"Homelessness is a perennial topic of concern at libraries. In fact, staff at public libraries interact with almost as many homeless individuals as staff at shelters do. In this book Dowd, executive director of a homeless shelter, spotlights best practices drawn from his own shelter's policies and training materials" --

A book of transformation and guidance that cheers the spirit and awakens a sense of personal responsibility. We use words every day to communicate, to express our feelings and thoughts, but we often forget how powerful they can be and how important it is to choose them with care if we wish to attract love, happiness and success. With honesty and warmth, Andrea Gardner shares her own ups and downs on her journey to changing her words and her world, and provides the inspiration and tools that you need to find your own true purpose and transform your life to match your dreams. From attracting prosperity and improving your relationships, to finding your true purpose and serving the world, Andrea touches on a wide variety of themes, and helps you laugh at your failings with love, and then pick yourself up and carry on to the wonderful life that you truly deserve. This is a light and entertaining read, but it contains a very powerful message that may very well change your world for good.

If you've ever said the wrong thing - or said the right thing the wrong way - you know how quickly your moth can make a big mess. But it doesn't have to be that way. After taking the assessment, you will learn a framework that will instantly improve your communication.

In our default state, our brains constantly get in the way of effective communication. They are lazy, angry, immature, and distracted. They can make a difficult conversation impossible. But Andrew Newberg, M.D., and Mark Waldman have discovered a powerful strategy called Compassionate Communication that allows two brains to work together as one. Using brainscans as well as data collected from workshops given to MBA students at Loyola Marymount University, and clinical data from both couples in therapy and organizations helping caregivers cope with patient suffering, Newberg and Waldman have seen that Compassionate Communication can reposition a difficult conversation to lead to a satisfying conclusion. Whether you are negotiating with your boss or your spouse, the brain works the same way and responds to the same cues. The truth, though, is that you don't have to understand how Compassionate Communication works. You just have to do it. Some of the simple and effective takeaways in this book include: • Make sure you are relaxed; yawning several times before (not during) the meeting will do the trick • Never speak for more than 20-30 seconds at a time. After that they other person's window of attention closes. • Use positive speech; you will need at least three positives to overcome the effect of every negative used • Speak slowly; pause between words. This is critical, but really hard to do. • Respond to the other person; do not shift the conversation. • Remember that the brain can only hold onto about four ideas at one time Highly effective across a wide range of settings, Compassionate Communication is an excellent tool for conflict resolution but also for simply getting your point across or delivering difficult news.

The author, a computer science professor diagnosed with terminal cancer, explores his life, the lessons that he has learned, how he has worked to achieve his childhood dreams, and the effect of his diagnosis on him and his family.

Buddhism has been catching the attention and interest of a lot of people lately. In a world where everything goes fast and is constantly evolving, this ancient philosophy can help to slow down and live a more present and fulfilling life. However, there is a problem: buddhism seems extremely complicated from the outside. Those who have never studied it think that it is impossible for the average joe to make his way through all the rules and laws of this philosophy. Truth be told, buddhism is not as complicated as contemporary gurus pretend it to be. As you go through this introduction, you will be able to look into the most relevant topics about buddhism: Where did buddhism start? Who is the buddha? Why is the pratice fundamental in buddhism? Why did the buddha find a need for this practice? What are the most common buddhist traditions? What is the difference between theravada, mahayana, and vajrayana buddhism? How is buddhism expressed across the globe? Buddhism puts light onto inequality and injustice. It gives a purpose to life, while providing a moral code and spiritual guidance to inner peace, joy and happiness. This book is aimed at people wanting to discover and learn about buddhism. It explores the basic principles and tenets of buddhism, buddhist teachings and buddhist rituals, as well as ways to incorporate buddhism into the everyday life.

ABOUT THE BOOK Real Change is Incremental is a broad-ranging collection of essays by a writer with broad-ranging interests, including magic, philosophy, poetry, comedy, and international development. An exploration of change and ideas through a series of reflections on knowledge, experience, and how we see the world, the book urges intellectual humility, being open to the ideas of others, and meeting the challenge of taking practical action together to change the world moment-by-moment, day-by-day, and generation-by-generation. Real Change Is Incremental is an eloquent plea for all of us citizens of the world to admit what we do not know and sincerely search for truth in what other people may not know that they know. EDITORIAL REVIEWS "Keep thinking, and keep writing . . . you have a deft and enlightened pen." --RICH MOCCIA, University of Guelph "Riveting, inspirational, and entertaining. You're a born storyteller." --NINA SPENCER, author of Getting Passion Out of Your Profession "David writes like a broken-hearted calculator." --JAY SANKEY, magician, creator, author "Here's hoping that more people will be infected by Peck's passion, drive, and purpose of changing the world for the better." --GRACE ATTARD, blogger, speaker, coach, facilitator ABOUT THE AUTHOR David Peck is a Canadian magician, academic, and writer who is active in the academic, entertainment, and international development sectors. Peck is the Founder of SoChange, a regular contributor to Rabble.ca, and a lecturer at Humber College in Hamilton, Ontario. He received his master's degree in philosophy from the University of Guelph in 2004. Peck currently manages SoChange, a social enterprise that works alongside members of the non-governmental community in areas such as fundraising, advocacy, and donor relations. In addition to working to raise the capacity of such organizations as Make Poverty History and Asian Outreach, SoChange has spearheaded such events as Why Everything Must Change, which brought together prominent social justice advocates in a conference setting, and the Mosquitoes Suck Tour, which collaborates with UNICEF and aligns with the Canadian initiative Spread the Net managed by Plan Canada to raise funds and awareness for malaria alleviation efforts in Africa.