No More Blue Mondays: Four Keys to Finding Fulfillment at Work (Paperback)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Sheerer is a Chicago-based career consultant who argues that work is the source of our identity and that it is the "single greatest arena available to us for self-expression, contribution, and personal growth." At the same time, she reports that 85 percent of us are unhappy with or feel stuck in our jobs. For those in this group, she offers four keys for getting back on track--or for avoiding getting de-railed in the first place. Focusing on self-assessment, she recommends that we reveal what is uniquely true for ourselves, that we reclaim our personal power, then express our commitment, and surround ourselves with support. Sheerer shows how to use these keys to create an "empowering work situation and a satisfying life." She also acknowledges, however, that for some it may be time to move on, and she suggests ways to make this determination. Sheerer takes a look at six personal problems that may be responsible for holding one back and offers ways to begin to overcome them. David Rouse

Review

...offers concepts to help you either love the work you do or gain the courage to break aways and find a better career. -- Chicago Sun-Times, February 28, 1999

...provides useful questionnaires, exercises, and planning tools to guide individuals who are seeking fulfillment in their work. -- Orange County Register, July 1999

Besides presenting her own principles for job fulfillment, Sheerer leads readers through exercises to identify their strengths, gifts, and attitudes to work. -- The Marketplace, Sept/Oct. 2000

For anyone who has ever suffered the problems of Blue Mondays--and few of us have sidestepped these issues altogether--nationally noted Chicago-area career coach Robin Sheerer ofers some words of wisdom. As she recounts the anecdotes and experiences of thousands of people she has coached through career transitions and job issues...,Sheerer radiates enthusiasm, commitment, and a dynamic passion for helping people with their work life issues. -- Conscious Choice, January 2000

It's never too late to find TGIM work. If you don't find it, you'll be playing a can't-win game of woulda, coulda, shoulda every Monday Moaning. -- Cleveland Plain Dealer, May 23, 1999

Sheerer has a sure-fire method for looking forward to Mondays. -- NAPRA Review, May-June 1999

The idea isn't to abandon your job or business and live the life of a pauper. Rather, it's to shift some of your focus from material things to the people and things that really matter. Don't forget to count them as the real blessings of life--and treat them as such. -- Black Enterprise, December 1999

There's one essential piece of advice you won't find in No More Blue Mondays: Don't leave this book unattended. Maybe it's the appealing cover, maybe it's the evocative title. Whatever the reason, every person who saw this book on my desk picked it up, and they were curiously reluctant to put it down. Blue Mondays is a quick but absorbing read. For motivated readers, its practical, can-do approach might well be the spark they need to make "blue Mondays" a thing of the past. -- Training Magazine, September 1999

Winner for Best Career Book for 2000, sponsored by Publisher's Marketing Association. -- Benjamin Franklin Book Award, 2000

You too can find a way to do what you love. This book can help. -- Office Professional, January 2000

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Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Davies-Black Publishing; 1st edition (May 25, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0891061312
• ISBN-13: 978-0891061311
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,222,265 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't Just Keep Analyzing Yourself-Get Moving Forward, December 23, 1999

By	"ljbaden" (Highland Park, IL, USA) - See all my reviews

No More Blue Mondays helped me get out of the rut of unproductive, self-examination and moved me to begin researching what I really wanted to do with my work life. This book very practically and very specifically guided me from frustration, feeling 'too old' or 'not qualified' to real empowerment in choosing my new direction. Sheerer very pointedly tells you to 'get over it' when feelings of self-pity become obstacles to your appreciation of your own talents and possibilites. Action plans get you moving and involved in discovering the next career step way before the process of applying for specific positions even begins. This book really helped me to know my own heart which moved me to a career path that I have always wanted. No More Blue Mondays and no more switching jobs every three years out of dissatisfaction.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Read it and watch blue change to yellow., August 14, 1999

By A Customer

Would recommend the investment of fourteen bucks (Amazon) or seventeen (elsewhere) to ensure Mondays become YOUR favorite day of the week. The risk/reward equation is pretty sweet. Are you looking for advice on managing your career, er, I mean, life? Ms. Sheerer puts it to ya. This book probes to spark introspection and generate fresh thinking around your work. Ideas that you might never have considered, but that could completely change your life. The book isn't entirely about job/career change. It also focuses on being happy and managing yourself where you are. Very practical. Not just another self-helper. It's obvious the author has consulted for a long time. The book has lots of stories about clients' successes --good inspiration and motivation for change. Would recommend this book for all ages--high school through retirees, because anyone who is alive should have a mission to pursue. "No More Blue Mondays" is an excellent field guide to recognizing the signposts along the trail of your worklife. And believe me, these are signs you might very likely pass right by. I would not have been able to fully discover and pursue my own wild, exciting path without the ever gentle probings (okay, maybe more like sharp sticks in the side) of this book. Read it. Be thrilled at work.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Real-Life Examples that Really Enliven a Career., June 28, 2000

By	Jack Chapman (Wilmette, IL United States) - See all my reviews

I've been a career consultant since 1979, and this book is fresh! Most of the career books I've seen are filled with theory and instructions, but show little proof that it works. Here, finally, is a book that is not only right on the money, but it's believable. What I mean is that Robin's book is full of real-life examples; person after person, example after example, story after story. You get it: her "four keys" are not dreamt up in some ivory tower -- they are practical, applicable, powerful, field-tested tools to accomplish a successful career transition. They really work.

When I read other career books, my mind often says, "Well, that's nice in theory, but how do you do that in the real world?" Well, it's clear that Robin's "four keys" have played out, time and again, in real-life people. By aptly illustrating the theory, these stories activate a different part of my brain -- they get me motivated, thinking, "Hey, if so-and-so can do this, so can I!" It's not pie in the sky, happily ever after, career fairy tales. Robin's people are real. You feel their pain. You hear their discouragements, wrong turns, applaud their persistence. You follow their paths of doubt and courage, you see how human and fallable they are (just like you), and you also see how the "four keys" have guided their way out of the toughest career predicaments. And you believe those keys work for you, too!

If you're looking for a book that will have you cheering for others, and, then, soon, cheering for yourself, this is it.