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Book Review of What the CFO Wants You to Know – How You Create Value by Charles Asubonten

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*Note: I received an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. This post contains affiliate links which means that I will receive a tiny commission for purchases made through the link. This is at no cost to you.*

 

What the CFO Wants You to Know – How You Create Value by Charles Asubonten

 

Book Description:

Unless a business provides value, it will fail. We all know this, and yet many of us, whether employees or business leaders, do not have a clear idea of who creates value and how. What the CFO Wants You to Know is an indispensable guide to creating value in an enterprise, drawing on the extensive experience of serial CFO and author Charles Asubonten. While many books focus on the CFO as a financial engineer, Asubonten’s compelling thesis is that the CFO is a catalyst who inspires employees to get on board in the value-creation process and that every employee needs to be cognizant of and committed to their role in value-creation. When employees know what the CFO must do to create value and how each employee affects that process, a more lasting, resonant, and energized workforce is the exciting result. Focused not only on value-creation, this book also shows how value is sustained. From the novice who has always wondered about the CFO’s role to the seasoned CFO who needs a refresher in today’s changing business climate, What the CFO Wants You to Know is a resource for business leadership, employees, shareholders, the Board of Directors, and the community.

My Thoughts:

The author shares knowledge to help others understand the CFO’s (chief financial officer) function and how it impacts an organization. There’s no one better to help explain this than the author himself who has also helped companies such as the Dow Chemical Company, Ford Motor Company, and DTE Energy, and others to create value. The CFO has a hand in every facet of the company from working closely with human resources to holding townhall meetings for employees. They are anywhere in a company where value can be added and he goes on to explain how to create value.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this book and I’m glad that the author broke everything down in a way for the average person to understand. The book reminds me of a textbook almost in how it reads; yet, I still find the information it contains interesting. I give this 4 out of 5 stars.

 

Find Out More About the Author and Where to Buy:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

*Note: I was unable to find this book listed on Goodreads. If it pops up for anyone, please kindly post it in the comments section. I’ll gladly update this post with the link. 😊

Job Interview Questions and Answers: The Complete Process for Interview Preparation! Speaking Skills and Body Language for Winning Interview + 35 Powerful Interview Questions and Answers + Workbook Book Review

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Job Interview Questions and Answers: The Complete Process for Interview Preparation! Speaking Skills and Body Language for Winning Interview + 35 Powerful Interview Questions and Answers +Workbook

By

Jordan Smith

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which mean I will receive a tiny commission for purchases made through my link.

 

Book Description:

Master your interviews and land that job with this powerful step-by-step guide!

Do you struggle with interviews? Never sure what to say or do? Wouldn’t it be great if there was a simple, proven plan for landing that dream job?

The interview is an essential part of the corporate world. It weeds out those wrong for the job and finds the best candidate – and far too often, we’re left on the wrong side of the pile. But now, inside this detailed guide you’ll find a breakdown of job interviews, and how you can drastically boost your chances of success.

Covering everything from body language, what to wear, and 35 questions you might be asked, this comprehensive, complete guide is guaranteed to massively increase your chances of landing that position – no matter the job you desire!

Here’s what you’ll discover inside:

  • A detailed Breakdown of the Interview – What You Need to Know
  • Understanding Your Career and Interviewee Goals
  • Body Language, How to Dress, What to Say, and More
  • “Knowing Your Enemy” – How to Prepare to Meet Your Interviewer
  • 35 Interviewer Questions and Their Respective Answers
  • Three Sample Interviews Dialogues
  • A Powerful Workbook to Put this Advice into Practice
  • And Much More!

Plus, you’ll also find a free bonus chapter which shows you three different interview scenarios and how our fictional characters perform. So don’t let this opportunity pass you by – land that dream job and stop being on the wrong side of the pile!

 

My Thoughts:

I love that the author went into details about the different types of resumes. The chronological resume is one that I have personally used after establishing work experience. A functional resume is great for someone who doesn’t have a lot of work experience to list such as a high school or college graduate who are entering the workforce. For young people who do not have work experience, jobs such as babysitting, yard work, extra-curricular school activities, etc can be added to the resume.

Another important point that was made in the book was regarding appearance. Appearance means everything when you’re walking into a job interview. No one wants to interview someone who does not look the part of the job they are applying for. It’s important to “dress for the part.” It’s best to stick with dark colors for the clothing you wear to the interview. There’s also a list of dos and don’ts that many may find beneficial to save them from committing a fashion faux pas.

There are many different types of interviews from the traditional one on one interview where you’re interview on the jobsite to the behavioral interview. It’s best to find one which one you will have so that you may prepare. In my personal experience, I have found that after submitting an application, some jobs will send you a followup email letting you know which type of interview you will have. Others may not do this and, even if they do, I find that Glassdoor and Indeed are both helpful. Current and former employees of companies list their experiences on these job sites from interview questions to the experience with the company. This is a good way to get knowledge on not only the job interview process, but workers’ experiences with the job you are applying for. It can be easy to get caught up in the negative reviews on the sites, even if positive ones are listed. Please, keep an open mind and know that not everyone has the same experience. Your experience may be different from someone who posted the negative review.

The practice interview questions made me take a trip down memory lane as I’ve been asked some of these questions a couple of times. There is a “meaning’ and a “how to respond” under each of these questions in the book. I have included just the list of questions down below:

Practice Question 1: Tell me a little but about yourself.
Practice Question 2: Why should we hire you instead of someone else?
Practice Question 3: What are your technical abilities?
Practice Question 4: What type of work environment do you prefer?
Practice Question 5: How much interaction do you expect from your supervisor or boss?
Practice Question 6: Have you ever had to face a major obstacle in life or at work that you had to overcome?
Practice Question 7: What qualifies you for this position?
Practice Question 8: Is there something you have accomplished, whether on the job or outside of work, that you are proud of?
Practice Question 9: How do you overcome challenges?
Practice Question 10: What are some goals you have set for yourself?
Practice Question 11: How would you define hard work?
Practice Question 12: Can you show me some examples of your work?
Practice Question 13: Are you a team player?
Practice Question 14: How would you pitch our company to a prospective buyer?
Practice Question 15: What is your preferred working style?
Practice Question 16: What are the unique skills you have that make you a good fit for the job?
Practice Question 17: What was it that interested you the most and made you apply for the job?
Practice Question 18: Why do you want to leave your current employer?
Practice Question 19: What time do you like to get to work? Early? Right on time?
Practice Question 20: Is there something that we as an employer can help you improve on? A specific skill?
Practice Question 21: Have you ever messed up on the job?
Practice Question 22: If you were given the opportunity to start your own business, what would you do?
Practice Question 23: For the most part, do you get along with your co-workers? Have you ever had problems with co-workers?
Practice Question 24: What would you do if a deadline was looming on a job you were not sure you could finish it?
Practice Question 25: Do you think people like you?
Practice Question 26: What is probably the biggest decision you have ever had to make, whether on the job or in your personal life?
Practice Question 27: How are you at explaining complicated procedures?
Practice Question 28: Is there something you are looking forward to the most about this job?
Practice Question 29: What do you like to do when you are not working?
Practice Question 30: What would your past supervisors/bosses say if I asked them about you?
Practice Question 31: What do you consider your weaknesses?
Practice Question 32: What motivates you to work harder?
Practice Question 33: What are your greatest strengths?
Practice Question 34: How have you gone above and beyond on your past jobs?
Practice Question 35: Do you have any questions about the job?
Part 3 of the book takes you through sample interviews.
There is also a workbook at the end that includes 30 additional practice questions.

Overall, I highly recommend this book and give it 5 out of 5 stars. The information in this book will be useful to the high school and college graduate who are looking to enter the workforce all the way to the veteran who has been in the workforce for many years.

 

Find Out More About The Author and Where To Buy:

Goodreads Page

Amazon

 

 

The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden Book Review

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The Coincidence of Callie and Kayden by Jessica Sorensen
Note: This post contains affiliate links, which mean I will receive a tiny commission for purchases made through my link.

 

Book Description:

For Kayden, suffering in silence was the only way to survive. If he was lucky, he could keep his head down, do as he was told, and make it through the day. But one night it seemed like his luck — and his life — might finally end… until an angel named Callie appeared just in time to rescue him.

Callie has never believed in luck. Not since her twelfth birthday when everything was taken from her. After the worst was over, she locked up her feelings and vowed never to tell anyone what happened. Now, six years later, she continues to struggle with the painful secret that threatens to consume her.

When fate lands Kayden and Callie at the same college, Kayden is determined to get to know the beautiful girl who changed his destiny. Quiet and reserved, Callie still fears letting anyone else into her world. But Kayden is certain that Callie has come back into his life for a reason. And the more he tries to be a part of her life, the more he realizes that, this time, it’s Callie who needs to be saved…

 

My Thoughts:

This is the first book I’ve read by this author and it will not be my last. I really enjoyed this book from start to finish. It touches on topics such as physical and sexual abuse and how it affects the victims long after the abuse takes place. Kayden Owens is the football star of his high school and is physically abused by his father while Callie Lawrence is suffering with the secret of being rape by her brother’s best friend when she was 12 years old.

The story starts out with Callie’s mother sending her into the Owens’ household to get her brother. Callie witnesses Kayden’s dad call him “a fuckup” and “a fucking disappointment” and physically abuses him by “kicking him in the stomach” and “in the face.” To stop the attack, Callie makes up an excuse that someone was looking for him in the kitchen to get him to stop attacking Kayden and it works.

Their paths cross again when they run into each other in college over the summer. Kayden and go out to eat at a restaurant with their friends Luke and Seth and their relationship grows from there. I want to point out that this is a slow building romance story and there is a cliffhanger at the end.  

There were a few things I didn’t like in the book. With Callie’s situation surrounding the rape, I feel as if her parents should’ve asked more questions and really got to the bottom of what was going on with their daughter. “…I don’t tell my mom, because it will crush her. She’s such a happy person there’s no use cursing her with dark thoughts.” She wants to protect her mom because she doesn’t think she can handle the truth about what happened to her. Also, I really wish she would’ve told her regardless instead of letting that secret fester.

With Kayden’s situation, he has 2 older brothers who knew what was going on in the household, and they were abused too. They shouldn’t have just left him in the home knowing the physical pain their father was going to inflict upon him. “…It’s hard not to stare at the scars that crisscross along his stomach and chest.”

I do not want to give too much of the story away. Overall, this is a good read and this book will make you go through a range of emotions from sad to angry to happy and back again.

 

Find Out More About The Author and Where To Buy:

Author’s Website

Goodreads Page

Amazon

Google Play

Books A Million

Barnes & Noble

 

A Book Review of The Secret of the Old Clock – Nancy Drew Book 1

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The Secret of the Old Clock by Carolyn Keene

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which mean I will receive a tiny commission for purchases made through my link.

 

Book Description:

The Secret of the Old Clock is the mystery that began it all for America’s favorite teenaged slueth. The accidental rescue of a little girl who lives with her two great-aunts leads to an adventurous search for a missing will.

~ ~ ~

My Thoughts:

I first began reading Nancy Drew books in 3rd or 4th grade and completed the collection by middle school. I’m twenty-eight now and it’s just as great now as it was then.

The book starts out with Nancy rescuing a little girl, Judy who runs into the street. She makes it safely across the road but falls down into a river. Nancy takes Judy home and meets her great-aunts. They tell her about a relative named Josiah Crowley who had helped them in the past with their finances. Prior to his death, he promised to remember them in his will. Instead, only one will was found and in it he left everything to his wealthy relative Richard Topham. They believe there has to be a second will that no one has found. While Nancy is still in Judy’s great-aunts’ home, they discover some items are missing from the home. The two women believe that the men who knocked on their door and asked if they had old furniture to sell, were the ones who stole from them.

Nancy’s journey leads her to meet more of Josiah Crowley’s relatives who were told that he’d remember them in his will. Most of his relatives were friendly, down to earth people, except for his cousin Richard Topham’s two daughters, Ada and Isabel. They are the type of people who feel as if the world owes them something and that everyone else is beneath them.  Even his wife is snooty, but oh how the might fall at the end of the book.

Nancy is a very likable character who has a caring and compassionate heart. Her determination and strong will for the truth leads her not only to solve the mystery of the missing will, but help many of Josiah Crowley’s relatives who would not have received help otherwise.

If you like a good mystery that never gets old, then I’d recommend reading this book.

~ ~ ~

Find Out More About The Author And Where To Buy

Author’s Goodreads Page: Carolyn Keene’s Goodreads Page

Amazon: The Secret of the Old Clock

Books A Million: The Secret of the Old Clock

Google Play: The Secret of the Old Clock

Apple Books: The Secret of the Old Clock

Killer Dolls Book Review

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Killer Dolls By Nisa Santiago

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which mean I will receive a tiny commission for purchases made through my link.

 

Book Description:

Beautiful Menace (or Viral Violence)
Half Japanese and half Jamaican, Aoki is young, beautiful, and known throughout her Brooklyn neighborhood as a menace to local authorities. On the eve of a brutal murder that hits close to home, Aoki needs her friends more than ever. Her ride-or-die besties, Tisa and Ri-Ri, are down to help by any means necessary, even if it puts their own freedom at risk.

While coming up in the drug game, AZ gets into a situation he can’t handle on his own. When he reaches out to Aoki – an unlikely ally – the girls agree to handle his problem for a small fee. When surveillance video of the conquest goes viral, the Brooklyn hood chicks are transformed into Killer Dolls.

This overnight fame brings heat to the Killer Dolls, with jealousy, envy, and a dark secret threatening to destroy everything.

~ ~ ~

My Thoughts:

This was a great page turner of a book. I hadn’t even made it to chapter one yet and I was reading about a 16 year old teenage girl watching her father stab her mother to death. Then she gets a knife and stabs him. It was time to be scared of her. The main character Aoki gets ready the next day as if nothing happened and the girl can fight in heels. I can’t imagine what seeing one parent kill another could do to a person but she got something else deep going on inside her. Anyhow, after the murder she goes to a friend’s house and then the movies while her parents’ dead bodies are still there.

At 18, Aoki drops out of school. Her anger issues have not improved either. People in the neighborhood fear her. As a child, she was teased because of her Jamaican accent and appearance. At first she’d cry. Then she hardened herself and tried ignoring the teasing, which manifested her anger. Bullying is never right. It can really mess with a person mentally and then on top of that you still have to deal with whatever else life is throwing at you. Seeing her parents addicted to drugs on top of the bullying didn’t help her either. She’d been arrested for fighting and the sergeant gave her a chance to prove that she could do better with her life. The sergeant and the cop she fought can tell that she is troubled, but I don’t think troubled is really the word to describe Aoki.

She eventually lets her friends in on what happened with her parents. Her friend AZ comes up with the idea of purchasing two tin barrels and quicklime to keep the smell under control, since the ground was too hard to bury the bodies. Aoki never buried her parents though. The barrels were put in the backyard. “Every month, late in the night, she would go out and cover the bodies with quicklime to keep the smell contained and help preserve the remains”.
To provide for herself she gets into the drug game and becomes a contracted killer. She lets her two friend girls in on it and they become known as The Killer Dolls. Got an enemy? Contact the Killer Dolls and Aoki will definitely make sure the job gets done.

Overall this book was a 5 star read. This is the first book that I’ve read by Nisa Santiago but it definitely will not be my last. I loved her writing style and how she goes in depth with describing the characters and the lives they lead. The story is very well edited and put together. The story and characters take on a life of their own. I cannot wait to read Part 2.

Find Out More About The Author And Where To Buy:

Author’s Facebook Fan Page: Nisa Santiago FB FanPage

Author’s Goodreads Page: Nisa Santiago Goodreads Page

Author’s Twitter Page: Nisa Santiago Twitter Page

Amazon: Killer Dolls Nisa Santiago

Books A Million: Killer Dolls Nisa Santiago

Google Play: Killer Dolls Nisa Santiago

Apple Books: Killer Dolls Nisa Santiago

Reading & Reviews

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I have lost myself in many good books in my life. So why not write reviews about books that I find interesting? As an indie author, I understand the importance of reviews and how hard it is to get them. So to spread the word, I will post my honest review and opinion of stories I read.

In addition to paperback, I also read stories on Smashwords and Wattpad. If available, I will post the links to the author’s website, blog, Amazon, Smashwords, Goodreads, iTunes, Books A Million, anything I can find.

So welcome and take a look around. Who knows? You might just find your next great read or a new favorite author.