5 comments about Good to Great CD: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...And Others Don't.

1. good material. I like the concept of the study. Might not change your life, but might change your way of thinking



2. You can't go wrong adding this one to your personal library. Jim Collins's, Good to Great, details a great many elements of sound business practices. In a nutshell though, the overriding message was about the constant re-evaluation of your strengths. With the exception of Circuit City and a few others, the companies chronicled in this book grappled with the pertinent information about their companies, changed direction - which is harder than it sounds - and rebounded forcefully to the information presented. The CEO's of these companies deserve a huge amount of credit for helping their companies turn the tide of mediocrity. Another interesting nugget of information suggests nurturing existing personnel pays bigger dividends than firing them. Again, it's probably harder than it sounds but the information - at least, according to Jim Collins and his staff - seems to bare superior fruit. This book is full of juicy little helpful insights that make it a worthwhile purchase.



3. This book came as a result of some very data-intensive research by Jim Collins' research team. After analyzing thousands of companies, they picked one dozen that seemed to make a sustained jump from a history of "good" performance to one of "great" performance. They found that in all cases but one, there was no external charismatic CEO, but rather a quiet, unassuming leader who caused the change to occur by an intense focus and discipline on measuring the core business.
   
   I passed this along to an newly relocated executive, as it is an outstanding read for any executive transitioning into a new organization.



4. I very much enjoyed reading Good to Great, but found it somewhat frustrating because it was not as prescriptive as Collin's previous book, Built to Last. Collins says that the books are really in the wrong order. Good to Great really should be read before Built to Last. Good to Great describes what it takes to become an outstanding company. Built to Last provides more of the leadership principles that make it happen.
   
   The Clemmer Group has worked with a few management teams who have tried to use these books to move themselves from good to great. They used terms like "getting people on and off the bus" or "The Hedgehog Concept," but weren't able to make things substantially better. Their implementation frustrations illustrate a much bigger "Strategy Gap" problem I see all the time.
   
   The first part of the problem is that far too many management teams confuse strategy with execution. They think that having the plan or understanding a concept is doing it. The second part of the problem is that a good management team can't build a great organization. The place to start improving the organization is by improving the dynamics and effectiveness of the management team itself, to make them great. But it's a very rare team that is willing to look in that mirror.



5. I bought this book because an organization I am involved with is using the G-to-G framework to focus its activities. Although the point of view is interesting, I think the contents of the book tend toward the superficial. They are indicative of an academic perspective lacking real world experience. The fact that a few years later some of these "great' companies are struggling or bankrupt further reduces any confidence in this particular paradigm.

5 comments about 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People.

1. Here is an excerpt from my blog post about working on Covey's 2nd Habit. I hope it will encourage others to take the time to really think about and work through the lessons in this book. I'm not sure I am a more confident or effective person as of yet, but it feels good to 'Be Proactive' (a la Habit #1) and feel like I'm working towards making progress. -- Evonne
   [...]
   
   Begin with the End in Mind (Part 1)
   
   I tried writing my obituary today. No, I haven't already decided to give up. It was an exercise suggested by the enduring classic, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. It's not a book about `confidence' per se. It is about being an effective and successful person. The philosophy Covey teaches to achieve this end is known as the Character Ethic. The Character Ethic attributes success to fundamental and underlying human characteristics such as integrity, honesty, courage, potential and growth. This is in contrast to the Personality Ethic which calls its followers to focus on personality traits, skills and maintaining a positive attitude among other things to be an effective person and according to Covey this latter approach been unduly popularized throughout the latter half of the 20th century. I don't know which ethic is more correct and I'm not sure that I believe there are only two ways to approach effectiveness. But I think we can all agree that feeling effective and successful are important to feeling in control and confident and I hope to explore both approaches (among many others) in this blog.
   
   In Habit #2: Begin With The End In Mind, Covey suggests that you take a moment to think about what you would want a member of your social network, your family and a community organization that you're involved with to say about you at your funeral.
   
   "Now think deeply," he writes, "What would you like each of these speakers to say about you and your life? What character would you like them to have seen in you? What contributions, what achievements would you want them to remember? What difference would you like to have made in their lives?"
   
   And now here's the real clencher... "Before you read further, take a few minutes to jot down your impressions. It will greatly increase your personal understanding of Habit 2." Damn't.. sigh.. and so I was stuck jotting ideas on a napkin..
   
   (By the way, if you're wondering what happened to Habit #1: Be proactive a.k.a. "work inside your circle of influence" and "if you think the problem is out there, that's the problem". Well, you're looking at it.)
   
   I had heard of this eulogy/obituary exercise before and to be honest it never really resonated with me. I understand that it should highlight what you truly value and help you work backwards to prioritize your life and work towards those goals. But in addition to being, well.. morbid, I also tend to think it gives too much weight to what you want people to think about you. While beginning to ponder the questions, it put me into a manipulative mindset, asking myself how I get my friends/family/etc to say what I want them to say about me. But perhaps this says more about me and my tendencies than it says about the merits of the exercise.
   
   Here are my napkin jottings. Please read as if there is a question mark after every statement because that was the tone of the voice dictating each line in my head. And I apologize in advance for all the cringing you are about to experience...
   
   She was happy. (Remember, read: "She was happy?") She felt lucky.She was surrounded by people she loved and who loved her. People wanted her in their lives. One of the most interesting people I've met. Never dull. You'd never know what she was going to say. She made life interesting. She was brilliant, but almost just as notably, she was curious. People wanted to be around her. She had a way of making people feel comfortable and wanted and accepted. She wanted to understand everything. She wanted to be involved in everything. She was a mathematician, a business woman, a chef and food critic, a planner, a writer, a thinker, a philanthropist, an anthropologist, a strategist, an explorer, an adventurer, a curiosity, a language prodigy, a wonderful friend and loving mother. She had no regrets.
   
   Okay, so I took some liberties here, but be proud of me for actually uploading my unedited scribbles. It's actually (even more) embarassing because I don't think I would've written something much different in 3rd grade.. how far I've come. Don't worry, my ego is not actually this big (and misdirected/delusional) but the exercise instructions didn't say to limit by my actual level of intellect, skills, behavioral tendencies, etc so I ran with it.
   
   While I feel it did point out quite a few of my insecurities and to some extent some of the things I want or think I want in life, again I didn't feel like I was getting to the core of it. I actually wanted to come up with a few things I could feel proud of and live by and work towards instead of taking a 5-minute stab in the dark with my pen and a napkin. But how do I do that? Keep in mind you're asking a 26 year old what she wants in life...
   
   So here is my plan, to be tackled this week (and diligently written about next Sunday, of course). Instead of daydreaming and musing, I am going to take a more systematic approach. Obviously from my scribbles you can tell I have no real idea what a eulogy or an obituary might sound like. And given my limited life experience I haven't had exposure to the breadth of life experiences and character qualities that can be highlighted therein. And just generally I don't know what makes for a meaningful and interesting discussion of a person's life... I've never attended a funeral and if you can believe it, the obituaries are not my `flip-to' section of the NYT. In addition, I have no idea what I could write in a mock obituary for my future self that would feel uplifting and satisfying to my current self right now.
   
   I know I've flipped past countless examples in the obituaries section of the NYT, The Economist, The Atlantic... so I've decided to go back and actually read them. While perusing the web editions of these publications, I found troves of obituaries that I can't wait to read: David Foster Wallace, Bobby Fischer, Laurence Urdang, Yves Saint Laurent, Mary Garber, Charlton Heston. Obviously these lives were selected by these journals because the people who led them were luminaries and pioneers in their time and I don't expect to hold myself to quite as high a standard. But I think this will provide some good fodder and am very interested to learn what will stand out to me, what I will and won't want people to say about me and to eventually help me realize at least a few ideas that I want to internalize and make my own.
   
   Will report back shortly...



2. To put it simply, this book is life changing. Buy this book now, and become a more productive, effective person.



3. Great book, read or listen. A must read for any driven person trying to seperate himor herself from the pack, at work, school or in general.



4. The book was in really good condition. It's a great book. Anyone who likes to read should check it out.



5. To be blunt, I struggle with this book. It is written in a convoluted style which tends to either lose or demotivate me--or both. Without question, the process is first rate--seven habits that are proven to make anyone more effective. However, even after reading the book, listening to the tapes, and attending the two-day workshop, I find myself not implementing this process--and I am generally a very disciplined person.
   
   What interests me most about this book is the company behind it. I consider the Dale Carnegie system to be superior to the Covey system (although Covey would argue the two are entirely different and thus incomparable). However, by purchasing the Franklin calendaring company, and integrating their process into Outlook software, daytimers, etc, Covey has created a empire that outflanked and outperformed the Carnegie system. So despite being superior, the Carnegie system has become so out of date it is nearly antiqued by a leaner, more nimble company with an inferior product that simply out-maneuvered the superior competition. A great study in "change or die"."

5 comments about Think and Grow Rich (Your Coach in a Box).

1. Why would you listen to music or talk back radio when there are such fantastic audio books out there to listen to while you drive around?
   
   Although this book was originally written so long ago the principles in the book still work just as well today if applied to your life as they did when Napoleon Hill first wrote the book.
   
   If you are serious about changing your results and your life and truly want to think and grow rich you must listen to or read this book over an over, and most importantly implement the processes in your life.
   
   By doing so you will start to see your life transform right before your eyes!
   
   Tony Bourke
   Speaker, Author, Business Adviser
   www.tonybourke.com.au



2. Saw a recommendation for this in a trade journal. Best money I ever spent. Good, solid, researched, time tested advice. You must be open and ready to work. But, if you are the skies the limit.



3. I liked the prices on Amazon ,but hated how long it took me to receive 1 Audio book & 1 dvd - I would rather pay more than have to way almost 2-1/2 week to receive what i paid for .You want the money upfront ,but cant get me what I paid for in a few days .I wont buy for Amazon again my time is valueable - Kim ESpinoza



4. If every person would read, understand, and apply the principles in "Think and Grow Rich" the world would be a wealthier place both physically and spiritually. Do not deprive yourself of this knowledge. This is information that should be taught in the public schools instead of the ridiculous, useless information on the current cirriculum.
   
   "Think and Grow Rich" is the result of Napoleon Hill's 20 years of dilligent research of over 500 most successful people and what they have in common. Mr. Hill describes in detail the principles that will help you develop the skills to harness your most powerful asset which is your mind, and provides the time-tessted and proven formula to literally "Think and Grow Rich."
   
   Listen to this audio cd while you drive, sleep, shower, complete your household chores, around the clock, all day, everyday until you realize that all you will ever need to know to learn how to become wealthy is in this book.



5. This is one of my favorite Books on CD, I listen to it almost weekly. Most professional I know, know of this book and recommend it. It is based in the early part of the 1900's with Ford, Carnige, Edison. I think if you have people that not only made money, but changed the world people need to listen and take their advice and that is what this book is about.

5 comments about Outliers: The Story of Success.

1. This book contends success is not merely a product of intelligence and hard work alone. Contrary to the solid American myth, chance and culture play critical roles in making people successful. The first two factors: IQ and effort are mandatory, but the second two: chance and culture are also crucial to producing success. Gladwell posits a "10,000-Hour Rule" in any field of endeavor to become an expert, along with a reasonably strong IQ. However, cultural norms, ethnic backgrounds, economic markets and other (often random factors) were instrumental in the successes of Beatles, Bill Gates, Korean pilots, and inner-city school children.
   
   The take-away is an awareness of your circumstance, not just your effort and IQ, as a critical factor in your success. Readers of this book should take a hard look at the natural advantages the world is offering to help them become successful.



2. This is an excellent book and highly recommended for those that want to get a clear picture of how some succeed and other do not. The author points out that many factors come into play for success how ever one may define success. Success is sometime a matter of chance circumstance, rather than hard work.



3. I have been so tired of reading similar books, and I came across "Outliers."
   Even though I don't agree everything about "born in right time & right place," if you always seek to leave a mark and intellectual growth gives you tremenous joy and happiness, you will certainly enjoy this book.
   I got an audio book version. Malcolm's voice is also very pleasant to listen.
   Out of all his books, I enjoyed this one the best and "What the dog saw" the least.



4. The author detests the idea of individual abilities and efforts being the "key" to success, and goes to great effort to prove that other factors and environment and luck are the key. Some of the factual analysis is correct and fascinating, such as why Canadian hockey stars are heavily-weighted toward certain months of birth, or why Asians excel at language and hard work.
   
   But the book is severely marred by errors, bias, self-indulgence, and even ... let's be honest, falsehood. And the author exudes a stench of racism.
   
   Self-indulgence is worst in the last chapter, an interminable recounting of his family background and how the mean 'ol slaveowners were ever so mean to the poor ol' slaves. Overlong, boring, pointless, but useful if you have insomnia.
   
   There are also factual errors, slovenliness, and obvious lack of fact-checking which color some chapters and make the reader wonder about the entire book. Some of the most striking occur in the fascinating chapter about cultural attitudes and pilot safety. Screaming errors like stating that the signals from a VOR beacon tell a pilot his altitude make a pilot's jaw drop at such idiocy. And then make him wonder whether the same errors or even dishonesty are elsewhere in the book. The same chapter, incidentally, is vague and occasionally wrong about terminology, and strikingly vague about explaining "proper" procedure. Astonishingly, the author doesn't even mention the worst airline disaster in history, caused to a great degree by "cockpit culture."
   
   Disclosure: I've met the author in person and seen him on TV. I lost much respect after hearing several falsehoods. And when, on TV, he said that Barack Obama is a fine choice because the important thing was to have a President who is "part black" (like the author).
   
   A nice read. And if you're having trouble sleeping, the final chapter is a godsend.



5. I enjoyed this book tremendously. It is well written and very thought provoking. Meritocracy is an ingrained element of our society. Gladwell attacks that notion, however, and does so in a very rational, methodical and well-supported fashion. My summary of the book: luck + hard work + reasonable brain power + reasonable to high "social" intelligence = success. The "luck" factor is what those living under the meritocracy myth like to overlook. Who your parents are; when you were born; where you were born; where you live; etc. -- these things matter immensely. This is a must read for those in employment hiring and college admissions positions (or similar positions). Heck, the best evidence of the premise of this book is George W. Bush -- does anyone think that he would have been president if not for Daddy Bush and the family and life circumstances he was born into?!

5 comments about Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?.

1. Insightful book, makes you question and examine goals in life. A bit of a struggle to stay fosued in early chapters, but excellent once you discipline throu it. Relatively quick read. Recommended for everyone!



2. I spent most of the time reading this book with a lump in my throat and a tightness in my chest that didn't let up until I finished. Seth understands what it feels like to be the linchpin. To know what would fall apart if you walked away from what you do. The fact that he acknowledges that there is no map going forward makes the impact all the more poignant: the only plan forward is the one you create in your head. I'll probably have to sit for a couple more days blinking back tears. But then I'm gonna get up and ship my art. (PS - Seth, we met briefly. Page 201. Thanks again for coming.)



3. This book is a tremendous tool for self-evaluation, but the real benefit is when you use it to identify the linchpins in your company. Seth Godin has put clarity and definition to what makes a true leader - someone who gets projects done. The people who "ship" regularly make everyone's job worthwhile, more effective and create value for our company. Thanks for such a great book. I'm passing on my copies to the linchpins, with a note of congratulations.



4. Helps you realize that every person is responsible for their actions. It is up to each of us to control our own destiny.



5. This is a wonderful book for anyone navigating today's economic waters. Seth Godin expresses in readily accessible language why everyone's an entrepreneur today--and we should all think like artists. His concept of "The Resistance"--that inner voice, sometimes formless, omnipresent anxiety that distracts and holds ones back from one's best work--is memorable. It's also useful. His down-to-earth examples, many from his own life, resonate universally.

5 comments about The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness.

1. wonderful product, Dave Ramsey reading it himself makes it even better, the dynamics he puts into it are remarkable.



2. Since I don't really read, I've been listening to it for the past couple of weeks in my car on the way to & from work... to say the least, it's changed my life. I now have a clear vision for getting out of debt & changing my life into a financially free life from a shackled life governed by debt. It's taught me everything that I should've learned from my parents.



3. In this bad economy, this book is a must read. It teaches you about your attitude when addressing money issues. Use this book to make a pathway out of debt and into debt freedom.



4. Great book only if you are truly dedicated to change. I hope I am!!



5. ...I love this man. Not a Christian myself but I admire Dave Ramsey for living out his principles. Inspired by his radio show ([...]), I paid off the remaining $12,000 of my student loan debt in 8 months...and now I'm debt free! Now on to baby step 3...

5 comments about Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us.

1. Excellent for anyone interesed in motivating people: adults or children. A must read for educators!



2. Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us
   
   My name is David Marquet, from Practicum, Inc and we help our customers structure their organizations to maximize the potential of their people. We call this leadership. When we talk with our clients one of the things we ask them is "do you need your boss to motivate you?" Very few people raise their hands. Thus, it wasn't a surprise to read in Daniel Pink's recent book, Drive, that people do not respond best to external motivation.
   
   Pink's book is very helpful because it clearly illuminates and explains what we've observed - that external motivation ends up feeling like manipulation and that people will do better in a structure that allows them to find their own intrinsic sources of motivation.
   
   What are the characteristics of those structures? Pink tells us they are structures that enable individual autonomy, mastery, and purpose. In our practice, we had been emphasizing control, competence, and connection as being important. While control parallels autonomy and mastery parallels autonomy, purpose is an element we had not singled out.
   
   We think Pink is right, though. Connecting your activity to a higher purpose does give people a reason beyond the immediate that seems necessary to sustain enduring loyalty to the mission. This was particularly true aboard submarines, where crews that understood how their tasks, however difficult, supported a greater goal (defending the Constitution, for example), performed better.
   
   Drive is a quick read and we recommend it.



3. Daniel Pink's Drive is a must read for everyone. Again and again Pink illustrates the gapping difference between what the scientific data says about motivation and what businesses are doing.
   
   The book is divided into three sections. Sections two and three should be read by everyone. However, after the motivation 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 discussion, the first section of the book can be skipped by anyone who has read Dan Ariely's Predictably Irrational, Ori and Rom Brafman's Sway or Marc Gerstein's Flirting with Disaster. Those of you who haven't yet read these books need to read all of section one because it`s a concise review of mush of the subject matter contained in these other books. For those of you who like to be thorough, Pink's review is mostly entertaining and worth the read.
   
   Sections two and three should be mandatory reading for everyone immersed (drowning?) in corporate culture and those who have escaped. Section two describes motivation 3.0 in greater detail (autonomy, mastery and purpose). Highlights for me in section two were the concept of ROWE - results only work environment espoused by Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson and a revisiting of Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's concept of flow.
   
   Section three was by far my favorite though because it gave details regarding how to incorporate the three major characteristics (autonomy, mastery and purpose) into your life. Practical advice! Advice you and I can use to make change in ourselves and in our environments. Read the book, It won't take too much time and you'll learn a lot.



4. Drive by Daniel Pink is a quality reflection on what motivates others and yourself. Some of his ideas are new and others are ones that we, as a reader, may just not have thought of recently. The book is simply set into three parts and here is my summary of the parts. Part 1: How does motivation play a role in society? Part 2: 3 keys to being a driven person, Part 3: Tool kit to become better. The best part of the entire book is in the tool kit portion which is dedicated to make you a more driven person as well as focusing hard on "driving" those who may work for you to be better. This book is both technical and practical. The ideas written about are not revolutionary but really make you think of how to do things better. Drive is a solid read that is very much set up for people who are leaders within any type of organization or those who are wanting to better themselves.



5. The three poinst Pink makes are that intrinsic motivation is based on purpose, mastery and autonomy.
   There are some great examples and he makes some great points. The book gets a bit redundant at the end. I think
   there are other books about intrinsic motivation that are excellent as well such as Flow and Full Throttle, which I would recommend.

5 comments about How to Win Friends & Influence People.

1. I'll keep it simple. The book is told from a perspective that always believes that self is right. Sure it's got some truthful points, but it's all told from a perspective that treats all exterior forces as being in the wrong. This writer has no humility, and I'm afraid that anyone who reads this book will believe that the world is at fault, that self is always right, and that you have to be sly and manipulative in order to overcome the obstacles of all the dumb people out there. The truth is that everyone has a story. No one is trying to be malicious. This book would almost be good if it weren't told from the perspective of self-righteous know-it-all.



2. I love this book. It is a must-read for every salesperson. I'm not a salesperson, but I immensely enjoyed this book. I borrowed it so many times from the library, I decided to buy a copy. I loved all the old stories about Lincoln and other famous figures that may have been common knowledge when this book was written (in the 1930s) but I had never heard them. This book changed my son's life. In one day, he got the phone numbers of all the people who sit at his lunch table - just by following the advice in this book. It has certainly rocketed him to success in high school. (All this popularity didn't do much for his grades though.) I can't say enough good things about this book. Oh, one more thing - the guy who reads it has an excellent voice.



3. It's a great book, but 8 CD's is overkilled. Actually, 1 CD could do the job.



4. Wonderful book. I wish I had read it 50 years ago. It should be the textbook for a class in high school.



5. I rarely write reviews. But I felt a need to voice serious and strong objection to many of the stories used in this book, particularly in the Leadership section of the book. Many examples are rife with passive aggressive behavior in which the author suggests readers should prefix what essentially is a command or expectation with flowery praise somewhat related to the coming edict. The result is a passive aggressive slap in the face.
   
   As a manager or friend or family member or employee or what ever, you don't need to build someone up to ask them or tell them what you need. And you don't need to bury a request within a flowery suggestive praise in a passive aggressive manor. If someone used some of these tactics on me, I would react very badly and state "if I am not performing as required, just come out and tell me what to do better or differently, thank you."
   
   While the author says to never use a "but" in the sense of building someone up with praise before tearing them down, it is still a "yea, but" but any other name or wording. This is really terrible advice even if you stress not to use the "but". You will not earn friends nor influence people including coworkers and directs by using this "yea, but" type methodology and the afore mentioned passive aggressive approach.
   
   There are even a few occurrences in the book which suggest that telling a lie is acceptable. That you can tell a little white lie and win friends and influence people! The text does not out right say you should lie nor does it state that you should do so. But it is an obvious implication if you read the stories in a certain way. Essentially, read this book with a critical eye. The author provides sage advice but often follows that sage advice with examples of poor delivery which occasionally include deception!
   
   The author's best points are made early in the opening pages of the book. Urging readers to consider that every person always believes they are in the right, even if the entire world thinks that they are an evil person. The author also makes good points in that knowing and using names is important. The conversational tone of the book utilizes stories from people and the sums up the stories with a conclusion. The stories are likely rare hits and a world full of misses. Good points mostly but too drawn out and full of stories that don't hit home and seem unrealistic. Maybe they worked in a different time but many come across as phony 75 years later.

5 comments about Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard.

1. I really enjoyed reading this. The book is filled with a ton of case studies to prove the author's points and illustrate the concepts more clearly which makes the book fun to read.



2. The idea of the elephant, the rider and the path is just phenomenal. Worth reading the book even if it is slightly repetitive. Don't expect breakthrough mind bending breakthrough ideas, but instead a lot of inspiration. I was surprised how things ended up resonating in decisions I make every day. Easy , quick read, hard to put down. Perfect for a cross country plane ride.



3. Henry David Thoreau said: "Things do not change, we change."
   
   But how do we change? Why are some changes so difficult to make?
   
   The authors, Chip and Dan Heath, examine the obstacles we often encounter when attempting to change the behavior of ourselves, as well as helping other people or organizations to make beneficial changes.
   
   They begin by explaining that each of us have a rational side and an emotional side. They use the analogy of a huge, powerful elephant as our emotional side, and the rider of the elephant as our rational side. They say that if we want to make changes we have to appeal to both sides. When both sides work together change can come easily.
   
   The book presents a framework that can guide you in any situation where you need to change behavior:
   1] Direct the Rider
   
   2] Motivate the elephant
   
   3] Shape the Path
   
   Among the insights offered are some about resistance and self-control. They say that what appears to be resistance is often a lack of clarity. The rider isn't sure exactly which way to go, and consequently spins his wheels. They make it clear that self-control, unfortunately, is an exhaustible resource, and that the bigger the change to be made, the more it saps people's self-control. When our self-control is drained the mental muscles we need to focus, to think creatively, to inhibit our impulses, and to persist in the face of frustration or failure become weakened as well. So change is often hard not because people are lazy, but because they are worn out. Exhausted.
   
   There are numerous case studies and real-life situations cited that demonstrate how to deal with resistance and self-control while using this framework to manifest successful changes. However, the authors caution that this framework is not a panacea. Sometimes people just flat out don't want to change. Therefore they don't promise that making changes will be always be easy, but their approach will make it easier.
   
   The elephant analogy reminded me of an elephant safari I was on in Thailand. Quite an experience. Reading this book was not as exciting, but infinitely more valuable. Their framework is based on decades of scientific research, is easy to remember, and flexible enough to use in many different situations: work, family, community, and other. Highly recommended.



4. Fantastic book, with well written examples and practical explanations about behaviour change. recommended for anyone who has to ever struggled with implementing change on a personal or managerial level.



5. Here we've got a professor of organizational management and a high-powered management consultant, both young (at least from the perspective of my advanced age), who can actually write in an engaging and entertaining way -- and they deliver a message that is truly both profound and practical. Switch is one of the most useful books for managers written in recent years. Combine it with another excellent recent book, Drive by Daniel Pink (reviewed earlier in this blog), and you've got an unbeatable set of tools for anyone faced with the need to engineer change in a business, nonprofit, or government.
   
   What is most remarkable about Switch, aside from the authors' amusing style, is the profusion of fascinating examples drawn from a wide variety of sources, from academics in many disparate fields to self-help literature to personal experiences. However, unlike the authors of most how-to literature, the Heath brothers refer again and again to examples cited earlier in the book, deepening the reader's understanding and making it far more likely that she'll recall at least some of these fascinating stories.
   
   Switch can serve as model for writers of how-to books (and I ought to know, having written a slew of them myself).
   
   As the subtitle makes clear, Switch is about how to bring about change -- in an organization, in a spouse or coworker, or in yourself. The book is organized into three principal sections, corresponding to the three dimensions of successful change-making: the intellectual (referred to here as The Rider), the emotional (here, The Elephant), and the specific course of action (The Path). This concept is based on the image of a person riding atop an elephant and trying to persuade it to move onto an unfamiliar course -- a daunting proposition, as you might imagine. In each of the three sections, the authors cite a substantial number of examples to illustrate the significance of respecting these three elements. Additional examples tie all three together by showing how individual people have successfully engineered change -- often very far-reaching change in business or government -- by pursuing an approach based on an intuitive understanding of the three dimensions. Fascinating!
   
   Just in case you didn't notice: the brothers Heath collaborated on another excellent and useful book three years ago: Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die.
   
   (From Mal Warwick's Blog on Books)

5 comments about The Secret (Unabridged, 4-CD Set).

1. This is an absolute necessity for every person on earth. It speaks to your heart and we should all look at life in this way.



2. This book is very inspirational. I like to think of the universe that it refers to as God, and I feel it is very biblically oriented. I loved it so much that I sent it to all my daughters.



3. The Secret
   Do you want to lose weight? Have a great love life? Be successful in your job? Get rick quickly? According to Rhonda Byrne, we can all have everything we want, by living the rules of life, given to us in her novel ¬The Secret. The Secret was written in 2006, and has become a worldwide phenomenon. With Oprah as a supporter and testimony giver of the realness of the secret, people all over the world are reading, and trying to learn how they too, can have all the things they have ever wanted in life.
   In her book, Byrne focuses on teaching the reader about the power of the mind. She explains that with constant positive thought, we can steer our lives in the direction that we want them to go. She believes and teaches that humans are eternal energies, constantly emitting and attracting energy, whether it is good or bad. The book teaches the reader that by focusing on only the good things in our lives, and the good around us, we will only attract good. She explains that thinking bad thoughts about others or about situations does nothing to hurt others, but it in turn, attracts negative energy towards us. Through the power of thought, Byrne attests "There isn't a single thing that you cannot do with this knowledge. . . . The Secret can give you whatever you want" (p. 11).
   The Secret gives many examples of how living this way of thinking has helped many people throughout history. Byrnes herself came across the secret to life, when she was having a hard time in her life. She began practicing positive thought, and began willing good things her way. After many instances of her positive thoughts coming true, she began to write down her experiences. These written experiences have transcended into the phenomenon that is "The Secret."
   This book has been very helpful to me in my life. Not only in attaining the things I want to attain within my family and my business, but also to help me live a happier life. With the help of this book, I have learned to become more "Zen" and less stressed out in daily life. This in turn has helped me to become a better father and husband.
   Don't get me wrong, I did not agree with everything Byrne teaches in the Secret. From a religious standpoint, I find some of what she writes to be very blasphemous and sacrilegious. She claims that we should thank ourselves daily for our lives, where I feel we should thank our Father in Heaven for our lives. On page 164, Byrne states "You are God in a physical body. You are Spirit in the flesh. You are Eternal Life expressing itself as You. You are a cosmic being. You are all power. You are all wisdom. You are all intelligence. You are perfection. You are magnificence. You are the creator, and you are creating the creation of You on this planet." I struggled with some of the contradictions to my beliefs that were listed in this book, but was able to change the wording in my head, to fit my own beliefs as I read it.
   Despite the contradictions to my religious beliefs, I feel that there is something to be said for positive thinking. The Secret, if followed closely, and practiced, truly can change your life. I have become a better family member, a better business owner, and a better friend, because of the secret. I would recommend reading this book to learn how you can have money, friends, and success, when and how you want it.



4. I love that the book was in great condition and the price i paid was a steal! thanks!



5. I saw the movie and wanted to give the book as a gift. It was very much appreciated. "A good read" I am told. I recommend this book to anyone who would like to make changes in their life.