tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-176088382024-09-26T08:44:25.284+08:00Mindblogging StuffWe live in a world where we are substituting quantity for quality, clutter for information, complexity for intelligence, laborious repetition for due diligence.Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.comBlogger1434125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-52232396881872523022019-05-05T00:33:00.001+08:002019-05-05T00:33:38.779+08:00Review: Books That Changed History: From the Art of War to Anne Frank's Diary Books That Changed History: From the Art of War to Anne Frank's Diary by Kathryn Hennessy My rating: 3 of 5 stars Books like this, including the books highlighted in this book, are one of the reasons why it still makes sense to read a printed publication.Yes, you can probably get all the same information online (or even in PDF), but you will not have the same Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-74195815386971446492019-04-07T11:43:00.001+08:002019-04-07T11:43:44.562+08:00Review: Family Wisdom from the Monk Who Sold His Ferrari Family Wisdom from the Monk Who Sold His Ferrari by Robin S. Sharma My rating: 2 of 5 stars If stringing together a series of quotes by great thinkers constitutes wisdom, then I guess this book has plenty, including cheesy narratives to go along with it. The storyline is a tad predictable and stereotypical after the first two chapters. View all my Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-51646366415828883112019-01-02T00:42:00.001+08:002019-01-02T00:42:07.150+08:00Review: How to Die: An Ancient Guide to the End of Life How to Die: An Ancient Guide to the End of Life by James S. Romm My rating: 4 of 5 stars Only when you know how to die will you understand how to live. Too bad I can't understand the original Latin texts included in this book, but I would imagine it to be as enlightening as the English translation (or should it be the other way round?). View all my Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-42844621993540083742018-12-17T15:58:00.001+08:002018-12-17T15:58:58.982+08:00Review: Improv Is No Joke: Using Improvisation to Create Positive Results in Leadership and Life Improv Is No Joke: Using Improvisation to Create Positive Results in Leadership and Life by Peter A. Margaritis My rating: 3 of 5 stars An easy read, but pretty light on substance, unless you consider an autobiography to be instructional. The concepts are repeatedly emphasised throughout the book, which makes it repetitive after a while. View all my Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-22543643406232123182018-10-30T15:29:00.001+08:002018-10-30T15:29:00.440+08:00Review: 康熙大帝 康熙大帝 by 纪连海 My rating: 2 of 5 stars 如果你是那种看历史书就想睡觉的人,不妨拿这本书瞅一眼。虽然写法不伦不类(好比让周星驰重新编出来的“红楼梦”),但娱乐性高,容易读。只是部分内容有说教的嫌疑,加上说教的部分有时前后矛盾,所描述的历史事件在时间线上也不对办。若想认真对待这本书,则难免有点失望。 View all my reviews Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-59356066936225794962018-10-20T23:28:00.001+08:002018-10-20T23:28:53.061+08:00Review: Find Your Why: A Practical Guide to Discovering Purpose for You and Your Team Find Your Why: A Practical Guide to Discovering Purpose for You and Your Team by Simon Sinek My rating: 2 of 5 stars This is a classic example of too many cooks spoil the broth. I've watch the talk by Simon Sinek and he definitely has some thought-provoking ideas. Unfortunately when he and the rest of the gang tried to pull together a project like this, their Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-73148210679320486032018-09-30T01:42:00.001+08:002018-09-30T01:42:45.673+08:00Review: Now, Discover Your Strengths Now, Discover Your Strengths by Marcus Buckingham My rating: 3 of 5 stars The central theme (ahem!) of this book - that we should focus on developing strengths rather than correcting weaknesses - has a lot merit and the research seems to back up the authors' claim that this is a better use of the limited resources we have.However, the point here is not that we Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-32792007225363336942018-09-20T01:46:00.001+08:002018-09-20T01:46:11.396+08:00Review: Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World by Adam M. Grant My rating: 2 of 5 stars Disappointed. A book that purports to be a cutting-edge primer on what it takes to be "original" (as Sheryl Sandberg puts it in the Foreword) has very little original insights in it.In fact, this mash-up of snippets from other books on pop psychology contradicts its original Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-64047452593308181232018-09-07T02:11:00.001+08:002018-09-07T02:11:36.132+08:00Review: The Circle The Circle by Dave Eggers My rating: 5 of 5 stars This cautionary tale of a dysfunctional Utopian society may well illustrate the end of privacy as we know it. The story revolves around the Circle (no pun intended), an omnipresent tech company that implements increasingly invasive business practices on its employees, known as Circlers (hard not to draw a link to Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-51315447692311652612018-09-05T11:16:00.001+08:002018-09-05T11:16:22.161+08:00Review: Side Hustle: From Idea to Income in 27 Days Side Hustle: From Idea to Income in 27 Days by Chris Guillebeau My rating: 2 of 5 stars I picked up this because of Guillebeau's previous book, and boy, was I disappointed!I mean... Uber? Taylor Swift? Fiverr? Seriously?There's nothing new in here that you're not being bombarded regularly if you're looking for ideas along similar lines.The book promised 27 days, Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-45295301035673111302018-07-27T02:42:00.001+08:002018-07-27T02:42:10.682+08:00Review: Bringing Up Bébé: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting Bringing Up Bébé: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting by Pamela Druckerman My rating: 4 of 5 stars Bringing Up Bébé is full of the collective parenting wisdom of the French, not just from luminaries such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Walter Mischel and Françoise Dolto (who was also covered extensively in the book), but also from Druckerman’s Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-61486180533389525632018-07-07T11:24:00.001+08:002018-07-07T11:24:17.841+08:00Review: Unscalable Unscalable by Charlie Guo My rating: 1 of 5 stars Quite a number of the interview responses were not particularly insightful and most of the case studies were boring as hell to read. If you're curious about startups and their journeys, I would recommended checking out the StartUp podcast by Gimlet Media instead. View all my reviews Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-80541003375867184242018-06-17T23:51:00.001+08:002018-06-17T23:51:37.036+08:00Review: The Good Dad: Becoming the Father You Were Meant to Be The Good Dad: Becoming the Father You Were Meant to Be by Jim Daly My rating: 4 of 5 stars As someone who grew up under similar circumstances (i.e. without a father), I can totally relate to what Jim Daly, President and CEO of Focus on the Family, wrote in his book. The religious overtones may turn you off, but don’t let it.Some people may also find it ironic thatStephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-47151021230804660952018-06-09T12:11:00.001+08:002018-06-09T12:11:55.795+08:00Review: Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less by Greg McKeown My rating: 4 of 5 stars Like Carol Dweck in her book "Mindset", Greg McKeown separates people into two camps - the essentialists and the non-essentialists. Sadly, the real world is not as black and white. Unlike Dweck, McKeown explains his "theory" with well-supported reasoning so the examples used by Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-60026165897993988042018-06-08T00:18:00.001+08:002018-06-08T00:18:03.523+08:00Review: Grit Grit by Angela Duckworth My rating: 3 of 5 stars So apart from delayed gratification being a predictor of future success, as documented in Walter Mischel’s book The Marshmallow Test, “grit” – a special blend of passion and perseverance, does the same thing too. Well, at least that’s what Angela Duckworth seems to imply in her book.Drawing from her studies, Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-7617887320129462342018-06-02T23:21:00.001+08:002018-06-02T23:21:24.486+08:00Review: Steal the Show: From Speeches to Job Interviews to Deal-Closing Pitches, How to Guarantee a Standing Ovation for All the Performances in Your Life Steal the Show: From Speeches to Job Interviews to Deal-Closing Pitches, How to Guarantee a Standing Ovation for All the Performances in Your Life by Michael Port My rating: 3 of 5 stars The first two parts of the book are boring to read with a lot of fluff. It didn't steal the show as promised, not with those who are looking for concrete examples of how to do it Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-13516718680153746102018-05-30T14:17:00.001+08:002018-05-30T14:17:48.710+08:00Review: Mindset: The New Psychology of Success Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol S. Dweck My rating: 2 of 5 stars The concept of fixed/growth mindsets is sound, but the arguments for it in this book are stretched too thin at times (like a simple blog post being over-extended into a book). Dweck ended up devoting many pages describing the differences between "fixed mindset" and "growth mindset", Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-90306827671334760672018-05-22T11:11:00.001+08:002018-05-22T11:11:25.152+08:00Review: Kids These Days: Human Capital and the Making of Millennials Kids These Days: Human Capital and the Making of Millennials by Malcolm Harris My rating: 1 of 5 stars This book regurgitates much of what is known about the millennial generation. There is no new insights, except the painting of a doomsday scenario, which hardly qualifies as an insight.This is not surprising. Harris is no researcher, and when he tries to Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-72506969570698829392018-05-06T01:56:00.001+08:002018-05-06T01:56:42.118+08:00Review: The Promise of a Pencil: How an Ordinary Person Can Create Extraordinary Change The Promise of a Pencil: How an Ordinary Person Can Create Extraordinary Change by Adam Braun My rating: 4 of 5 stars This is a great book for those who are struggling to find purpose in their lives. Unlike many books in this genre, it doesn't sound preachy or highfalutin.Each chapter (or mantra, as the author puts it) can be read on its own, and it will still Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-13150584227126414012018-04-30T02:08:00.001+08:002018-04-30T02:08:14.194+08:00Review: The Marshmellow Test The Marshmellow Test by Walter Mischel My rating: 4 of 5 stars First things first. This is not a self-help book. If you're reading it expecting to find some kind of magic panacea for the lack of self control, you will be sorely disappointed. Instead, Walter Mischel delves into his in-depth study of the psychology of delayed gratification and how this is often a Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-52229409089111089302018-04-19T22:56:00.001+08:002018-04-19T22:56:07.226+08:00Review: The Gift of Failure: How the Best Parents Learn to Let Go So Their Children Can Succeed The Gift of Failure: How the Best Parents Learn to Let Go So Their Children Can Succeed by Jessica Lahey My rating: 2 of 5 stars I have mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, the underlying message that our kids can and should do a lot more than we afford them is commendable. And the author clearly did her homework, citing study after study by renowned Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-84815177965500426572018-04-12T09:14:00.001+08:002018-04-12T09:14:53.670+08:00Review: The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life by Mark Manson My rating: 3 of 5 stars Unnecessary spoiler alert: Almost every other sentence in the first few chapters contains the four-letter word. That much is obvious from the title of the book. Which is a real shame because the author dishes out good advice when he’s not Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-42382068016533504142018-04-09T10:07:00.001+08:002018-04-09T10:07:53.307+08:00Review: Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder, and One Man’s Fight for Justice Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder, and One Man’s Fight for Justice by Bill Browder My rating: 4 of 5 stars A classic David vs Goliath case, played out on the global stage. I wonder how Malcolm Gladwell would retell the story if he had to.The book reads like a fast-paced political thriller, with many elements that have the potentials to be adapted toStephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-760644606600903022018-03-12T00:49:00.001+08:002018-03-12T00:49:42.773+08:00Review: It's Your Kid, Not a Gerbil: Creating a Happier & Less-Stressed Home It's Your Kid, Not a Gerbil: Creating a Happier & Less-Stressed Home by Kevin Leman My rating: 3 of 5 stars If you need parenting advice, get it from someone who has been there, done that. Repeatedly. Like Dr. Kevin Leman, who has five kids.However, parents who subscribe to the notion of kiasuism, helicopter parenting, overparenting, or whatever it is called theseStephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17608838.post-42147301449940064452018-02-01T15:42:00.001+08:002018-02-01T15:42:51.762+08:00Review: Lying Lying by Sam Harris My rating: 3 of 5 stars A complex book (or should I say, essay, to be honest) on the philosophy of practical ethics, based on an undergraduate college course that the author took at Stanford. Ironically, it takes a book about lying to lay out the merits of telling the truth whatever the situation. This last part will probably have some people Stephen Yeohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00553253800554493167noreply@blogger.com0