September Book to Live By

The Happiness of Pursuit by Chris Guillebeau

Compulsive goal-seeker Chris Guillebeau never imagined that his biggest revelation would be how many people like himself exist—each pursuing a challenging quest. These quests are as diverse as humanity itself, involving exploration, the pursuit of athletic or artistic excellence, or battling against injustice and poverty. Everywhere that Chris found ordinary people working toward extraordinary goals, making daily down payments on their dreams. These “questers” included a suburban mom pursuing a wildly ambitious culinary project, a DJ producing the world’s largest symphony, a young widower completing the tasks his wife would never accomplish—and scores of others writing themselves into the record books.

The more Chris spoke with these strivers, the more he began to appreciate the direct link between questing and long-term happiness, and he was compelled to complete a comprehensive study of the phenomenon. In The Happiness of Pursuit, he reveals the secret motivations of questers, their selection criteria, the role played by friends and family, their tricks for solving logistics, and the importance of documentation. Then, Chris examines the other side. What happens after the summit is climbed, the painting hung, the endurance record broken, the at-risk community saved?

A book that challenges each of us to take control—to make our lives be about something while at the same time remaining clear-eyed about the commitment—The Happiness of Pursuit will inspire readers of every age and aspiration. It’s a playbook for making your life count.

August Book to Live By

Inspire: The Art of Living with Nature by Willow Crossley

Willow Crossley combines her passions and shows vou how to use flower-shop purchases, beachcombing bounty, home-grown harvests, and foraged hedgerow finds to decorate your home. Divided into five chapters on Woodland, Flora, Fauna, Edibles, and Beach, here are more than 50 ideas ranging from a wreath made from hydrangeas, or spring narcissi planted in wooden wine boxes, to a tabletop display incorporating gilded apples and pears. Start collecting now to move your outdoors indoors before the weather changes.

 

July Book to Live By

Fulfilled: 52 Prescriptions for Healing, Health, and Happiness by Dr. Bernadette Anderson

Fulfilled: 52 Prescriptions for Healing, Health, and Happiness is your at-home or on-the-go personal office visit––without the co-pay! Each week Women on Fire member Dr. Bernadette asks questions, discusses symptoms and issues, then provides a “Prescription” worksheet to help you achieve healing, health, and happiness. Her life-changing tools and insights make “living the life you were born to live” your natural default.

June Book to Live By

“Matchmaking for Beginners” by Maddie Dawson

A delightful, sweet and smart summer beach read…Marnie MacGraw wants an ordinary life―a husband, kids, and a minivan in the suburbs. Then, she meets Blix, her fiancé’s great-aunt who’s dying, and everything changes―just as Blix told her it would.

When her marriage ends after two miserable weeks, Marnie is understandably shocked. She’s even more astonished to find that she’s inherited Blix’s house. She arrives in New York intending to sell the property, but discovers the hard way that love is difficult to recognize, and those who push love away are the ones who need it most.

May Book to Live By

“Women Who Spark After 50” by Aleta Norris

Do you find yourself lamenting your unrealized dreams? Are you experiencing burnout or boredom from a lifelong career?

Bestselling author and coach Aleta Norris knew she needed to reinvent something in her life. So, that’s exactly what she did. In this book, she asks the right questions to get you ready for an amazing second half. Through checklists and exercises, Aleta provides a roadmap to put your dream first after years of taking care of others.

April Book to Live By

“Only Love is Real” by Brian Weiss M.D.

This beautiful book portrays two strangers, Elizabeth and Pedro, who are unaware they have been lovers throughout centuries until fate brings them together again, demonstrating how each of us has a soul mate waiting to reunite with us.

March Book to Live By

“Wild, Beautiful and Free” by Sophfronia Scott

#1 in African American Historical Fiction on Amazon

This stunning work of fiction by award-winning author and Women on Fire member, Sophfronia Scott tells the story of Jeanette, a mixed race, escaped slave as she searches for purpose, love, and her place in the Civil War-era world. An instant BEST SELLER!

February Book to Live By

“More Thank a Bag” by Cindy Monroe

Debbie’s friend, Cindy Monroe founded Thirty-One Gifts in 2003, in the basement of her Chattanooga, TN home. It grew to be one of the largest direct sales companies of the last 20 years. In “More Than a Bag” (edited by our own Kacy Cook), Cindy shares the story of her journey and gives readers front row seats to the bumps and wins that make Thirty-One Gifts a huge success!

 

June’s Book To Live By

Life’s lessons are those intense pieces of knowledge we gather from experience. We learn from these nuggets and deem them to be valuable wisdom that can guide us.

But have you considered that you may also be lugging around damaging lessons you need to unlearn?

A compelling new memoir by one of Women on Fire’s most beloved wise women shares how we can twist mistakes and misfortune into destructive beliefs and behaviors. We know Mary La, formerly Mary Landberg, as an author, artist, and retired hospice nurse.

Her latest book takes us through a harrowing yet heartening journey of healing. I am so proud to announce that our June Book To Live By is Mary’s brave, powerful, and incomparable story:

The Great Unlearning by Mary La

The Great Unlearning by Mary La

Each chapter is accompanied by one of Mary’s “concept portraits,” stunning fine-art photographs of herself depicting the emotional core of the story’s theme. Like her artwork, her words capture searing details on every hard-hitting page.

The book is told in three sections: Remembering, Unlearning, and Transcendence. In Remembering, Mary reveals a chaotic childhood of neglect, abuse, abandonment, and poverty that led to risky, self-defeating behavior as she sought to belong in a world that refused to see her. Even as she showed herself to be an exemplary student and athlete, Mary struggled alone to get by.

As a teen, drug and alcohol abuse blurred her moral sensibilities, and she began a pattern of saying yes when she would have been far better served by saying no. Over time, the “lessons” grew darker and more dangerous, bringing feelings of self-loathing, guilt, and shame.

In Unlearning, Mary tells how panic attacks and crippling physical pain finally led her to seek the support of 30 practitioners from every imaginable healing tradition in the world, from Western medicine to Eastern philosophy. Some startling results brought profound self-discovery.

Mary La photo

She also shares her history with a circle of wise, caring women who helped her learn to love every piece of herself.

As Mary reaches Transcendence, she is able to find the love and belonging she always craved. But these came with a deep understanding that her suffering, too, had great value. It is the key to her remarkable career as a hospice nurse.

The Great Unlearning is a beautiful book that reads like a novel as Mary writes with unflinching vulnerability and brutal honesty in revealing her long-hoarded secrets. But her account is by no means a pity party. Rather, it is a victory march, as Mary reclaims her rightful joy. In fact, she was recently married, and we send her our love and congratulations!

I’ve rarely, if ever, read such an impressive, raw, soul-baring memoir. This breathtaking journey of healing leaves us with hope and inspiration that we, too, can leave behind a traumatic past and find true peace.

I give it my highest recommendation.

With love and peace for your beautiful heart,

Love,

Debbie Signature

May’s Book To Live By

If you are still waiting for life to return to the “normal” of yesterday, welcome to the world of tomorrow.

The headlines are disconcerting: “How to Prepare for a Future of Work in Flux.” “The Future of Work in the Digital Age.” “Work from Home Is Here to Stay.”

Technologies have been advancing for decades to allow us to work from home — or anywhere — pushed along by social and environmental issues. But the pandemic lockdown has locked the new normal into place.

How are you managing the transformation?

Maybe you have the latest ring light and the perfect backdrop, but have you updated your communication skills and professional etiquette?

Are you having difficulty getting and keeping attention in those Zoom meetings? Do you project confidence and competence while approaching clients online?

To help you get up to speed, our May Book To Live By is:

The New Hello: What to Say, What to Do in the New World of Work by Tracy Hooper

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Tracy Hooper is a former TV news anchor, a professional speaker, and the founder of The Confidence Project, which teaches how to embody confidence, increase your professional presence, and advance your career.

She would seem to be a natural for navigating the new work environments.

But like so many of us, Tracy didn’t know if her business could survive the avalanche of change. She was accustomed to face-to-face counseling and in-person workshops. She, too, felt a rising panic in the rapidly shifting terrain.

Her clients inundated her with problems they had never faced before: How can I keep myself and my team from working 24/7 since we’re at home? How do we keep our company culture alive? How do I network remotely?

Tracy looks at the challenges of adapting to the new technical and personal disruptions, but also stresses that the fundamentals of connection and competence remain.

She sees a need for greater self-awareness, re-examining even such basics as our vocabulary and body language.

With compassion and honesty, Tracy Hooper shows us how to present ourselves in the new world while maintaining the old-fashioned principles of grace, civility, and leadership.

The New Hello offers practical tools, tips, and examples to guide you today and in the future.

Love,

Debbie Signature

P.S. Because I learn nearly all I know from awesome women, finding out about this book was no exception.

My amazing friend Kelly Mooney, founder of Equipt Women, shared it with me. I serve on the advisory board of Equipt Women.

If you’re in the first 10 years of your career and searching for a lift in your professional life with a community of inspiring women, check out Equipt Women.