Tom Rath
{{short description|American non-fiction writer}}
{{for|persons of a similar name|Thomas Rath (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox writer
| image = Tom Rath Bestselling Author.jpg
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| caption = Image from the Fully Charged film
| pseudonym =
| birth_name = Thomas Rath
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| birth_place = Lincoln, Nebraska, US
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| occupation = Author, Researcher, Speaker
| language = English
| nationality = American
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| education = M.S. Psychology (University of Pennsylvania) ; B.A. Psychology (University of Michigan)
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| genre = Non-Fiction
| subject = Business, Health, Wellbeing
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| notableworks = Strengths Based Leadership, StrengthsFinder 2.0, How Full Is Your Bucket?, Wellbeing
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| website = {{URL|www.tomrath.org}}
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Tom Rath (born 1975) is an American consultant on employee engagement, strengths, and well-being, and author. He is best known for his studies on strength-based leadership and well-being and for synthesizing research findings in a series of bestselling books.{{cite web|last=Flynn|first=Paul|title=Leadership: From Above And Below|url=http://www.astd.org/Publications/Magazines/TD/TD-Archive/2009/01/Leadership-from-Above-and-Below|work=T+D Magazine|publisher=ASTD|access-date=10 April 2013}}{{cite news|last=Wolgemuth|first=Liz|title=How Your Boss Can Ruin Your Health|url=http://money.usnews.com/money/careers/articles/2010/07/23/how-your-boss-can-ruin-your-health|access-date=10 April 2013|newspaper=U.S. News & World Report|date=July 23, 2010}} His books have sold more than 5 million copies and have been translated into sixteen languages.{{cite news|last=Poinier|first=Jake|title=Leverage From Your Core|url=http://www.nsaspeaker-magazine.org/nsaspeaker/201103?pg=12&search_term=leverage%20from%20your%20core&doc_id=-1&search_term=leverage%20from%20your%20core#pg1|access-date=11 April 2013|newspaper=Speaker|date=March 2011}}
Biography
Rath grew up in Lincoln, Nebraska.{{Cite book |last=Rath |first=Tom |author-link=Tom Rath |title=It’s Not About You: A Brief Guide To A Meaningful Life |date=December 26, 2019 |publisher=Amazon Original Stories |publication-date= |type=Audiobook |asin=B07YXSLVX7}} He holds a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Michigan, and an M.S. in Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania.{{cite web|last=Brotherton|first=Phaedra|title=Tom Rath|url=http://www.astd.org/Publications/Magazines/TD/TD-Archive/2012/10/Long-View-Tom-Rath|work=T+D Magazine|publisher=ASTD|access-date=12 April 2013}}
After his studies, Rath started working at Gallup, Inc., where he participates as a senior scientist, consultant, and advisor. He served as vice chairman of the VHL cancer research organization and is a regular guest lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania.
Work
= Writing career =
Rath’s first book, How Full Is Your Bucket?, coauthored with his grandfather, Donald O. Clifton, during his final year of life, became a New York Times bestseller in 2004. The book aims to teach children the value of "filling your bucket" and that people should also value every moment.{{Cite book |last1=Reckmeyer |first1=Mary |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NFPlDwAAQBAJ |title=How Full Is Your Bucket? For Kids |last2=Rath |first2=Tom |date=2020-06-16 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1-59562-240-2 |language=en}}
Strengths Based Leadership (2009), co-authored with Barry Conchie,{{Cite journal|last=Kaifi|first=Belal|date=January 2010|title=Strengths Based Leadership|journal=Journal of Applied Management and Entrepreneurship|volume=15|pages=139–141|via=ABI/INFORM}} is based on Rath’s and Gallup's research on leadership and on what followers expect from their leaders (trust, compassion, stability, hope).
Wellbeing: The Five Essential Elements (2010), a New York Times bestseller, coauthored with Jim Harter, is based on Gallup’s research on wellbeing. The book lists five elements of well-being: career well-being, social well-being, financial well-being, community well-being, and physical well-being.{{cite news|last=WSJ|title=Best-Selling Books|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703339304575240171602784944?mod=WSJ_article_RecentColumns|access-date=10 April 2013|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|date=May 14, 2010}}{{cite web|last=La Fon|first=Holly|title=Live Well|url=http://www.success.com/articles/1162-live-well|work=Success|publisher=Success|access-date=10 April 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130420231209/http://www.success.com/articles/1162-live-well|archive-date=20 April 2013}}
Rath’s most well-known book, StrengthsFinder 2.0 (2007), a #1 Wall Street Journal bestseller, was listed as the top worldwide business bestseller by The Economist in 2011.{{cite news|last=The Economist|title=Worldwide business bestsellers|url=http://www.economist.com/node/18894937|access-date=10 April 2013|newspaper=The Economist|date=June 30, 2011}} It suggests that employees and employers should develop their unique skills rather than spend time improving their weaknesses.{{Cite web |title=SuperSummary |url=https://www.supersummary.com/strengthsfinder-2-0/summary/ |access-date=2022-07-13 |website=SuperSummary |language=en}}
= ''Eat Move Sleep'' =
At the age of 16, Rath was diagnosed with VHL disease, a rare genetic disorder that causes cancer cells to appear in various parts of the body. Since the time of the diagnosis, Rath has been researching and experimenting with various ways of slowing down the growth of tumors in his kidneys, adrenal glands, pancreas, and spine.{{cite news|last=Kashino|first=Marisa|title=Finding Strength: Researcher Tom Rath's Next Project May Be His Most Important Yet|url=http://www.washingtonian.com/articles/people/finding-strength-researcher-tom-rath/|access-date=10 June 2013|newspaper=Washingtonian|date=May 2, 2013}}
In 2012, he took a sabbatical from his full-time position in Gallup to focus on writing a new book, titled Eat Move Sleep: How Small Choices Lead to Big Changes which became a New York Times bestseller{{cite news|last=New York Times|title=Best Sellers|url=https://www.nytimes.com/best-sellers-books/2013-10-27/advice-how-to-and-miscellaneous/list.html|access-date=28 January 2014|newspaper=New York Times|date=27 October 2013}} upon its publication in October 2013. Eat Move Sleep was also recognized as one of the best nonfiction books of 2013 by Apple iTunes. It describes the impact of eating, moving, and sleeping on health and everyday energy and offers practical ideas on how to make better health choices. The book emphasizes the interrelatedness of eating, moving, and sleeping and encourages focusing on all three in any health improvement program.
Publications, a selection
- 2004 How Full Is Your Bucket? Positive Strategies for Work and Life, {{ISBN|978-1-59562-003-3}}
- 2006 Vital Friends: The People You Can't Afford to Live Without, {{ISBN|978-1-59562-007-1}}
- 2007 How Full Is Your Bucket? Positive Strategies for Work and Life. Educator's Edition, {{ISBN|978-1-59562-001-9}}
- 2007 StrengthsFinder 2.0, {{ISBN|978-1-59562-015-6}}
- 2009 How Full Is Your Bucket? For Kids, {{ISBN|978-1-59562-027-9}}
- 2009 Strengths Based Leadership: Great Leaders, Teams, and Why People Follow, {{ISBN|978-1-59562-025-5}}
- 2010 Wellbeing: The Five Essential Elements, {{ISBN|978-1-59562-040-8}}
- 2013 Eat Move Sleep: How Small Choices Lead to Big Changes, {{ISBN|978-1-939714-00-8}}
- 2020 Life's Great Question: Discover How You Contribute to the World, {{ISBN|978-1939714176}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Wikiquote}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rath, Tom}}
Category:University of Michigan College of Literature, Science, and the Arts alumni
Category:University of Pennsylvania alumni