"Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body."
Sir Richard Steele 1672-1729

As a coach, I never pretend to have all the wisdom my clients need. Sometimes the best thing I can do for them is to recommend that they read a particular book. One once told me that my suggestion of a specific book was worth my entire six-month coaching fee to her! Obviously, different clients may need different books, but there are some titles that I find myself recommending time after time.

On this page you will find an assortment of titles that, based either on my own reading or on input from others, I believe will be useful and/or inspiring for you. Should you wish to know more about any of the books, each item is followed by a direct link toAmazon.com so that you can read reviews and gather other information on that book. There are also search boxes (top left of this page and at the bottom) that enables you to search for any other title or author of interest to you.

(In the interests of integrity and full disclosure, yes, as an Amazon.com Affiliate I do get a small "cut" from the books and other items that you might buy when accessing Amazon.com through my site. However, this does not in any way affect the price charged to you - if I don't get it, Amazon.com does!)

I do not claim to have read every one of these books. In some cases the reviews are those shown at the Amazon.com website - these reviews are used by many newsletters. However, where I have not yet read a book I include it only if the reviews have been universally favorable.

(I am well aware that the sacred books of the many paths of religious thought are not included. This is not because I do not consider them helpful, but because I believe that if you are inclined to read those that are relevant to your own path, you will have done so. If you have not, I urge you to take the time - it will be well worth it.)

Book topics that I have included in this pages are:

Personal development and Career Success Go

Inspiration and Spirituality Go

Financial success Go

Sales & marketing for small (and not so small) businesses Go

Something different: My own book "To Stretch a Plank," written when my interests were different from today, on serious research into "mind over matter" otherwise known as psychokinesis. It starts in the research lab and ends with a philosophy of life that may interest you. Go

To search the Amazon.com catalog for any other title or author, please use the box below. You may use your browser controls to return to this site.

Personal development & Career Success:

Maximum Success : Changing the 12 Behavior Patterns That Keep You from Getting Ahead by James Waldroop and Timothy Butler. Maximum Success is a compelling exploration of the behavior patterns that cause people to undermine their careers-as well as specific advice on how to overcome them. Have you ever wondered why some people seem to rise effortlessly to the top, while others are stuck in the same job year after year? Have you ever felt you are falling short of your career potential? Have you wondered if some of the things you do-or don't do-at work might be hamstringing your ambitions? In Maximum Success, James Waldroop and Timothy Butler, directors of MBA career development at the Harvard Business School, identify the twelve habits that over and over again-whether you are a retail clerk or a partner in a law firm, whether you work in technology or in a factory-are almost guaranteed to hold you back. For more information: Go

Slowing down to the Speed of Life by Richard Carlson and Joseph Bailey. This is still the book I recommend most frequently to clients and colleagues! The authors' basic premise is that most stress is caused not by events, but by our ever-iterating patterns of thoughts about events. In clear, easy-reading style, with many examples, Carlson and Bailey show us how to stop these patterns. For more information: Go

Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen. I tend to have more time to listen to tapes than to read. (I'm probably one of the few people around who keeps a tape-player in the bathroom.) Therefore, much of my self-improvement material comes in the form of tapes. Nonetheless, I rarely play a tape, or a set of tapes, more than once. David Allen's set of 16 tapes is the exception. So far I've played them three times, and I'm still learning from them. Not for nothing has Allen been dubbed "the personal productivity guru" by Fast Company Magazine. Now he has put his system into a second book and in it he presents his great strength - his system for managing, processing, and organizing both information and projects. If you are a book person rather than a tape person, or if you know someone who is constantly laboring to become more efficient in their handling of paperwork and actions, this may well be the book that solves the problem... IF, of course, the system is followed once the book has been read. For more information: Go

Taming Your Gremlin : A Guide to Enjoying Yourself by Richard David Carson, illustrated by Novie Rogers. Through the powerful metaphor of the gremlin, presented imaginatively in writing and in artwork by Novie Rogers, the author demonstrates ways to identify and banish the tenacious, self-defeating aspects of personality. A book used and heartily recommded by many personal coaches. For more information: Go

Unstoppable: 45 Powerful Stories of Perseverance and Triumph from People Just Like You by Cynthia Kersey. At first glance this may appear to be yet another book of brief cameos of achievers over adversity, whose stories cannot help but be an inspiration to anyone. However, in this case there is an important difference. Not only does the author give us the stories of how the 45 central characters overcame their difficulties to reach success, but she groups them by the chief characteristics that she believes were vital to those successes. THEN, for each of the seven characteristics, she provides a step by step Plan of Action to assist the reader in developing that characteristic. Unstoppable therefore provides not just the WHO, but also the WHAT and the HOW. For more information: Go

Simple Abundance by Sarah Ban Breathnach. A book of brief daily readings and thoughts written for women who are in the process of remaking themselves and their lives. A well-deserved best-seller over time, it is a transformational and inspirational book, despite being a little on the syrupy-sweet side. For years I referred to mine so regularly that I was very glad I had bought the hardback edition. I only wish there were an equivalent publication for men. For more information:
In hardback Go
In paperback Go

How to Organize Your Life & Get Rid of Clutter. How to Clear Your Home and Office of the Messy Buildups That Cramp Your Mind - And Crimp Your Productivity by A. B. Jackson (two cassette tapes). "Jackson instructs the clutter-impaired how to better organize their lives by teaching them to create files that are easy to use, and to ask two questions that decide the fate of every incoming piece of paper."
For more information about this AUDIOTAPE: Go

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens : The Ultimate Teenage Success Guide by Sean Covey. Flip open to any page and become instantly absorbed in real-life stories of teens who have overcome obstacles to succeed, and step-by-step guides to shifting paradigms, building equity in "relationship bank accounts," creating action plans, and much more. As a self-acknowledged guinea pig for many of his dad's theories, Sean Covey is a living example of someone who has taken each of the seven habits to heart: be proactive; begin with the end in mind; put first things first; think win-win; seek first to understand, then to be understood; synergize; and sharpen the saw. Covey's humorous and up-front style is just light enough to be acceptable to wary teenagers, and down-and-dirty enough to really make a difference. For more information: Go

Inspiration & Spirituality

Looking for God: A Seeker's Guide to Religious and Spiritual Groups of the World by Steven S. Sadleir. If you've ever had the feeling that you're looking for God in all the wrong places, here's a sourcebook that could help you narrow your search. Seeker and author Steven Sadleir spent 20 years accumulating all the information in this comprehensive guidebook to the world's spiritual teachings. His intentions were altruistic, hoping that seekers could start with wandering these pages rather than roaming the earth for 20 years in order to find their personal path to God. "The moment for self-discovery is at hand, for each page has something to offer you," he promises. "This very act of looking develops your soul's ability to see through your eyes and guide you in your search." It's hard to imagine a more unbiased view of global spirituality. Religions such as Taoism, Sikhism, Judaism, and Christianity are presented alongside write-ups on channeling, the Baha'i Faith, Alcoholics Anonymous, and the teachings of Ram Das and ancient druids. Although books could be (and have been) written about each of these numerous traditions, Sadleir condenses them into brief chapters, with each one providing a write-up on the history, belief systems, rituals, and holidays. Every chapter also includes a list of recommended readings and Web sites. Sadleir designed this guidebook so that it can be read from cover to cover, gaining a complete overview of the world's spiritual teachings. Or it can be used as a source of practical mysticism where readers simply open to the passages and paths that they feel inexplicably drawn into. For more information: Go

After the Ecstasy, the Laundry: How the Heart Grows Wise on the Spiritual Path by Jack Kornfield. "Enlightenment does exist," Jack Kornfield assures us. "Unbounded freedom and joy, oneness with the divine... these experiences are more common than you know, and not far away." But even after achieving such realization, we are faced with the day-to-day task of translating that freedom into our imperfect lives. We are faced with the laundry. The author's personal stories, vivid traditional tales, and the voices of many others who have traveled this path become our companions on the way. For more information: Go

The Artist's Way : A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity by Julia Cameron. Leads you through a comprehensive twelve-week program to recover your creativity from a variety of blocks, including limiting beliefs, fear, self-sabotage, jealousy, guilt, addictions, and other inhibiting forces, replacing them with artistic confidence and productivity.
For more information: Go

The Greatest Miracle in the World by Og Mandino. Definitely in the category of tried and true classics, this is a book I have long bought in bulk for gift-giving to friends and clients. It is brief, the intriguing story makes it almost impossible to put down, and it is one of the most inspiring books I have ever read. So valuable do I consider 'Miracle' to be that it will probably have a permanent place on this page. Buy it for yourself, for your friends, and, particularly, for anyone who needs encouragement. It's a keeper.
For more information: In hardback: Go
In paperback: Go

"What I so enjoy about working with you is how energized and motivated I feel after each session." (Client)

Financial success

How to Get Out of Debt, Stay Out of Debt and Live Prosperously by Jerrold Mundis. "Millions of consumers have become trapped in a spiral of debt, but there is hope. If you want to free yourself from the shackles of debt, this book is for you--it can help you 'get out of debt, stay out of debt, and live prosperously.' Jerrold Mundis writes in a friendly, engaging style, urging readers to stop the cycle of spending. Mundis knows what he's talking about--he, too, was once thousands of dollars in debt and didn't know where to turn. Anecdotes from Debtors Anonymous folks, plus multiple examples from the writer's own life and ledgers, make How to Get Out of Debt an encouraging read, not a condescending one. Once you start your program, you may want to periodically reread some chapters for inspiration--and fun." For more information: Go

The Science of getting Rich by Wallace Delois Wattles and Judith Powell. This classic was written in 1910 and still has eager discussion groups examining its principles and sharing how to put them into practice. The title may sound materialistic, but the content is truly spiritual. Probably the first of the genre, and still powerful!. For more information: Go

The Think and Grow Rich Action Pack by Napoleon Hill. If you've read other success-oriented programs, you'll recognize where many of them got their start when you read this material by one of the founding fathers of inspiration. The action pack guides you step by step on how to put everything the book has presented into action. For more information: Go

Rich Dad, Poor Dad : What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money That the Poor & Middle Class Do Not! by Robert T. Kiyosaki and Sharon L. Lechter. What many of us wish we had learned about how to handle money as early as Robert Kiyosaki did - but at least we can learn it now. A real attitude-changer! For more information: Go

Cashflow Quadrant by Robert T. Kiyosaki and Sharon L. Lechter. A follow-on to Rich Dad, Poor Dad (above). Some who already have read the first book find this one repetitious, but others find that repetition to be helpful as they turn advice into action. For more information: Go

Sales and marketing for small (and not so small) businesses

Marketing your Services by Anthony O. Putnam. Shows how to define specific markets, focus advertising efforts there profitably, and differentiate your business from others in the public eye. Also discusses how to price services, package your product, turn prospects into customers, and develop and use advertising. Says Putnam "This book is not about marketing, it is about your business as seen with marketers' eyes. If you read this book and take it seriously, it will transform the way you see your business... You will see what to do, and how to do it, to market your services effectively." For more information: Go

1001 Ways to Market Your Services : Even If You Hate to Sell by Rick Crandall.
Rick Crandall debunks marketing myths in this revolutionary new book, and shows businesspeople in all fields how to build relationships with customers to achieve success. This practical, easy-to-use guide offers hundreds of practical tips that will make an expert salesperson out of even the most reluctant marketer. For more information: Go

Something different

To Stretch a Plank: A Survey of Psychokinesis by Diana Robinson. Yes, there are other authors of the same name, but I wrote this one. Back in what now seems like another lifetime, when I was extremely involved in scientific research on psychic phenomena, publishers Nelson-Hall, Inc. approached me to write a book on the subject. "To Stretch a Plank" was the result. It was extremely well reviewed, and highly praised by most researchers in the field, but is now officially out of print. However, I have my own secret stash, and so copies are available for sale. Rather than try to describe it myself, I am quoting some of the reviews that appeared when the book was first published.

"... An excellent book as an introduction, highly readable.. and accurate in its description of the literature." Psi News, July 1981.

"... A bold and impressively successful attempt to bring to the general reader an understanding of research on psychokinesis." Choice, June 1981.

"... A well-documented survey of research... A valuable resource for the parapsychologically curious, intelligent layperson." Library Journal, February 15, 1981.

"... an admirable book... The author has a definite knack for selecting the most relevant and interesting material in each area and presenting it in a sprightly and readable fashion..." Fate, November 1981.

To obtain a copy of To Stretch a Plank (autographed if you so request) please send check or money order for US$17.00 (includes postage and handling) to Diana Robinson, 2604 Elmwood Avenue #230, Rochester, NY 14618. Be sure to include your full mailing address. It is important to note that this is the only book that can be ordered directly from Diana Robinson.

And now, a letter from the President of Amazon.com:

Amazon.com is pleased to have Personal Effectiveness Coach Diana Robinson, Ph.D. in the family of Amazon.com associates. We've agreed to ship books and provide customer service for orders we receive through special links on www.ChoiceCoach.com. Amazon.com associates list selected books in an editorial context that helps you choose the right books. We encourage you to visit www.ChoiceCoach.com often to see what new books they've selected for you. Thank you for shopping with an Amazon.com associate. Sincerely, Jeff Bezos President Amazon.com. P.S. We guarantee you the same high level of customer service you would receive at Amazon.com. If you have a question about an order you've placed, please don't hesitate to contact us.