Drop In
Lead with Deeper Presence and Courage
This book is aimed at business professionals seeking to add some balance and mindfulness to their busy lives.
Drop In: Lead with Deeper Presence and Courage by Sara Harvey Yao is mindfulness meets business self-help with a dash of DIY thrown in. The author brings her business coaching career to bear as she argues that everyone could benefit from “dropping in” or being more mindfully present.
Drop In offers insight into the challenges of being present in today’s world, techniques for how to build presence into people’s lives, and inspirational vignettes for people to connect with. The writing is clear without business-jargon clutter.
The work is built on a somewhat implied foundation of spiritual ideas, which could be enhanced with further references and sourcing material. The book is divided into two sections. The first offers a brain-science explanation for why people end up on “autopilot,” and the second offers suggestions for how to “drop in” and become more present.
The examples the book uses are somewhat generic, with people electing to skip meetings, turning off their cell phones, and deciding to delegate more. For example, the author describes one tech worker who decides to leave his various devices back in his office when attending a meeting. He discovers that he was missing a lot not being “dropped in.” Most of the anecdotes in the book have this same sort of everyman or everywoman quality about them, which makes them approachable, and this is where the book most shines.
Where some business books offer examples of business leaders drawn from the headlines and history books, Drop In offers people going to meetings, struggling with balancing work and home, and dealing with typical problems life brings. There are no Bill Gates types here, but plenty of Joes in the next cube.
The book also offers a good introduction to a number of useful techniques and ideas, including meditation, listening, saying no, and gratitude. There are deeper titles to be found on each of these topics, but Drop In aims to function more like a pair of glasses that helps to get things in focus.
The book is well designed and professional, with a clear table of contents, easy-to-follow bullet point ideas, and a consistent approach to headings and subheadings. It would be easy for business groups to use this book as a foundation for a weekend retreat or short conference.
Drop In is aimed at business professionals seeking to add some balance and mindfulness to their busy lives. It offers a great introduction for people who might want to consider their lives beyond the boardroom or the meeting, particularly in regards to becoming more mindful and present.
Reviewed by
Jeremiah Rood
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book and paid a small fee to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. Foreword Reviews and Clarion Reviews make no guarantee that the publisher will receive a positive review. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
