This is a powerful collection of bestselling books that will help you love the work you do - even if you can't always do work that you love.

     For decades, technology encouraged people to squander their time and intellect as passive consumers. Today, tech has finally caught up with human potential. In Cognitive Surplus, Internet guru Clay Shirky forecasts the thrilling changes we will all enjoy as new digital technology puts our untapped resources of talent and goodwill to use at last. Since we Americans were suburbanized and educated by the postwar boom, we've had a surfeit of intellect, energy, and time-what Shirky calls a cognitive surplus. But this abundance had little impact on the common good because television consumed the lion's share of it-and we consume TV passively, in isolation from one another. Now, for the first time, people are embracing new media that allow us to pool our efforts at vanishingly low cost. The results of this aggregated effort range from mind expanding-reference tools like Wikipedia-to lifesaving-such as Ushahidi.com, which has allowed Kenyans to sidestep government censorship and report on acts of violence in real time. Shirky argues persuasively that this cognitive surplus-rather than being some strange new departure from normal behavior-actually returns our society to forms of collaboration that were natural to us up through the early twentieth century. He also charts the vast effects that our cognitive surplus- aided by new technologies-will have on twenty-first-century society, and how we can best exploit those effects. Shirky envisions an era of lower creative quality on average but greater innovation, an increase in transparency in all areas of society, and a dramatic rise in productivity that will transform our civilization. The potential impact of cognitive surplus is enormous. As Shirky points out, Wikipedia was built out of roughly 1 percent of the man-hours that Americans spend watching TV every year. Wikipedia and other current products of cognitive surplus are only the iceberg's tip. Shirky shows how society and our daily lives will be improved dramatically as we learn to exploit our goodwill and free time like never before.

    But real estate agents and home buyers should also study it because of the valuable insights offered by a longtime, very successful real estate broker. On my scale of one to 10, this superb book rates an off-the-chart 12." --Robert Bruss You've probably seen TV shows like Flip This House and Flip That House, in which Real estate investors buy, renovate, and sell a house in a matter of weeks for tens of thousands of dollars in profit. They make flipping houses look so easy that you want to jump out of your recliner (during the next commercial, of course), run down the street, find a house for sale, flip it for a 50 percent profit, and run back home to continue watching the show.I, Ralph Roberts, have flipped hundreds of houses, and it's never as easy as it looks on TV. People don't generally line up at your front door begging you to buy their house for 30-50 percent below market value. Renovation expenses always exceed estimates. And you can't always sell a house for what you think it's worth.Flipping houses for a profit requires time, money, and what I like to call sticktoitism--dogged determination in the face of overwhelming uncertainty.Not just another house flipping bookYou can find plenty of books about flipping houses that claim "anyone can do it" and make flipping look easy and risk-free. Flipping Houses For Dummies takes a different approach--honesty. We don't claim that flipping houses is "easy" or "simple" or "risk-free," because, quite frankly, it isn't.Flipping Houses For Dummies reveals the risks and rewards of flipping properties; helps you determine whether you have the time, energy, cash, and other resources to be successful; and then conveys the expert knowledge that those who wish to pursue house flipping need in order to minimize risk and maximize potential profits in a very competitive market. Did you know?Most books on flipping houses gloss over the key factors that that make or break the novice house flipper. These are the very items we focus on in Flipping Houses For Dummies. For example, did you know:You should secure financing before you look at houses. As a flipper, you want dontwanners--houses that the owners obviously don't want. You make your profit when you buy the property. You realize your profit when you sell. Always plan on earning at least 20 percent after your total investment--purchase price, repairs and renovations, real estate agent commissions, and holding costs (monthly mortgage payments, insurance, property taxes, and utilities). Working with a top-notch real estate agent can save you thousands of dollars more than what you pay in commissions. You should choose a limited geographical area to work and then become an expert on the houses and property values in that area. Your goal when renovating a home should be to bring the property up to market standards, not exceed them. A flipping book for real people Flipping Houses For Dummies speaks to the mom and pop investor, steering you clear of the gray areas, which tend to carry high-risks and low-returns, into safer, more potentially profitable areas. We encourage you invest in your comfort zone and take on bigger, riskier projects with higher profit potential only when you're ready.In Flipping Houses For Dummies we stress that the first flip is the most important one, and we take the guesswork out of the first transaction, to lead you through a positive first experience on which to build a promising real estate investment portfolio.Flipping Houses For Dummies provides plenty of examples of successful and not-so-successful property flips, presenting the total investment (in time and money), the work involved, and the net profit. Before-and-after photos visually illustrate the positive transformations from run-down-shacks to showcase homes.

    No academic analysis or bystander’s account can capture it. Now Doug Edwards, Employee Number 59, offers the first inside view of Google, giving readers a chance to fully experience the bizarre mix of camaraderie and competition at this phenomenal company. Edwards, Google’s first director of marketing and brand management, describes it as it happened. We see the first, pioneering steps of Larry Page and Sergey Brin, the company’s young, idiosyncratic partners; the evolution of the company’s famously nonhierarchical structure (where every employee finds a problem to tackle or a feature to create and works independently); the development of brand identity; the races to develop and implement each new feature; and the many ideas that never came to pass. Above all, Edwards—a former journalist who knows how to write—captures the “Google Experience,” the rollercoaster ride of being part of a company creating itself in a whole new universe. I’m Feeling Lucky captures for the first time the unique, self-invented, yet profoundly important culture of the world’s most transformative corporation.

    Moms in particular will welcome this trend.  A full 60% wish they had a flexible work option. But companies see advantages too in the way remote work increases their talent pool, reduces turnover, lessens their real estate footprint, and improves the ability to conduct business across multiple time zones, to name just a few advantages.  In Remote, inconoclastic authors Fried and Hansson will convince readers that letting all or part of work teams function remotely is a great idea--and they're going to show precisely how a remote work setup can be accomplished.

    Your engineers are fretting about the functionality. Your designers are in mutiny about specifications. Your business manager is screaming about the budget, and your sales team just wants to talk pricing. What do you do? The biggest challenge and most important responsibility of a Product Manager are to stay focused on the user. You are the advocate for the customer. You put their interest first, and ensure that the end result actually achieves what you set out to accomplish in the first place. Even the best Product Managers cannot do this through instinct alone. You’re not psychic. You need to gather data. You need to systematically understand your users. And you need to learn how to effectively communicate this understanding to your team, so they are inspired to share your vision and stay on track. Presenting practical advice and thought leadership from PMs at companies 


like Airbnb, Reddit, and Square, ‘Ship it: Successful Product Managers Reveal All’ shows you how to succeed as a Product Manager by putting the user first, and getting your team on your side. The chapters you’re about to read provide specific advice on conducting user research and applying metrics that actually matter, as well as more general wisdom about the Product Manager career path, communication skills, and life lessons from PMs at the top of their game. No matter where you are on your PM journey, you’re bound to find nuggets of wisdom here that allow you to upgrade your thinking and achieve more for your users and your career.

    MLM is different than a regular job. Every new person in your business should have a copy of this book to guide them in the early days of their network marketing career. This book shows the beginner exactly what to do, exactly what to say, and does it through the eyes of brand-new Distributor Joe. "Big Al" teaches Distributor Joe a very basic system to get to 100 distributors fast. Using just a few contacts and a very simple, rejection-free appointment and presentation system, Distributor Joe learns by observing, and thus builds leadership skills instantly. The magic script to help every new distributor get his first network marketing distributor makes it easy to build deep. In a few words or examples "Big Al" brings to light the real answers to network marketing leadership challenges. You’ll find the same humor and directness that has endeared "Big Al" to his workshop audiences throughout the world. Published as Big Al Tells All (Sponsoring Magic) in 1979, and revised in 1985 and 1999, this latest revision includes updates to match the changes in the network marketing industry. It still retains the classic techniques that are essential to successful network marketing. Every new person deserves instant success in MLM, so why not use this easy system to get them started fast? Motivation, attitude, positive attitude and philosophy are great, but at some point, every new MLM distributor has to learn the skills of what to say and do. This is the book they need. Big Al’s MLM Sponsoring Magic How To Build A Network Marketing Team Quickly is a fun and fascinating network marketing system that every new distributor enjoys. What a great way to start off a new distributor's career, with this easy-to-read book. Order your copy now!

    The exam is designed to ensure that someone who is handling computer security in a company has a standardized body of knowledge. The book is composed of 10 domains of the Common Body of Knowledge. In each section, it defines each domain. It also provides tips on how to prepare for the exam and take the exam. It also contains CISSP practice quizzes to test ones knowledge. The first domain provides information about risk analysis and mitigation. It also discusses security governance. The second domain discusses different techniques for access control, which is the basis for all the security disciplines. The third domain explains the concepts behind cryptography, which is a secure way of communicating that is understood only by certain recipients. Domain 5 discusses security system design, which is fundamental for operating the system and software security components. Domain 6 is a critical domain in the Common Body of Knowledge, the Business Continuity Planning, and Disaster Recovery Planning. It is the final control against extreme events such as injury, loss of life, or failure of an organization. Domains 7, 8, and 9 discuss telecommunications and network security, application development security, and the operations domain, respectively. Domain 10 focuses on the major legal systems that provide a framework in determining the laws about information system.

    Arm yourself with these 50 secret rules, and get to the top without breaking a sweat. * Hot book -- 55,000 copies sold in the UK, and 20,000 copies in Canada. * The complete success primer for today's manager: fun, irreverent, and real. * Why some people glide effortlessly past office politics, backstabbing, and unpleasant bosses...and how you can, too.

    

    Each essay distills complex concepts and challenges into practical nuggets of useful advice, and the new edition now adds more value for leaders and managers of projects everywhere. Based on his nine years of experience as a program manager for Internet Explorer, and lead program manager for Windows and MSN, Berkun explains to technical and non-technical readers alike what it takes to get through a large software or web development project. Making Things Happen doesn't cite specific methods, but focuses on philosophy and strategy. Unlike other project management books, Berkun offers personal essays in a comfortable style and easy tone that emulate the relationship of a wise project manager who gives good, entertaining and passionate advice to those who ask. Topics in this new edition include:How to make things happenMaking good decisionsSpecifications and requirementsIdeas and what to do with themHow not to annoy peopleLeadership and trustThe truth about making datesWhat to do when things go wrongComplete with a new forward from the author and a discussion guide for forming reading groups/teams, Making Things Happen offers in-depth exercises to help you apply lessons from the book to your job. It is inspiring, funny, honest, and compelling, and definitely the one book that you and your team need to have within arm's reach throughout the life of your project. Coming from the rare perspective of someone who fought difficult battles on Microsoft's biggest projects and taught project design and management for MSTE, Microsoft's internal best practices group, this is valuable advice indeed. It will serve you well with your current work, and on future projects to come.

    With 77 million baby boomers entering the program, questions about what Medicare is and how it affects seniors are certain to arise. Medicare For Dummies addresses this uncertain topic and helps those eligible for Medicare benefits maneuver the complicated process. Topics include: summary of Medicare benefits; Medicare coverage options; Medicare rights and protections; updated information on changes to Medicare based on recent changes in healthcare legislation; how the economy affects Medicare; and more. * Includes up-to-date information on the changing healthcare landscape so recipients can take advantage of the new provisions * Helps readers make sense of Medicare in these uncertain times If you're one of the millions of Americans looking to get the lowdown on Medicare, this hands-on, friendly guide has you covered.

    But it can be even trickier to use than either Unix or Linux, and harder still to master.Absolute FreeBSD, 2nd Edition is your complete guide to FreeBSD, written by FreeBSD committer Michael W. Lucas. Lucas considers this completely revised and rewritten second edition of his landmark work to be his best work ever; a true product of his love for FreeBSD and the support of the FreeBSD community. Absolute FreeBSD, 2nd Edition covers installation, networking, security, network services, system performance, kernel tweaking, filesystems, SMP, upgrading, crash debugging, and much more, including coverage of how to:Use advanced security features like packet filtering, virtual machines, and host-based intrusion detection Build custom live FreeBSD CDs and bootable flash Manage network services and filesystems Use DNS and set up email, IMAP, web, and FTP services for both servers and clients Monitor your system with performance-testing and troubleshooting tools Run diskless systems Manage schedulers, remap shared libraries, and optimize your system for your hardware and your workload Build custom network appliances with embedded FreeBSD Implement redundant disks, even without special hardware Integrate FreeBSD-specific SNMP into your network management system. Whether you're just getting started with FreeBSD or you've been using it for years, you'll find this book to be the definitive guide to FreeBSD that you've been waiting for.

    Jakes challenges the faithful to be more effective in earning their livelihoods by providing a diverse range of strategies that will turn their work life into an abundant life. While focusing on his core mission to preach the gospel worldwide, T.D. Jakes has seen many good people not spend enough quality time with family, friends, and God. They have gotten so swept up in the daily grind that they have failed to live the rich life that God desires for each of His people. In his new book, Jakes provides readers with strategies that will help them rejuvenate their life and turn their "busyness" into a "business." All readers-not just entrepreneurs-will benefit from Jakes' insightful advice so that they can use the days God has blessed them with wisely and finish each day strong!

    The best salespeople don't just build relationships with customers. They challenge them. The need to understand what top-performing reps are doing that their average performing colleagues are not drove Matthew Dixon, Brent Adamson, and their colleagues at Corporate Executive Board to investigate the skills, behaviors, knowledge, and attitudes that matter most for high performance. And what they discovered may be the biggest shock to conventional sales wisdom in decades.Based on an exhaustive study of thousands of sales reps across multiple industries and geographies, The Challenger Sale argues that classic relationship building is a losing approach, especially when it comes to selling complex, large-scale business-to-business solutions. The authors' study found that every sales rep in the world falls into one of five distinct profiles, and while all of these types of reps can deliver average sales performance, only one-the Challenger- delivers consistently high performance.Instead of bludgeoning customers with endless facts and features about their company and products, Challengers approach customers with unique insights about how they can save or make money. They tailor their sales message to the customer's specific needs and objectives. Rather than acquiescing to the customer's every demand or objection, they are assertive, pushing back when necessary and taking control of the sale.The things that make Challengers unique are replicable and teachable to the average sales rep. Once you understand how to identify the Challengers in your organization, you can model their approach and embed it throughout your sales force. The authors explain how almost any average-performing rep, once equipped with the right tools, can successfully reframe customers' expectations and deliver a distinctive purchase experience that drives higher levels of customer loyalty and, ultimately, greater growth.