Excellence by Joel Osteen Book Review

 

In Excellence, Joel Osteen encouraged readers to be people of excellence and to follow God with great character and integrity. Mediocrity is being more popular and people prefer to do the bare minimum to just get by. We would rather be average. Some may even be slacking off or arriving late to work. He instructed us to not follow the crowd and to take pride into our own work. Joel explained how instead God has called us to be above and to be people of excellence and integrity. In the work setting, we should be a model employee for our company. We should be on time, have a great attitude, and going above and beyond. The new trainee should be able to look up to us for guidance. Scriptures even declare how if a solider tells us to carry his gear for one mile we should instead carry it for two and be good steward. Joel even went on to share how he chooses to rewatch his online services. He personally helps his video editor to edit his sermons before they are broadcasted on TV. He studies each one to see what he could improve on and also the lighting and camera angles. He doesn’t want people to become stagnant. In the book, he reminded readers that they represent God and should be people of excellence. This applies to our appearance and work ethic. This book is a small compact book with a  mixture of some of the material found in You Can, You Will, The Power of I Am, and Break Out. 

One of my favorite examples he used was about a young man who had a dream of being a professional football player. He did well in school and performed great at the sport. He was just a little shorter than the coaches thought he should be. They didn’t think he had what it took in college sports. He went to a junior college and worked delivering pizza. He quit football completely. He delivered it one day to a family and a ten year old boy asked him why he was delivering pizza. He thought about the boys comments and then he got his motivation back and started training again. He gained about 70 pounds and grew stronger. He tried out for a major university and worked his way up to a star player. He went on to become an NFL player. Joel asked readers if they had settled for less than God’s plan for you. He explained how we are created to be the head and not the tail. We need believe that we are well equipped to handle whatever we need to do. 

Another impactful story was about a professor who was handing out tests for his students. He decided to provide with a special incentive as their last test. They could hand in the test and get an automatic C and they wouldn’t have to take the test. About half of the test opted to take that route. The rest of the students were given the test and he encouraged them and told them he was proud of their hard work. When they flipped over the test, it told them they made an A. Joel instructed readers to be the second group and to strive for excellence. The A’s would have been worth the risk if they would have only believed. 

I would recommend this book to anyone who is seeking encouragement and they are ready to have a spirit and mindset of excellence. I appreciated how real he was in sharing how we shouldn’t be settling for less than God’s best. We need to be on time at work and having a positive attitude that we are working for God. He encouraged readers to not slack off and to focus on work when we are supposed to be working. We can choose to not settle for mediocre instead we can go above and beyond. He shared how he picks up trash he finds in his church and how we don’t need to become so big that we don’t help others. I really enjoyed how this book was a compilation of three of his different books and it’s very easy to study the principles enclosed in this book. 

I received this book free from Faith Words for my honest review.”

 

 

 

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy, check it out on Amazon.com:

https://www.amazon.com/Excellence-Joel-Osteen/dp/1546007563 

Connect to Your Calling by T. D. Jakes Book Review

In Connect to Your Calling, T.D. Jakes has written a brand new book about discovering your calling. He share the hidden truth that each of us hold the key to our own calling, purpose, and sense of fulfillment. Instinct is the key. He explained how he has met many people are unfulfilled and how they hate going into work every day. They don’t know their calling. He looked at instinct and how our creativity, resourcefulness, knowledge all work together to provide us fulfillment. He encouraged us to take inventory of what’s inside us first. He used a lot of animal references throughout the book to get his message across. He explained the role of cages and how they still choose to lock the cages at the zoo. It’s mainly because animals are drawn to the wild even though their needs and food is provided for them and they have it made inside the cage. He compared this to a role of an entrepreneur. He shared how he had to choose to move to Dallas and how God instructed him to move their and buy a church property and built a church. He admitted how he hasn’t ever regretted moving to Dallas. He discovered his calling. 

One of my favorite stories was about what he witnessed when he toured Nike’s headquarters. One of the displays had a tennis show stuck in a waffle iron. Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman teamed up and created a new sole for better running and it was inspired by a waffle iron and they were able to follow their instincts. They were able to come up with a concept for a brand new shoe. This story was very inspiring. 

I would recommend this awesome book about our calling to anyone who is questioning their path. This book will provide readers with the tools to search out what God has for them. This book is a small compact book to make it easier for readers to study the principles. 

I received this book free from Faith Words for my honest review.”

 

 

 

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy, check it out on Amazon.com:

https://www.amazon.com/Connect-Your-Calling-T-Jakes/dp/1546029354/

I Hate Job Interviews: Stop Stressing. Start Performing. Get the Job You Want by Sam Owens Book Review

In I Hate Job Interviews, Sam Owens tried to help readers to land their interviews well and to help you get the job you are wanting. He realized that many people had interviewing and they stressed when they are faced to play the dreaded winner takes all game. There are no do overs. He explained how he entered business school and he had high hopes in landing him a good job. He had a good resume and worked for a well known consulting firm. He shared how he interviewed and tried to intern at top business places and had quite a few rejections. He did eventually get on with a top food company. They did one interview with him and typically there conduct multiple rounds but they were in a bind to get an intern quickly. He studied how to improve his own interviewing style and created comprehensive lists of possible questions. He learned the master of tailoring each answer no matter what style he faced. In 2015, he shared his techniques online via LinkedIn. This has led him to now writing a book about it. 

The first big key lesson he teaches readers is that we have to first believe in yourself. You need to believe that you are an excellent candidate. He helped readers to build their confidence. Interviewing is a learned skill and anyone can learn how to do it. He encouraged everyone to give themselves ten hours to prepare. He also shared how the shy person is able to formulate answers to the questions. They need to learn to show more enthusiasm. He also taught readers the SPAR model and this will help you to provide better stories and the SEE model to answer truthfully the questions about you. 

This book was very helpful to me in reading about how to interview and the principles he included was life changing. I liked how the teach readers the SPAR model and he walked readers how to offer a compelling result and the actions we took to bring about a result. He referred to it like a Disney movie and we have to walk our interviewees through a compelling story. He enclosed a few examples on how to do just that and how that will assist us in displaying our skills. I appreciate how he looked at behavior style questions, knowing yourself questions, answering the strength and weakness, and much more. I plan to use these next time I interview. 

I received this book free from HarperCollins for my honest review.”

 

 

 

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy, check it out on Amazon.com:

https://www.amazon.com/Hate-Job-Interviews-Stressing-Performing/dp/1400245893/

Do It Anyway: Don't Give Up Before It Gets Good by Tasha Cobbs Leonard Book Review

In Do It Anyway, Tasha Cobb Leonard shared how we need to refuse to give up and to do it anyways. She is the hit Christian artist who sings, Break Every Chain. She attended the Stellar Gospel Music Awards on January 18, 2014 with 7 nominations and she felt she was living the Ephesians 3:20 dream. She had just released her first album that reached a top ten list on Billboard’s Top Gospel Albums of the year. She won New Artist of the Year. It was extra special because her dad was there. Her dad had a strong work ethic and rarely would risk missing church. He was a ministry and love to share the message of the Gospel. The next day her father went home to be with the Lord. He suffered a heart attack while driving. Luckily, he took his foot off the gas petal and he just coasted into the ditch. He used his last bit of strength to remove his foot off the petal and this ended up saving his wife’s life. She explained how she had to choose to do it anyways and attend the Grammy’s. She ended up winning Best Gospel/Contemporary Christian Music Performance. 

Another section of the book, she explained how she battled with her weight. She realized she was in trouble when she was deeply out of breathe one day walking to the car. She used to be athletic in high school and she stopped worrying about her health. She wasn’t exercising and eating right. She prayed and sought out help and had weight lost surgery to help her maintain a healthier weight. For three years, she was successful in working out and eating healthier. Her and her fiancé both struggled with their weight. She shared this story to remind readers to do it anyways even after you fail. Weight lost is a journey that you have to battle every day. She shared how she had to walk through the process of healing while waiting for God’s deliverance. She felt this was her torn in her side but it helped her to stay aligned with God’s will. She shared how she also lost her voice and was struggling singing like she used to. They found out she had a polyp on her left vocal cord. Even though, she couldn’t sing during this time she still could praise God. 

I would recommend this awesome book about choosing to do scary things anyways. I immensely loved how she enclosed helpful review questions and a quick recap to help us to dive deeper into the message. One of my favorites discussed giants and how important it is to be honest with ourselves. Her story was inspiring to read about how discovered her love for music, how she got a label, and the challenges she faced.  

I received this book free from Waterbrook for my honest review.”

 

 

 

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy, check it out on Amazon.com:

https://www.amazon.com/Do-Anyway-Dont-Give-Before/dp/0593600878/ 

Flip Your Life: How to Find Opportunity in Distress—in Real Estate, Business, and Life by Tarek El Moussa Book Review

 

In Flip Your Life, Tarek El Moussa breaks down 4 key areas he chooses to live by: evaluate, emulate, renovate, and duplicate. These rules are the rules he lives by and how he flips houses for a living.He shared his birth and how he was born frail and jaundice. He developed weird tics and the doctors believed that he has some kind of palsy. He was made fun of by others kids and even some adults. One coach would ask him in front of everyone if he would like a million dollars just so kids would laugh he had a weird tic. He struggled with ADHD. He was even slammed against the wall by one teacher because of hyperactivity. He explained how when he graduated from college he began to gain weight and he had always been an athlete. He felt his life was a disaster and he didn’t know the direction he wanted to go in life. He turned to alcohol and smoked. In the book, he shared how he was diagnosed with cancer. He had two different types thyroid and testicular cancer. He later experienced horrible back pain. He had his share of challenges he had to deal with. He also went through a divorce. He also explained how he flips a house. He first evaluates the property to determine it’s worth including it’s strengths and weaknesses. He next compares houses and he referred to it as comps. It’s an idea of what could be. Then finally renovates the property. This lead to a tv show, Flip or Flop on HGTV that details the entire process of renovating a home. 

One of my favorite sections was about your healthy self and what all that looks like. These included you respect yourself, know who you are, okay with expressing emotions, and much more. He also looked at the unhealthy self and what all that entails. He also shared how readers can be persistent in their momentum and how critical it is to choose our crew carefully. He explained how his crew helped him through his experiences in life and how men especially struggle with connecting deeper with other men. We have to be willing to ask for help which most of have trouble with. He realized how the helped him to reach his career goals and to become a house flipper. He enclosed a helpful section on some characteristics to look for when building a team. 

I would recommend this awesome book to anyone who is ready to flip their life around. I loved how he shared some behind the scenes of how he conducts and decides how to flip houses. I immensely loved the discussions on mindsets and what we believe about ourselves has a profound effect on whether we will succeed. He was very transparent in how went through a divorce and eventually got remarried. Along the way also experiencing health challenges that changed his life. The cancer being so back to back was shocking and readers will be able to see what he faced. This book will assist you in finding new opportunities and to flip your life. 

I received this book free from Hachette Go for my honest review.”

 

 

 

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy, check it out on Amazon.com:

https://www.amazon.com/Flip-Your-Life-Opportunity-Distress_in/dp/0306830876/ref=asc_df_0306830876/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=693322190128 

Israel Advocacy/Anti-Rioting Petition

• Biden continues to jump between approving and disapproving of anti-Israel protests

depending on his audience. We need to stand up for our brothers and sisters in Israel.

It’s time for the protests to stop and for us to support Israel!

    • Stop the media’s lies about the attacks on Israel! See real headlines about what’s

actually going on in the world below, and then sign the petition to end anti-Israel

rioting.

    •Anti-Israel protester blocks traffic using her baby: This video captures an anti-

Israel protester holding her baby while standing in front of a car to block traffic.

Another protester can be heard asking for a replacement for the mother,

noting her willingness to risk her child’s life. Additionally, another parent with

a small child and dog are seen standing in the path of traffic. See video:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ZgQg5Wfu-NdP1W1zN_5XlpPA4TMnjlbC/view

• George Washington U grads storm out of graduation ceremony in anti-Israel

protest: Dozens of George Washington University graduates walked out of

commencement ceremonies on Sunday, disrupting university President Ellen

Granberg's speech, in protest over the ongoing war in Gaza and last week's

clearing of an on-campus protest encampment that involved police use of pepper

spray and dozens of arrests. See more: https://www.timesofisrael.com/george-washington-u-grads-storm-out-of-graduation-ceremony-in-anti-israel-protest/

• Harvard Prevents Twelve Anti-Israel Protesters from Graduating at Commencement:

The Harvard College Administrative Board will be preventing twelve seniors

from graduating at commencement and at least one senior will be required

to withdraw for three semesters, the Harvard Crimson reported. Two of

the twelve seniors were among the five suspended students who were forced

to withdraw from Harvard College, the university’s undergraduate liberal arts

school. See more: https://www.nationalreview.com/news/harvard-punishes-dozens-of-anti-israel-protesters-prevents-twelve-seniors-from-graduating-at-commencement/

• Philadelphia university president reacts after at least 75 anti-Israel protestors

descend on campus: A group of at least 75 anti-Israel agitators staged an encampment

at Drexel University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Saturday

evening. The president said that encampment raised “understandable concerns”

about safety on campus. See more:

https://www.foxnews.com/us/philadelphia-university-president-reacts-after-least-75-anti-israel-protesters-descend-campus

• Seeking Peace: Israel has repeatedly expressed its willingness to engage in dialogue

and negotiate for a lasting peace with the Palestinians. However, achieving

peace requires a genuine commitment from both sides to recognize each

other’s right to exist and to engage in constructive negotiations without violence

or terrorism.

• Complexity of the Conflict: The situation in the Middle East is complex, with

historical, religious, and geopolitical dimensions. It’s crucial to understand the

multifaceted nature of the conflict and avoid oversimplification or one-sided

narratives that ignore the broader context.

• Addressing Root Causes: To achieve long-term peace, it’s necessary to address

the root causes of the conflict, such as incitement to violence, terrorism, and

the refusal to recognize Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state. Encouraging a

shift towards education for coexistence and mutual respect is crucial for fostering

lasting peace.

• Combatting Terrorism: Hamas, a designated terrorist organization, exploits

civilian areas in Gaza, using them as launch sites for rocket attacks on Israeli

civilians. The international community must condemn terrorism in all its forms

and hold accountable those who use violence against civilians for political

gain.

• Fetterman: Biden Is Trying to ‘Have Both Sides’ on Israel-Hamas War: Senator

John Fetterman (D-PA) said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union” that President

Joe Biden was tryin to have “both sides” on the Israel-Hamas war. See

more: https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2024/05/19/fetterman-biden-is-trying-to-have-both-sides-on-israel-hamas-war/

My Thoughts:

Israel is God's Holy land and it needs to be protected and supported. We are witnessing an increase in protest on college campuses. The war is costing countless lives. This is petition to help end the anti-rioting and help end the war. Support and sign it today!

• Sign the anti-rioting petition and support Israel today!

Petition: https://ifa.nucleuspages.com/landing/anti-riot-petition?mc_cid=70a3473dfa&mc_eid=b445aebcff

Disclosure:

Many thanks to Influenceable for providing a sample of the product for this review.

Opinions are 100% my own.

Giveaway: 1 $10 Amazon giftcard

(Note: This is limited to US winners only.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Secret Society of Success: Stop Chasing the Spotlight and Learn to Enjoy Your Work (and Life) Again by Tim Schurrer Book Review

 

In The Secret Society of Success, Tim Schurrer has a major goal in redefining what success is. Many of us believe that recognition, money, fame, and power will make us truly successful in life. We catch after false ideas of what will make us happier. There has been studies completed that show that it is causing us more anxiety, depression, frustration, and leaving us exhausted. In the book, he shared how he wanted to move into a million dollar home just for the real where other would think that he was in face very successful. He introduced the spotlight mindset and he defined it as a how we believe that in order to be successful the only thing that matters is seeking the praise, attention, and fame. This is an unhealthy expectation for our desire to received the recognition. 

One of my favorite lessons in the book discussed lobsters and how when they are in the water tank. They have rubber bands on their claws to keep them safe from each other not from customers. Lobsters are in a fight to survive and they like to be dominant. This is true in how they mate the woman are drawn to them. He compares people to lobsters and how we like to leverage our own power to be above others. He compared it to a scorecard and for humans it’s money and status. We love to rank and compare our followers and likes with others. He explained how instead we need to focus on relationships with others. 

He shared how he had a dream to become the next John Mayer. He wrote his first song at the age of 18 years old. He recorded and made some albums and they were released on iTunes. He tried his best to grow his music. He made a few friends in the music business and even went on a tour. He admitted to how he compared himself to him and he felt rejected when his merchandise and CD’s would sell out more. At the time, he thought success was fame. He had to tap into a new approach on life and success and discover how he could find true happiness. We must remember that we don’t have to beat anyone to win in life. 

I would recommend this awesome book to anyone is struggling with success and wondering why they aren’t getting the recognition they deserve. There are tons of beneficial principles in this book regarding success. It was life changing to realize that we won’t ever receive the recognition that we crave. People most of the time won’t even know what we did and some could honestly care less. I liked how he explained this in detail and how this affects our value. We experience burn out and wonder what’s next for us. He revealed how powerful it is when we receive a thank you would make the world of a difference. He introduced a concept of a simple shout of praise that could change things. I liked how he suggested readers to turn inward and to find their own motivation and to feel the good from their own work. The entire concept of employers recognizing their employees for their work that might even be going unnoticed could change business in the future. Appreciate could help employees from searching for a new opportunity. This book is very beneficial for the secret society and you can be a part of this special group. 

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson for my honest review.”

 

 

 

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy, check it out on Amazon.com:

https://www.amazon.com/Secret-Society-Success-Chasing-Spotlight-ebook/dp/B09832RNSR/