Apologies to all our other authors, but no other ASTD Press author is quite as hip as Lisa Haneberg. Now, here's a lady who tours country roads on her purple motorcycle Hazel; writes creative nonfiction essays about science, nature, traveling, and motorcycles; writes the popular blog Management Craft; and has a thriving organization development practice called MPI Consulting.

Moreover, she is smart, has a great sense of humor, and plays well with others-all of which comes across loud and clear in her newest book Coaching Up and Down the Generations.

This little gem of a book has two main themes: providing insight into and advice for effective coaching and understanding the generational differences that affect coaching conversations. She paints portraits of four generations that are in the workplace today-the Traditionalists (born 1900-1945), the Baby Boomers (born 1946-64), Generation X (born 1965-80), and the Millennials (born 1981-99)-enabling you to understand other peoples' perspectives. Here's just a small sample of one of those portraits that describes my generation (I have blanked out the generation name-can you guess which generation I belong to?):

Because they are media savvy and well educated, the members of \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ might seem to have advantage that would translate into personal happiness and fulfillment. Yet many of the \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ who shared their experiences with me described a sense of alienation and skepticism. \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ are, after all, a small generation squeezed between much larger ones on either side-a "baby bust." Although they are now entering their peak earning and spending years, many suffer from economic anxiety about their own and their children's futures. Some worry that they will be the first generation in American history to be significantly less well off than the one before.

What Haneberg's book boils down to is getting where another person is coming from and learning how to help him or her become more effective, more productive, and get more out of their work. Another key point she makes is that coaching doesn't just go one way; each generation has valuable insights and knowledge to impart and to be effective as a coach, you have to be open to being coached yourself. Her well-written, entertaining, and insightful book helps you to do all that.

To get a free sample chapter and have a taste of Haneberg's smart and funny writing style, click here.

For more books by Lisa Haneberg, click here.