Each quarter I post a review of a leadership/motivational book I recommend to colleagues and friends. Some may be old favorites, others are hot off the press. I am always open to suggestions for books to review. If you have a favorite you'd like to share with others, please contact me.

Deep, Deeper, Deeper Still
Developed and Compiled by Jerilyn Willin and Wendy M. Warden

Yes, I'm reviewing a book for which I am one of two authors. Next edition of A Coach's (re)View I will return to "tooting someone else's horn" (a quote from my late mother).

I'm excited to say we are finding an audience and that D3 (next book will have a shorter title) is being used as we hoped. What is surprising (and so cool) is the diverse audience the book is speaking to. One of the first people to purchase a copy was a 25-year-old fire fighter. Twenty-somethings and seniors were not a demographic we expected, yet there they are!

Why is Deep, Deeper, Deeper Still unique among journals? Once we had the idea, we did our research. We found no other journals in the stores we scoured like our vision. Journals with photography: yes. Journals with quotes: yes. We found no journal that prompted the person journaling to go below the quote. To go deeper. How did the quote relate to their lives and experiences? What did they think the person quoted meant? (For example, what did Louise Dobbs mean when she told her granddaughter, "Never marry a bachelor?") How might a quote relate (especially in the case of ancient quotes) to a persons life today?

The quotes in Deep, Deeper, Deeper Still are from a variety of times and places. There are quotes from famous folk as well as from people whose lives have been influenced and shaped by sayings handed down from generation to generation in their families. The youngest person quoted is a six-year-old from Virginia ("Feelings aren't bad, Daddy. It's what you do with them." – Michaela Ray) Wisdom comes at every age.

While pulled from a variety of places, people, ages, and times, the quotes in Deep, Deeper, Deeper Still can be categorized into four themes: career/work, personal growth, relationships, and spirituality. They are presented in random order in the journal. So random in fact that Wendy and I spread them over a table and let the universe guide our hands in deciding the order in which they would appear in the book.

How can Deep, Deeper, Deeper Still be used? We had our ideas and since publication readers have emailed! For some it is a morning meditation, they open the book at random and think about how the quote and questions might relate to and shape their actions that day. Others use it in a similar way but at the end of the day. They reflect on how the quote they open to before bed connects to what they have experienced that day. Others have said they keep it in the car and journal a quote or question while waiting for the kids to get out of school.

Wendy and I also had an idea for book clubs. Instead of reading an entire book during a month, members would journal the one or two quotes that resonated with them and then share their thoughts and the quotes with the other members at the next meeting. This format can also be used by a variety of support groups. We would love to hear from folks who have used Deep, Deeper, Deeper Still this way.

Deep, Deeper, Deeper Still is a welcoming experience for people new to journaling. As a writer, I know the blank page can be intimidating. For those wanting to journal but unsure of how to start Deep, Deeper, Deeper Still quotes with corresponding questions can give the person the gentle nudge they need to peek inside themselves.

At this point in a typical review I would say why I like the book being reviewed. Seems unseemly here. What I will do is urge folks to go to amazon.com and read the reviews so far. They are more unbiased than the thoughts of one of the authors.

lf you have purchased and are using Deep, Deeper, Deeper Still, Wendy and I would love to hear from you, either by email or via a review on Amazon. Thank you for your support and happy journaling.

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