Don’t Pick Up the Dog Hairs: Lessons for Life and Leadership

In this savvy debut, Dwinnells, a pediatrician and CEO of an Ohio health center, explains what not to do (rather than what to do) in one’s work and career life. His guiding principles are summed up in his FAME strategy—failure, adversity, mistakes, and enemies—which posits that nothing truly innovative can be accomplished in a comfort zone. Instead, Dwinnells advises, one should recognize failures, embrace and accept them, learn from them, be optimistic, and take action. Refreshingly, his program applies outside the workplace, as well, and readers are encouraged to let go of the pressure of saying “yes” to everything, and to stop small problems from growing by confronting them early. Most of all, Dwinnells notes, remember that while kindness is a two-way street, one should not allow niceness to become naivete. The author caps each chapter with a “food for thought” summation of the salient points in each lesson. The common sense on offer here is nothing short of refreshing. (Sept.)