Professional Books

I own an earlier edition of this book, written before
the internet stuff was added.

Still, Drayton Bird is a fine writer and he explains
things lucidly and he has hella' experience and knows
of that which he writes.

He has a good sense of humor. Sort of droll.

No book can cover it all, but this one does a good job
of touching on major points any direct marketer should
really get a grasp of.

It isn't until about half-way through that Bird gets into
Copywriting but he covers a lot of ground quickly in this
area. If you write copy you SHOULD read a lot of books
and read a lot of copy - one book doesn't do it.

It's not obvious to everyone but there are some "copywriters"
out there that don't actually know marketing very well.
They are best avoided if you are paying for copy, and this
book will help you a lot if you are thinking of writing
your own copy or thinking of hiring somebody to do it for you.

Favorite quote (of many):

"If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys"

Funny guy, that Bird.

I read a number of marketing books before this one,but after read Drayton's book I understand how to create and execute a direct campaign.The best side is,I think, the simple words due to the writer experience in the marketing business .If you are looking for the best combination of experience and easy reading with a ''How to...'' aproach ,this book is the best.

Possibly a great book for those that know something alreadytoo, just look at the endorsements. Not a step by step book - no hardand fast rules to DM - goes to the principals derives guidelines and provides examples. A good approach that suited me - I always want to know why something should be done a certain way not just follow a prescription.

This book contains all of the information you need to know about direct marketing. It puts aside the myth regarding the 1-2% return on mailings. I had no idea that a 50% return was possible! The book is full of proven advice and tips; planning, list selection, the offer, pricing...it goes on and on. Reading it from cover to cover gave me the information necessary to execute my own mailing which cost me less than $200 but reaped close to $100,000. Read it!

As a writer and compensation consultant myself, I highly recommend this newly revised edition for HR and compensation professionals seeking a solid overview reference guide to all aspects of compensation. The book provides coverage of a wide variety of relevant topics written by highly-regarded professionals.

Mind you, there are more comprehensive treatments available for specialty or "single-topic" compensation areas, such as executive or sales compensation, but none that provide the overall breadth of The Compensation Handbook as resource guide on many key areas of compensation management.

I found this book to be an invaluable reference for my research in the area of compensation. It covers all of the main topics in compensation management with articles from the best minds in the field. The trend summary and chapter introductions provide an overview that is interesting and insightful. That kind of analysis is hard to find. The information is surprisingly up to date, since change is slow in this field.

The book is essential for compensation professionals.

Received with thanks the Compensation Handbook in a very good condition. It is exactly the product I was looking for. I believe that it would be a very important reference to my business.

As a compensation consultant, I sought a comprehensive guide for all aspects of the field. The 4th edition of The Compensation Handbook provides simple and direct answers for every compensation problem. It is a virtual "who's who" of compensation professionals providing well-constructed, concise information on their area of expertise. No matter what information I seek -- from base compensation, variable compensation, executive compensation, performance and compensation, compensation and corporate culture, or international compensation -- I can find pertinent, practical guidance in this one book. Compensation issues that are currently challenging every company - regardless of size, age, or industry -- are especially well developed in The Compensation Handbook. The section on Corporate Culture containing chapters on "Culture and Compensation" and "Connecting Compensation, Behaviors, Culture, and Strategy to Win" by William M. Mercer consultants, "Rewarding Scarce Talent" by Patricia Zingheim, "Gaining a Competitive Edge by Improving the Return on Human Capital" by Peter LeBlanc, and "The Role of Work-Life Benefits in the Total Pay Strategy" covers issues that every compensation practitioner or human resources professional will grapple with in the forseeable future. Even the effect of technology and computers on compensation administration are handled in The Compensation Handbook. Information on global compensation strategies is relevant not only to practitioners but to anyone seeking employment on foreign soil or working for a foreign company. The Compensation Handbook is a winner.

As a compensation consultant, I sought a comprehensive guide for all aspects of the field. The 4th edition of The Compensation Handbook provides simple and direct answers for every compensation problem. It is a virtual "who's who" of compensation professionals providing well-constructed, concise information on area of expertise. No matter what information I seek -- from base compensation, variable compensation, executive compensation, performance and compensation, compensation and corporate culture, or international compensation -- I can find pertinent, practical guidance in this one book. Compensation issues that are currently challenging every company - regardless of size, age, industry -- are especially well developed in The Compensation Handbook. The section on Corporate Culture containing chapters on "Culture and Compensation" and "Connecting Compensation, Behaviors, Culture, and Strategy to Win" by William M. Mercer consultants, "Rewarding Scarce Talent" by Patricia Zingheim, "Gaining a Competitive Edge by Improving the Return on Human Capital" by Peter LeBlanc, and "The Role of Work-Life Benefit in the Total Pay Strategy" covers issues that every compensation practitioner or human resources professional will grapple with in the forseeable future. Even the effect of technology and computers on compensation administration are handled in The Compensation Handbook. Information on global compensation strategies is relevant not only to practitioners by to anyone seeking employment on foreign soil or working for a foreign company. The Compensation Handbook is a winner.

Although Michael Weiss' book is funny and accurate, I found this book to be somewhat full of plain common sense. Things you would automatically think about if you are heading for a hospital visit of your own. Perhaps I think this because I have been diagnosed with a chronic illness and have been in and out of hospitals myself. It IS a good book for hospital stay preparation, a sort of checklist of things you may encounter. But at any rate, I am glad that Mr. Weiss adressed such a topic that is largely ignored.

This book amazingly makes what should be a dry subject matter interesting, funny and enlightening. It is written loosely as a "guide" type of book yet it is extremely amusing and at times hysterical! Who would have thought that somebody could communicate such difficult experiences in such a comforting way? That's exactly what makes this book so useful for not only patients (which I am a not) but also their close confidantes (of which I am.

This book takes an excellent look at life as a "medical" pateint.

It's view is open, honest, and overall very accurate. The author takes great pains to hide the names of those attached but it's clear that there is a serious problem with the way our chronically ill patients are treated.

The book is serious, humorous, and overall very informative.

I suggest this reading for anyone involved with the medical community

I like reading books about health care and hospitals but I've never read a book about being a hospital patient so accurate and funny that I would recommend it to fellow health care professionals - until now. Mr. Weiss certainly has had his share of hospital hardships but he is even-handed in describing the experiences and provides such thought-provoking insights that even the most arrogant of physicians has to pay attention! I also appreciated the unique fashion in which he handles the nurse-physician and nurse-patient relationships. I can honestly say that while reading this book I learned a great deal about being a nurse - - and I learned all this from a patient! That in itself made this a very interesting and entertaining book - I only wish I had read it in nursing school!

For most of us, it takes little more than the mention of the phrase, "hospital stay," to set off a chain reaction of fear, anxiety and helplessness. Michael A. Weiss offers a perfect "how-to" survival guide cleverly disguised as a funny and often poignant memoir of a most amazing and inspiring battle against chronic illness and pain. Drawing from personal experience, Mr. Weiss prepares the reader for virtually every situation that a patient will encounter during a hospital stay. "Confessions of a Professional Hospital Patient," should be required reading not only for soon-to-be-patients, but for the medical professionals in whom they are about to place their trust.

Lots of great ideas for a student/new teacher. Ideas to get ready for that classroom!

I absolutely love this book! I have been teaching for 18 years and have never quite mastered the art of classroom organization. I found out about this book on the author's website when looking for classroom organization tips. This author is clear and exact. I only hope that she teaches middle school at some point and adds a chapter or two that would target organization problems more specific to secondary education teachers. Otherwise, I carry this book around and read it all of the time.

This is one of the, if not the, best books I have ever read on classroom management. All of the ideas are very user friendly and easy to implement. A couple of weeks ago I went to visit a fellow teacher at her lake house for the weekend. Of course I took my book to show her. Well, about an hour after I left I realized I left it there. As soon as I got home I ordered another one because I wasn't going to be able to get my book back until after school started, and I wanted to finish reading it now. My friend was very excited to find out she has a great new book!

I have personally used many of the ideas that Angela Powell describes in her book. Last year I taught a very challenging 4th grade class. I tried everything with no success and finally came across the Token System. It was easy to use and very effective. I am planning on using it again this year when school starts, instead of waiting until problems arise later in the year. In addition, Angela has managed to cover any and all questions a new teacher might have - from setting up their classroom to handling students who want to go to the water fountain all day long. But let me assure you - this book is definitely not just for new teachers. There are lots of great ideas for all teachers - newbies and seasoned veterans alike.

I feel very confident that you will not be disappointed if you order this book. It would be the best investment you could make in your classroom this year.

P.S. Angela also has an awesome website. Visit www.thecornerstoneforteachers.com.

I was an avid fan of her website. For years I've used her ideas and enjoyed the fabulous pictures and easy explanations that accompany room set-up to management and organizational ideas. This book is the best resource you can have. The book is a foundation for any teacher of any subject. Powell doesn't say there is one way to do something. She'll give you some ideas she'd tried years ago, and tell you what's working for her now. We all know that often our classroom students dictate how our systems need to be set up. This book will be as valuable in 25 years as it is now. The documentation chapter is especially important in today's world. Thanks Thanks Thanks to Mrs. Powell.

I have used Ms. Powell's website for years, as a newer teacher, to get ideas and information for making my classroom run as smoothly as possible. The book reads much like her website: she is speaking to you as if you were sitting in the same room having a conversation about management. The tone is friendly and conducive to passing along information about managing a classroom to make the most out of every second you have with your students. The ONLY thing I don't like is that there are no "reproducibles" included in the book -- you have to visit the site to get those. The upside of that, however, is that the downloads are word documents that you can customize which makes it easy to adapt the resources to your specific needs. I will definitely be recommending this book to my colleagues who are just entering the field.

Don't we all need more humor at work? I do. And this book gave it to me. Great stuff. I'd recommend it to everyone.

Thejendra!! Can you come and join our technical team?? We are desperate for someone with your sense of the absurd to lighten up our day!! With your tongue firmly lodged in your cheek, your delightful "Corporate Wildlife" pokes fun at the IT industry and all its 'quirky' idiosyncrasies that plague us mere 'end-users' daily - nay hourly!! Just the book to have by your PC while waiting for the machine to reboot, the application to be downloaded or the Help Desk to get back to you!!

A copy of BS Thejendra's book "Corporate Wildlife" is a touch of whimsy that should be on the desk of every office employee as an antidote to combat the stress created in the wild and wacky world of business and industry.

Through his marvelous sense of humor, Thejendra details the pitfalls of the workplace that can bring a smile to the face of a frustrated hireling because, as a voice of experience, the "Tej" has obviously "been there and done that" himself. Otherwise, how could he fashion a literary piece with such biting satire?

An excellent book on office humor. A must for every corporate library

This book made me laugh out loud, and that's saying a lot. I especially liked the Resume of a Terrorist. The author sheds some very humorous light on corporate life, or, actually, corporate wildlife.

This book is good for beginner in cosmetic dermology, who want to know the basic concept and concise knowledges.

This book was helpful by providing definitions at the beginning, then it gave life application tips for anyone wanting to improve their skin. It is a great find.

I thought this book was absolutely fantastic - I would highly recommend this to all my friends!

I bought this book a week ago and finished it today.I find it quite interesting,informative and different from the books written on this subject.
Author has covered most of the topics related to Cosmetic Dermatology and explained all the different cosmetic procedures in a very simple and easy way.Pictures are also clear and diagrams are helping allot in understanding the different skin procedures.
I recommend this book to all my fellow dermatology colleagues
and those related to the field of Cosmetics.

This book was fantastic. It encompasses everything I wanted and needed to know about cosmetic dermatology. It was easy to read and clearly explained all pertinent topics. I highly reccommened it to both people in the medical profession as well as anyone who wants upto date information about cosmetic dermatology.

As the daughter of a semi-country doctor, I grew up with the experience of having a father who always seemed to be on call. Dr. Macdonald's anthology of cases was an excellent read, and after the first story I immediately called my mom to share it with her. We both had a laugh over it, and I am going to recommend that she buy it, along with my 2 older sisters. I enjoyed reading the stories, and they are set up such that you can read for as long or as short a time as you want. A must-buy for any child or spouse of a physician!

I thought this book was excellent. I thoroughly enjoyed this book... you'll laugh out loud and you'll cry as you see everything through the eyes of one rural Minnesota doctor. I'm couldn't wait until his second one came out! Read it!!

A Country Doctor's Casebook: Tales From The North Woods is an anthology of autobiographical stories by Dr. Roger A. MacDonald, a physician who has served the people living in a remote region of northern Minnesota during the years after World War II. Vignettes of sickness, compassion, feuds, dangers, births and deaths make A Country Doctor's Casebook unforgettable and very highly recommended reading.

Dr. MacDonald's book is a welcome remembrance to those who lived in Northern Minnesota in the 40's & 50's. His stories of survival (and sometimes not surviving) are very descriptive and detailed. When he tells of a trip through a swamp he carried his wife through to help a patient, you almost feel as though you are sloshing through the mud with him. His stories are NOT about heroics that he performed on helpless rural Minnesota residents, although he certainly could do that as well. They are about the heroics of those people he cared for. This story has it's humorous parts as well as parts that make you cry for the brave and futile attempts at life of his patients. I am grateful to Dr. MacDonald for this book, and I hope to see more from him in the future.

I got this book because I too come from Minnesota and work in health care, but once started on Dr. MacDonald's A Country Doctor's Casebook Tales from the North Woods, I was hooked. The author was what we would now refer to as a family practitioner who worked in a small rural community near Duluth from 1947 to 1980. His charming collection of stories is a delight to read, and I literally read the book from cover to cover over about three hours without putting it down. The tales of the doctor and his patients pull the reader through the pages without tricks of style, just the author's natural talent for telling a simple story: the life and death struggles of members of his community, the happiness of new lives begun, the suddenness of unexpected death, incredible courage in the face of adversity, acceptance of the setbacks of life, amusing vignettes of simple people living life among their neighbors.

FOR THOSE WRITING PAPERS in English, creative writing, journaling, journalism, history, and sociology, this would make a nice format to follow or a good bibliography entry. The author has used his own life experiences to create a history of his practice, community, and time.

Just in case you're not aware, Crystal Reports is a graphically oriented program designed to produce reports filled with data that comes out of a database, comes from a specialized type of server called OLAP, or from data that is calculated internally. It was one of the first such packages and was usually used in conjunction with big powerful databases such as Oracle or SQL Server that didn't have sophisticated reporting structures built into the database.

This book is oriented to guiding the reader through passing the CRCP exam. As such, it's orientation is less formal and descriptive and more oriented to the practical aspects of what's on the test. It includes a CD with a simulated set of examinations (you take three tests) to give you the look and feel of the test and help identify any areas where you need more knowledge.

The design of the book is such that it will be useful in passing the test and still of value as a reference book to the Crystal Reports user.

If you are a Crystal Reports Developer, this book is a must have. Not only is it a great teaching resource, but it also make an awesome reference. It's loaded with thought provoking questions and exercises. I've currently got five Crystal books on my bookshelf here at work. The ONLY one I refer to is this one. This book is also outstanding for someone new to Crystal, as long as you have some IT background. If you are completely new to programming/reporting, this book will be very useful to you eventually, but it's not a good book for your level.

I highly recommend this book! If you are writing Crystal Reports this book is a MUST HAVE even if you are not interested in getting your CRCP certification. I have been using Crystal Reports for 5 years and have read several Crystal Report reference manuals. This one is by far the best!!!

This textbook contains everything the reader will need to gain Crystal Reports Certified Professional (CRCP) certification.

I used the textbook to take all three exams, and passed them all within twelve weeks. The only other source of information I used was the on-line documentation provided with the product (and I used that as a secondary reference only). Note that I did not take any education courses from Business Objects or third-party providers--this book was my sole information source, and it guided me to high scores on all three exams. I also became a much better Crystal Reports developer in the process.

The writing is exceptionally clear and free of all the techno-babble that clutters up so many other texts. This book is clear, easy to read, and structured perfectly. Not only that, but the examples are exceptional and applicable.

In addition to guiding the reader through the certification material, the text will thereafter continue to serve as a valuable reference for Crystal development.

Highly recommended--this is the Crystal Reports book that nobody should be without.

NOTE: Now that Business Objects has revised their CRCP examinations you might be wondering if this text would still be useful. The unqualified answer is YES. The two exams for XI are nearly identical to the three exams for version 10, except all of the Business Views components have been removed.

For XI certification, you still use this text. Just i) skip the Business Views parts (skip chapters 27, 28, 29)--as that software component has been dropped; ii) focus on the SQL components elective (chapter 22); and iii) skim the other elective sections (chapters 23, 24)--as there are no longer elective test tracks. Do this and you will still find this text the definitive preparation material for the CRCP exams.

The CRCP exams for version 10 Crystal Reports are difficult without taking instructor led courses. This book gives detailed information that is critical when preparing for these exams.

A must for everybody who is in the field of human and organisational errors and their management.

Who would have thought that aviation and medicine were so much alike. This book reviews the safety culture in both professions (albeit from an aviation point of view) anb shows that both can learn from eachother.

I have used this book in aviation safety training and it does provide a solid basis for creating a safety culture.

Recommended!

Too many books on this subject are either just too academic or too trivial to be worth the price. This book avoids these pitfalls and provides helpful analysis to the 'real world'.

Robert Helmreich is regarded in the aviation industry as the father of Crew Resource Management (CRM), and in this book he and Ashleigh Merritt (with material contributed by many others) discuss the effects of cultural issues on safety in aviation and in the operating room.

While the bulk of the book is devoted to CRM in aviation (the researchers have vastly more data and experience in that field), the book serves well as an introduction to cultural influences in the operating room (and in medicine in general, to a degree.) This book is not light reading, and is most suitable for professionals in aviation, medicine, or behavioral and social sciences familiar with inter- and intra-cultural dynamics and the statistical methodologies typical in such studies.

The book is excellent at breaking down cultural influences by national, organizational, and professional affiliation, and it adds a significant amount to the body of knowledge in this area. As a long time airline pilot (and part-time safety and training consultant), I found the book fascinating and generally in agreement with my experiences working with pilots from airlines around the world. There are a couple of minor areas where I disagree with the book, for instance on page 105, the authors state "we believe that every national culture values the safety of its members and that every airline is dedicated to improving the safety of its operations." I agree that this is the case in the vast majority of cases, but I have been given reason to doubt the complete accuracy of the second half of that statement based on my personal interactions with many pilots from airlines around the globe. I think that management at all airlines would prefer safe operations as a matter of profitability, but that some are content with doing the minimum mandated training with safety as a second thought to legality and profitability. This is a minor semantic point separating my opinions from those of the authors, and is based on my personal observations and interactions with several thousand crew members from scores of airlines from all over the world. I will unequivocally say that the cultural profiles that the authors have established for the pilots are nearly identical to my own perceptions.

A very interesting part of the book concerns itself with pilots distrusting management. The authors were stunned to discover what low regard pilots felt for management. (As a pilot I think, in general, justifiably so.) This ties in with my comments above about genuine managerial interest in safety. They all "talk the talk," but many don't "walk the walk." The matter is fully distilled for the non-industry insider on pages 127-128 which emphasizes the group mentality (with resultant long-term corporate health) of Southwest Airlines in a press release written by their founder Herb Kelleher, contrasted with a press release from one of the embattled legacy carriers, released by the CEO of that corporation. The latter gave no credit to the employees, while the Southwest release did. The esteem with which management regards employees couldn't be carved in greater relief: the problem for management is that this is a treacherous two way street, and the employees that are desperately needed by legacy carriers are now largely demoralized in some cases to the point of apathy. Fortunately, the Helmreich team was not able to tie safety records conclusively to morale, though that may be simply because accidents are so statistically rare. On page 179 the authors deal again with the trustworthiness of management. The assertion is that for a safety system to function employees must feel free to report safety problems, instead of hushing them up (this is a major issue on the medical side of the house with the ever-present malpractice litigation waiting to ensnare doctors.) The authors are right on the money: if a hint of vindictiveness or lack of anonymity exists in a safety program, it will fail. The authors cite the excellent program at Continental Airlines as a model for how to deal effectively with an accident (in this case a non-fatal gear up landing of a DC-9) to learn from it and make further safety gains with employees.

On page 204 the authors examine cultural issues in the context of language differences. They cite the problems of Chinese pilots speaking in English. They mention the issues of sending a (non-pilot) translator with the pilots to aid communication. I have worked with several Chinese airlines and they are all bright, polite, and perceptive in my experience, but the dynamics in the simulator with the translator are unnerving as instructions are translated and queried, checklists are run and maneuvers are flown. In general under abnormal conditions I found that when a translator is used, emergency procedures took much longer (perhaps twice as long) to accomplish due to the language problems involved. I fully support the Helmreich proposition that international pilots be given more training in English (the international language of air transport.)

In sum, this book is superior and fascinating. I have commented more on the aviation side of the book because that is where the majority of my expertise is, but the medical side is equally fascinating, and heralds the beginning of a true safety system approach to medicine. I highly recommend this book.

This is an outstanding book that goes deeply inside the airline pilots and medical culture (it is much more related about aviation). Full of data and cases that supports and illustrates the author theory. It is a book not only to people that desing training but also manages those professional groups.

Dan Marino was one of the great all-time quarterbacks. His quick decision making, and quick release revolutionized the game. But we never could have seen this athlete perform, had there not been NFL funding. Yes, without contributions from government subsidies, we never would have been able to see Elway play. I mean Marino. Do you guys realize that George Bush is thinking about cutting NFL funding. He has already voted to reduce quick release-throwing-funding. Without this funding Marino can't make the comeback he keeps talking about.
Doesn't anybody else care about Marino other than ME? F***

An extremely well-presented biog of the NFL's greatest quarterback. Different people gives their insights on the former Dolphin enabling us to see different sides of Dan the Man. I was intrigued to learn that he has written several commentaries on the work of Guy de Maupassant, has mastered the lute and mandolin and is an accomplished pastry chef.

I must admit that I am the biggest Dan Marino fan of all time, so I read this book with a little bias. However, Beckett Publications always produce good books.

This book is extremely well written, and there are tons of super pictures, many of which, I had never seen. Instead of having one storyline from start to finish, this book uses several authors, many of whom are well-recognizable to the sportsworld, to depict Marino's story throughout time.

Nobody in the game of football was a better pure passer, and nobody ever graced the game with more passion and competitiveness. This book sheds light on Dan Marino's overwhelming deisire to compete and win. In reading this book, you'll easily win too.

This book is the greatest book i ever read. Growing up in Pittsburg and eating those peanut butter and jelly sandwhiches turned a boy into a man and not just an ordinary man, Dan Marino THE GREATEST quarterback EVER and this book will prove to you that he is the best person on and off the field. Its a shame how video games are taking over kids life so we will probably never see anyone that comes close to Marino in every aspect of life. He donates his time to help children in need and on the field he throws the ball super-human like. I live in New York and i'm a Jet fan but theres no way i can deny him being the best ever and if you deny it its really because your jealous. This book shows the ups and downs dan had in his life and carrer. Dan is a loyal and caring man to his wife and kids. Theres never been a man with a greater will to win, and when you see him play and the fire in his eyes you will agree. After reading this book it will turn any man into a Dan fan. I recomend this book to football fans and Dan Marino fans all over the globe.


~1 luv~

i thought this book was amazing. it tells the story like no one else can. it brings you through the hard times and also the happiest moments in dans career. i would definatly suggest this book to any miami fan.