Success Is a Side Effect: Leadership, Relationships, and Selective Amnesia

High-energy positivity comes right off the page in this guide, which is intended to help women of all ages with their personal and professional lives. Anderson (When a Sistah’s Fed Up) provides 10 strategies, encouraging readers to self-assess two times a year “where you are experiencing challenges.” These aren’t the usual strategies; they range from the girl-power admonition “Be fierce” to the tamer “Eat lunch with strangers” and a warning to “Be leery” of non-readers. While Anderson throws a number of self-help phrases out there—“Fake it ’til you make it” and “Don’t make excuses; make changes”—they don’t sound shopworn coming from her. Anderson doesn’t just say, for example, “Take the scenic way home”; she tells you why. She employs a wide range of role models, from Angelina Jolie to Stephen R. Covey, the author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, and covers varied topics like sex (“Don’t expect it to happen like magic. Make a plan and take action”) and personal finance. Even her intimate disclosures about battling cancer can’t dampen the book’s contagiously enthusiastic tone. This is a book for anybody looking for an upbeat approach to a happier life.[em] (BookLife) [/em]