Basic_Black_Cathie_Black

In the book Basic Black: The essential guide for getting ahead at work (and in life), Cathie Black pinpoints mistakes and opportunities. This book contributes a lot of insight and advice for young professionals, women, and recent college graduates. This essay will display some very meaningful information given by Cathie Black as well as the useful information that you can implement in everyday life. Cathie Black has a dynamic way of expressing challenges within the workplace. Cathie illustrates leadership as a mentor and focuses her book on her career that easily unfolds into inspiration. Basic Black is a guide written to give sound advice for finding a job, keeping it, and moving onto something bigger and better. Cathie analyzes her professional life from the moment she graduates college by telling anecdotes and life learned lessons. The main focus of her chapters is to provide the most essential elements to getting ahead in the work place (p. 2). She discusses the keys to success such as drive, power and passion (p. 2). In Basic Black there are some very essential tactics to getting ahead. Drive is not just moving closer to your goals but it is also being prepared and motivated, which Cathie states is just a basic level; Make like a boy scout: be prepared. (p. 15). It is always important to make sure that your work is correct; it would be a major downfall to submit incomplete or inaccurate information; check and double-check (then check again, if you’re still not sure) (p.17). Cathie makes a point that taking risks that are calculated is not crazy and many would agree (p.44). If you are taking risks that have been thoroughly thought the only risk that can hurt more is not trying even sooner. “Know the rules, so you know which ones to break (p. 55). Cathie analyzed whether or not she could pull USA Today out of the red. She faced a fear that a single person would not have wanted to ever endure. Understand that the best way to naturalize fear is by breaking it into manageable parts (p.110). If fear is dissected then you cannot fear something that is not whole. Cathie Black said best that the consequences of failure, just like the potential consequence of taking risk are almost never as terrible as they seem (p.110). Many professionals often get the feeling that they will not succeed or perform as expected. Basic Black and all of the information that this content provides pave a new outlook on claiming wants and career aspirations. Ms. Black advised to use fear as a launching pad, which can alleviate the burden of not taking risk (p.121). Cathie Black shared the importance of communication with potential employers. She listed some important elements of things and task needed for job-hunting, which to name a few are: Having a good Cover Letter that emphasizes your enthusiasm, facts, and confirmation of a point of contact. (p. 124) Having a well thought out Resume that is not overdone (p. 125). Making sure after each interview to follow-up. (p. 130). “Don’t personalize things that aren’t personal.” (p. 85), is a quote that can be interpreted as learning how to take constructive criticism. Power equals what you can and cannot control (p. 136). In the event you need to stand your grown, stand it. Cathie notes that time should not be wasted trying to control situations that are out of your hands. (p. 137). In other words when an individual has power or has a title that demands power, deal with it and your time will come. In conclusion, Cathie provided very informative information that can be used as a template to beginning a great career. She shared intimate details about her career that any one could appreciate. Cathie managed to utilize her experiences as a way to teach others the path to success. “Be who you are in whatever you do (p. 183) is a message that Cathie Black stands by and has demonstrated in her life and career. Works Cited: Black, C., (2008). Basic Black: the Essential Guide for Getting Ahead at Work. New York: Three Rivers Press.