The Jim Root Book Club

Jim Root, the man who kicked off the lively discussion about whether therapists should have "the heart of a servant," was in New York City last week to talk to journalists about The Spa at Sea Island, a historic sea-side resort in Georgia with a 65,000 square-foot spa. Jim is director of spa operations and chairman of the International Spa Association, and every time he does one of these events he likes to give out a book that has inspired him. This time it was "First You Have To Row A Little Boat." (Buy Direct.) It's a wonderful, beautifully written book about what the author, Richard Bode, learned about life by learning to sail.

The title is about his first lesson -- that before you can do the more glamorous work of sailing you have to learn how to handle a little dinghy. He learns what to do when the world becomes suddenly cloaked in fog, how to distinguish a real from an apparent danger, and the risks of putting too much faith in a fair wind. I invite you to join "Jim Root's Book Club" -- get the book, read it, and come back here and share your thoughts.