Why am I passionate about this?

Although I’ve worked in many professions and industries, a common theme in all my jobs is that I love helping people succeed in their careers. I’ve started or sponsored employee networks that focused on professional development, I’m a certified coach that focuses on propelling a client’s career, and I am a conference keynote speaker on the topics of careers and leadership. Everyone deserves to have a great career that makes them want to jump out of bed on Monday morning and that provides a good living and lifestyle. I love to make that happen!


I wrote

The Squiggly Line Career: How Changing Professions Can Advance a Career in Unexpected Ways

By Angela Champ,

Book cover of The Squiggly Line Career: How Changing Professions Can Advance a Career in Unexpected Ways

What is my book about?

When we are children, people ask us what we want to be when we grow up. The question elicits all…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else

Angela Champ Why did I love this book?

You hear the word “talent” used in organizations all the time, with the idea that great workers are talented in ways that others lack. 

But is that true? Are all good workers “talented?” 

In this book, Geoff Colvin dispels the idea that specific natural talents make great performers at work and instead shows us how the secrets and principles of extraordinary performance that can be used to excel in your career.  

By Geoff Colvin,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Talent Is Overrated as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

“Excellent.”—The Wall Street Journal

Since its publication ten years ago, businesspeople, investors, doctors, parents, students, athletes, and musicians at every level have adopted the maxims of Talent Is Overrated to get better at what they’re passionate about. Now this classic has been updated and revised with new research and takeaways to help anyone achieve even greater performance.
 
Why are certain people so incredibly great at what they do? Most of us think we know the answer—but we’re almost always wrong. That’s important, because if we’re wrong on this crucial question, then we have zero chance of getting significantly better at…


Book cover of Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World

Angela Champ Why did I love this book?

I love this book for its idea and evidence that generalists, and not specialists, are often the most successful.

With examples of how those who cross domains are the most impactful inventors, it gives great hope for those broad thinkers who explore diverse experiences and careers to develop skills. It’s validation for those who haven’t quite figured out what they want to be when they grow up, with the idea that “frequent quitters end up with the most fulfilling careers.” 

A must-read for job seekers and for human resources professionals.

By David Epstein,

Why should I read it?

8 authors picked Range as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'Fascinating . . . If you're a generalist who has ever felt overshadowed by your specialist colleagues, this book is for you' - Bill Gates

The instant Sunday Times Top Ten and New York Times bestseller
Shortlisted for the Financial Times/McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award
A Financial Times Essential Reads

A powerful argument for how to succeed in any field: develop broad interests and skills while everyone around you is rushing to specialize.

From the '10,000 hours rule' to the power of Tiger parenting, we have been taught that success in any field requires early specialization and many…


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Book cover of Trial, Error, and Success: 10 Insights into Realistic Knowledge, Thinking, and Emotional Intelligence

Trial, Error, and Success By Sima Dimitrijev, PhD, Maryann Karinch,

Everything in nature evolves by trial, error, and success—from fundamental physics, through evolution in biology, to how people learn, think, and decide.

This book presents a way of thinking and realistic knowledge that our formal education shuns. Stepping beyond this ignorance, the book shows how to deal with and even…

Book cover of So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love

Angela Champ Why did I love this book?

I bet you’ve heard the advice, “Follow your passion” or “Do what you love and the money will follow.” 

But many of us have no idea what our passion is, or our passion may be something that doesn’t earn a living. Cal Newport lays out a case that passion comes after you put in the hard work to become excellent at something valuable, not before. 

In other words, passion won’t make you great, but becoming great at something will bring on the passion, and what you do for a living isn’t as important as how you do it. 

This book changed my perspective on how I think about my career and my love for my work, even if it’s not my “dream job.”

By Cal Newport,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked So Good They Can't Ignore You as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Cal Newport's clearly-written manifesto flies in the face of conventional wisdom by suggesting that it should be a person's talent and skill -- and not necessarily their passion -- that determines their career path. Newport, who graduated from Dartmouth College (Phi Beta Kappa) and recently earned a PhD. from MIT, contends that trying to find what drives us, instead of focusing on areas in which we naturally excel, is ultimately harmful and frustrating to job seekers. The title is a direct quote from comedian Steve Martin who, when once asked why he was successful in his career, immediately replied: "Be…


Book cover of What Got You Here Won't Get You There: How Successful People Become Even More Successful

Angela Champ Why did I love this book?

The thing about successful people is that they believe they should just keep doing what they’ve been doing, but doing the same thing can actually hold you back in your career. 

Marshall Goldsmith shows you the twenty (bad) habits that successful people have that hold them back, and offers advice on how to overcome these in order to continue to succeed. If you’re successful in your career and want to keep going, this book is a must-read!

By Marshall Goldsmith, Mark Reiter,

Why should I read it?

7 authors picked What Got You Here Won't Get You There as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Your hard work is paying off. You are doing well in your field. But there is something standing between you and the next level of achievement. That something may just be one of your own annoying habits.Perhaps one small flaw - a behaviour you barely even recognise - is the only thing that's keeping you from where you want to be. It may be that the very characteristic that you believe got you where you are - like the drive to win at all costs - is what's holding you back. As this book explains, people often do well in…


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Book cover of Coma and Near-Death Experience: The Beautiful, Disturbing, and Dangerous World of the Unconscious

Coma and Near-Death Experience By Alan Pearce, Beverley Pearce,

What happens when a person is placed into a medically-induced coma?

The brain might be flatlining, but the mind is far from inactive: experiencing alternate lives rich in every detail that spans decades, visiting realms of stunning and majestic beauty, or plummeting to the very depths of Hell while defying…

Book cover of The High Potential's Advantage: Get Noticed, Impress Your Bosses, and Become a Top Leader

Angela Champ Why did I love this book?

If you’re early- or mid-career and seeking to climb the ladder, this book offers great advice on how to advance and how to position yourself as high potential within your organization. 

The authors look at five key differentiators, which they call the “X factors,” that set people apart from average performers.

I’ve worked in large and small companies throughout my career and can attest that these “X factors” really are what we look for when we are deciding who is a key player within our organization.

By Jay Conger, Allan Church,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The High Potential's Advantage as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Do You Know What It Takes to Be a High Potential in Your Organization?

Being seen as a high-potential leader is essential to getting promoted and reaching your organization's upper echelons, but most companies keep their top-talent list a closely guarded secret. And the assessment process they use to decide who is and isn't a future leader is an even greater mystery.

The High Potential's Advantage takes you behind the scenes and shows how you can get on, and stay on, your company's fast track. Leadership development experts Jay Conger and Allan Church draw upon decades of research and experience--designing…


Explore my book 😀

The Squiggly Line Career: How Changing Professions Can Advance a Career in Unexpected Ways

By Angela Champ,

Book cover of The Squiggly Line Career: How Changing Professions Can Advance a Career in Unexpected Ways

What is my book about?

When we are children, people ask us what we want to be when we grow up. The question elicits all sorts of dreams as a kid—"I want to be a ballerina" or "a firefighter" or "an astronaut." It becomes daunting as we grow up and start feeling pressured to make a choice that could affect the rest of our lives. What if we're not meant to follow just one path but, rather, pursue a squiggly line career that moves us across professions and industries? Filled with examples of real life squiggly line careers and interactive exercises, Angela Champ challenges you to think beyond your job title and the traditional career path, introducing you to ideas such as:
• What is a squiggly line career
• How to embrace a squiggly line career
• How to leverage your squiggly line career
• How to stay squiggly throughout your career

It also provides tips and guidance for recruiters, human resource professionals and hiring managers, and makes the case for:
• How to attract a squiggly line career candidate
• How to overcome resistance to hiring a squiggly line career candidate
• How to tell the difference between a squiggly line careerist and someone who just can't hold down a job

A must-read for job seekers looking for their next squiggly step and for recruiters tasked with finding the perfect candidate for their roles, this book will change the way you think about careers and recruitment.

Book cover of Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else
Book cover of Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World
Book cover of So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love

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