Nation by Terry Pratchett

Although Nation is listed as a "young adult" novel, I thoroughly enjoyed it. A giant tidal wave destroy much, including all but one boy on the brink of adulthood on an island. A young girl from around the world is the sole survivor of a shipwreck caused by the same tidal wave. As they work out a means to cooperate and get what they need, other survivors slowly arrive.

Nation is a parallel universe story, where lots of things are the same as they are here but not quite everything. The little twists that are different are often quite amusing and also thought provoking. It's a lovely story with great characters and setting, great backstory and a fantastic climax. Highly recommended no how old you are, as long as you like a good story.

10-10-10: A Life Transforming Idea by Suzy Welch

Most of us vacillate between making decisions that resonate for the short term versus the long term. In 10-10-10: A Life-Transforming Idea, Welch gives you a framework for making decisions in a more balanced way. Rather than reacting only to one or the other view, she suggests you list out the pros and cons of a decision in terms of its impact in 10 minutes, 10 months, and 10 years.

As I read the book I found myself remembering decisions I and others had made and thought that many of us do this naturally. My sister recently decided to go back to school to get her Master's in Education. In the short term, it's a lot of work and expense for 2 years. But it will let her change her focus and amplify her effectiveness and wisdom in ways that she couldn't do otherwise. She saw where she wanted to be and figured out the discomfort of the 2 years was well worth it. Likewise, I can remember the mother of a friend of mine with 3 teenagers advising her "Just ask yourself, is the fight now worth the cost in 20 years?" That's also known as "Pick your battles." ;)

But the idea of doing this on a regular basis is quite appealing. Welch has great anecdotes of people who have used it to decide to work on a relationship or abandon it, to have children or postpone having them, to take a job or not, and so forth. It forces you to step back just a bit. Thinking through the short, medium and long term consequences and address both the emotional and logical issues is a worthy task.

It's not just about making decisions as the process forces you to come to terms with your values and to define and prioritize those values. Of course, your priorities change in time as your life circumstances change and 10-10-10 will help prevent you from making rote decisions.

If you enjoy self-help books and learning how to deal with things more effectively, I think you would enjoy this book.