The Power of the Other: The Startling Effect Other People Have on You, from the Boardroom to the Bedroom and Beyond—and What to Do About It

According to this well-intentioned but undernourished self-help manual from Cloud, a clinical psychologist and prolific author (Never Go Back), “The right kind of relationships wire us for resilience and success.” He believes he has cracked the code of how some people are able to surpass limits and in the process become better, more fulfilled versions of themselves. Rather than acting as if only our own performance mattered, he writes, we need to accept the fact that others affect what we do. This leads to his theory of self-help through strongly connected relationships: finding them, forming them, nurturing them. Those relationships will formulate the basis for high performance, he writes, and it’s essential to understand their power. Cloud walks readers through the “four corners” of connection, offering advice on how to achieve genuine connections. The emphasis on developing toughness, drive, and commitment is worthwhile, but the slim, repetitive content offers more pompom-waving than advice. Agent: Shannon Marven, Dupree/Miller & Associates. (May)