Are you sick of being overworked and overwhelmed? Are you ready for an alternative? You’re not alone. New research shows that the average U.S. professional is focused on work for 72 hours a week. Forty eight percent of Americans report that their stress level has gone up in the past five years and that the number one source of the stress is job pressure. The rise of the smartphone and the downsizing of staff mean that many professionals are always on and, therefore, overworked and overwhelmed. Clearly, putting in more hours isn’t the answer. The average professional has already reached the point of diminishing returns when it comes to pushing the rock up the hill. In Overworked and Overwhelmed: The Mindfulness Alternative (©2014, Wiley), executive coach and leadership educator Scott Eblin offers another path: mindfulness. The book discusses: why you feel so overworked and overwhelmed and what you can do about it; mindfulness and why it’s vital to your productivity level: what's the science of the impact of mindfulness on our work performance? mental routines that reduce clutter and increase focus; and tips for following through and why your active presence matters. Toxic emotions disrupt the workplace, but mindfulness increases your awareness of these destructive patterns, helping you recognize them before they run rampant. It’s a way of reprogramming your mind to think in healthier, less stressful, ways. Eblin makes the case that even small increases in mindfulness can lead to big changes in productivity and quality of life for the overworked and overwhelmed professional.
The Brand IDEA: Managing Nonprofit Brands with Integrity, Democracy and Affinity (©2013, Jossey-Bass), by Nathalie Laidler-Kylander and Julia Shepard Stenzel, presents the Brand IDEA (Integrity, Democracy, and Affinity). The framework eschews traditional, outdated brand tenets of control and competition largely adopted from the private sector, in favor of a strategic approach centered on the mission and based on a participatory process, shared values, and the development of key partnerships. The results are nonprofit brands that create organizational cohesion and generate trust in order to build capacity and drive social impact. The book explores in detail how nonprofit organizations worldwide are developing and implementing new ways of thinking about and managing their organizational brands.
Creating Value in Nonprofit-Business Collaborations: New Thinking & Practice (©2014, Jossey-Bass), by James E. Austin and M. May Seitanidi, provides more than 100 case studies that show how collaboration between businesses and nonprofit organizations can effectively co-create significant economic, social, and environmental value for society, organizations, and individuals. The book features a framework that can be used for analyzing the sources, forms, and processes of value creation in partnerships between businesses and nonprofits. It offers a step-by-step guide for business managers and nonprofit executives for achieving successful cross-sector partnerships.