Happiness at one’s job is certainly one of the most important aspects of life. Indeed, well-being alone can be a gateway to fantastic success, and lack thereof, a recipe for disaster. In this book, job coaches Berman and Bradt analyze how to find the right interface between you and your job – and if necessary, to change jobs in the process.
Many people look to a job description as the way to find out what they should be doing. Berman and Bradt rightly counsel to instead look at the relational interactions and needs around the job to find out the real expectations. While a given employee is rarely a perfect fit, the job should be changed if things aren’t going right. This book attempts to coach people through this entire process – from analyzing what the organization most needs from you to analyzing your passions to figuring out the best next steps.
My biggest concern for this book is that it appears to be mistitled. It is not primarily about influence and impact in themselves but more about the subtitle – finding an organizational fit. They contend that the right organizational fit will lead to increased influence and impact. Centrally, finding the right organizational needs fulfills both a worker and a firm.
This book is heavy on psychological language. Clearly, the authors have spent much time counseling others through this life event and share this expertise through this writing. This book is lighter on the business part of it – again, a flip from what I was expecting from the title. It does have a final section on helping others find their passions’ outlet in their job, but this section is relatively short (less than ten pages). It would have been helpful to expand this section because I sense that most senior leaders (and potential readers) could benefit here.
Overall, this book provides interesting material to interact with while someone evaluates their professional position in life. It mainly meets the needs of more junior people rather than more senior people. Comprehensive and well-researched, it contains pages upon pages of citations to support its sage advice. Very good for focusing evermore acutely on how to meet your group’s needs.
Influence and Impact: Discover and Excel at What Your Organization Needs From You the Most
By Bill Berman and George Bradt
Copyright (c) 2021
Wiley
ISBN13 9781119786139
Page Count: 206
Genre: Business/Management
www.amazon.com