Heart Value

With the encouraging tone and clarity of a good coach, Rooney offers highly practical, career-oriented guidance for people in a situation where they might not expect that practical guidance is possible. Heart Value aims squarely at those with "a voice deep inside you, tugging at your heart strings, reminding you that you want something and deserve something more." Drawing on her experience in the corporate world and some private matters, too, Rooney invites readers to identify that something that the heart values but currently lacks, to embrace the adventure of finding it, to make "resonant choices" while striding toward it, and to voice their value and "activate appreciation" at work and in life. Above all else, she encourages "Striders" to "realize our truth and groove in all that we do."

Rooney's system for "getting your stride on" is flexible but not vague. It's steeped in original terminology (the heart vibe; the "value vault" made up of all the experiences, good or bad, that make you you) and tools (the Feel-Choose-Act Amplifier, the Joy Frequency Grid) crafted to reveal what truly lights a reader up-and what steps to take to prioritize those findings in life. These coinages don't just reveal Rooney's acuity for branding. At the end of chapters, Rooney continually demonstrates how her simple, intuitive Feel-Choose-Act Amplifier offers a route to transforming a feeling or desire ("I felt frustrated that ...") into action steps ("I made a choice to ...") and results.

The many original anecdotes-from Rooney's own life, her coaching clients, and others-are relatable, relevant, and resonant, illustrating principles like "Schedule Joytime" and "Value Unique Over Same," and her encouraging tone ("You are constantly gaining value. With age, your expansion experiences and value add up.") feels steeped in wisdom rather than cloying. Still, what stands out most here are the shrewd tips, insights, and points for reflection that close each chapter, always connected to the essence of her message: appreciate your value and what you value.

Takeaway: A highly encouraging and practical guide to appreciating your value and your desires, especially in the workplace.

Great for fans of: Jen Sincero's You Are a Badass, Gretchen Rubin's The Confidence Project.