Customer Reviews

25 hard-earned lessons in the art of getting things done - By: Helen Hancox, 05 Mar 2008
In this book Steve Chalke steers a path away from the controversy of his last book & into fairly safe territory - that of the difficultiesin running a church or other Christian projectin the 21st century. The book features 25 principles that Steve has learnedin his years as a pastor & leader of organisations including Oasis, offeredin short chunks, usually 3-4 pages each. The principles include things such as "vision & frustration are the same thing" & "success is three days between two crises" & are illustrated by eventsin Steve's life from which he has learned.

This was a surprisingly introspective book & showed very clearly the difficulties of living a lifein the spotlight with the criticism & hurtful comments that seem to go hand-in-hand with sticking one's head above the parapet. I had wondered if this would be another American-style self help book but it wasn't that, it read rather more like reflective memoirs of the challengesin running a ministryin today's world. Many of Steve's insights were very helpful, he quotes other writers & notable people such as Martin Luther King, Winston Churchill & more & the book is easy to read with Steve's engaging & confiding style to the fore. I would have appreciated perhaps some more depth & exploration of the principles he offers but it was a helpful & enjoyable book.