STUCK IS NOT A FOUR-LETTER WORD

A personal self-help guide to becoming “unstuck” in business and in life.

Johnson (Walking with the Hymns, 2013) uses examples from her own life, and from the lives of savvy business executives and others, to illustrate seven steps to help readers achieve their goals. Each step (for example, “reinvent yourself,” “eliminate distractions,” “play like you’re in the major leagues”) is explored in four or five chapters. Each chapter ends with a “Moving Forward” section, in which Johnson poses thought-provoking questions, calls for action or assigns homework to help readers determine the areas that may require improvement. Although all the steps are quite useful, the sixth section, “Do the Business,” is perhaps the strongest. Johnson asks close friend and successful real estate entrepreneur Jim Heitbrink for his best business advice—which can easily be applied to life in general: “Number one, find your uniqueness….Number two, watch the cash. Number three, work just a little harder than everyone else.” Later, Johnson tells a quick, intriguing story about carmaker Henry Ford that leads to a powerful lesson: “Know your value; then you can ask for what you’re worth”—a very useful concept, particularly in a down economy. Although the first three-quarters of the book unfolds at a fairly languid pace, the last few chapters have a much faster tempo, which gives the ending a rushed, almost disconnected feel. However, despite this, Johnson still manages to get important points across, including the powerful notion that we’re all making an impact—although we may never know the extent of it until much later; she came to that realization after she was asked to sing at a former student’s well-attended funeral. Observations such as these, along with the book’s many helpful tips and suggestions, may help readers to be more mindful of their life choices, think positively and live fuller lives.

An engaging seven-step plan for tackling seemingly insurmountable problems.