Must Reads for Career Women



PINK recommends putting these on your reading list for 2010!

Committed: A Skeptic Makes Peace with Marriage
By Elizabeth Gilbert

Elizabeth Gilbert is an award-winning writer of both fiction and non-fiction. Her short story collection Pilgrims was a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway award, and her novel Stern Men was a New York Times notable book. In 2002, she published The Last American Man, which was a finalist for both the National Book Award and the National Book Critic’s Circle Award. She is best known for her 2006 memoir Eat, Pray, Love, which was published in more than thirty languages.

10-10-10: A Life-Transforming Idea
By Suzy Welch

Journalist Welch, coauthor of Winning (with her husband, former GE CEO Jack), offers an in-depth look at the decision making process that has brought her success and formed the basis of her work-life advice column in O, The Oprah Magazine. By imagining a decision’s impact in the short and long term-in 10 minutes, 10 months, and 10 years-readers will discover not just their innermost values, but the wisdom to pursue them with confident and empowering choices. While easy to follow and simple in theory, the process can raise painful and challenging issues, illustrated in numerous case studies, Welch’s personal story and the science behind 10-10-10.

The Power of Respect: Benefit from the Most Forgotten Element of Success
By Deborah Norville

Respect. Thanks to Aretha, we all know how to spell it, but lately there seems to be less and less of it in society. My job as anchor of Inside Edition provides me the opportunity to report the latest examples of disrespect in society–and lately there have been plenty. My frustration over what seemed like an endless drumbeat of these stories (Balloon boy, Kanye Wilson, Jon & Kate, Congressional Representative Wilson shouting at the President) prompted me to uncover the academic proof that treating others with respect boomerangs benefits BACK to you. In business, education, personal relationships, the Power of Respect is undeniable.

Going Rogue: An American Life
By Sarah Palin

Palin’s memoir is everything you’d expect from a politician who has no intention of leaving the national scene. With the aid of Lynn Vincent as her ghostwriter, she tells homespun stories, cracks a few jokes, provides juicy campaign gossip and lets the reader know where she stands on issues such as the right to life, government taxes and spending, health care and climate change. Like a good Republican, she invokes Ronald Reagan’s name at every opportunity. The book is so packed with facts, history and encomiums about her state, she’s practically a one-woman Alaska Division of Tourism: “We have the highest number of pilots per capita in the United States.” Palin tells her side of a story that’s usually told by her opponents.

Women, Work & the Art of Savoir Faire: Business Sense & Sensibility
By Mireille Guiliano

Former CEO of Veuve Cliquot, Guiliano (French Women Don’t Get Fat) offers yet another charming dose of no-nonsense advice in this straightforward guide to living a successful and fulfilling professional life. She acknowledges that creating and maintaining a lifestyle of grace, beauty and sophistication is more challenging than ever, especially for the modern professional woman. Happily, Frenchwoman Guiliano shares her sensible secrets to climbing the ladder in a male-dominated world while still maintaining style, dignity and reputation. She shares tips for becoming a great leader and an effective manager; the importance of mastering communication skills; honing your brand through a polished, professional appearance; handling advances in the workplace; and entertaining at home.

Women and Money (Power to Control Your Destiny)
By Suze Orman

Bestselling author (2005’s The Money Book for the Young, Fabulous & Broke, etc.) and host of her own CNBC show, Orman encourages women to “give to yourself as much as you give of yourself” in her ninth financial advice book, sure to resonate with legions of readers who will appreciate her straightforward advice and supportive tone. Aiming squarely for a female audience, Orman guides readers through the very basics of finances. She explores why women have dysfunctional relationships with money and notes the ways they undervalue themselves or “treat themselves as a commodity whose price is set by others,” while also sharing the story of her own evolving relationship with her finances. Though her explanation of the “8 qualities of a wealthy woman” (harmony, balance, courage, etc.) is more inspirational than practical, she also presents a concrete five-month “save yourself plan” for financial repair, starting with setting aside checking and savings accounts, fixing one’s credit rating, saving for retirement, setting up a will and purchasing home insurance.

The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun
By Gretchen Rubin

Gretchen Rubin had an epiphany one rainy afternoon in the unlikeliest of places: a city bus. “The days are long, but the years are short,” she realized. “Time is passing, and I’m not focusing enough on the things that really matter.” In that moment, she decided to dedicate a year to her happiness project. In this lively and compelling account of that year, Rubin carves out her place alongside the authors of bestselling memoirs such as Julie and Julia, The Year of Living Biblically, and Eat, Pray, Love. With humor and insight, she chronicles her adventures during the twelve months she spent test-driving the wisdom of the ages, current scientific research, and lessons from popular culture about how to be happier.