One of the constant challenges that managers face is in balancing it all. How do we take time to be deliberate, creative, strategic, and visionary all while driving work forward. Ironically, when we get busier, some of these basic time-management tactics go out the window when we need them most. Getting Things Done provides some … Read More
The One-Minute Manager, by Kenneth Blanchard and Spencer Johnson, is a quick ready. It comes in at just 112 pages. So, that is one argument for why you should read it, I suppose; you can learn something useful in just one sitting. My argument against reading it is the same argument against reading a lot … Read More
Instinctually, many of us may think that motivation at work is driven by money. Or maybe power. Or, in the case of some of us (ah hem) the mission of the organization for which we are working. Daniel Pink, a smarty-pants lawyer-turned-motivation-researcher has spent four decades researching the idea of motivation. The HOW of motivation: … Read More
Ken Stern, a former CEO of NPR, chronicles ways in which nonprofit organizations are financial nightmares…from overpaying CEOs, to failing to deliver on programmatic promises, and finagling suspect non-profit tax breaks. He posits that the non-profit machine keeps churning because donors do not do their homework. We donate to a charity when a friend is … Read More
I first heard about Bryan Stevenson when I was working at the Kasungu District Prison in Malawi. I discovered his TED Talk and promptly shared it widely. As I am sharing it with you, now… I watched that talk while working in the Kasungu District prisons. The enormity of his work humbled and impressed me. … Read More
Anne Fadiman’s book The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, chronicles the care and treatment of a Hmong child with epilepsy who is living in the United States. At every turn, there are clashes of culture, understanding, language, norms, and even understanding of what “health” might mean. No one is right and everyone is … Read More
I read The Invisible Cure, by Helen Epstein, at least ten years ago when I was on a particularly fevered quest to learn as much as I could about HIV. I was so impressed by her work that I later went to a talk that she gave about her work. Summary of The Invisible Cure … Read More
Let’s talk about race. Let’s talk about race as a public health issue. Right now, let’s talk about it via the 1997 book “Why are all the Black Kits Sitting Together in the Cafeteria”. My interest in social justice extends to and includes an interest in race and racism. So, when a colleague recommended “Why … Read More
The Adventures of a Female Medical Detective, by Mary Guinan, is a wonderful story about smallpox eradication. It is a lovely complimentary read to House On Fire (which I also wrote a review about). Early in her career, Dr. Mary Guinan worked as a doctor and epidemiologist for the World Health Organization. Her work coincided … Read More
I am suggesting a book where you should just stop reading this post, march down to your library, and check out Strength in What Remains by Tracey Kidder. There is a story in this book I often retell. I recount the story when colleagues are unsure of what the community involvement should be in a … Read More