Business Books

This was a pretty decent read -- we practice a lot of these at my workplace but I think what this book really shows is the attitude of an entrepreneur.

Ricardo Semler calls himself a maverick, but he's actually a visionary. Semler, now 49, was way ahead of the curve 25 years ago when he radically altered the structure and philosophy of his father's company, Semco. Long before most businesses acknowledged that employees were thinking, feeling human beings and not timecard-punching robots, Semler rebuilt the infrastructure at Semco, eliminating layers of bureaucracy and allowing employees to decide their own fates. They determined their own schedules, pay scales and dress codes. Semler drastically reduced paperwork; he restricted memos, for example, to a single page. He believed that empowered employees, freed of their corporate shackles, would be motivated, creative and productive. You may find some aspects of that approach unrealistic or totally impractical for your organization. You may even think Semler is crazy. At the very least though, getAbstract believes executives should give careful consideration to his approach. His innovations are still relevant, even a quarter of a century later.

Great book. Amazing story.
Lot's of good lessons to be learned here. I read it all the way through and enjoyed the writing style a great deal. A quick read with fascinating stories and good information.

I think this book gives In Search of Excellence a run for its money as the all time great. This book really promotes a different way of thinking about the workplace in a much more collaborative way. I can't wait to start his other book the Seven-Day Weekend.

I have been strugling about how to have an organization or a corporation that are at the same time efficient and humanistic/democratic. Although people normally receives these types of ideas with reserve, the feeling is that it is almost impossible (take out the "almost" if you wish).

After reading Maverick everything changes. We have heard histories before, for example, ancient Athenas, Robert Owen cooperative success in 19th Century England, Mahatmas Ghandi, and so forth. However, rarely a 20th Century corporation has gone so far as Semco, at least to the best of my knowledge.

If you are interested in "real" humanistic-democratic management, you must have this book in your reading list.

I bought this for my 4 year old and she absolutely loves it! It is really great for kids who have a million questions about how things work and it does a phenomenal job of explaining a typical process (e.g., building a house) from end to end (including laying sewage and water pipes underneath the ground). It gives the details that curious kids really want to know in a fun, darling way.

This delightful book for children which is enjoyable for parents to read as well wonderfully teaches us that we are all part of a family here to help each other with the gifts we have been given. For those with Faith, it is a happy way to show that we need each other, and to be grateful for each person, and appreciate what they do to make the world a better place; that each person is, as Pope Benedict said, "loved, willed and necessary."!

I still have this book from when I was young; it is now 36 years old and has survived all of my children. I cannot bear to part with it and I will save it for my grandchildren. (Along with Richard Scarry's find your ABC's) I am buying a copy for my niece though so she doesn't have to do without. Thank you Richard Scarry

I got this one as a child, back in the sixties. My copy is in Dutch and although a little weathered it's not falling apart yet.
The copy I'm reviewing here is a reprint that misses several spreads, but sad though it may be, if you don't know about it you won't miss it.
Richard Scarry shows different "people" (animals in clothes), all kinds of professions, how they interact and how one depends on the other. And in doing so he introduces a child to society where we all depend on one another.
More than anything else he was responsible that I grew up to be free minded and open spirited person. Whatever a human being does for a living, if he/she does it with love he will make your day.
A policeman, a baker, a newspaper man, a writer, photographer or singer, the postman, the bus driver. We all depend on one another. And as long as we try our best to understand that and accept and respect our fellow citizens we will be on the right path.
His drawings are world famous. They're sweet and funny without being too simplistic. No matter what family, the rabbits, the mice or the pigs, even the worm, they're all lovely characters with different personalities.
It has always been my first choice as a gift for kids.

I bought this book thinking that even though it was abridged it would be as great as the original version. Boy was I wrong, some of the most entertaining and interesting parts of the book are GONE!
It was absolutely heartbreaking. I don't know why the publishers have altered a wonderful book leaving it hollow and less interesting than it should be. Do yourself a favor, find an original edition on ebay or half.com . You'll be much happier.

It doesn't take a genius to know this is a great read! If you are curious about finding the genius in yourself and others, then this is the book for you. It is clear, concise and uses stories and situations that we can all relate to.

Alan Gregerman's book Surrounded by Geniuses was a great read! Not only did it pertain to my work life, but also to my personal life. I would recommend this book at everyone.

A fun read. Delivering compelling value is key and Dr. Gregerman has hit the nail on the head with his observations about products and services in our own neighborhood that do it daily.

A delightful and thoughtful book that reminds us to take time to look at our surroundings. The best ideas in business need not be the most complicated. A little bit of "back to basics" plus a little "thinking outside the box" can take one a long way.

Gregerman has put together a unique array of narratives from the cheetah to Lockheed's rocket science program to delineate key attitudes and mindsets toward maximizing both the potential of your business and value to your customer. I see value in this book for both non-profit and for-profit entities/professionals. Highly recommended.

I recently moved to L.A. and bought a used, earlier edition of this wonderful book. When it arrived, the small print and heft of it was intimidating- I was reminded of another famous book, written thousands of years ago?... The paragraph on "positive" stories changed my mindset in meetings and two agents offered to sign me the day after I read it. I am convinced this comprehensive guide will shave years off my journey to success. Contacts galore, lists of resources and interviews with everyone you can imagine. I look forward to meeting the author so I can thank her in person.

I decided not to become an actor in Los Angeles, or aspire to. But I did buy and read this book. It's a great resource for the aspiring actor in Los Angeles. It explains, in detail, pretty much anything and everything you need to know about pursuing a career in acting. It can be overwhelming when you first move to LA. This book helps a lot. I can definitely recommend it if you are serious about becoming an actor.

"Thank You so much for your book. It is an essential tool that every actor in Los Angeles MUST HAVE. You have graciously offered all the information in one place that would take an actor years to figure it all out on their own. THANK YOU.

-Guy D. Wells"

I started reading this book thinking I could jot down a couple useful pieces of information and quickly advance to another book on acting. Boy was I wrong!

This book is overflowing with so many sources that you may as well toss out the Yellowpages. Judy Kerr did a flawless job of providing step-by-step instructions regarding the business-side of acting and how you can get started.

Sure, there are useful quotes from all kinds of big names and experienced veterans about the technique, but Judy was very wise to simply refer readers to all types of classes, coaches and workshops rather than attempt to write a book on how to act. Experience is the only way you truly learn, not by reading about others who experience it.

I'm currently saving up to take the 2-week trip to Los Angeles to research the city which is mentioned in the book with detailed stops to make.

If you're wondering whether or not this book should be on your bookshelf at home, buy it now. No, don't continue reading my review!! You're not listening and I feel disrespected. You could've been entering your shipping address and credit card info by now you lazy bum! Ya wanna act? Okay, your character is shopping for a book by Judy Kerr... ACTION!!!

There is no greater source book out there. For actors and other industry professionals, "Acting Is Everything" is a magnificent compendium of information covering all aspects of pursuing your acting career - from arriving in LA, to agents and managers, to your pictures - and it's wrapped up with motivational and inspiring advice. I have been recommending this book to not only actors but all entertainment professionals that I speak to including seminar attendees, my UCLA Extension students, and my own clients. Owning this book is like having a professional adviser at home with you 24/7.

This is my 3th book a read about creativity. I really found it very intersting, with good methods, and aldo written in an intersting way.

What I really like most y that the research behind this book, has really ponder the most important genious way of creating, so it has a good background and very well supportted.

Mind-mapping helped considerably narrow down visual arts individual style to preferred media and suitable materials, saving me much wasted time, expense and creativity.

This is the best book on or about creative thinking I have ever read. I've recommended it to everyone I know who is interested in creating ideas and new ways to look at the world. Thanks.

This is something that is tickling my mind, after reading first few chapters of this book, I closed it, stood up, walked around my living room with my hands folded back. I looked outside the window and saw few kids playing the park and was forced to think something.

We are first as kids made to learn few things and are forced to treat those things as basic and important that is not true (refer to Michael's blog about Thomas Edison's Greatest Blessings). Now after reading the book Thinkertoys and Creative Thinking, I feel like its not that I have to learn these new concepts but there is an entire process involved of first of all unlearning most of the stuffs from past and then relearning the new concepts.

And when I say that I have to look at the kids I wonder what they are being tought in their schools only to find one day that they have to unlearn some of the concepts on which they are spending or rather wasting their time.

Do read the book, as mentioned earlier it makes you smile after every chapter as you discover immense possibilities of what all can be achieved in your day to day life.

Author Michael Michalko delivers his best performance to date in this book. The book is filled with information on, and techniques for using, our creative processes. Many of the techniques are easy to learn, requiring only a little bit of practice to get used to them. Most of the book centers around: helping an individual generate many possible ideas about something, which will be critically evaluated at a later time; visualizing the problem and potential solutions; seeing from another's perspective, even the problem's in one case (quite effective sometimes); collaboration and creativity. This book already helped me deliver a 5 star essay on a very controversial subject. I followed its advice, producing as many ideas as possible in a short time, without rejecting any at first. Also, visualizing the data, as recommended, formed the basis for my later outline, which was complete enough that a rough draft was no work at all. So, for me, buying this book paid off already. I think anyone buying this will read it for a few minutes and then recognize they have a winner in their hands.

Definitely Scarry's best work and one of the few books I vividly remember from my childhood. It is a great introduction to geography and world cultures. At 3, my son was able to identify shapes of countries, flags and traditional clothing from around the world.

Very fun anthology of numerous 2-page stories from around the world. Charming detailed pictures, culturally relevant backdrops.

Publishers: Please renew licenses for this and reprint it! I've bought "busy, busy town" and "mother goose" as gifts only because this one is out of print.

Wow! I can't belive this book is not in print. I loved it as a kid and was hoping to get one for my new baby. My sisters and I loved reading this stories. It's too bad we don't have our old copy. Publishers, please bring this book back!!

This is my Favorite book from when I was a child. I still have my torn up copy at home and when I feel really sick I make my Dad read it to me.

Still reading my childhood copy to my 3 kids. The 10 year old, all full of attitude and desire for adult fare, just said the other day, "That's still one of my favorite books." The 4 year old could read it every night.

Amazingly, I don't remember knowing who Couscous was in the street scene until reading it to them and noticing the clue in the next scene.

I have an original copy of this book, which my children, esp. the youngest, LOVED. His daughter is turning one year old and they've asked everyone to pick out a favorite book for a gift (as they are inundated w/more clothes, toys, etc. than they will ever need).
His wife asked him if he had a favorite book as a child, and this was it!
Despite it's being read SO many times, it's in really good condition and is the 1965 edition, which I now know is long out of print.
So, this will be a gift for her from grandma & grandpa... though she likely won't handle it herself for a while!

Right from the gitgo Ben Hamper's Rivethead grabs you with gritty gusto of passages such as the above; Hamper is an extraordinary writer about life for the ordinary guy... at least the ordinary guy who winds up as an automotive assembly-line worker for General Motors in Flint, Michigan--once considered the Automobile Capital of the World. The author is a natural shop rat, growing up in Flint, with an alcoholic mostly absentee father and a long-suffering, working-three-jobs mother trying to raise the family as practicing Catholics.

...

For my complete review of this book and for other book and movie
reviews, please visit my site [...]

Brian Wright
Copyright 2008

The endless monotony and idiot bosses drive anybody with an IQ above their shoe size to do something to kill the thought that, if they're lucky, they only have 30 more years of mind numbing drudgery to go before they can retire. I'm not saying alcohol abuse is the proper outlet, but it does seem to be the most common and most convenient. Good book, excellent portrayal of what exactly "blue collar America" does for a living.

Ben Hamper shares his life as a worker on the GM assembly line in Flint, MI. Bold, frank, honest and often hilarious. This book was recommended to me years ago and for some reason I never read it until now. Hamper chronicles a part of American history (manufacturing jobs) that seem to be going stateside or as Ross Perot once described in a quip about NAFTA, what's that whoosing noise? manufacturing jobs headed to Mexico. This is prose for the ages. Loved the book.

I didn't really like reading this book because I too work in a (once) major three Auto plant. I didn't feel that it properly portrayed some of the workers. It made it sound like all workers are like the author where they just really don't give a damn about anything except having a joking time on the job. It also made the workers sound like they were underachieving, undereducated, bottom of the barrel workers and I didn't care to have that stigma for all of us. I hold two bachelor degrees, like my job and take it serious!

I grew up with people like Ben Hamper in a place which was much like Flint. For the first couple years of my adult life, I did the kind of work he did. What he describes is the tail end of a lifestyle; the lifestyle of the shop rat. It's dirty, monotonous and smelly. Many of the people you work with are either below average in intelligence or in sanity. Drugs, booze and having no concept of "forethought" are fundamental parts of the culture. It's nihilism with a rivet gun. If you come from a place like that, chances are, your only way out is via a jail cell or a career in the military. Or, you could win a workmans comp suit. Which is presumably how Ben got out.

I miss rust-belt working class america. It's a hard life, and it doesn't have much in the way of rewards, but the people who make it up are genuine in ways that others are not: they have a lot of heart and spirit. Ben's book brought it all back in a great galloping rush of memories. If you've ever wondered what the factory working classes are, or at least were like (back when we had factories); read the book.

Even though he died in 1998, everything in this book is still valid.
From little simple tips like allowing a little extra time to get somewhere to making sure you have gas in your car so you won't forget to put some in when you are rushed to controlling phone call interuptions this book is chock full of little tips.
Even things like putting your keys in the same spot to having your doors keyed to use the same key, he just keeps on offering ways to save time and hassle that you can avoid if you listen to him.
One of the pioneers of real estate infomercials, he speaks to you on how to enjoy your life.
Shortly before he died he was sued with frivolous lawsuits, so ignore the ignorant reviewers that talk about that. He set up his estate so they couldn't touch his wealth. Good for him. Glad to know Givens kept his money shielded from buzzard lawyers.
Learning how he overcame a hard childhood to go on to live a life most would only dream of should inspire you to do the same.
All in all, a good combination of both inspirational reflecting on his growing up to practical advice once he had made it as an adult.

This is one of the best "self-help" books I have ever read. I am
re-reading it in case I missed something.

Like his financial books, Charles Givens offers a no nonsense system for becoming your best. You will learn how to flatten your fears, generate goals and add several hours of productivity to your day with more free time for fun to boot.

The tape is an overview. The book is very thorough.

Highly recommended along with Stephen Coveys 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

Interesting that some people are surprised that Charles Givens produced this audio tape program and the book of the same name--SuperSelf; interesting because this is how Givens started way back in 1975 with his first company The Success Motivation Institute which was incredibly successful. SuperSelf is a program designed to take back control. To destroy the control others or events have over our emotions and the direction of our lives. To stop waiting for our ship to come in and go out and swim to it. Not to wait for things to happen but to make thing happen. Not to find ourselves, but to design ourselves. To take the action in our lives to make our dreams into reality.SuperSelf will show you how to design the rest of your life to become the best of your life and to live your dreams.

I read a classic self-development book on my recent flight called, Super Self Doubling Your Personal Effectiveness by Charles J. Givens. Charles is one of the long-time motivational speakers and rags to riches type person that people like to read about. Often I find these people to be somewhat shallow but the basic message is right.

In the book he shares a number of success strategies. The first one is to learn from the experience of others rather than your own. In my opinion, this is true wisdom and this is something that I still seek.

Charles Givens' outline is very basic and is what you would see in almost any self-help book:

1. Have dreams and goals. (I always thought the difference between dreams and goals is that goals were dreams with action)

2. Develop strategies to achieve these.

3. Practise â" consciously and continuously apply the strategies at every opportunity.

4. Habits - as I have often said before, we become what we repeatedly do.
Results, with these new skills and abilities, you will achieve results.

I would not make it as linear as that, I would make it into a circle. As results start to happen, then new dreams and goals need to be set. I feel a need to constantly revisit goals.

Overall this is a great book and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in improving themselves and achieving goals in life.

His program takes it right from the goal setting through the time management area. It is a great refresher on what we need to do to be successful. I always seem to need this. I know what I should do but I frequently fall back into not doing it. books like this challenge me to once again play at the top of my game all the time.

Hal has inspired my life with his "True Life Story" of creating miracles out of the chaos and struggle that life threw his way in the form of a major tragedy. He also goes beyond simple "here's my story" be inspired by it, to practical strategies for overcoming obstacles and creating miracles in our every day life!!! Both thumbs way up, and and a hearty thanks to Hal for writing this intimate look into the heart and mind of a survivor who has chosen to adopt an attitude of creativity in his desire to Take Life Head On

I used to take the small things in life for granted, but Hal's story really has changed the way I see everything. The story is about how he suffered in a horrible car accident and then miraculously managed to pickup his life and succeed, it truly is an inspiring story and I recommend it to EVERYONE. People who I have loaned my copy out to had nothing but positive things to say about it. This one definitely deserves to be in your collection; so get it, read it, and then apply it.

First let me say, do yourself a big favor and read this book. I have been so enthralled with it, that I don't want it to end! I come from a father that lost his arms in the Korean War Conflict. My father had an outstanding disposition to the point that people forgot about his loss.

Let yourself become inspired from Hal's optimism. The way he is loved bounces off the pages, and you will stay up late reading it, and not want to stop. You will reconsider how to make the major or minor adjustments in your attitude so that your life can become even fuller, better, happier, the whole nine yards of goodness.

With love,

Michelle Ropczycki

I had moderate expectations for this book, but was really blown away with how good it ended up being.

It's exactly the right length and goes into just the right amount of detail.

I look forward to sharing this book with family and friends.

This is written by pretty much and unknown guy with an unknown publisher; yet it is head and shoulders better than more commercialized material.

This is a book that can help you in some way whether you're broke and jobless or a millionaire CEO. Hal's outlook on life, his courage, attitude, and strength were a huge inspiration to me. This book had me in tears in some parts, and ready to conquer the world in other parts. And the effectiveness of the tips on being successful are incredible.

Ever since reading Alexander Hamilton I've been a fan of Chernow's. His research is impeccable and his writing is clear and engaging. In Titan, his portrait of John D. Rockefeller is superb. Chernow provides a balanced view of this complicated persona, and places Rockefeller's life and accomplishments in context, traveling through more than a century. In terms of the story itself, one especially fascinating element is the dichotomy between Rockefeller's religious beliefs and business escapades, and how he (rightly or wrongly) justified his actions to himself. Another aspect is the evolution of the man from Robber Barron into possibly the world's greatest philanthropist, and philanthropic innovator. Overall, this is a terrific book about a extraordinary subject.

Steven K. Gold
Author, Entrepreneur's Notebook: Practical Advice for Starting a New Business Venture

America's Industrial Revolution created unprecedented collections of wealth within the portfolios of a limited few. Chief among them was John D. Rockefeller, Sr. Born in an unassuming, clapboard house in upstate New York, Rockefeller's business acumen would take him from rural backwater to the pinnacle of Wall Street success. It's a story that is naturally compelling and the author's competent narrative moves it briskly along.

On one hand, Rockefeller's take-no-prisoners business approach created lifelong detractors who demonized his very existence. On the other, his phenomenal levels of charitable giving were evidence of a commitment to give back a large portion of the wealth consequently derived. This dichotomy creates a common thread throughout Ron Chernow's book.

Of additional interest is the ideological transformations that occur between the originator of wealth and the heirs of affluence. As each wave of offspring attain adulthood, evidence of the progenitor's hand becomes harder and harder to see. It takes a certain set of principles to create wealth. It takes an entirely different set to fritter it away.

There's disappointment when Chernow expects fin de siecle society to conform to 21st-century racial sensibilities, but, thankfully, his condescension ends there. Well-paced and expertly written, Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. is a solid biography and recommended to anyone interested in the Gilded Age giants of American industry and the legacies they left behind. 4 stars.

This exhaustive biography of John D. Rockefeller fully explains a misunderstood man. Ron Chernow has caught the essence of the man. Mr. Rockefeller was neither entirely good nor was he the Robber Baron as depicted by Ida Tarbell. He was a man of contradictions . He was deeply religious, however in the business world he would squash his business competition like a bug.
When you think of Rockefeller you think of Oil as in "Standard Oil". However, as Chernow points out it was Mr. Rockefeller's logistical distribution system which made Standard Oil the titan of the Oil Industry. It was J.D.'s controlling of the Railroads and later the Pipelines which led to his huge monopoly in the Oil Industry.
This book explains his development of oil cartels and interlocking directorates. As he grew older he became ever so more eccentric and increasingly philantropical. He was indeed both the good cop and the bad cop.
This is an excellent book. It is well worth the reading of 676 pages. But who's counting!! In the end you"ll find the essence of a true businessman who was misunderstood.

Truly a great book from a masterful writer. Some criticisms are apt: Chernow, for obvious reasons, relies heavily on the Inglis interview with Rockefeller. Why not? What better primary source than the words from the reclusive oil Titan himself? Also, Chernow has been criticized as being a bit--but only a bit-- soft on Rockefeller. Almost all biographers begin to identify with their subjects. To some extent Chernow falls into this trap; one cannot spend years researching another human being without beginning to see things from the subject's perspective. Those small quibbles aside, what a great book! Perhaps we can never really know another human being but Chernow gives us key insights into the character of Rockefeller. As Chernow writes in his Introduction, all other biographies on Rockefeller soon revert to the oft told story of the History of Standard Oil, as if the man and the company were one in the same, and Rockefeller seems to disappear from his own biography. But Chernow gives us the man and presents an interesting thesis: the key to Rockefeller was that he was his parents' son. This means that John D. Rockefeller contained the roguish aspects of his father William Avery Rockefeller (a shameless flim-flam man) and the virtuous aspects of his long suffering, pious mother Eliza. It also explains other qualities, e.g., the fetish for secrecy. John D. grew up in a home where his father openly lived with his mistress alongside the wife Eliza. Later William Avery would take a second wife and live as a bigamist. All the while, Eliza bore stoically the humiliation. Hence, John D. grew up to become very, very quiet about his family and its scandals. Doubtless, he heard the whispers and soon he developed a deep distrust of the "crowd." "Let the world wag," was a favorite phrase. He developed a thick skin and learned to be a stoic like his mother. He made it a point for people not to know his personal life or his business. The shattered sensibility of the youth lingered into manhood. The mania for secrecy followed.
The quote from Betrand Russell that begins the books is telling: Rockefeller is among the men who created the modern world. With $4 a gallon gas, and energy needs growing, we still live with his legacy today.

I have not read the work of a biographer who has the proficiency for presenting as comprehensive an account of another's life as Chernow has given with Titan. There are sections of this narrative that are so detailed that had Rockefeller's life not been over a century ago, one might be inclined to consider Chernow had been along side him during his pursuits. Chernow has conducted extensive research that is exemplified in every chapter of this enthralling biography.

John D Rockefeller has been known by many personas, both positive and negative; billionaire, tycoon, industrialist, predator, and philanthropist. No matter what one's view of him, all generally agree that his business acumen was surpassed by no one in history. Chernow provides a masterful account of Rockefeller's years from his meager beginnings with an unscrupulous father to his near unstoppable empire that forced adversaries to join or be crushed in its wake. Chernow has provided readers with an abundance of pertinent quotations directly from Rockefeller leaving one well equipped to gauge the true mindset of the man.

Many biographies will rate high merely on the appealing nature of the subject. Titan is based on one of history's most intriguing business men combined with an account that is so well written and detailed it is difficult to fully convey in a simple review. I strongly suggest this book as essential reading to anyone with an interest in business biography.