So What Comes Next?

Pacific Book Review

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"The tone of So What Comes Next? is friendly, avuncular, kind. The book begins with an informal discussion of self-awareness, particularly as it relates to planning for - you guessed it - what comes next. This is followed by a well written, highly accessible section on goals and action plans.

 

The reader is asked to characterize him or herself: Are you an introvert? Are you action-oriented? Are you a leader or follower? The exercise is neither glib nor arbitrary: one's responses are then entered into charts and action plans (available as Excel downloads to the reader) that yield working career and life strategies.

Which is super useful - and very cool! The discussion of how today's teens spend their time - broken down by gender - is particularly interesting. The remaining sections of the book on relationships, time management, and success behaviors, amplify and complement what has come before.

 

Equally important, the book may be a teen's first exposure to the literature of self-help and self-understanding. Topics including 'Happiness', 'Health' and 'Relationships' are highlighted in the quest to make the teenager a highly informed consumer in the catalog of life choices. The author's credibility and authority are further enhanced by his use of the second person - you -- throughout the book.
 

The information on personality, preferences, relationships and priorities is then factored into the 'Life Plan Workbook' which is the last chapter of the book. Voila! With a modest amount of self-reflection, two to three hours of reading time, and minimal computer skills, any teen will be gifted with a highly personalized map of themselves and of what to do next. Michael A. Deffina's guidebook provides teens with an eminently rational, common-sense approach to what lies ahead. The book is unique, appealing in its candor and brevity, and very well written."