Life After College: The Complete Guide to Getting What You Want

This book gives me a lot of hope as a post grad millennial blindsided by the recession, although probably not for the reasons the author intended. Because after reading "Life After College" I have seen the light that will lead me out of my dark quarter life funk: I'm going to write a self help book. Seriously.Because if this book can get 93 positive reviews on Amazon...then honestly dude, I'm going to be the next Tony Robins.The problem with this book is really the same problem with a lot of self help books, particularly those that deal with career advice: they offer tips that should be all but obvious to even the most buffoonish of individuals. Other times they offer advice that is too simplistic, general, and often just plain wrong.Here is her advice on work/life balance:"exercise can be a great way to unwind and transition to a different state of mind""Make a point to relax, schedule time with friends, and have fun" ....And its all like this. Written completely in bullet points!Thats one thing that has to be noted about this book right up front: it is written almost entirely in bullet-points...seriously. I'm not sure why the editor, publisher, and proof readers allowed this to happen. I understand that flowing prose is dead, and I'm not expecting Shakespeare here, but c'mon! Bullet points! For real?!? I get that we Gen Y folk are not the most literate, or intelligent people...we are the primary reason there will soon be a fourth transformers movie and probably a fifth pirates of the caribean...but really?!? Were not THAT bad are we? I get that paragraphs aren't what the kids are into now a days, but they've been around for 800 years or so...could we at least have gotten an old-school "paragraph re-mix version" of this book?The most important thing that should be noted is that this book seems to be truly written from the perspective of the man, or management in other words. The author is an H.R. person and "life coach" for google, a soul murdering, privacy destroying, selling the contents of your gmail account to advertisers and filtering your search results, maniacal silicon valley mega corp.That being said, it just seems, as is the case with a lot of HR people, that there is a limited understanding of what workers do, and the challenges they face, because really, if we are being honest, HR people don't really do work. They get others to do work, they manage those who do work, they hire and fire those who do work, they teach sexual harassment seminars and sensitivity training to those who work...but at the end of the day, they don't actually do any work. And anyone who has ever worked, anywhere, knows this.Now this may seem an unfair pot shot, and if it is, I apologize. But it needs to be said, and it needs to be read before you decide to part with your ten bucks or what have you. This is a book written from the perspective of the employer, pure and simple, and its bullet-points are more or less a corporate memorandum of what your boss wants you to do and be and think and feel. If that is something that you didn't already know, then okay. If it is, then feel free to skip bullet point advice like this:"There is really no such thing as a fixed work life/balance. Your work is 80% of your life. Make the most of it, and do what you can to enjoy it." ....Wow. Thats all I can say. Wow. What if you work at McDonald's?The book is littered with boss-isms. It has the condescending feel of an HR person, and lacks a lot of insight into what it really takes to succeed. She recommends not dating people you work with, even though for most adults, a good portion of the men/women you will come in contact are ones you work with, and something like a quarter of all marriages begin in the office. Its what your boss would want you to do, but is it what YOU would want to do? And in all honesty, from what I hear, this advice is outdated. A lot of companies want their employees to date and Marry because it keeps information within the family so to speak. It is a good measure against corporate espionage and fosters group cohesion.The author also recommends heavily padding your resume with things like personal interests/etc. This takes up space obviously, but she says that's okay since your resume can actually be two pages. Its all about content not length, she says. From what I've heard and experienced, this is blatantly wrong. It sounds politico to say, and its precisely something an HR person would say, but as far as practical advice, it's just plain wrong. Corporations care about how much money you can make them and how much of a liability you will or won't be. Period. They don't care too much about the fact that you like painting miniature doll houses on the week end, as admirable and exciting a hobby as that is.What I was really looking for from this book, and similar ones, was an inside track. A real players guide. A gamers guide. A guide from someone with tips that aren't obvious, advice that is not common sense, and strategies that are original and unique. A book from someone who hacks life like computer villains hack PC's. An "art of war" or Bushido for the corporate world. This book isn't it, and I sincerely hope someone writes that book because it needs to be written.Here's what I do know: For getting a job, the best book I've come across is The Idiots Guide to the Perfect interview. It was written back in 2000, so its pre recession and also even pre web 2.0, both things that oddly give it some serious cred. It is an "idiots" book, but its written by an insider.For spirituality I say Eckhart Tolle's "Power of Now" all the way. He has the answers. You can't over rate this guy.For relationships, self help, I say John Bradshaws "Taming the Shame that binds you", a classic from the 80's but the real deal when it comes to who you are and what you want. Also Susan Andersons books are very good as well.For a good view of the corporate world I would recommend "MBA in a day". It's short, simple and to the point.Other than that, all I can say is that this book is a description of who your boss wants you to be. But is it who YOU want you to be?

YOUR PORTABLE LIFE COACH. This isn't a book or a manual - it's a friend in your pocket. Jenny's heart and soul - and intricately connected network around the world - is layered in bite-sized information that's enriching, captivating, and more importantly, eminently approachable. Jenny pulls you into her book by virtually sitting down at a cafe with you, chatting with you and making you feel right at home within the first few pages. The book weaves her stories and anecdotes with powerful (but beguilingly simple) worksheets, tips, tricks and tools for you to use to start changing your life - right now.Life After College is basically just Life. Anyone looking for guidance, coaching, or advice in creating the next big steps in life should check out this book. Once we extricate ourselves from the cushy educational systems that provide for us, once we flee the nest and leave our parent's homes, there isn't really a good rulebook or toolkit that tells you how to get things done and where to go next. After college, there's just an uncharted path, and not much in the way of support or guidance. Many people stumble along the way, overwhelmed by the enormity of all there is to figure out: from money (how much do I make? where does it go? how do I save? what should I spend it on?) to friends (wait, we don't all live together anymore!) to the "big picture" of your life (what are my goals, what are my values, who do I want to be?)It's been many years (for me) since I graduated college, but I found myself writing all over the book as soon as I got it, filling out the notes and ideas I had for my life and realizing how much this organization system can apply to anyone, at anytime. Jenny's next move should be making a set of books that records these processes over time - so that I can do these exercises every few years and map my progress over time!I didn't buy just one book - I bought one for me, and one for every single college junior, senior, and recent grad that I knew, and I sent them out as presents. The stories, the lessons, and the love that pour from this book will make anyone curious about the skills needed after college incredibly happy and relieved once they read this book. Jenny - and her book - are an inspiration and a model for building your life into what you want it to be.

This book should be a must read for those about to leave the education stage of their lives. As author have said the education business doesn't really prepare you for the biggest challenge of life - the almost infinitely complex nature of the life itself. How to manage such a tricky beast and set the right goals ?The author being a professional coach addresses the issues one by one (per each chapter) with such impact that it really gives you motivation and energy to go after what you want in an feasible way. The way it's written is probably the good reason to buy it - it left me with high energy and enthusiasm to start changing things right now.Content wise, the book addresses many problems facing by adolescent: money management, career, relationships etc. As a person couple of years after graduation I must say it contains lots of advice that I could benefit from should this book was written earlier :)Highly recommended , even people outside the targeted audience should benefit from what I can call a set of invaluable advice for our challenging lives.