You may know Kate White for her mystery releases like If Looks Could Kill and The Secrets You Keep, but she had a long career in publishing and magazines before taking on the fiction world. White pulls on that experience in the business world to give sage advice to women just getting their start in The Gutsy Girl Handbook. Packed with tales of her experiences both as a magazine editor and general business settings, White provides tips to guide women on being leaders, negotiating for their benefits, and dealing with difficult situations. This is a book of mentorship with nine core principles and many real-life examples to help apply these concepts to your world.
I give The Gutsy Girl Handbook 3 out of 5 stars. This book felt a bit like listening to a keynote address where blanket principles are used that don’t give as much specific advices or mentorship as I would like. It fell just short of feeling like a CEO throwing anecdotes and stories at you when you pass them in the hall. I respect what White has been able to accomplish, but felt like this almost soured her legacy for me. With that said, it could also be the point I am at in my career – the book felt as though White was writing for interns and first year employees, not really for those already in leadership or looking to advance to higher management positions.
If you are just starting out in business, this may be a great book to read, especially when considering salary and benefit negotiations. It felt similar to Laurie Ruettimann’s Betting on You in that aspect. I would also recommend this book to anyone in the publishing world – there are some specific situations and examples discussed that might be more applicable to your worklife.
I chose The Gutsy Girl Handbook as my TBR Stack pull for May. I have had this one for quite a while and was looking for a shorter book to read on a Wednesday/Thursday before being able to settle into a longer book for the weekend. I did find myself making a few notes here to share with someone I mentor at work, but this book, overall, did not feel like it applied to me. Have you read any leadership or business books lately you’d recommend?
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What I’m Reading
- Current print book: The Last Slave Ship, Ben Raines
- Current audio book: Enemy Woman, Paulette Jiles
- Book I’m most looking forward to: Call Upon the Water, Stella Tillyard
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