Little Book of

There are few people who have not gone to a party, a business presentation, a meeting or social occasion feeling a lack of confidence or an increased amount of self-consciousness. Reading this book will help transform the former wallflower into a sunflower.

The Little Book of Confidence shows us how to challenge our preconceived notions about confidence. Through tips, quotes and practical exercises we can learn how to restore or improve positive faith in ourselves through heightened levels of competence, compassion and self-awareness.

But this is more than a book about selfconfidence. To be in someone's confidence is a complement of trust in a friendship or business relationship. To have confidence in a proposal, a plan or a person is a declaration of positivity. Confidence is also an expression of self-assurance that is transmitted through body language.

Throughout this book, different aspects of confidence are clearly presented in bite-sized nuggets of information and inspiration showing the reader how to get the best out of this often-elusive quality.

100 years ago most people lived in small communities where they knew and were known by almost everyone. Their circle of friends encompassed family, a few neighbours and people they worked with who they saw on an almost daily basis.

Friendships were conducted by letter, often with people who lived far away and were hardly ever seen in person. Nothing could be more different from our modern world. Nowadays people are often judged by the number of 'friends' they have on social media, and we're all in touch in an instant with people all over the globe. But as families contract and more people live on their own, and even within relationships we lead more independent lives; and though our circles of acquaintances may have widened extraordinarily, our real friends matter more than ever.

Friendships can bring laughter and joy, stimulation and support, comfort and solace, but like all relationships they need to be nurtured to grow and survive. Dispelling the notion that more is better, maybe it's time to re-assess what makes a true friend, and what can be done to improve the important friendships we have and be selective in choosing new ones. Like the others in this series this is a book to offer help and advice, packed with apposite quotes and practical tips. The nuances of friendship can be hard to grasp, to be a good friend is a skill to be learned, so this book itself can be a friend to turn to.

The Little Book of Quiet takes a broad look at the need for, and the benefits of, achieving more quiet in your life.

It takes a look at different personality types - those who are inherently more disposed to an introverted nature (people who are more comfortable in the inner world of thought and feeling) and those of an extroverted nature (people of action and clamour). It looks at some of the people in history who are heard despite their quiet voices and personalities, for example: Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, Bill Gates, J.K. Rowling. In so doing it will show introverts how to harness their many positive qualities, and show extroverts how to allow more quiet into their lives.

Now that everyone is constantly connected digitally 24/7, more emphasis is being placed on achieving higher emotional intelligence (EQ) to empathize and negotiate with others in a global economy - in other words enhancing 'people skills'. To be a good listener is considered a key people skill, and a basic requirement of being a good listener is to be quiet when the other person is talking.

The book shows how an understanding of left-brain and right-brain thinking can help achieve a better balance between the two and how to recognise these same attributes in others. It explores ways of achieving more quiet in our lives and less troubled minds, through tips and exercises and through mindfulness and understanding.

More and more of us are suffering from the stresses and strains of modern life. Mindfulness is an increasingly popular discipline that can not only help alleviate the symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression brought on by the pressures of our daily existence but can actually bring calm, joy and happiness into our lives.

In The Little Book of Mindfulness Tiddy Rowan, herself a practitioner for over 30 years, has gathered together a seminal collection of over 150 techniques, tips, exercises, advice and guided meditations that will enable people at every level to follow the breath, still the mind and relax the body, whilst generating and boosting a feeling of well-being and contentment that will permeate every aspect of everyday life.

The perfect little gift to bring lasting happiness and peace for friends and family.