over 50 languages. The language of accountability in this book cuts through them all. By simply using these tools, I'm setting clearer expectations and see them being met more often." -- Steve Bonomo, Head of Group Recruiting, adidas Group, Germany.

Visit winningwithaccountability.com to read what others are saying about the book, learn about other products and services, and to purchase the book. The book is also available for sale at Amazon.com.

About Dynamic Results, LLC:
Dynamic Results, LLC is an organizational development consulting firm specializing in helping organizations create and execute strategic plans. Plans are achieved through coaching and development of key leadership skills in general leadership and also in Emotional Intelligence, restructuring organizational charts, creating core-competency models, training, and through the Accountability Method addressed in the book.

Dynamic Results is a boutique firm with big clients in many business sectors including bio-tech, athletic apparel, manufacturing, energy production, distribution, and federal defense.

Clients of Dynamic Results report that they achieve their personal and professional goals at an average rate of 86%!

About the Author:
Henry J. Evans is an executive adviser to leading executives and organizations worldwide. He also delivers keynote addresses and workshops, and teaches in MBA programs internationally on the subjects of "Creating High Accountability Cultures" and "Emotionally Intelligent Leadership."

As co-founder and Managing Partner of Dynamic Results, Henry leads the firm's clients to improve organizational and executive performance using many of the methods outlined in this book. Henry keeps his and the firm's focus on boiling down various clinical research and studies to applicable, easy to understand concepts that busy executives can apply immediately.

Wheat-Free, Gluten-Free Options for Healthy Living

When gluten-free cook, mother and author Theresa Santandrea-Cull compiled her latest recipe book "No Wheat? No Way!" she included 10 years of research into wheat-free and dairy-free dishes and desserts. Her book, now available for download online, is an assortment of delicious recipes especially crafted without the use of dairy or wheat.
In "No Wheat? No Way!", readers learn how easy it can be to bake with gluten-free flours. Santandrea-Cull shares healthy recipes for almost any food, from pancakes to pizza. Her scrumptious treats include:

-breads, loaves, waffles
-Yorkshire pudding, tea biscuits and scones
-cakes, muffins and cinnamon buns
-pies, tarts, fruit crisps and cobbler
-lasagna, sauces…and so much more

Book contributor and naturopathic doctor Dr. Dawn Cormier-Hazen, N.D. affirms that the most common food allergens are dairy products and gluten grains.

"It is estimated that 80 percent of our diseases are directly related to the food we eat on a daily basis," says Cormier-Hazen, who wrote the forward to 'No Wheat? No Way!'. "Anyone can attain better health by identifying, then avoiding his or her particular food allergens."

Challenged with preparing totally gluten and dairy-free meals, snacks, and desserts for her twin boys for the past 14 years, Santandrea-Cull has found the secret combination of gluten-free flours that yield delicious baked goods every time. Through trials and tribulations, she attributes a positive transformation in their behavior and well-being to baking with non-gluten grains.

"No Wheat? No Way!" is available for download through the website. Also, on the No Wheat No Way website visitors will find tips and tricks to cooking without gluten or dairy, additional recipes, an Ask The Chef segment, testimonials, and much more.

About Theresa Santandrea-Cull )
Theresa has been wowing crowds with cooking demonstrations at local health food stores where gluten-free products are readily available. Grocery chains are quickly jumping on board the gluten-free train and most now carry gluten-free ingredients.

Facing Uncertainty? Create More, Says New Management Book

Smart people who are overwhelmed by uncertainty make even smarter bankers, according to new research by A. Alexandra Michel of the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business.

Michel’s new book, “Bullish on Uncertainty: How Organizational Cultures Transform Participants,” explores the case of two major U.S. investment banks – with two differing philosophies on how to structure business processes and organizational strategies.

The counterintuitive findings: the bank that amplified bankers’ uncertainty produced better overall results than the bank that reduced bankers’ uncertainty. The book’s conclusions have implications for every knowledge-based industry.

“In our society we tend to believe that knowledge workers can better cope with complexity when we decrease their uncertainty and give them the tools they need to become experts,” says Michel. “This research, in contrast, shows that people are often better at complex jobs when they know less. This gives them the incentive to question assumptions and collaborate with others.”

Michel compared radically different management training and organizational procedures in the two institutions. To reduce uncertainty, one bank did what every good management textbook recommends: Top management articulated a clear strategy that was translated into explicit roles and into revenue goals for bankers. New bankers were trained carefully to fill these roles, assigned work based on their relevant expertise, and given targeted feedback.

The other bank intentionally thwarted this model and amplified uncertainty. Instead of receiving goals and roles, new bankers were deluged with statistics about the consequences of their actions -- ranging from cost of color copies to deals lost to the competition. Projects were staffed based on banker availability, not expertise. Junior bankers sometimes did the work of VPs and often worked on deals for which they no training. Meanwhile, the organization’s leadership -- busy executing deals themselves -- let corporate strategy bubble up from below.

The findings show that reducing uncertainty ultimately leads to a culture of the self-reliant “individual” – one in which expertise is segmented and in which personal fiefdoms flourish. Feeling confident in their abilities, experts often do not notice when situations change and their knowledge is no longer applicable.

Such expert cultures have contributed to the “bad bets” that have recently rattled financial markets, resulted in thousands of layoffs and undone venerable institutions, says Michel.

On the other hand, investment banks that amplified uncertainty through information overload produce a corporate culture of “organization.” Overwhelmed bankers need to draw on others to do their work -- and the company consequently thrives by constant collective questioning and collaboration.

Given the vagaries of Wall Street, the sudden changes of new technology, the unknown pitfalls of political decisions, and the sheer complexity of international markets, Michel says that investment bankers can’t possibly be definitive experts in every area. “Similar conditions are now present in other industries and similar conclusions about the management of employee uncertainty apply,” she says.

For the study, Michel charted the professional development of new investment bankers in two major firms over a period of two years. (Because of non-disclosure terms, these banks cannot be named publicly.)

The bankers, who graduated from top MBA programs, initially exhibited similar psychological processes. After about six months, however, the bankers at the two banks developed different types of cognition, emotion, motivations and identities because of the distinct types of uncertainty they experienced—with profound consequences for individual and organizational performance.

Woman’s Heroic Battle for Equal Justice

Tseghe M. Foote begins “Stolen Justice” by recounting her early life as an Ethiopian girl, describing how her chance meeting with an African-American Peace Corps worker eventually led to marriage and a new life in America. Although she ultimately divorced, Ms. Foote retained a fierce determination to stay in America and build a thriving business. At first, she succeeded beyond her wildest dreams.

After selling Ethiopian art on the side, Ms. Foote decided to open her own store - first called Zebra Imports, later Africa House - that would sell high-quality African art. Soon, she counted among her clients world-famous celebrities from all over the world.

But storm clouds of injustice were brewing. After moving her store to the Tabor Center in Denver - and operating a successful business for four years in a mall with only 56 percent occupancy - Ms. Foote one day was told the Center was evicting her. Although no reason given for the eviction held any water, Ms. Foote soon found herself thrown into the American justice system, battling to save her store from corporate and legal maneuverings that shook her faith and hope to the core.

Now, in the scathing expose “Stolen Justice,” Tseghe M. Foote reveals the long legal nightmare she went through to prevent her thriving store, Africa House, from being evicted out of the Tabor (Shopping) Center in downtown Denver. Chapter after chapter, Ms. Foote offers readers a shocking look at how powerful corporate and “legal” interests hide behind fancy, authoritative-sounding language and schemes in order to advance corrupt agendas. Ms. Foote reveals how she was abandoned at every turn by individuals, legal entities, and even a civil rights group professing to stand up for the “little person” against corporate and legal malfeasance … and how she ultimately won key victories in her brave, lonely, principled battle for decency, equality, and justice.

New Science Fiction Book Follows the Adventures of Seven Extraordinary Teens

Every teenager dreams of striking out on their own and doing something extraordinary. In the new book “Artisans of Time, Books I, II, & III” (published by iUniverse - http://www.iuniverse.com), M. Jude Gove tells the story of seven teens who are transported from Earth to the distant planet of Nur for the purpose of saving its inhabitants from annihilation and by extension, Earth itself.

As the teens begin to explore the alien world and meet its inhabitants, the Ge’mell, they realize that their presence there is no accident. The seven discover that Ge’mell from the future have brought them to this far-off planet. The heroes’ purpose on Nur is to aid the Ge’mell in the present with their centuries-old struggle against the ruthless Varnif. Once allies, the Ge’mell and the Varnif have been at war for over 200 years. The Ge’mell were once the technologically superior of the two races. However, the Ge’mell were scattered across the Galaxy after the destruction of their home world by the Varnif.

The journey of the seven young heroes is chronicled by a reporter named Ed Dalton. As “Artisans of Time” opens, Dalton is approached by an older gentleman who tells him a tale that is so far-fetched as to be virtually impossible. Not surprisingly, Dalton does not believe what he is told. However, after checking parts of the gentleman’s story, Dalton’s curiosity is peaked and he decides to pursue the story. What he uncovers is more than he could have ever imagined:

As we went further into the cave, we could see it didn’t go completely through the mountain at all. Instead, something metallic was reflecting the light from the entrance, as well as our flashlight beams, back at us. We kept walking towards the reflection, but it didn’t seem to be getting any closer. Finally, we decided to head back to the bus. Dan figured if we told one of the instructors what we had found that it would peak their curiosity also, and they would want to get out some of their equipment they brought and completely explore the cave. That was all forgotten when we stepped back out of the cave entrance. All of us were in total shock. Finally, Dianna muttered in a soft voice, “We’re not in Kansas anymore!”

“Artisans of Time” bends both time and space. The epic adventure that the seven young heroes embark on will spark the imagination of science fiction fans young and old alike. The intricate plot, rich narrative and compelling characters make this a must-read for any science fiction fan.

M. Jude Gove is a native of Arizona. He began writing this epic when he was in high school and published his first book in 2001. “Artisans of Time, Books I, II, & III” completes the series first published as “Rings of the Gods” and folds the first two books into one volume along with the third book, completing the trilogy.

Exercise Can Help You Cope with Financial Stress and Heal Emotional Pain

The economy is in turmoil. The stock market appears to dip lower ever day. Houses are being foreclosed upon and jobs are disappearing. Headlines scream out to us and we begin to panic. We wonder if the American Dream has become only a dream that cannot be turned into reality. We wait to hear remedies from our government leaders that never seem to be forthcoming. We are drowning in their silence and a sense of hopelessness sinks its teeth in our souls. We sit around immobilized by shock and fear.

As “The Body Mind Soul Solution: Healing Emotional Pain through Exercise” (Pegasus Books, Second Printing 2008) by Bob Livingstone shows, there is a means to overcoming this emotional paralysis, and it is by vigorously moving your body on a regular basis. Exercise has proven to be a stress reducer. Studies have also found that exercise can alleviate the symptoms of depression and anxiety. Exercise is a natural pressure reducer and can be used to manage the tension you carry around about the current worldwide economic crisis.

Exercise, such as walking as little as 15 minutes per day, can alter the brain chemistry enough where a sense of calmness is experienced. It can also be used as a healthy distraction from focusing on the economy. Concentrating on your workout can help you plan strategies for dealing with the financial crisis. Readers of “The Body Mind Soul Solution” find that hopelessness turns into hope and insurmountable problems now seem solvable.

According to author and psychotherapist Bob Livingstone, “Exercise can also heal emotional pain, and now may be an opportune time to explore this possibility.” His new book, “The Body Mind Soul Solution: Healing Emotional Pain through Exercise” (Pegasus Books, Second Printing 2008), combines exercise, self-questioning, listening to music and journaling as a means to heal emotional pain.

The book has received rave reviews. According to the Miami Herald, “Run through your anger and bike through your anguish … your mind and body work in concert to resolve emotional issues.” The St. Louis Post-Dispatch states that “The Body Mind Soul Solution” is an “emotionally charged book” and New York Times bestselling author of “The Fat Flush Diet,” Ann Louise Gittleman, calls the book “ground breaking.” The prestigious Library Journal states that the book is “A holistic approach to finding balance among mind, body and emotional health … sure to fly off the shelf. Highly Recommended.”

Bob Livingstone has been featured in The San Francisco Chronicle, The Miami Herald, The Dallas Morning News, The Hartford Courant, Natural Health Magazine, The Saint Louis Post-Dispatch, The Library Journal, MSN.com, The Athens Banner-Herald, Woman’s Day, Care2.com, Grand Magazine and Lee’s Summit Journal. He is a featured contributor to DrLaura.com, Beliefnet.com, Ediets.com, Selfgrowth.com, Kids.LovetoKnow.com, Psychotherapy.net and SheKnows.com.

Savvy IT Pros are Broadening their Career Focus to Alternative Fields

Layoffs and hiring freezes are heightening competition for a dwindling number of IT jobs but - as IT professionals are learning from “Debugging Your Information Technology(TM) Career” (Elegant Fix Press - http://www.elegantfixpress.com) - their computer knowledge can open doors to many offshore-resistant alternative tech-related careers. A key advantage of these fields: They offer IT pros who feel pressured to change careers because of the weak IT job market the opportunity to leverage - rather than “throw away” - their investment in their education and experience.

Janice Weinberg, the author, is a career consultant (http://www.janiceweinberg.com) formerly with IBM and GE, whose IT background enabled her to identify the 20 careers she describes. While most of them aren’t usually thought of as computer-related jobs, computer proficiency is a key qualification for success in each. For example:

A software architect’s knowledge of best practices in systems design would be a strong asset in a technology due diligence position.
A business analyst who guided manufacturing staff in defining their IT requirements should be a viable candidate for a strategic alliance management position at a company marketing manufacturing software.
A NOC manager who upgraded a change-management function would bring a valuable customer’s perspective to a product management position at a company marketing change-management software.
A network security administrator could become a broker or underwriter of cyberliability insurance.
A software engineer who supported financial applications could parlay that experience into a higher-paying position selling financial software.
Any IT professional who can assess the commercial potential of new computer technology could qualify for a position as an equity analyst covering the computer industry.
Most of the careers can be entered without further education beyond a BS in a computer-related discipline. Several - for example, business continuity planner - require a certification. Some readers may be motivated to become information technology attorneys or healthcare administrators. Many of the fields can be springboards for new consulting practices.

As Weinberg describes each career, readers will:

Realize why computer expertise is an advantage in delivering top performance;
Be able to imagine themselves in the field by reading the hour-by-hour Typical Workday;
Understand how a recession could undermine job security, while learning career-planning strategies for minimizing or avoiding any negative impact.
Readers will learn job-hunting techniques tailored to specific fields, including guidance in identifying and approaching employers, and in selecting those aspects of their experience to highlight in their resumes and interviews for greatest impact. Although most of the fields are highly insulated from offshoring, where vulnerability exists, Weinberg offers job-hunting techniques to minimize one’s exposure.

While there are many books providing IT career advice, Weinberg’s gives new - and much broader - meaning to the term “computer job,” demonstrating that an IT professional’s knowledge constitutes precious currency in a world dependent on computer technology.

Management by Commitment

New Business Book Hails the Best and Last Leadership Style You Will Ever Need

David N. Chalk shares his management secrets gleaned from years of experience in “Management by Commitment: Other books have told you what to do - This book will tell you how!” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com).

Chalk’s plan, involving six simple action steps, will prepare any management team of any size or type to adapt to evolving changes in the work environment. Steps one through four focus on communication and cooperation between leadership and subordinate departments. By presenting the annual business plan, delegating specific tasks, and agreeing on the methods to achieve success, colleagues establish a foundation for reaching tangible goals, what Chalk calls a commitment.

As work proceeds, subordinates should be watchful for potential problems, which should be addressed immediately. This is the time for the responsive manager to step in, Chalk explains:

At this point, the senior manager applies coaching skills and becomes a mentor to his subordinate organization. The subordinate’s performance plan is updated allowing both levels of managers to operate in an environment of “no surprises.”

An open, results-oriented dialogue continues to be central in the fifth and sixth steps. Key items include commitment status reports and annual performance evaluations, which are based on subordinate managers’ own performance plans and status reports, thus representing an objective upgrade over the subjective “report card.”

This unique approach to planning and control of management can be revolutionary for any management team. “Management by Commitment” focuses on meaningful dialogue that encourages participation and a sense of entrepreneurship at every level. But more so, this method fosters commitment to results and innovation within the framework of “no surprises.”

About the Author: David N. Chalk received a bachelor’s degree from Brigham Young University and a master’s degree from the University of Southern California. He also earned an executive certificate from the Western Management Institute at the University of San Diego. He began his corporate career in industrial training and later became Corporate Director of Management Development for Aerojet General Corporation. He was invited by the U.S. Department of State to teach University of Southern California courses in Spain. He created Arrindell Associates, a training consulting organization from which the concepts of “Management by Commitment” were honed to perfection.

‘Best Investment Is a Wake-up Call’

While the stock market continues to plummet, and you are watching your retirement shrink to its lowest point in five years, you don’t have to suffer a complete loss. Bryan Hurlbut, author of Making It Count: Putting Meaning Back in Business and Relationships (ISBN 1-934454-13-3, Synergy Books) encourages people to “Use this experience as a wake-up call. Have you strayed away from your most valuable investment? Focus on your family and friends during trying times. Lost money, increased debt and potential or real loss of retirement funds should not devastate you. There is much more to life than finances. We have valuable assets in our relationships that need encouragement, nurturing and security. The best investment you can make now is in a wake-up call because its dividends will continue to pay off well after this crisis has passed.”

Bryan Hurlbut covers topics of life, business and relationship in Making It Count with the hope of rebuilding the lost honor, value and meaning in his readers’ lives. “It’s never too late to adjust your thinking. When your life is near its end, your friends and family will be the only things that matter - money will not be a thought. Only those that you’ve helped and hurt will be on your mind.”

To help you through this current mess, Hurlbut offers the following steps:

Get your eyes off yourself. Others need you. You need others. Focus on those around you and give to their needs - whether emotional or financial. Yes, make good self-preserving decisions. However, once you have shored up your dam, offer to help on someone else’s.
Do not quit. No matter what the outcome may be, no financial loss or trial is worth giving up. Ride it through. When the dust settles, you will still have a future that can be more enjoyable than your past.
Have faith. Believe in something intangible. Now is a great time to exercise this often unused gift. Just because you may not be able to see what lies ahead doesn’t mean it’s bad. Have faith. Invest in your relationships today and see what valuable thing comes out the other side of tomorrow.
Making It Count is available through Amazon, Baker & Taylor, Barnes & Noble, Borders, Ingram, and at fine bookstores nationwide.

About the Author

Bryan Hurlbut resides in Salina, Kan. with his wife Mary. Together they have two children, Landon and Abbie. A business owner, consultant and the manager of a human services outreach program to at-risk families, Bryan invests his skills and talents in helping people set their focus for life. Today, Bryan continues to pursue speaking opportunities to get the message out that our best life is ahead if we make every decision count. You may contact Bryan Hurlbut at bryan.hurlbut@cox.net.

Let’s Go See Mother Wilkerson’s Farm

New Book Uses Artwork of Lizzie Wilkerson to Enrich Growth Experiences of Early Learners


Designed for children and adults who are unfamiliar with early 20th century farming culture, “Let’s Go See Mother Wilkerson’s Farm: Adventures in Learning Excellence” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com) is the new book from Earnest Hooks Jr. and the Lizzie Wilkerson Foundation that brings to life a forgotten yet important historical era.

“Let’s Go See Mother Wilkerson’s Farm” takes readers on adventures designed to enrich early learning and growth experiences. “The intent is to expand the learning experiences and create a passion to sustain the desire for learning that will extend into a lifetime productive experience,” Hooks explains. “In other words, an indelible rewarding experience which each student can begin to manage alone, without coaching or aid of a teacher, except for an occasional midcourse adjustment.”

A milk churn, a sausage-making machine, a well and a rub board are familiar to a few keen observers. However, for an increasingly large portion of the population, these objects of farm history are entirely foreign. Created to enhance children’s reading and writing skills beginning at preschool ages, “Let’s Go See Mother Wilkerson’s Farm” speaks through the extraordinary works of artist Mother Lizzie Wilkerson, born in 1900 in rural Georgia as the youngest of 21 children. Wilkerson’s “brilliant and unique” talent was discovered through a Georgia State University outreach program in 1978. Five years later, Tom Brokaw of NBC Nightly News featured her GSU exhibit in a clip and said, “… every piece sold; some pieces for as much as $500.” Her artwork hangs in some of the most prestigious museums in the United States, including the Museum of American Folk Art in New York, N.Y., the National Museum of American Folk Art at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., and the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Ga. In this new book, Wilkerson’s artwork fills readers with excitement as they discover a vibrant, productive culture from a century ago.

In the upcoming second volume of “Let’s Go See Mother Wilkerson’s Farm,” the adventures continue. Volume 2 will feature five more adventures: “Enterprise” exposes readers to the “classic model” for enterprise and the Golden Seven Values; “Your Winning Future” features a picture album of young, successful, inspiring achievers; “Self-Expression Adventure” uses poetry to help readers manage life learning and growth challenges; “World Travel Adventure” introduces learners to the exciting world of geography; and “The Platinum Growth Adventure” encourages readers to read books from a reading list, to eat more fruits and vegetables, to visit a farm and to write an essay for class reading. Also included are farm locations in the metro Atlanta area for future visits and study.

Earnest Hooks Jr. is a native of Atlanta, where he met Lizzie Wilkerson as a young child. He attended Howard University’s School of Architecture and Harvard’s GSD Professional Development Program. A registered architect and certified building biologist, Hooks has served as a mentor for local children for several years and is an Introduction Leader for Landmark Education, Inc. He considers writing to be his second passion to architecture and design.

To the Falklands at the Toss of a Coin

In his new memoir, “To the Falklands at the Toss of a Coin” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com), Brian Wilde provides an account of his time as a young man living on the Falkland Islands in the 1950s and ’60s. His engaging tale, at turns humorous and tragic, gives a glimpse into what life on the islands was like before the Falklands War of 1982.

“To the Falklands at the Toss of a Coin” chronicles Wilde’s 13 years on the West Falklands off the southeastern coast of Argentina, beginning in 1956 as a 21-year-old laborer on a sheep farm and continuing through 1969, by which time he was working as a handyman. It was a different world than the one he knew growing up in Portsmouth, England, and worlds away from our modern lifestyles.

“Then life was so very different,” Wilde writes,

… far away from the hustle and bustle of today, a world much smaller than ours, where life was much harder, more caring, more generous. When it took the best part of a month to travel to and from the UK by sea and things could be tragic with the turn of the weather. There were very few roads in the camp and the main mode of travel was done on horseback.

Accompanied by color maps and photographs, “To the Falklands at the Toss of a Coin” presents an honest, up-close view of the routine of camp life - of the work, of the people, and of Wilde’s maturation from a “very green young man.” Funny and surprising, somber and intimate, Wilde’s memoir encounters a range of events and emotions. He recalls a visit from the Duke of Edinburgh in 1957, a deadly accident in rough water, the time his mate Derek was shot by a penguin, and how he met up with the girl who would become his wife and mother to his two children.

But few stories are more unusual than how Wilde ended up in the Falklands:

It was one winter’s evening in 1955, I had seen an advert in the Portsmouth Evening News for young men wanted to work on sheep farms in the Falkland Islands. I had to change buses to go down to Pompey. While I was waiting for the bus I was thinking about the job in the Falklands. On the spur of the moment I decided to toss a coin. If it came down heads I would go to the pictures in Portsmouth and, if it came down tails, I would cross the road a catch a bus to Clanfield. It came down tails, so I crossed the road and caught a bus to Clanfield. Less than a month later I was off to the Falkland Islands!

Results-Only means old measures of effectiveness

Given the shameful performance of Congress and Wall Street in recent weeks and years, Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson are calling for a "RESULTS-ONLY GOVERNMENT" or ROG - in which old measures of effectiveness are rendered obsolete and a singular focus is put on results.

Based on their innovative and groundbreaking work developing ROWE (Results-Only Work Environment) at Fortune 100 retailer Best Buy's corporate offices, Ressler and Thompson have discovered fundamental truths about managing for results--only results.

"People are outraged. They are asking themselves where the oversight was," says Jody Thompson, co-author of Why Work Sucks and How to Fix It. "Why don't people in Congress and Wall Street executives have to be held accountable for RESULTS?"

While the crisis on Wall Street and in Congress mount, Presidential candidates offer platitudes and bailouts--heartbreakingly absent from the debate will be a single, clarion call for focusing on results. Until now.

In a ROWE the focus of work shifts from hours worked and physical presence (inputs) to results (outcomes). The concept has been hailed as both "revolutionary" and was the subject of a BusinessWeek cover story.
"The American people are tired of excuses," says Ressler. "It is high time we demand that results, and only results, are what matters."

The results at Best Buy speak for themselves: Productivity increased an average of 41% on ROWE teams, voluntary turnover rates went down as much as 90%, and involuntary turnover rates (so long, slackers) increased - much to business leaders' delight.

How Would a ROG (Results-Only Government) Work?
Ressler and Thompson say the concept of ROWE is gaining traction, and point to the convergence of demographic and cultural trends (technology, telecommunications, boomers scaling back, and Gen Y entering the workforce) as cornerstones of ROWE's movement's progress within the American workplace.

"We have perfected ROWE in an office setting," says Thompson. "And we believe there are some foundational elements of ROWE that are transferable to Wall Street and Government."

They have seen how transformative a singular focus on results can be, and would hope that business leaders and government officials, many of whom have already made inquiries about ROWE, would seek out their expertise on how to create systems based narrowly on results.

"The last eight weeks, and the last eight years, have shown just how easy it is to be distracted from what the American people consider to be "results," says Ressler. "We'd like to be at the table when the conversation finally turns to results."

Pamela Young Unleashing God's Fury

Pamela Young's novel, "Be Still," is set in a world degenerating into moral chaos -- a world of ego-driven, self-serving people who have replaced respect for God, our parents, our peers and authority with false self-esteem and moral relativism.

The media, Hollywood and our government have done a stellar job of convincing people that God has essentially died and that rules aren't important. The Ten Commandments are now merely Ten Suggestions at best. With little respect for society and each other, our world has changed dramatically. Children are killed, unjust wars are fought, self-serving greed is common and racial hatred still exists. Even the acknowledgment of God is not only banned in schools and public venues in America, it is now politically incorrect to refer to God in any context in public discourse. It seems at times that God is referred to only by those who use His name for personal gain. Pamela Young's new novel, "Be Still," addresses all of this and goes further to say that not only is God watching us, but there are consequences for our actions.

"Be Still" opens with the emotional election of a new Pope, and a warning from God. Some unlikely messengers in different parts of the world claim to have been visited by angels. Emmy-winning television reporter Amanda Fox first hears about the story and, skeptical as she is, immediately dismisses it. But as angel sightings continue to come to her attention, she is intrigued. Despite a warning from her producer and the president of the news network, she pursues the story and interviews people from around the world who claim to have seen these angels. The chilling evidence shakes her beliefs. Those who have spoken to the angels repeat the same ominous message from God, "Prepare yourselves, for the time is at hand."

Young writes:

"Your Holiness," Amanda ventured as she looked into his eyes, "are these the end times? Is this the end of the world?"

He was quiet for a moment and then said, "Only God can answer that question, Ms. Fox. My personal feeling," he continued slowly, "is that mankind is increasingly causing God much sorrow. We're living in a very difficult world right now due in no small measure to our selfishness. Children disrespect authority. Nations and religions disrespect each other and that leads to war and suffering and killing. Not unlike Sodom and Gomorrah, what God has created, He can also destroy."

"Be Still" is based in Washington DC. In pursuit of the truth, the action moves quickly from Rome, to Lima; New Orleans; Los Angeles; Hawaii; the Arizona desert; Boca Raton; New York City; Tehran; Victoria, BC; and the plains of Africa.

Pamela Young lives with her husband in Scottsdale, AZ, and Portland, OR.

Modernizing the American Political System

In "The Major Forces Driving Humanity", Steven Zecola details how religion, politics, science, economics and even sports have shaped human behavior over time.
The evidence shows that the progress of these forces is diverging. One example is that technology is enabling more widespread information and better communications. These capabilities reduce the dependence of individuals on the representative form of government that has been in effect since the 1700's. But technology is also creating friction with the current system by magnifying the polarization of the population in selecting its political representatives.

According to Zecola, the result of these forces working at cross-purposes is an ever-increasing political partisanship that is preventing changes that ordinary citizens would otherwise support on their own volition.

To better capitalize on the power and direction of the major forces, Zecola argues for changes in the objectives and operations of the American political system. He proposes that: 1) there should be more visibility, accountability and control by citizens into government operations and 2) that citizens should adopt concrete benchmarks for elected officials to achieve on several key metrics that impact their well-being.

Looking to the future, economics is likely to have a much bigger impact on human behavior than the other forces, particularly as booms and busts become more pronounced and create greater economic polarization along the way. Accordingly, Zecola proposes a series of economic incentives and penalties to modify organizational behavior before further backlashes occur from the growing disharmony.

Bookideas.com says that "The Major Forces Driving Humanity" is an "excellently-written" and "thought-provoking" treatise on the ways in which politics, economics, science, sports, and religion have served to foster major changes in our world.

Book Review Journal says that its readers will enjoy exploring and pondering the extensive research, teachings and opinions covering our economy, environment and future.

The fate of the post-apocalyptic Liberty Island Republic rests in the hands of a beautiful, semi-retired mercenary, Katerina Santiago, in vesper strand’s new otherworldly page-turner, “Lady Killer: The Near Assassination of Lee Kitchimoto” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com).

“Lady Killer” features a new kind of heroine in a new complex society, populated by a mysterious multicultural cast of characters who struggle to stake claims for themselves while working together for survival. At the outset, Liberty Island Republic is warring with a neighboring country, but has been enjoying 18 months of peace while a key governmental liaison, Lee Kitchimoto, is offshore negotiating a peace treaty. The island’s best-kept bargaining chip involves the sale of a revolutionary energy resource technology, known to the islanders as “The Wheel.”

In the island’s early days, a young and vicious Katerina Santiago worked as a mercenary hired by the government during the island’s difficult reconstruction. Now, 11 years later, she owns a massive complex, which serves as a social and political hub for the island. She employs modern-day geisha, who are the mistresses of wealthy men, and are entrusted with critical political information as they typically attend sensitive conferences with their “benefactors.” These women’s lifestyles are often complicated balancing acts of power and attainment, which drives some of them to desperate measures while competing with one another for higher status.

Santiago is plagued by the warning from one of the governmental psychic entities, of an assassination plot to kill the liaison. This gun-for-hire posing as a foreign businessman has a complex nature which is both refined and dangerous, a combination Santiago has difficulty resisting. One of the young, ambitious junior geisha cannot resist the potential for using him to help rise to an elite status. Upon becoming her benefactor, the foreign businessman and the geisha are accepted into Liberty Island’s inner political circle.

“Lady Killer” unfolds at a momentous political conference attended by the island’s wealthiest and most powerfully influential people, whereby the plans for The Wheel are revealed and the gun-for-hire makes his move … and so does Santiago. Will she be able to save the liaison and the economic fate of Liberty Island? Follow this first in a planned series of heart-pounding, enthralling thrillers rife with gruesome battles and seductive affairs.

An artist and screen printer living in New England, vesper strand is also working on a graphic novel version of “Lady Killer” as well as the sequel to the first installment.

For more information, please visit: http://www.vesperstrand.com

The Holy Exchange: A Vision

“This vision was given to me for the benefit of all those who read it,” author Penny McCoy writes in the introduction to her new book, “The Holy Exchange: A Vision” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com):

I pray it will give understanding and help you know the possibility of freedom from any bondage you are in. I hope this book will give a greater depth of insight to your heart and be a tool used to draw you into the fullness of what God has for you. And God has for you a place of wholeness according to his truth and the eyes of his Spirit, rather than the way the world sees or the way that religion would seek to chain my life and yours.

“The Holy Exchange: A Vision” explores McCoy’s vision in great detail, emphasizing the future of the relationship between God and “worldly wealth.”

“This vision is for all of you who leave God out of your lives and seek after fortune, fame, money, possessions, or any other false god to fill your void and give you life, power and position,” McCoy explains. “We are in the day of God’s justice and voice upon the earth. The days are becoming dark and hope is waning, but God is alive. As it was in the beginning with miracles too lofty for us to imagine, so too those miracles will be performed once again.”

“The Holy Exchange: A Vision” also includes several poems, which McCoy describes as “prophetic messages from God,” not her words but those she hears God speak. The following excerpt is an example:

Destiny is calling and will not let go
The fertile ground you are planting
Is the heart of your soul
The seeds you are planting
Are what you reap and grow
So guard well your heart
For out of it
Is where issues of life grow
As the sun gives the smile
To the sky
True wealth grows as a legacy
And becomes a dynasty of its own
So move along now my children
Destiny is calling - fear not the unknown

Penny McCoy is the co-founder, owner and C.E.O. of Penny’s Gang Records. She is also the author of “Winning is Everything, But … ” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com).

Eldorado: The City of Gold

When L. Norman Shurtliff took the opportunity to serve a mission in South America for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, it was a mission to reach out to others. But, in return, Peru and its people also reached out to Shurtliff, sparking in him a lifelong passion for the culture and its legends. Now, after a lifetime of studying and visiting South America, Shurtliff uses that passion to bring to life the story of a “chosen and elect” people in his intriguing new novel, “Eldorado: The City of Gold” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com).

Readers quickly meet Monica Rodriguez, who returns to her beloved hometown of Cusco, Peru, to start her first job after graduating from university. Around the same time, Peter Martin, a young geology student, gets an assignment from his university to help study the ancient tunnels underneath the Incan capital city of Cusco. Peter meets Monica on his first day in town, when the two become entangled in a much larger plot that threatens more than just their lives in this tale of adventure and romance.

As the summer project unfolds, Peter becomes intrigued with the history of the conquest of Peru and the life of Francisco Pizarro. Peter is enthralled with the golden treasure amassed by Pizarro during the conquest. Pizarro was caught in a dilemma between his love for a beautiful Peruvian princess and his desire for fame, power and riches, and these riches become the subject of interest for Peter in his modern-day thoughts and scientific study.

After Peter and Monica are kidnapped by a radical terrorist group and held for ransom, the links between Pizarro’s story and that of Peter and Monica begin to come together. During their unfortunate experience, Peter and Monica become acquainted and learn more about each other’s worlds, and Peter realizes that the terrorists aren’t really after a rich American kid, but this very special Peruvian beauty. Follow them on the adventure of a lifetime as Shurtliff expertly weaves together a tale of treasure, mystery and love that entwines modern day with the past.

L. Norman Shurtliff was born in St. George, Utah, and currently lives in Taylor, British Columbia with his wife, Christal, and their four sons and three daughters. He owns and manages several businesses, but his real passion is to visit South America during Canada’s cold winter months to “escape to a land where dreams really have come true.” “Eldorado: The City of Gold” is Shurtliff’s first published book. He has completed the second book in the series, “Eldorado: The City of Kings,” and is currently at work on the third and last, “Eldorado: The Temple of Koricancha.” Shurtliff has also written an exhaustive work on Peru called “The City of Nephi,” as well as other various scientific works, family histories and business papers.

For more information, visit http://www.Eldorado-TheCityofGold.com.

Without a Quarter in My Pocket

Dr. Secundino E. Rubio’s life is a series of inspirational stories. From his childhood in pre-Castro Cuba, to delivering his family safely to America, to his success as a physician in both countries, Rubio has repeatedly overcome obstacles, endured heartache and triumphed to realize his dreams. His new book, “Without a Quarter in My Pocket: The Memoirs of Dr. Secundino E. Rubio” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com), is a testament to an indomitable spirit.

Written with Barbara Elliott Carpenter, “Without a Quarter in My Pocket” chronicles Rubio’s life beginning in Cuba, which he called home for his first 39 years, and continuing to south-central Illinois, where he has lived for most of the years since fleeing communist Cuba. It is a life of hard work and courage, of extended family devotion, of love and laughter, interrupted by violence, imprisonment and terror.

From the age of 11, Rubio knew that he wanted to become a physician, and he allowed nothing to stand in the way of his dreams. He succeeded, and his life with his wife and young children on the beautiful island of Cuba was all any man could desire … until Fidel Castro and his band of guerilla soldiers took control.

With sheer determination Rubio managed to follow his wife and four small children - one only a baby - from Cuba to Florida “without a quarter in my pocket,” he says. Like many other Cubans, he gave up every thing he had worked for to obtain safety and freedom. “I have never been one to look back,” Rubio says. “I have always set my mind to a course and then followed it to the best of my ability.”

“Without a Quarter in My Pocket” is filled with stories and photographs of real people, some dating back to the 19th century, that lend intimacy and poignancy to Rubio’s journey, driven by a belief that he could do what needed to be done, and do it well.

About the Author: Barbara Elliott Carpenter’s works have appeared in national magazines and anthologies, including two “Chicken Soup for the Soul” books. In 2007 she completed the final book of the “Starlight” trilogy, a family saga that stretches from the post-World War II era to the present day. She is currently working on a mainstream novel, “Winterkill,” and she has three other novels in progress.

A Moving Story of Love and Friendship

Cerulea, the newly released second installment of Veronica Tabares' Behold the Eye trilogy, takes readers into ever more fantastic depths, daring to lift the veils between reality and illusion.

"Cerulea's overwhelming message is clear - that hope is never lost," says Tabares. "As with the first book of this trilogy, Braumaru, Cerulea is fantasy adventure that will appeal to readers of every age."

Though the haze of sleep, dreams and imagination blur the boundaries between worlds, those with the ability to dream travel, armed with the secret knowledge, can move within those worlds
Awaking in a strange world, Vickie struggles to understand what has happened to the world she once knew. Confused and lost, she is befriended by three companions who journey with her to the land of Cerulea, to find the secrets to help her return home.

Meanwhile, in the normal world, Vickie's friends slowly piece together the evidence pointing to her vanishing and to the strange characters that may have some hand in her disappearance. But the power-hungry Roland, bent on using Vickie for his own sinister purposes, has other plans. Vickie must race to find her answers before Roland can realize his sinister scheme.

"Though the haze of sleep, dreams and imagination blur the boundaries between worlds, those with the ability to dream travel, armed with the secret knowledge, can move within those worlds," says Tabares. "But they may often get lost - or worse. Cerulea is a chronicle of that amazing journey. "

About Veronica Tabares

Raised in Memphis, Veronica Tabares has traveled across many states and career fields. She has sold artwork to businesses, produced web content for a tech company, performed story time as a children's librarian, and taught 6th graders how to be safe on the Internet. Tabares has a Bachelor's in Anthropology and a Master's in Library and Information Science from the University of Washington. She currently lives in Seattle with her husband and four lovely daughters. For more information, please visit http://www.veronicatabares.com.

How to Wage War and Win: Did God Get Glory Today?

New Book Teaches on Spiritual Victory; In her new book releasing nationwide, titled "How to Wage War and Win: Did God Get Glory Today?" author Mary Howell, of Cleveland, Ohio, writes about the spiritual warfare Christians face and how to victoriously overcome it.

Published by Tate Publishing and Enterprises, Howell's book encourages readers to take a stand against thoughts of defeat. Instead of defeat, she declares that Christians are to be a victorious army that can overcome every adversary. Howell also emphasizes the importance of knowing the weapons used for warfare in order to bring defeat.

The enemy has caused many to feel defeated, misleading some to believe that God did not give a rulebook for life. Believers are a victorious army, designed to overcome and subdue every adversity. Believers must become like David--determined that no one will dishonor God's plan for their lives. Like David learn How to Wage War and Win.

God's word declares that God has made all grace abound towards us so that there should be no lack in our lives. The bible in 2Corinthians 9:8 states:" always having all sufficiencey in all things." Having is past tense, which means that it is already set in place - already available waiting to be accessed.

The book is available at any bookstore nationwide or can be ordered through the publisher at www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore, or by visiting barnesandnoble.com, amazon.com or target.com. An audio version is also available from the publisher.

Howell has been an ordained minister of the gospel since 1996 and was installed as Pastor in 2001 with Endued With Power Ministries. This is her premier book. She currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio.

Tim Burton, Monster Flicks, and Edward Scissorhands Inspire Author's Sophomore Novel

Reality and fantasy blur in the book 'The Mask of Aubrey Clover,' released on October 1st, just in time for Halloween, as it pays tribute to everything from 'Creature from the Black Lagoon' to anything by Tim Burton.

The second novel by XT (the first, 'The Fabric,' a fable penned under the name E.H. Rogers), published by Mulberry Bark, is a melancholy tale about twelve-year-old Aubrey Clover, afflicted with the disease Craniodiaphyseal dysplasia (the same disease suffered by Rocky Dennis in the film 'Mask').

"Aubrey is treated like an outcast because of her disease," said XT, the 2008-2009 winner of the prestigious Jones Scholarship for dramatic writing at the University of Southern California. "She relies on the fantasy world in her mind to escape, wishing she could run away to be with her hero Tim Burton, or imagining that Edward Scissorhands magically rescues her. She has a hard time dealing with the real world, because for her, reality is a disease that could take her life at any time, children picking on her constantly, and adults staring at her disfigured face in pity."

Aubrey is treated so badly that she sees herself, literally, as a monster from a horror film. On her thirteen birthday, Aubrey believes she will undergo her final transformation from pre-teen girl to werewolf. Written in first person, present tense, in Aubrey's own voice, readers are transported into her dream world (jumping into a music video in her mind or a scene from a Fellini film), along with Aubrey's real world (living with her real father for the first time after moving from various foster homes).

After living with many different families, Aubrey has never felt as if she belonged anywhere. Moving in with her real father doesn't make her fit in either. Oblivious to his daughter's needs and his own 'weirdness,' he too resides in the land of bizarre, obsessed with Tom Selleck and 'Magnum, P.I.,' even going so far as to dress like the star. Although Aubrey is looked upon as 'different,' every person she encounters is far stranger.

It's not until she meets fifteen-year-old Travis Edwards that she finds a cohort, who is equally outcast at their private Christian school. With the help of a sympathetic teacher, Dr. Taylor, who Aubrey imagines looks like a young Orson Welles, they are able to get through the school day without feeling so isolated.

"I think Aubrey sees Dr. Taylor as someone who is as cool as Johnny Depp-a kind of mythical figure like author Jack Kerouac, but has this feeling inside him of being an outsider too. She trusts him, and he's the first person who gives her encouragement," the author said.

But it's Travis who Aubrey envisions as a fellow traveler on the road of the weird. He builds robots, dresses like Frank Sinatra, and croons like Nat King Cole. They bond instantly over their love of horror flicks and bizarre movies. "You know it's kismet when two people meet who both love everything from 'The Bat' to 'Night of the Ghouls'," said XT, who is a graduate student working toward a degree in movie-making, as well.

The love of monster films is part of what inspired the author to write the novel. "I like the old-style horror films, the 1931 'Frankenstein' and the Vincent Price movies of the 1950s and 1960s," she said. "But it's really Tim Burton's films that were the catalyst for this book. He's been a great influence on both my writing and my life, especially 'Edward Scissorhands', and this is my tribute to him and his movies. When you grow up feeling like you don't fit in, and you see someone like Tim Burton and a movie like 'Edward Scissorhands', it's an outlet where you feel encouraged to be yourself and be creative. He has so much influence on young people today."

For readers, however, the book is a tribute to those who feel like an outsider. "If anything, my goal is that I help people feel better about who they are. You can be anything you want in life. It doesn't matter what you look like, or how people treat you. Be yourself, regardless of anything else. I hope this book reaches out to anyone who feels misjudged and makes them feel better about their place in the world," the author said, who grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas. "I made Aubrey a fan of Tim Burton because I think he, and his movies, have helped so many people who feel like they live on the fringe of society. If my book can have that same impact, help people feel better, then I will be happy."

"My last book, 'The Fabric', was intended for the same purpose, to make people believe in something, go for something, regardless of what anyone tells you to do," she said, adding that her name "XT" is not a pen name, but her actual nickname. "I've been called XT for as long as I can remember. I wrote under E.H. Rogers last time as a tribute to my grandparents, but I prefer to be called XT. It's sounds mysterious."

And if one likes mystery about what is real and not real, then 'The Mask of Aubrey Clover' is as close as one can get. XT added, "The book is a bit ambiguous, especially the ending, but that is the purpose. What is real? It's like 'The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari' (a silent German expressionist film about a sleepwalker). Maybe we are walking around in a dream world?"

Currently, XT's feet are planted in both her dream world and the real world as she is in pre-production on an animated film with animator Jimmy Lu and artist Jay New (both fellow USC graduate students) that she wrote and will direct. Over the summer, she co-produced the short film 'Loop,' Joselito Seldera's quirky story about unrequited love.

The Rubicon Memo

Set in a fictional America with a government that seems eerily familiar, “The Rubicon Memo” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com), the action-packed new novel from Jeramiah Williams, blends social and political commentary with fast-paced storytelling to weave a tale of deception, war and power.

Thurogood Smith is an ambitious State Department planner who uses religion and the war on terrorism as a platform to achieve control of American politics and domestic policy. The son of an evangelical preacher, Thurogood was raised to turn faith into cash. After attending college, where he meets his wife, Amy, Thurogood accepts his first posting with the State Department and travels to Africa.

While in Africa, Thurogood convinces the American military that an Islamic insurgency is taking place there. His claim proves to be a ruse to help American mineral companies obtain access to African mineral rights. He is immensely satisfied with the results, although Amy remains uneasy.

Back in Washington, Thurogood befriends General Lance Stencil from the Pentagon, and together they devise a plan to secure the world’s oil fields, deciding to place militant missionaries in politically sensitive areas next to oil basins. When the missionaries run into trouble, the American military will rescue them, taking the opportunity to secure the oil fields.

Thurogood and General Stencil enlist the help of Axel Welch, who works for ACUTE, a firm specializing in mineral and petroleum extraction services. Axel contacts international oil companies who want to maintain control over world petroleum production, and they eagerly supply financing and logistics for the entire operation, setting up a campaign to recruit religious extremists for the project.

The plan goes awry when reactionary forces decide to attack the oil fields, rather than the missionaries, and as the oil supply is threatened, gas prices soar, businesses fail and the American economy heads into a tailspin when religious war comes to the United States. Americans begin to revolt and pandemonium ensues.

Relevant, timely and thought-provoking, “The Rubicon Memo” is sure to keep readers guessing until the very end. Williams has imagined a world in which the government uses fear and religion to control the world’s oil supply. Follow the chaos and mayhem in the frenetic pages of “The Rubicon Memo.”

United States Is About to Enter the 21st Century’s Great Depression - and How to Survive

In 2005, Don Braby’s first book predicted the burst of the housing bubble and the unraveling of the national economy. Now his sequel, “The Greatest Depression of All Time” (http://www.theapproachingwinter.com), provides an updated view of the economic turmoil and tips on how the average American can withstand the coming “mega-depression.”

Despite choosing the title “The Greatest Depression of All Time: Will America Survive This Time & What Can You Do About It” (Create Space, September 2008, $15) for his new work, Braby is not trying to panic or demoralize readers. In fact, his goal is to help people prepare in order to survive a financial upheaval that he believes will surpass the economic disaster of the 1930s.

The book explains the causes of the upcoming “economic winter,” and also elaborates on the premise of his previous book: that the United States experiences major crises cyclically, with roughly six or seven decades between each crisis. “An easy way to looking at the cycle is to think of the crisis events as occurring approximately every 75 years,” said Braby.

As evidence of his argument, Braby cites the American Revolution (1775-1783), the Civil War (1861-1865) and the Great Depression (1929-1946). “I’m just a regular guy, but I have a different type of mindset,” he said. “I see U.S. history as repeating itself, although specific circumstances affect the type of crisis we have.”

Braby also devotes an entire chapter to ways in which readers can protect their families, though he cautions that success will depend on each individual’s situation. Among the jobs that he predicts will be available during the depression are positions in medical and healthcare fields, alternative energy industries and also the manufacturing, marketing and selling of security systems. He also advises readers to pay down debt and prepare for the lowering of wages during a deflationary period. The book also includes web resources where readers may find additional guidance.

“I try to think outside the box as much as possible,” said Braby. Moreover, after observing the public bewilderment surrounding the tightening credit market and the controversial bailout bill, he is presenting a special offer: 50 autographed copies of the “The Greatest Depression of All Time” are available to buyers for a discounted price of $11.99 while supplies last.

“This is extremely useful information, and people will want to share it with friends and loved ones,” Braby said. “Instead of lending someone their own book, readers can take advantage of this special offer and give the people in their lives a gift of an autographed copy while keeping a little extra cash in their pocket.”

New Book on IT Leadership Released by Kendall Hunt Publishing

Ouellette & Associates' (O&A) new book 'Leading IT Transformation: The Roadmap for Success,' released by Kendall Hunt Professional, a division of Kendall Hunt Publishing, will guide leaders as they transform their workforce and culture to meet the challenges of today's increasingly complex, ever changing business environment. This book is loaded with tangible nuggets and provides practical, action oriented advice that today's IT leaders and their staffs can put into practice immediately.
"There has never been a better time to be an IT professional. While prognosticators have loudly predicted the demise of IT, I firmly believe there has never been a more exciting or auspicious time to be in this profession," writes contributing author Dan Roberts in the first chapter of 'Leading IT Transformation: The Roadmap for Success.'

According to Roberts, President of Ouellette & Associates Consulting, Inc., "To remain viable, IT leaders need to proactively transform their organizations and cultures. They must develop an IT workforce that has the new mindset, skill set and tool set necessary for success, including communication skills, relationship-building, collaborating, managing change, marketing, and negotiating."

Others have written about the changing field of IT, but O&A's approach is unique. IT is written by a team of subject matter experts, seasoned consultants and workshop leaders, who for the first time have committed their insights and experience to paper. Together, they represent more than 200 years of experience in the real-world IT trenches, helping tens of thousands of IT professionals transform how they do business, both individually and organizationally. Because they've walked the walk as IT practitioners, leaders and consultants, they write with a voice of authority that comes from experience.

The book is available for purchase at Kendall Hunt Publishing's Website or by phone at (800) 338-8290. For more information prior to purchase call Tiffany Kuehn at 563-589-1008. To schedule an interview with Dan Roberts, President of O&A, contact Tracy Dinu at 603-623-7373.

About Ouellette & Associates Consulting, Inc.:
Since 1984, Ouellette & Associates Consulting, Inc. (O&A) has helped more than 3,000 IT organizations worldwide achieve their transformation, culture change and professional development goals. Progressive IT leaders leverage O&A's series of IT-specific services and proven approaches to build stronger relationships with business clients, to enhance IT's credibility, to earn a seat at the table of strategic decision making, and to position their organization as the IT provider of first choice.

About Kendall Hunt Professional:
Kendall Hunt Publishing Company has been locally owned and operated throughout its existence. With over 50 years of experience in the publishing industry, and over 6,000 titles in print, we are able to offer expertise at all levels of education publishing, from kindergarten through college, and on to continuing medical and professional education. At Kendall Hunt, we combine author service, innovation, and our pledge of quality to provide advantages that are unparalleled in the publishing industry.

New Book Offers Proposals for Dealing with Juveniles Who Commit Crime

Prosecuting juvenile offenders as adults has become politically expedient over the past two decades. While such action is intended to reduce crime, evidence suggests it may be having the opposite impact, according to a new book co-authored by a Temple University developmental psychologist.

In “Rethinking Juvenile Justice” (Harvard University Press), Laurence Steinberg, Distinguished Professor of Psychology at Temple, and his co-author Elizabeth Scott, the Harold R. Medina Professor of Law at Columbia University, draw on the best available evidence in adolescent development to offer a new approach to criminal law as it pertains to juveniles.

“What Professor Scott and I try to do in this book is propose a system that holds kids accountable and protects public safety, yet treats kids in a way that maximizes their chances of being rehabilitated and being put back on the right track,” said Steinberg, who is also the director of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Adolescent Development and Juvenile Justice.

The book begins with the story of Lionel Tate, who at the age of 14 became the youngest American citizen ever sentenced to life in prison without parole. Tate was prosecuted in Florida as an adult for accidently killing a 6-year-old girl with a wrestling move when he was 12.

After spending three years in prison, his lawyers won an appeal on the grounds that he should have been assessed for competence to stand trial and he was credited for time served and given a new sentence of probation. But he got into trouble again, including committing armed robbery, burglary and battery, and is back in prison serving a 30-year sentence.

“We start with this case because I think it is a good illustration of how difficult it is to know what to do,” said Steinberg, whose previous research has demonstrated that there’s a risk of incompetence among kids Tate’s age. “When the case came to trial, it did appear that this was just a 12-year-old who was rough-housing with somebody.

“I think a lot of people will look at the fact that he subsequently committed more crimes as indicating that it was the right decision to send him to prison for the rest of his life because he was dangerous,” Steinberg added. “But what is not taken into account is the possibility that his experience in prison, for the three years he was there, could have turned him into a criminal.”

Steinberg and Scott, who have collaborated for 10 years through the MacArthur Network, observe that the juvenile justice system long held that kids were fundamentally different from adults, with different procedures, different sanctions and different goals. But over the past 20 years, the juvenile justice system’s policies toward kids have grown increasingly punitive, with a substantial increase in the prosecution of juveniles as adults and harsher sanctions for kids in the system.

This, says Steinberg, is not very good policy from both a public safety and a taxpayer point of view.

“There is evidence, from our work in the MacArthur Network as well as from others, that harsh punishments for kids do not serve the purpose that the people imposing them think they serve; that is, harsher punishments don’t reduce crime,” said Steinberg. “If anything, there is some evidence that they may increase crime.”

He said that juveniles who have been prosecuted as adults and served time in adult correctional facilities are more likely to offend again, and sooner, when they leave incarceration and return to the community, than are juveniles with similar backgrounds who committed the same crimes but were not tried as adults. And he estimates that, depending on the state and level of confinement, it costs approximately $50,000 per person, per year to keep someone incarcerated, a cost that can inflate to as high as $100,000 in states where the cost of living is higher.

“It is an intuitively appealing idea; someone does something bad, you lock them up, they learn their lesson and they won’t do it again,” said Steinberg. “But the data doesn’t support that at all; there is no evidence that harsh punishments deter other juveniles from committing crimes.

“In fact, we can treat kids in the community using different kinds of therapeutic approaches, most of which involve the family and not just the juvenile, for about a quarter of what it costs to imprison them,” he added. “And the evaluations of these community-based programs show that they are more effective than harsher punishments, like boot camps.”

Steinberg and Scott conclude the book with two proposals:
1) The presumptive age for adult for the purposes of criminal law should be 18 nationwide. “That alone would probably keep 80 percent of juveniles out of the adult system.”

2) No one under the age of 15 should ever be tried as an adult. “The risk of immaturity at that age is so high that it doesn’t make sense for a court to allow it. If you think about other laws, we never draw the boundary between adolescence and adulthood at that young an age. Driving is probably the youngest we allow, at age 16.”

Steinberg believes that the public would be supportive of the initiatives offered in the book. “Public opinion data on these issues is very clear. Most people think that juveniles deserve a second chance, and the vast majority believes that we ought to at least try to rehabilitate these juvenile,” he said.

From Cowboy to Mogul to Monster

Hollywood maverick Mark Damon has made all the right moves. Starting from his days as a teen heartthrob in the Fifties and the king of Spaghetti Westerns in the Sixties, he went on to become an award-winning filmmaker who continues to produce critically acclaimed, successful motion pictures to this day. In his new autobiography, “From Cowboy to Mogul to Monster” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com), Damon dishes on his secrets to success, encouraging readers to follow their dreams.

Damon is the man behind some of the most original and award-winning movies of our time: Das Boot, The NeverEnding Story, 9 1/2 Weeks, Short Circuit, The Lost Boys, Monster, The Upside of Anger and more. Through the decades this Hollywood honcho has more than rubbed shoulders with Tinseltown’s most famous, having worked closely with Natalie Wood, Tuesday Weld, Jack Nicholson, Clint Eastwood, Sean Connery, Robert DeNiro, Kim Basinger, Mickey Rourke, Kevin Costner and Charlize Theron among others.

Damon reveals the details of his charmed life for the first time. He broke into Hollywood as a smoldering sex symbol in the 1950s, took up the mantle of Italian playboy in Rome during his time as a Spaghetti Western cowboy in the 1960s and ’70s, and returned to Hollywood in the 1980s, leading the trend of independent film financing.

Filled with juicy behind-the-scene anecdotes from the many and varied films he’s worked on, “From Cowboy to Mogul to Monster” pulls no punches while offering insights into how to succeed in one of the world’s most cutthroat industries.

Co-author Linda Schreyer is a writer, composer, editor and writing coach. She has co-written/produced television movies and screenplays. She is currently writing a musical titled “The Goldsmith’s Daughter,” a memoir of her family in pre-war Vienna.

The Butterfly’s Gift

Whimsical New Children's Book Features Unique Artwork

Follow a monarch butterfly through its development and maturation in “The Butterfly’s Gift” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com), the new children’s book by Joan Ellet Hogge.

Ideal for young readers and listeners alike, “The Butterfly’s Gift” uses rhythmic, rhyming text to chronicle the transformation of a tiny egg into a beautiful monarch butterfly. The story is accompanied by Hogge’s full-color, wonderfully distinctive watercolor illustrations, bringing the story of the butterfly’s development to life:

Soon, the egg breaks open and a worm wiggles free …
A tiny green larva you can hardly see.

This worm chews on a
green leaf night and day,
With hardly time to rest or play.

It eats and grows,
And sheds its skin …
’til it’s a black and white
Caterpillar with a double chin.

Included at the end of “The Butterfly’s Gift” is a lesson in how to draw a butterfly, with space for children to draw and color their own special creatures. Hogge encourages children to study and learn about other animals by sketching them, although she has a special affinity for butterflies. She says of her book:

The story of the transformation is beautiful for children to witness. There is a spiritual quality about it. After the egg breaks open, a chubby worm lives a busy life eating and growing. Then it weaves a web and spends time alone hanging from a strong tree limb in its chrysalis: growing, changing and learning. This is metaphor for what we all experience as we learn, change and grow “in our own skin” from children into unique human beings.

Joan Ellet Hogge is a recognized watercolorist and has studied with many nationally known artists. Her paintings are displayed in the Coutts Memorial Museum of Art, the Richardson Library, Northaven United Methodist Church, as well as corporate offices and private collections. She has a bachelor’s degree in English and a master’s degree in writing. “The Butterfly’s Gift” is her first book.

CREATIVITY

A Science-based Outlook on Life and Work’: New Educational Resource for Creativity Science

Creativity is one of the most important and sought-after qualities of a productive person in our society. In “CREATIVITY: A Science-based Outlook on Life and Work” (published by AuthorHouse - http://www.authorhouse.com) authors Anders Lennart Swahn and Staffan Svahn take creativity beyond the workplace to reveal its true nature and origin.

The burgeoning science of creativity can look to “CREATIVITY” as the first universal, basic textbook on the subject. Swahn and Svahn develop a vocabulary that makes this subject accessible. Included in this vocabulary are the terms “ReActions,” which stem from actions that take their cue from past experience, a part of the brain called “Knowing,” and “CreActions,” that are generated from a part of our inner unconscious the authors call “Being,” which diverges from experience.

Swahn and Svahn see their theory of creativity as a human complement to Einstein’s theory of relativity in respect to the integrated way we generate and use creative action in all aspects of our lives regardless of our five senses. The domains of Being and Knowing their content and function, form the foundation of Swahn and Svahn’s research. They write:

We have established that all information from Knowing is an individual interpretation of facts. It is expressed in a relative, comparative, logical and analytical way, and this is what we call an analog process. The only alternative to relative is absolute, and the only alternative to analog is digital; we can compare this with what we have found out - that the only two alternatives to our inner reality are either Knowing or Being. This would mean that Being is of digital nature. This hypothesis is probably correct, because in Being we find the true representation of life, and not the filtered version that we have received through our limited senses. There is no possibility or room for interpretation. It holds only absolute values. Something is, meaning it exists, or it is not; it can only be or not be. This is similar to information processed in a computer, which is digitally decoded into ones (is) or zeros (is not). This would indicate that Being is working with digital processing.

“CREATIVITY” will assist the evolution of a new creativity science that can be taught globally as it transcends all ethnical, cultural and religious differences among people. It reveals a basic Operating System for all human activities that potentially will present a leap for human resources development comparable to the leap in materialistic terms taken during the digital age. Swahn and Svahn reveal how recent advances in cognitive science can unlock the creative potential of everyone while stressing the necessity of studying creativity science in every high school and university.

Anders Lennart Swahn has a global career as an engineer and industrialist in the private sector and technical education and training specialist for UNESCO, the ILO and the World Bank.

Staffan Svahn works internationally in the retail and wine industry as a human resource consultant.