2 comments about Modelling Financial Times Series.

1. The first edition was published in 1986. It is EXCELLENT. Taylor rigorously studies the use of nonlinear time-series (Box-Jenkins) methods to trade a variety of financial markets, including individual stocks, stock indices, currencies, metals, and agricultural commodities, finding that there is a small trend component in most markets that can be profitably traded. Taylor performed testing of time series back in the early 1980s, when computer power and financial data was much scarcer and more expensive. I am excited to see what he has come up with, now that computers and data are a zillion times cheaper.



2. This is (still) an excellent book, ahead of its time when published in 1986. One of the issues he dealt with was the possible modifications to option pricing models (black-scholes type) that could be made to account for trending markets. This was before the crash of '87 and the subsequent wide-spread adoption of skewed volatility smiles and risk-reversals into option pricing.

   This book is probably out of print permanently, but the author is working on a new book, the provisional title of which is "Asset Price Dynamics and Prediction" Target Date of March 2004. The chapters are loosely based on subjects covered in Modelling Financial Time series.

   Chapter headings for Modelling Financial Time series:

   1. Introduction
   2. Features of financial returns
   3. Modelling price volatility
   4. Forecasting standard deviations
   5. The accuracy of autocorrelation estimates
   6. Testing the random walk hypothesis
   7. Forecasting trends in prices
   8. Evidence against the efficiency of futures markets
   9. Valuing options
   10. Concluding remarks
   Appendix : a computer program for modelling financial time series

No comments about Rocking the Boat: How to Effect Change Without Making Trouble.

No comments about Project Portfolio Management Tools & Techniques.

5 comments about How To Live & Do Business In China.

1. Interesting from first page to last. Writer obviously is a good study of human nature. Worth reading - just for the entertainment. A must if you are planning on doing business there. Understanding the culture and how things are done is critical if you are to succeed. This book takes you through that for China.



2. I read a few books about doing business in China before I found Ernie Tadla's book. I have to say that this is the best book that I have read on this subject.
   
   First, the sub title caught my attention - Eight Lessons I Learned From The Communists.
   
   The style is captivating and it was difficult for me to drop the book., Most importantly, very practical. He was able to articulate solid principles that one needs to adopt to be effective in China's rapidly growing business landscape. Ernie was able to inject a lot of his personal experience as well and by the time I finished reading the book, I felt like I knew him, and that I was ready to go over to China and connect with the flow there.
   
   Ernie was able to explain the basic core of Chinese culture, particularly Confucianism, connecting it with guanxi and how to apply these principles in doing business in China and with every day living in the streets for that matter.
   
   Get the book. Very easy to read. Solid Content. You can start and finish it on your flight to China.
   
   Steve



3. I met Ernie in Shanghai a few years ago when our Dutch senior management development program with De Baak Management Centrum VNO-NCW included a couple of weeks in China to learn more about "doing business in another culture."
   
   Ernie gave us several cross-cultural lectures during our first days in Shanghai. We received a basic understanding of Confucianism, face and guanxi. His sharing of his personal experiences about adaptability and accommodation were very helpful for the company visits in the weeks that followed.
   
   Of course, when I learned that he had published a book,
   "How to Live and Do Business in China" I ordered it immediately.
   The book is a quick and easy read and brought back many good memories.
   
   I certainly agree with Ernie that one should respect and learn from other cultures, integrating the best of all worlds in order to find long-term stability for mankind in our era of globalization.
   
   Read the book, irrespective if you go to China. Don't miss his experiences about living and doing business in China.
   
   Andries E. van der Meulen
   Manager Projectacquisitie
   n.v. Nuon Netwerk Services



4. I just loved this book. It is a succinct education on doing business in China wrapped together with a heartfelt true story.
   It is usually easy to put down an educational book but the story here makes you want to read it right through, it is thought provoking and entertaining.
   I would certainly recommend this book to any person going to China for pleasure travel or business travel.
   Ernie Tadla does not over complicate the basics of understanding the Chinese people in fact he will help you enjoy your visit to China a great deal more with his excellent educational book.
   I might also add it may make us think twice about the way we live with each other here in North America.
   Enjoy
   Thomas G. Taylor



5. Ernie Tadla gets it right. You can't do business in China without really living. And these days, you can't really live in China without doing good business. Pre-Olympics, it's starting to get too damn expensive.
   
   So, How To Live & Do Business In China provides wonderful, insightful instruction into these two very necessary and intertwined areas that combine to make the best of China adventures.
   
   Mr. Tadla, though married (at least at the time of book publication), guides us through sex in Shanghai just as insightfully and humorously as he does through Chinese communication styles. I wish my significant other would let me write so honestly. Kudos, Ernie (and wife, Lovy).

No comments about Managing Up (Pocket Mentor) (Pocket Mentor) (Pocket Mentor).

5 comments about The Power of Nice.

1. During my training as a physician, contract negotiations discussions were not part of the curriculum. Such discussions with our staff were, in fact, discouraged, since our only focus should be to learn medicine and take care of patients. Unfortunately, the art and science of negotiations does have a substantial impact in the ability of a professional to maximize benefit in his/her carreer.
   
   This book was my first introduction to this subject. It was easy and fun to read.
   
   During my job search as an anesthesiologist, this book armed me with the tools I needed to confidently negotiate the right position and compensation package.



2. First of alll, this isn't the usual kind of book I read. I have not read any of the other "self help" authors, but did pick up on a lot of use from the magazines I read. And there are parts that reminded me of Richard Simmons or Oprah. But it didn't bother me so much to get in a little "niceness". It was refreshing to read about how "nice" can work instead of "mean". I have certainly not know anyone to focus on such before. I picked this up since a friend mentioned how much this book helped them be a better person in their professional life. After reading it I think there's a lot to be said about the power of nice. Nice guys can win... ...and you can be a nice guy and be a winner too.



3. Becoming a better negotiator is in everyone's best interest so when one of my students recommended Power of Nice, I was pretty excited about ordering it from Amazon and put it in the queue to read. I really enjoyed the stories in this book. Shapiro has been there, done that in some of the biggest and toughest negotiations in the sports world. If you are a baseball fan, it will bring back memories. And I learned more from the stories than anything else.
   
   I have read this book twice, the first time it didn't quite click and I have a theory why. The book's content is pretty good, but the layout is terrible. I just finished reading a book by Addison Wesley press that had at least 4 times the number of facts per page and power of nice and as always the information was laid out professionally; it helps me to absorb the material. There is another thing that is off putting is how the author keeps saying if you follow the principles in this book you'll get better results and more of what you want and similar. Hey, I already bought the book, quite selling. It reminded me of Richard with his Refuse to Lose's 9 principles in Little Miss Sunshine.
   
   Another small problem and then I will start praising the book again. They use a lot of initials, for instance, the three Ps. Everyone who has ever read a business book knows the three Ps are product, price and positioning, but not here. The three Ps in power of nice are prepare, probe and propose.
   
   However, I just came out of a fairly intense negotiation, I had read the entire book once and spent the days before the negotiation preparing. I let the other side propose first, I probed and I proposed. It all worked. So the book was certainly worth the $20.00 I paid for it and much, much more. And I did get better results and more of what I wanted so Shapiro has every write to claim that. I have not read a better book on negotiation, pick it up and deal with the layout already.



4. I would imagine that since each of us has different personalities and different likes and dislikes that some would be more inclined toward this book than others. Some like Antigues and some modern furniture. Some love good carb snacks and others a great chocolate bar. Our taste vary, but this book is most probably for everyone.
   
   Becuase while we may differ on what color car we want, or or what type of work we do, we all want to win our negotiations, we all want respect first and we all want appreciation. This book teaches the skill of negotiating in a fair way. Fair like it or not means taking a look at the others prespective as much as we hate to do this. (when you are at a ballgame and the umpire makes a call against the home team 50,000 are booing. Can it be that all of the people on the field saw it one way and the home team and home fans another?
   
   Its human nature to want to be right. And human nature to want to be treated fairly. This is a great read. And will produce better results in your negotiations, withhout burning a bridge, becuase that is not a wise way to live.



5. I recently enjoyed BULLIES, TYRANTS & IMPOSSIBLE PEOPLE
   by Ronald M. Shapiro and Mark A. Jankowski so much that I had
   to seek out their first book: THE POWER OF NICE . . . and if I had to do it all over again, I'd
   probably reverse the order of my reading and read this latter book first.
   
   It gives the background for much of what is taught by the two
   authors; i.e., that you should seek to make sure that everybody
   wins in negotiations--but you win bigger . . . to do so, you need
   to understand the "three Ps," which are described as "preparing better
   than the other side; probing so you know what they want and why;
   and proposing, ideally without going first and revealing too much."
   
   If you're a sports fan, you'll like the many examples involving
   such superstars as Eddie Murray, Kirby Puckett, Cal Ripken,
   and Brooks Robinson . . . however, others will be able to relate
   to discussions involving President Carter, home purchases
   and salary negotiations.
   
   I learned much from this book, including:
   * A good negotiation is about dividing the pie so that both sides get a
   satisfactory piece. A better negotiation is one that finds a way to grow
   the pie (increase revenues, add market share, strengthen resources)
   so both sides get a bigger piece. But baseball was playing out the worst
   scenario possible. What had been a 2.5 billion dollar pie was actually
   shrinking. It had taken decades for it to reach that size and, in a matter
   of weeks, it was losing revenue by the millions.
   
   * When people are under pressure, they revert to habits. In order to create
   new habits, you need a simple, systematic approach that you can practice
   and master. I learned that lesson through skydiving, and I learned it again
   and again in negotiation. We do not teach people the 45 best opening
   lines or the 75 greatest closing tactics. If you learn it-that is, practice
   and master what we preach-when the pressure hits, you'll revert to your
   new, learned habit and you'll be a more effective negotiator.
   
   * And this particularly valuable tidbit that I have to put into practice more:
   Shh! (That's another secret to negotiation.) People like to talk. Resist
   the urge. The other side is human, so they want to talk, too. Encourage
   them. Then listen. They're trying to tell you how to make the deal.
   Did you ever notice how often the party opposite you thinks what he or she
   has to say is more important than what you have to say? That's okay.
   Give them a chance and they'll tell you everything you need to know:
   What they hope for, what they can move and where they can't. They may
   tell you directly or subtly. Ask questions. Listen more. Every moment
   you're not talking is an opportunity to learn what it takes to make the
   deal. The best negotiators aren't smooth talkers; they're smooth
   listeners.
   
   The less you say, the more others will remember. It's simple math.
   Say a lot and they're bombarded and overwhelmed. Say a little
   and they can retain every word. And, or course, the less you say,
   the more you can focus on what they say.
   
   THE POWER OF NICE also presented quotes in each chapter
   that pertained to the subject of negotiations, including this
   one from Thomas Jefferson that has very quickly become one
   of my favorites:
   
   When I'm angry, I count to ten before I speak. When I'm very angry,
   I count to one hundred.
   
   That said, I won't even bother doing any counting before recommending
   this very informative book to my fellow members of the Negotiations Team
   at the college where I teach . . . they'll greatly benefit from it, as will
   anybody else seeking insight into what makes others tick when
   they want something.

1 comments about The Aussie Expat - The Luckiest Person on Earth.

1. This book was bought buy my Aussie wife, we've found loads of money saving and investment ideas if we were to move to Australia, if you are intending to move back read this book and save yourself a packet.. It's a small guide, but its a quality one.

No comments about The Foreclosure Mediation Training Guide.

5 comments about Microsoft Project Version 2002 Step by Step (Cpg-Step By Step).

1. I went through the book, cover to cover, word for word...doing all the examples whose files came from the included CD-ROM...never ran into any problems. Everything worked fine.
   I guess I felt like a soldier marching through all the features in a logical progression. The book tells you what to type in step by step...introduces you to all the features (there is a lot that you can do with project 2002 besides manage your own project...eg., you can consolidate projects so that you have a project plan that contains other project plans that you can view and edit...you can create a VBA (Visual Basic Appliation) macro to run and update your HTML project plan...you can learn about Earned Value Analysis, which gives you additional insight into how your project is progressing (maybe similar to the internal rate of return used in Financial analysis to give you a report card on how well your investment is doing)...
   I found the chapters were simple to step through and complete. The authors have a somewhat cut and dried tone that actually seems to suit the purpose at hand well, which is to drag you through all the features and details of project 2002 in a limited amount of space and time....And they do this in 369 pages (the chapters only, not the appendices) instead of over a 1000 pages as some books. So the book is for the beginner in Project, If you already have knowledge of project or read any other books on it, you'll want to find something more intermediate or advanced and this won't do it for you. I liked the book for keeping an even keel and not going off on any tangents...they had a goal to show you all the features and seem to accomplish that...Their treatment of many of the subjects in the book are elementary and you'll need to find other books eg., on VBA, to pursue it further.
   What it purports to do is give you a step by step introductory knowledge of project 2002 with real world examples. So what doesn't it do? What it doesn't do is commit to showing you how to apply project management which is really what you want to do....knowing all the features is nice but show me a coherent "way" to put it into action...I think I need to get another book to do that.



2. This book is designed to bring you up to speed on how to use the various features of Microsoft Project 2002, and it achieves that goal well.

   It contains a well written Appendix entitled "A Short Course in Project Management", and various "Project Management Focus" paragraphs throughout the book, but it is not really intended to teach you project management. For that, I suggest you read a project management text without a software focus, such as Project Management for Dummies by Stan Portny.

   Just as you would not expect a book on Microsoft Word to teach you how to write using good grammar, you should not expect this book on Microsoft Project to also teach you all you need to know about project management.

   I use this book to teach various Project 2002 courses, and I find it works well. However, a prerequiste for my classes is a project management theory class that uses only pen and paper. I have found this to be a powerful combination.




3. The Step-by-Step series on MS Project has been a staple for several years now. Don't expect a lot of advanced coverage, but the book is a solid starter book with clearly written instructions and a fairly engaging case-based set of exercises.

   Work through the exercises, though. It's a "hands-on" kind of book!




4. I spent 2 months on this book, and practised using the trial software that came with the book. Believe me - that was all I needed to get certified. I just needed one attempt! No retaking business at all. I am now Microsoft Office Specialist in Microsoft Project 2002! I did not spend on any other training or books. This book deserves 5 stars and nothing less. Thanks to the authors who did a splendid job.



5. In a word disappointing. Microsoft Project can seem like a bewildering collection of data, options, and interrelationships to the new student. Step-by-step provides some context by going through many of the tasks that you would actually execute if you were using the tool to produce and manage a project schedule. However, it does not leave reader prepared to produce and manage a real schedule of his/her own.

   There is no discussion of strategies for schedules e.g. should you consider effort-controlled tasks, if you don't what's the best way to update your schedule, if you do what's the best way to update your schedule??? There is little discussion of "task types" and the pivotal role they play, how those choices impact updating the schedule, resource leveling, and incongruous operations that the tool will allow you to perform without protest. Perhaps because the producer of the software wrote the book there is absolutely no mention of the tool's shortcomings and how they can be avoided.

   After reading this book the reader will be able to create a schedule, but will probably become bogged down in difficulty if they try to manage a project by maintaining that schedule.

   I used the book as part of my study for the Microsoft Office Specialist exam. I found that I needed to do a lot of supplemental study in order to pass the test.

5 comments about PgMP Flashcard Quicklet: Flashcards in a Book for Passing the Program Management Professional Exam.

1. This book offers a very useful quick reference for program management and quick review for the PgMP exam prep. A very comprehensive coverage for all the essential program management concepts covered by the PgMP exam and by the program management and other related standards by PMI. I can say it because I have gone through all those references and almost all other program management books... However, do not mistake it as a substitute for a study guide. That said the book is very self contained.
   I like this design of flashcards in a book. It serves the same purpose as individual flashcards. Who would like to see individual flash cards scattered around without any order...and then you start losing them...
   I recommend this book highly...



2. In my opinion, this flashcard book presents a very comprehensive and self-contained quick review of program management (and your PgMP exam preparation) in a very logical way. It takes a lot of experience to produce such a gem. I'm also going to use it as a quick reference after passing the exam. And yes, I do prefer "flashcards in a book" concept rather than individual (loose) flashcards.



3. Well, I have not taken the PgMP exam yet, but from my experience with other PMI exams and standards, I can tell that this book looks like a great review of program management. After going through this book, I'm all excited to go through a PgMP Study Guide to learn the details. Very logical and self contained.



4. This book by Dr. Sanghera is for the PgMP exam what Hot Topics by Rita is for the PMP exam, and even more. I read Rita's Hot Topics on PMP exam before taking the exam and liked it very much. This book PgMP Flashcard Quicklet does the same for the PgMP exam in a very self contained way. It covers almost all the topics mentioned in the PgMP Exam Specifications by the PMI. You can use this book for quick review of your exam preparation regardless which PgMP exam study guide you use (there are not many of them out there yet, I have learned that the PgMP Study Guide by Dr. Sanghera is already shipping).
   Anyway, I highly recommend the PgMP Flashcard Quicklet for the PgMP Exam and also as a quick reference.



5. Reviews all the relevant core concepts from all the references for the PgMP Exam: Program ManagementStandard, PgMP Exam Spec, and PMBOK 3rd Edition. The review is very self contained and comprehensive. These are flashcards in a book to review the basic concepts for the PgMP exam like Rita's Hot Topics for the PMP exam. Do not take it as a practice exam questions book. While preparing for the PgMP exam, I found it a very useful tool in addition to Dr. Sanghera's PgMP Exam Study Guide.
   That said, no book can substitute for your experience that the exam requires.