“Photographers are not heart surgeons living by exact rules, though we know them, we’re artists and create our own palate when we break the rules effectively.”
Rolando Gomez
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The Rules of Work, Expanded Edition: A Definitive Code for Personal Success (Richard Templar’s Rules)
Some people are simply great at their job. They always seem to say the right thing; do the right thing. They are mentioned in every conversation. Everybody likes them. They get promoted. They get pay rises. They get along with the boss. And somehow,
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Girl on Top: Your Guide to Turning Dating Rules into Career Success
Nicole Williams is the tell-it-like-it-is career expert who you wish could fight your work battles for you. But with her ingenious approach-taking the tactics used to land a man and applying them to your career-you’ll be able to handle any work situa
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Mob Rules: What the Mafia Can Teach the Legitimate Businessman Reviews
Mob Rules: What the Mafia Can Teach the Legitimate Businessman
The average Mafia don knows more about effective leadership than any Fortune 500 CEO.
The Mob is notorious for its cruel and immoral practices, but its most successful members have always been extremely smart businessmen. Now, former mobsteList Price: $ 25.95
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Girl on Top: Your Guide to Turning Dating Rules into Career Success
Nicole Williams is the tell-it-like-it-is career expert who you wish could fight your work battles for you. But with her ingenious approach-taking the tactics used to land a man and applying them to your career-you’ll be able to handle any work situa
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First, Break All The Rules: What The Worlds Greatest Managers Do Differently
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In First, Break All the Rules, Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman of the Gallup Organization present the remarkable findings of their massive indepth study of great managers. In today’s tight labor markets, companies compete to find and keep the be
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Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School
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In Brain Rules, Dr. John Medina, a molecular biologist, shares his lifelong interest in how the brain sciences might influence the way we teach our children and the way we work. In each chapter, he describes a brain rulewhat scientists know for sur
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“Headhunter” Hiring Secrets: The Rules of the Hiring Game Have Changed . . . Forever!
“FACT: The job market is a viciously competitive and is being played with new rules. It’s way more aggressive than any you’ve seen before and it’s going to stay that way! This is a MUST read. Ignore it at your career peril!” —- David Perry, Co-auth
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The Drunkard’s Walk: How Randomness Rules Our Lives
With the born storyteller’s command of narrative and imaginative approach, Leonard Mlodinow vividly demonstrates how our lives are profoundly informed by chance and randomness and how everything from wine ratings and corporate success to school gr
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First, Break All the Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently
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The greatest managers in the world seem to have little in common. They differ in sex, age, and race. They employ vastly different styles and focus on different goals. Yet despite their differences, great managers share one common trait: They do not
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Social Media Metrics: How to Measure and Optimize Your Marketing Investment (New Rules Social Media Series) Reviews
Social Media Metrics: How to Measure and Optimize Your Marketing Investment (New Rules Social Media Series)
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The only guide devoted exclusively to social media metrics Whether you are selling online, through a direct sales force, or via distribution channels, what customers are saying about you online is now more important than your advertising. Soci
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Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School Reviews
Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School
- ISBN13: 9780979777745
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See how the brain works while using it in the process of reading this book! Most of us have no idea what’s really going on inside our heads. Yet brain scientists have uncovered details every business leader, parent, and teacher should know – like tha
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Inbound Marketing: Get Found Using Google, Social Media, and Blogs (New Rules Social Media Series) Reviews
Inbound Marketing: Get Found Using Google, Social Media, and Blogs (New Rules Social Media Series)
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Stop pushing your message out and start pulling your customers in
Traditional “outbound” marketing methods like cold-calling, email blasts, advertising, and direct mail are increasingly less effective. People are getting better at blocking
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The Ultimate Sales Machine: Turbocharge Your Business with Relentless Focus on 12 Key Strategies
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Chet Holmes helps his clients blow away both the competition and their own expectations. And his advice starts with one simple concept: focus! Instead of trying to master four thousand strategies to improve your business, zero in on the few essential
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Bhavana Musuluri
Review by Bhavana Musuluri for Inbound Marketing: Get Found Using Google, Social Media, and Blogs (New Rules Social Media Series)
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I’m stealing one of the often used words in the book to define the book itself – remarkable. This book is fantastic and easy to read. As you read each chapter, the authors take you through each step in successfully marketing your products. This book is not filled with theories, but it rather cleverly explains each winning strategy which is relevant in this day and age, and then sums up each chapter with a list of things to do to implement the strategy. The best part is that anybody who is willing to invest time and brains can use this book as a reference and start creating value to their company immediately and of course build on it overtime. The book shows new techniques that doesn’t require an old-school marketing guru with tens of years of experience. In fact, a person with a little bit of creativity can use this book to REALLY get customers and sell their products.Couple of other things that I liked about the book are the particular examples (other organizations/blog articles/etc) that were provided and the cartoons – who doesn’t enjoy a chuckle every few pages?
Absolute bang for your buck and once you pick up the book, you will finish it!
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Neil Davidson
Review by Neil Davidson for Inbound Marketing: Get Found Using Google, Social Media, and Blogs (New Rules Social Media Series)
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This excellent book is aimed at the 99% of the business world who are faintly befuddled by the strange world of youtube and delicious that they find themselves living in. It’s aimed at plumbers, hairdressers, lawyers and oil company executives; at people in large corporations and small businesses alike who are dimly aware that their working lives are about to change – indeed, have already started to change in disconcerting ways – and who don’t know what to do.The premise of the book is that the old marketing is dead or dying. Gone are the days where simply throwing money at print or radio advertising guaranteed succees. Instead, you need to engage your customers. Give them reasons to come to visit your web site, and once they are there give them reasons to come back again and again. Turn your web site into a hub, stuffed with remarkable blog posts, videos and interviews. As the authors put it (they have a pleasing way with words) “ten years ago, your marketing effectiveness was a function of the width of your wallet. Today, your marketing effectiveness is a function of the width of your brain.”
“Inbound marketing” is clearly – and explicitly – inspired by authors such as Seth Godin and David Meerman Scott. But where this book differs is in its emphasis on hands-on advice. Not only is it inspirational, but it’s also brimming with practical wisdom. Sure, it talks about the power of Twitter. But then it gives you advice on how to choose a twitter handle. Sure, it talks about the rise of the superstar blogger and the death of the press release. But then it talks about how to decide whether you need a PR agency and, if you do, then how you should hire one. Sure, it stresses that your employees will need to learn new skills if they are to survive in this new world. But then it talks about what those skills are, what steps your employees need to take to get them and how you can track how they’re doing. Each chapter contains a checklist of things you should do, right now, to start improving your inbound marketing.
This is no dry textbook. It’s full of anecdotes, some from the usual suspects (Whole Foods, Zappos and Barack Obama) but from others too: accounting software, a shutter manufacturer and a PR firm among others. It’s well written, and there are cartoons too.
Inbound marketing – get found using Google, social media and blogs is an excellent, mainstream introduction to new marketing. If you want to dip your toes into the cold water of social media then buy a copy. If you know all about social media then you almost certainly know people who need this book. Buy them a copy from Amazon. They’ll love you for it.
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Jeanne Yocum
Review by Jeanne Yocum for Inbound Marketing: Get Found Using Google, Social Media, and Blogs (New Rules Social Media Series)
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If you’re brand new to the world of Internet marketing and social media, this is the book for you. The authors cover the essential topics in clear prose that is quick and easy to read. For someone who already has Facebook and Twitter accounts and knows about Digg and other bookmarking sites and perhaps even has a blog already, there is probably not much here that you don’t already know. I would assume given their business that the authors know much more indepth information than they shared in this first book; I hope they get around to writing a second one for people with more social media experience. -
D. Nielsen
Review by D. Nielsen for Inbound Marketing: Get Found Using Google, Social Media, and Blogs (New Rules Social Media Series)
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In 1999 a wise group of internet visionaries nailed 95 theses on the virtual front door of the internet. They called their movement the Cluetrain Manifesto (do a Google search) and here are their first 10 theses:1. Markets are conversations.
2. Markets consist of human beings, not demographic sectors.
3. Conversations among human beings sound human. They are conducted in a human voice.
4. Whether delivering information, opinions, perspectives, dissenting arguments or humorous asides, the human voice is typically open, natural, uncontrived.
5. People recognize each other as such from the sound of this voice.
6. The Internet is enabling conversations among human beings that were simply not possible in the era of mass media.
7. Hyperlinks subvert hierarchy.
8. In both internetworked markets and among intranetworked employees, people are speaking to each other in a powerful new way.
9. These networked conversations are enabling powerful new forms of social organization and knowledge exchange to emerge.
10. As a result, markets are getting smarter, more informed, more organized. Participation in a networked market changes people fundamentally.
The Cluetrain Manifesto accurately predicted the societal and market changes we’re now seeing with the power of Facebook fan pages, blogging, Twitter and the millions of pages of discussion boards and blog comments powerfully indexed and available via Google and others. When we are interested in a product or service, we search, post, tweet, or blog about potential options and we rely on other humans – not the stale flat voice of corporate marketing – to guide us to the best one.
“Inbound Marketing” is the best guide I’ve seen for how your organization can tell their story with a human voice and how to spread that story using the full power of the internet. Brian and Dharmesh simplify the concepts of blogging, search engine optimization, and the social media tools that can connect your company with people who are interested in what you offer.
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Erika S. Lehman
Review by Erika S. Lehman for Inbound Marketing: Get Found Using Google, Social Media, and Blogs (New Rules Social Media Series)
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This is an ideal read for anyone seeking a successful marketing strategy without breaking the bank. Halligan and Shah waste no time in establishing their point: consumer behavior has changed, and marketers needs to catch up. At the turn of the century, reaching out and educating consumers was easily accomplished via outbound marketing techniques including: telemarketing, television, radio, print advertising, direct mail, trade shows, and even email blasts. These techniques have become less and less effective in recent years; not because they have weakened, but because people have become better at tuning them out and blocking numerous forms of outbound marketing. Rather than relying on an outbound campaign to inform them of a product or service, people turn to the internet for answers, utilizing Google, blogs, and social media to outfit them with enough information to make an informed decision. Therefore, Inbound Marketing stresses that for a company to successfully market their products and services, they must adjust their strategy to cater to their online consumer, and implement inbound marketing into their overall marketing strategy.In Sixteen chapters, Halligan and Shah outfit their readers with a successful marketing strategy by addressing and conquering the changing state of marketing in four distinct parts: An overview of what inbound marketing is and how it works, strategies to getting found online, strategies to converting prospects into leads and leads into customers, and suggestions for staying ahead of the curve (and your competition). In addition to educating readers on the importance of inbound marketing and teaching them how to getting started, Inbound Marketing is full of concrete examples of how companies have utilized inbound marketing to successfully grow their business. Likewise, the book has been endorsed by prominent social media gurus such as Guy Kawasaki and Seth Godin, and is recommended by eCoast and numerous other Hubspot certified partners.
Inbound Marketing is an ideal read for anyone looking to grow their business by generating leads and converting these leads into customers. Readers will gain valuable insight on the dynamic state of marketing, a comprehensive understanding of how to optimize their site to get found by prospects, a solid method of converting prospects into leads and leads into customers, and credible recommendations to utilize when moving forward. The process is comprehensive, thorough, and has produced remarkable results; but like all marketing strategies, it is just a strategy, and will only produce results if implemented properly. The reader must be willing to trust the plan outlined by Halligan and Shah, and stick to it in order to get results. Inbound Marketing offers readers the tips, tricks, and training needed to hit a home run, but only if they’re willing to step up to the plate.
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Nick Fury
Review by Nick Fury for The Ultimate Sales Machine: Turbocharge Your Business with Relentless Focus on 12 Key Strategies
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I am another one who does not understand why this book has gotten so many 5-star reviews. Essentially, I have just finished reading “How to Sell without being a Jerk!” by John Klymshyn and these two books seem to pull at the same topic from two completely different angles.Chet Holmes take on Sales is, I feel, to wear the client down with repeated calls and sales pitch till they give in. He advocates that someone with High Influence (that is, an ability to empathize with others) and a High Ego (High drive and determination – never say die attitude) is absolutely necessary to be a Superstar Salesperson. At the end of the day, this never say die attitude requires you to push your product (because you feel that it is good for your client, regardless of what he thinks) relentlessly until he gives in and buys from you.
All these is good as long as the product which your client buys works out for him at the end. Alas, I’m into Structured Products Sales in a Private Bank and sometimes we all know that some products do not work out well if the markets are not cooperative! The failure of a product is never covered in any of Chet’s materials. All his stories have happy endings – the executive who after 6 months gave in and bought advertisement space (through his relentless selling) and again bought more advertisement space after some more months when the first series of advertisements did not make any impact FINALLY saw the truth in Chet’s words when his sales jumped etc etc – Never has Chet’s advice been wrong or the products he sold not worked out (or these have been pleasantly omitted).
I think the book has some useful gems to take away and it has helped me address some of the weaknesses in my own selling. However, this ‘Take No prisoners’ approach may not be for everybody all of the time.
Also, I do not agree with his material on Presentation. He mentioned that it is necessary to have a very dramatic and visual approach to your slides to have your clients at the edge of their seats. In addition, humor is often an effective and useful content to have in your presentation. NOTHING WRONG HERE. However, this presentation style may not be for everyone. I’ve been trained in presentations and have learnt that doing a presentation with NO SLIDES is also a very effective way to conduct a presentation because then the audience would have to pay attention to you instead of staring at the slides. I’m not saying that one is right and the other wrong – I feel that at the end of the day, YOU would have to decide what is most comfortable ane effective for you and your audience when giving a presentation.
Chet’s way is definitely one way to succeed in Sales – he is a living example. But to call his way the Ultimate Sales Machine is just over the top.
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John Chancellor
Review by John Chancellor for The Ultimate Sales Machine: Turbocharge Your Business with Relentless Focus on 12 Key Strategies
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No matter what business you are in, no matter what product or service you provide, you can benefit from the wisdom of the “Ultimate Sales Machine”.The book starts off where most of the work is needed … with top management. Everyone today complains of too much to do and too little time. Chet describes how he cut his work days from 16 hours to a normal work day and got more done in the process. The first step is to become proactive rather than reactive. Adopt the mantra, “If you touch it, take action.” We let our desks pile up with material that we read, examine and think about but never get around to taking any action on. Develop the habit of touching a letter, memo or report once. Take action and get it off you desk.
We also let the small interruptions rule our day. Eliminate these pesky interruptions by scheduling “got a minute” sessions. Also hold regular staff meetings where general questions can be answered for the benefit of everyone.
Most of us are good at making “to do” lists. Chet’s offers some excellent advice. Never have more than six items on your list. Make sure those are the most important things for you to get done. Leave the minor tasks off your list and only work on those things on your list.
The book is divided into twelve chapters or steps which if you implement all the steps will totally transform your organization. Chet stresses the importance of strategic thinking as opposed to the reactive style of most managers.
He has a very interesting and unique approach to hiring superstars. Age and background are not relevant. Results are the only thing that counts. While his approach is a little bold and many people will be reluctant to try it, it is very difficult to argue with success.
The book is well written and contains plenty of exercises. There are some original ideas and you will certainly benefit if you choose to implement some of his ideas.
He gives lots of good ideas about how to create your ultimate sales machine. In the final analysis, his best advice is “pigheaded determination”, Whatever you are doing, if you give up when you meet a little resistance, you will never achieve the level of success you are capable of achieving.
The book is filled with good ideas that can really make a difference in your business – but only if you follow them with pigheaded determination.
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Craig Matteson
Review by Craig Matteson for The Ultimate Sales Machine: Turbocharge Your Business with Relentless Focus on 12 Key Strategies
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Chet Holmes knows his material very well and has the ability to not only say it concisely, but he can also present it in clear and memorable ways. He packs a whole lot of information into 245 pages and I am certain you can find more than enough useful information here to justify the price of the book.The title refers to the book’s emphasis on fashioning your entire organization to support your sales and marketing efforts rather than just having a sales department. This makes a great deal of sense to me. Holmes starts with making sure that you, the reader and leader of your organization, are managing your own time most efficiently. The principles he lays down here also have resonance with the principles he will present later.
Holmes also demonstrates the values and benefits of deep and ongoing training of all your employees. Some companies consider it a luxury and cut back on it the moment any trouble occurs. This is a mistake, according to the author. Training gets everyone on the same page, helps them be more efficient, and, when handled properly, motivates them to higher performance.
Meetings consume way too much time. We all know that. Holmes shows you how to use them to greater effect in less time. He also talks about how you need to become a brilliant strategist and a great tactician. This is more easily said than done, but with what he provides you here, improvements are possible.
Holmes then talks about hiring superstars rather than just staffing your departments, how to get the best buyers (not just customers), the seven musts of marketing – how to turbocharge your efforts, using compelling visuals to close more sales, and the nitty-gritty day-to-day work of going after those best buyers he talked about earlier.
He then talks about deep selling, client bonding, and how to put it all together.
Each chapter not only has its topic, it usually has a list of steps or a checklist, and a concluding section to summarize the points made and guides for implementation.
It is a good read, a great reminder for those who are already experienced in this area, and will be a revelation for those who are coming to running their own companies or sales efforts for the first time.
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Mitsu Fisher
Review by Mitsu Fisher for The Ultimate Sales Machine: Turbocharge Your Business with Relentless Focus on 12 Key Strategies
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One of the things I like about this book is that it deals in specifics. Most sales books are stuffed with vague, flowery platitudes. While fun to read, they don’t justify the time spent. This book promises to cover 12 specific strategies, in the subtitle. Okay, that’s a good start.Right then, let’s take a look at these 12 “strategies”.
The first one has to do with time management. At first I was disappointed because I thought I was reading a book about sales and not time management. However, the information is helpful and of course, time management is pre requisite to achievement in any field. The author offers a very an important addition to the traditional Franklin approach that wildly increases productivity. Definitely worth a look.
The second strategy has to do with training and setting standards. Okay, it’s important stuff and the improvement process offered was sound and undoubtedly works but the topic does not get me all fired up. This topic may be of greater interest to mature businesses.
Strategy next is about having better meetings using “workshop training” to improve the company. Again, good stuff, every company needs it but not my prime interest.
Next up, “becoming a brilliant strategist”. Okay, but when are we going to get to the sales stuff. What I really want to know is if this book can add to my “general fund of knowledge” about how to build a great sales organization. At this point, I’m beginning to wonder.
Now we are cooking with gas. The next strategy is about hiring superstars. This chapter offers some refreshingly candid and useful information about how to find, hire and motivate top talent. Best chapter yet. I can use this information now.
The following chapter talks about getting the best buyers. The author makes the case that taking the time to figure out who your best customers are, pays big dividends. Nothing new here.
The books then devotes a chapter to marketing. It talks a lot about advertising and how to make it work. Good information but not of interest because I don’t advertise. Too expensive and sometimes of questionable value.
Chapter 8 goes into graphics and mistakes people make when they present. Snoozer. Old news.
Next comes more detail about how to find your best buyers. “Been there, done that.”
Chapter 10 is all beef. It’s about how to sell and the importance of standardizing the process…and it’s good information. What I like most is his “this is not rocket science, but it is science” approach. Worth the price of admission.
The next chapter is about how to keep clients. Good information, but not what I bought the book for.
The final chapter is a wrap up and talks about how to use all 12 strategies together. Mildly interesting, but not what I bought the book for.
My overall opinion of this book: Really good. Four stars. I say this because most of the information is really good and I’m sure quite effective. My only hesitation comes from the fact that this book seems more suited to small/medium sized business owners and not enterprise professional management.
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Kbovee
Review by Kbovee for The Ultimate Sales Machine: Turbocharge Your Business with Relentless Focus on 12 Key Strategies
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I nearly passed on this book because of all the ridiculous reviews by people obviously trying to game the system and promote themselves. Authors who resort to this type of “marketing” come off as misleading and they reek of desperation, certainly not the type of person from whom I want to learn sales and marketing. However, the book was recommended to me by a friend so I bought it, and I’m glad I did. It was full of useful information on how to build a sales organization that I can actually implement in my everyday work.
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The Art of Non-Conformity: Set Your Own Rules, Live the Life You Want, and Change the World
If you’ve ever thought, “There must be more to life than this,” The Art of Non-Conformity is for you.
Based on Chris Guillebeau’s popular online manifesto “A Brief Guide to World Domination,” The Art of Non-Conformity defies common assumptioRating:
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Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
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In today’s world, yesterday’s methods just don’t work. Veteran coach and management consultant David Allen recognizes that time management is useless the minute your schedule is interrupted; setting priorities isn’t relevant when your e-mail is do
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Pattie Thomas, Ph.D.
Review by Pattie Thomas, Ph.D. for The Art of Non-Conformity: Set Your Own Rules, Live the Life You Want, and Change the World
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I should start with a disclosure. I have a PhD in Sociology and I teach at a community college. These two facts color my reading of Chris Guillebeau’s The Art of Non-Conformity: Set Your Own Rules, Live the Life You Want, and Change the World in a way that other readers might not share.I spend my days reading about and studying the gatekeepers and vampires that Guillebeau discusses and I am aware of even more devious and negative forces than he identifies. As a sociologist, however, one of the things that pleases me most about the book is the acknowledgment that other people exist. Far too many books in this genre forget the context in which one has to live an unconventional life. Guillebeau does not. He not only understands the need for dealing with those who would pressure a person to conform, but the need for a social structure to succeed (a “Small Army” he calls it) and the understanding of how one’s actions affect the lives of others (“world domination”). We do not live our lives in a vacuum and Guillebeau’s approach meets this context head on.
The thing that saddens me most about the book is that Guillebeau is not really that unconventional. Much of his advice and approach can be found in basic common sense and old fashioned understandings of how human beings should value their life, their time and other people. Most of what I read in this book I’ve heard before in other places. (Of course, I’ve lead a fairly unconventional life up to now and I share an influence in Barbara Sher, most notably her classic book, Wishcraft).
This saddens me because in our society this has become radical. It is radical now for a young person to ask themselves questions about their values, their talents, their desires, their legacy. It is radical to live apart from a centralized social and economic structure that is designed to encourage conformity and consumption. It is radical to question and create. It is radical to explore and discover.
Guillebeau is correct. It is radical and it will be met with resistance.
At community college I meet adult students of all ages who often are in school as an effort to change their lives. Unlike university settings, many of these students have already experienced some of their life and have already experienced disappointments. They have children. They have jobs. They struggle.
And as a sociology professor I have more bad news. I have to tell them that it is not the truth that education and a degree are magic entry into the middle class. I have to tell them that they are competing with other workers who have head starts on them because of social class structures and that the data connecting “a good education” with “a good paying job” is spurious because young people from middle and upper-middle class families with economic and social connections already in place get educations and degrees too, and then rely upon their parent’s business connections to find the good paying job. In other words, the conventional life that Guillebeau so eloquently describes is often an illusion, available only to the few and the game is rigged in favor of that few.
But I remind them that there is good news in sociology as well. The good news is that the world in which we live is of our own making collectively. Most of what we perceive to be set in stone is merely the sum total of decisions made by individuals who are accepting scripts about life that can be questioned. In the questioning there is power. There is power to resist, power to drop out, power to change, power to be something different. The answers do lie in the unconventional and the nonconformity.
This book will not make you rich in the conventional sense. It is not a “10-easy steps” to life satisfaction. It is an honest account of a life well lived with some excellent pointers on how to get started living such a life. But in the end we must all live our lives as we choose within the context of everyone else living their lives as they choose.
So I am grateful for this book as a teacher and as a fellow traveler. It is a primer that I think anyone who is considering the question “What do I do?” should read. It is a book that I will be recommending a lot, as I have Guillebeau’s website since finding it last year. It is a book that has helped me in making some decisions about my own path. It is a book that is needed in this time and this place.
–Pattie Thomas, Ph.D.
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Yael Grauer
Review by Yael Grauer for The Art of Non-Conformity: Set Your Own Rules, Live the Life You Want, and Change the World
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Chris Guillebeau rocked the online world with his manifesto, “A Brief Gude to World Domination.” This book is both useful and thought-provoking, providing both personal anecdotes and helpful suggestions for anyone who’s not satisfied living life in the way everyone says you need to.The book is divided into three sections. Part 1, The Remarkable Life, delves into setting one’s own terms for living. This includes fear management and finding ways to “fight authority” without falling into the traps of ineffective sign-holding or getting beat up and arrested for smashing windows and burning down buildings. Part 2, Reclaiming Work, gives various strategies for making one’s way without being permanently stuck in a cubicle doing mind-numbing work that is useless and meaningless. Part 3, The Power of Convergence, discusses finding one’s legacy work and letting go of things which no longer serve you, be they excessive e-mails, clutter in your home or tasks you don’t want or need to be doing.
Unlike other books of its kind, the Art of Non-Conformity features both description and prescription, offering useful suggestions and examples to help pave the way without being preachy. It is refreshingly idealistic without smacking of fantasy. It has an international perspective, and draws on inspiration of many people doing some great work around the world.
As a former wage slave turned freelance writer, the Art of Non-Conformity gave me many things to ponder, and I’ve been reflecting on changes I need to make both in my daily activities and long-term vision. I was also left with a list of useful resources and interesting people to look up. An added bonus is some great information on what Guillebeau terms “travel hacking,” which gave me some great ideas for an upcoming trip of mine.
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Etsuko Tsukagoshi
Review by Etsuko Tsukagoshi for The Art of Non-Conformity: Set Your Own Rules, Live the Life You Want, and Change the World
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The previous reviewers have done great job summarizing the contents, and I’d simply like to add that one of the key messages of this book is “Don’t waste your precious time for doing something you don’t love or enjoy”. He values his time – “4,440 minutes to fill with things you like to do every week” (from Chapter 9: Radical Exclusion and the Quest for Abundance”). Naturally, he doesn’t want to waste your time either, if this book is not for you. On page 7, he has a list of characteristics he wants his readers to have, which I recite here:1.You Must Be Open to New Ideas
2.You Must Be Dissatisfied with Status Quo
3.You Must Be Willing to Take Personal Responsibility
4.You Must Be Willing to Work HardIf you read these four points and think “I am not that person”, then this book probably isn’t for you. For the rest of us, it’s a must read. I am a mother of two young children, have my own business and plan to relocate the entire family within a year so our kids can have the experience of growing up in a culture so different from the United States. I encounter lots of questions or sometimes objections when I tell others about my goal, such as “What about your husband’s job?” “Why would you leave this (wonderful/comfortable) life here in the U.S.?” “Isn’t it risky?” “Aren’t you worried?” At times I do think that I might be “crazy” for wanting this, but reading his book gave me a renewed sense of commitment towards my goal. Lastly, it’s an enjoyable read as his writing style is very personal, yet direct. He doesn’t sugar-code the truth but he also backs up the truth with his own experience and examples. If you have read this review this far, I highly recommend you give it a try.
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Johnny B. Truant
Review by Johnny B. Truant for The Art of Non-Conformity: Set Your Own Rules, Live the Life You Want, and Change the World
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The thing I like best about this book is that it is NOT a manual on how to break the rules, how to be an anarchist, how to defy authority and give it the middle finger. Instead, Chris is really making one simple point in a variety of different ways:Know where your present actions are taking you.
Does it make sense to follow the conventional path? Maybe, if you want a fairly conventional life. Should you quit your job and do your own thing? Well, Chris certainly thinks that’s preferable, but if you’re clear about all of the details of what “life with your job” entails — the lifestyle, the salary, the prospects for retirement, and so on — and you’re cool with all of that, then you should probably keep that job.
The other day, I quoted Chris on Twitter: “Only about 80% of my experience in higher education was a waste of time; the other 20% was important and useful.”
I laughed out loud when I read that (there are a bunch of LOL moments in the book, but they’re understated in Chris’s characteristic way), but he responded on Twitter and said that he was quite happy with that 20% and found it worth the whole college experience. It was the people who expected 80% value, he said, who were probably in for a rude awakening.
You take an honest look at what you’re likely to get from what you’re doing right now. Will college guarantee you a job? Does doing well in high school increase your ability to make a living later (i.e. is your study time going to pay off in money or something else you value)? Are you likely to become rich working for someone else? I’d argue (and I think Chris would agree) that the answer to all three is no. If you know that going in, then you can go through high school, college, and your career with your eyes open and take other things from them of value. Or you can skip out on one, two, or all three. It’s your choice, and you can make it once you see where you’re headed. If you stay where you are, you are choosing to accept what is likely to come from it.
This is a manual for seeing where you are, analyzing what you’re likely to get, and helping you to make a change if you want something better — and understanding that rules mean little when what’s holding you back in the end is you.
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Roxanne Mchenry
Review by Roxanne Mchenry for The Art of Non-Conformity: Set Your Own Rules, Live the Life You Want, and Change the World
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Chris Guillebeau in his blog of the same name (AONC) took the burning issues inside of us like “I hate my job” ” I want more out of life” “I’m sick of living a materialistic existence” “I want to be free to travel or do what I love” and he gave thousands of his readers the insight of someone who isn’t taking the conventional path (with helpful guideposts)–and the Hope that “Yes, I don’t have to go down the traditional path!”The Art of Non-Conformity (the book) goes so much further to respond to questions like:
· Can I really live life on my terms and not follow the conventional path (what about my job/school, money and bills)?
· Can I re-arrange my life to follow a life-long dream or goal and make it work?
· How will I know which dreams (and goals) are on the right track?
· How do I deal with the fear of the unknown?
· How do I create a legacy?Chris’ writing is thoughtful, charming, motivating–probing yet open–and it’s what he does best. When I found Chris through his 279 Days to Overnight Success” manifesto, and despite the bold title (the book has some, too) I was caught off-guard by his insightful and well-organized ideas to becoming an “overnight” success. This AONC book has the same distinct style.
Really, who can’t use Chris’ To-Stop-Doing-List, so we can finally chuck the “To-Do” list? Isn’t it about time we consider AONC topics like:
How to Fight Authority and Win
Building Your Own Net
Redefine Your Place of Employment
The Power of Your Own Small Army
Radical Exclusion
Contrarian AdventuresIf you (like me) already love Guillebeau’s blog and incredibly popular manifestos: “A Brief Guide to World Domination” and the sequel “279 Days to Overnight Success,” I’m sure you’ll love “The Art of Non-Conformity.”
If this is your first encounter with AONC, I recommend this book for its straight-forward style, it’s honest and introspective look and a focused plan that’s less about the AONC phenomenon and more about you.
UPDATE: People who read the blog may know this already, but Chris is doing what he calls an “Unconventional Book Tour.” He’s touring basically all 50 US states (and 10 provinces in Canada)through January 2011 with one stop in each place. You can meet Chris and other local AONC fans, get your book signed and talk about “World Domination” AONC style. If you search on Google For Unconventional Book Tour, you’ll find the schedule to sign up. I’ll be at the one in Missoula, Montana and as a fan of the blog, look forward to meeting Chris and like-minded people.
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Tej G
Review by Tej G for Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
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OK, first I have to admit I picked up the book at a local Border’s where I had a copy on reserve. Having said that… I think I’ve tried every ‘system’ for organizing yourself out there. In the 80′s it was Day-Timer and Day-Runner. Good calenders and address books, but not much else. 90′s was Covey, and Franklin planning. Now we have ‘roles and goals’ which helps with long term planning but both systems were very inflexible when it came to planning your day to day stuff. I can remember Covey wanting me to plan out my entire week in advance. Nice in theory, but nowhere near reality for those of us whose jobs tend to be more ‘crisis-oriented’. I’ve also tried Agenda, Ecco, Outlook, etc. but its hard to lug around your PC or laptop all the time. About two years ago I came across David Allen’s tape seminar and I have to say its the best system I’ve ever found for organizing ‘all’ of your life. I can’t say it’s changed my life (I still have the same job, wife and kids and I still procrastinate too much ) but its certainly made all the difference in me being finally, actually organized on day-to-day basis. I’m now the only one in my office with a clean desk The book covers just about the same material that I learned in the tape series. The tapes have more anecdotes and ‘real-life’ examples in them, but the book has a few new pearls and tricks that tells me David’s been refining and polishing this system since the tape series. Two last quick points: first, it requires no special binders or refills. You could use a cheap spiral notebook if you want. Personally, I use a palmpilot, which works well. Second, (IMHO) the Weekly Review is the cornerstone of making this system work, and its worked for me for two years. Remember that; it’ll make sense once you read the book Now if I could only get David to come up with a system for procrastination…. -
Professor Donald Mitchell
Review by Professor Donald Mitchell for Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
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This book is for all those who are overwhelmed with too many things to do, too little time to do them, and a general sense of unease that something important is being missed. Everyone has experienced times when everything seemed effortless, and progress limitless. David Allen has captured ways for you to achieve that wonderful state of mind and consciousness more often. His key concept is that every task, promise, or assignment has a place and a time. With everything in its proper place and time, you feel in control and replace the time spent on vague worrying with effective, timely action. As a result, the accomplishments grow while the pressure to accomplish decreases. As a result, the book contains many insights into “how to have more energy, be more relaxed, and get a lot more accomplished with much less effort.” The key psychological insight of this book is that rapid progress occurs when you take large, unformed tasks, and break them down and organize them into smaller, sequential steps for exactly what to do and when. The book provides lots of guidance and examples for how to do this. The book is organized into three sections. The first gives you an overview of the whole process for how to get more done in a relaxed way. The second spells out the details of how to implement that process, in a way that a personal coach might use. The third provides subtle insights that help you appreciate the benefits that follow from using the process. Like all good coaches, Mr. Allen understands that appreciating a subject from several perspectives and getting lots of practice with it are critical steps in learning. The process advocated by this book is described with lots of systems flow charts that will appeal to all of the engineers and left-brained people. The right-brained people will find lots of discussions about emotions, feelings, and stress. So both types of thinkers should do well with this material. The essence of the process is that you write down a note about everything when you take on a new responsibility, make a new commitment, or have a useful thought. All of this ends up in some kind of “in” box. You then go through your “in” box and decide what needs to be done next for each item. For simple issues, this includes identifying the action you should take first and when to take it. For tougher issues, you schedule an appropriate time to work the problem in more detail. You organize the results of this thinking, and review your options for what you should be doing weekly. Then you take what you choose to do, and act. Think of this process as the following five steps: (1) collect (2) process (3) organize (4) decide (5) act. For the tougher problems, you start with identifying your purpose and principles so you know why you care how it all turns out. Then you imagine the potential good outcomes that you would like. Following that, you brainstorm with others the best way to get those outcomes. Then you organize the best pathway. Finally, you identify the first actions you need to take. Then you act, as in step 5 above.From this outline, I hope that you can see that this is not rocket science. It is simple common sense, but with discipline. The critical part is the discipline because that is what focuses your attention where it will do the most good. For example, rather than sitting on something you have no idea how to get started, you can decide right away to get ideas from others on what the purpose and principles are that should be used in selecting a solution. So, you are in motion, and you have saved much time and anxiety. What I learned from this book is that many people allow a lot of time to pass without taking any useful steps because they cannot imagine what to do next. This process should usually overcome that problem by showing you what to work on, providing methods to accomplish that step in the process, and guiding you to places where you can get appropriate help. As a result, this book should help overcome the bureaucracy and communications stalls that bedevil most organizations. This fits from my own experience in helping people solve problems. If you simplify the questions and make them into familiar ones, everyone soon finds powerful alternatives drawn from a lifetime of experiences and memories. Keep things broad, abstract, and vague, and peoples’ eyes glaze over while they struggle for a place to begin. After you have finished reading and applying this book, I suggest that you share your new learning with those you see around you who are the most stressed out. By helping them gain relaxed control of their activities, you will also be able to enjoy the benefits of their increased effectiveness in supporting your own efforts. May you always get the tools you need, understand what to do next, and move swiftly through timely actions! -
J. Lebar
Review by J. Lebar for Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
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David Allen presents an awesome organizational system in this book. With just a little up-front effort, anyone really can become much more in control of his or her life. I wouldn’t say that GDT has changed my life, but I’m definitely less stressed now that I follow the system.The only problem is, Getting Things Done is terribly painful to read. The problem stems mainly from the fact that there are about fifty pages in the book that contain real information. The other two hundred pages are–no joke–almost word-for-word rehash of those fifty pages. If I had a dime for every time Allen wrote, “Your brain is like a computer. If you fill up its RAM with the things you have to do, you don’t get anything done,” I seriously would have recouped my investment in this book. I didn’t appreciate that I had to search through the entire book to find just a few pages of original wisdom.
If you’re interested in this system–and, again, the system really is great–I recommend you check the book out at your local library. If you later feel as though you need the book as a reference, you can always buy it. And if you do read this book, don’t feel bad if you skip most of the introduction and all of the last section (which read almost like a fifty page ad for David Allen’s consulting services) and if you skim most of the rest. I promise: You’re not missing much.
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Colvini
Review by Colvini for Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
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I attended one of David’s seminars in 1986. As a result, I was able to successfully manage 101 concurrent projects, finishing on time and under budget. Fast forward to 2001. I keep this book by my side at all times (David publish it in Ebook form so it’s easier to carry!). The company I’m with now wonders how I get the “impossible” projects done. Using David’s techniques in the book, it seems like I can complete a full work day in fewer hours because I know what all my “next actions” are, and do them promptly. Gives me a lot of worry free time.This is a book you “DO” not just read. Be prepared to work when you start out, but when the initial work is done, that’s when the fun begins. I cleaned my inbox and email box of 300 items in less than 15 minutes, filtering out the junk, the things that needed immediate attention, and the “someday maybe” things (like buying my first Harley).This works for my personal life too. No more missed anniversaries, birthdays, phone calls, errands, etc.Do you ever think about work projects at home? Do you ever think about home projects when you’re at the office? Ever worry about that phone call you need to make or that errand you need to run? Forget it! Get the book. It’s awesome. Get the book – period. If you don’t, you deserve your stress. -
Horn and Sax Guy
Review by Horn and Sax Guy for Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
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“Getting Things Done” is an incredibly helpful book. It’s been indispensable for my personal productivity. It teaches you to do a few things well and does so in a relatively clear manner.However, it has two serious problems. First, it is presented as a complete organizational system, when it is not. Second, it encourages a seat-of-the-pants, ju-jitsu approach to daily life that can be very counterproductive and exhausting.
But, first the good. For me, the main gist of the book is this: if you try to keep your life organized in your head, you will not be maximally productive. You’ll be using an inordinate amount of energy trying to mentally keep track of all your “to do” items. “Getting Things Done” shows you how to get all of these out of your head and into a system so you can concentrate on the present and attack each action item one at a time. This is good stuff.
But, now, the bad (or not so good):
The first problem is “Getting Things Done” provides no guidance on how to prioritize your projects or sub-projects. It does not help you decide what to do next. Instead, it helps you produce very organized, contextual lists of next actions to take. To decide WHICH next action to take, it just recommends that you use your instincts. For many people, one of the big problems (and often THE big problem) with their organization is DECIDING which projects to work on when; and GTD is of absolutely no help. This is not an insurmountable problem as there are books (“Time Power” by Charles Hobbs) and computer programs (Life Balance from Llamagraphics), that can help you prioritize.
The second problem, and perhaps considerably more grave, is “Getting Things Done” encourages you not to plan. It encourages you to simply decide in each moment what to do (based on the excellent lists and reminder system you’ve created). It encourages a seat-of-the-pants, ju-jitsu approach to daily life. And this is a BIG problem for a lot of people, myself included. If you have trouble prioritizing what to do next in your day and life, then having to make those prioritizing decisions 200 times a day, as GTD encourages, is incredibly draining. GTD preaches that you live life efficiently, but that there’s no need for habits or rituals. This is a contradiction and truly counter-productive.
If there’s one common thread that you get from reading the biographies of incredibly productive and successful people, it’s this: they have very regular, structured, and beneficial habits and rituals. They do not “wing it.” “Getting Things Done” could be retitled “Winging It In the Most Efficient Manner Possible.” There are successful people, of course, who do “wing it,” but the vast majority of successful people are habit- and ritual- driven. That goes especially for work habits (and often for sleep habits, exercise habits, eating habits, and social habits, too). For a great example of this, read “On Writing,” by Stephen King.
If you read “Getting Things Done,” seriously consider supplementing it with “The Power of Full Engagement,” by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz — especially chapter 10, “The Power of Positive Rituals.” It explains very convincingly why purposefully “winging it,” even in the most efficient manner, will not work and could be your undoing.
“Getting Things Done” is still a great book, but it does not stand well, on its own, as a system for organizing your life. It needs supplementation.
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Quote The Quotes
The New Rules of Marketing and PR: How to Use Social Media, Blogs, News Releases, Online Video, and Viral Marketing to Reach Buyers Directly, 2nd Edition
- ISBN13: 9780470547816
- Condition: New
- Notes: BUY WITH CONFIDENCE, Over one million books sold! 98% Positive feedback. Compare our books, prices and service to the competition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed
For marketers, The New Rules of Marketing and PR shows you how to leverage the potential that Web-based communication offers your business. Finally, you can speak directly to customers and buyers, establishing a personal link with the people who make
Rating:
(out of 249 reviews)
List Price: $ 19.95
Price: $ 10.41
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Brad Shorr
Review by Brad Shorr for The New Rules of Marketing and PR: How to Use Social Media, Blogs, News Releases, Online Video, and Viral Marketing to Reach Buyers Directly, 2nd Edition
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More than anything, The New Rules of Marketing & PR ties things together. The book provides an easy to understand yet comprehensive view of the new online marketplace–a landscape that can appear quite bewildering, even to marketing specialists. With so many options at our fingertips (literally), where do we start? Blogs? Podcasts? Public relations? SEO? Paid search? Viral marketing? The list goes on. To make matters worse, technology is changing and new tools are developing almost every day.In the early chapters, David takes a high altitude look at online marketing options, showing us how they developed, why they’re important, how they work, and why they work. In later “Action Plan” chapters, he jumps into the trenches and shows us how to actually use the tools and implement programs. Throughout, he uses detailed case studies to illustrate not only the programs but the amazing results they can achieve.
But it isn’t just the latest and greatest technologies that are crucially important. Public relations, for example, has been around since Gutenberg but for the first time is practical for a small company. Traditional PR was cost-prohibitive and dependent on unreachable key media contacts. But in the new world–
“…your primary audience is no longer just a handful of journalists. Your audience is millions of people with Internet connections and access to search engines and RSS readers.” (Chapter 5)
Today, public relations may be the single most underutilized tool in the marketing arsenal.
Another “old” technology David brings us up to speed on is the corporate Web site. In fact, the three most important points I got out of The New Rules of Marketing & PR have enormous implications on traditional Web development.
Those key points are–
1. The most important New Rule is CONTENT. Design is important. Technology is important. But without extraordinary content, you’re doomed.
2. Interruption marketing (think spam and pop-up ads) has given way to consumer-driven marketing. Yippee! “The Web is different. Instead of one-way interruption, Web marketing is about delivering useful content at just the precise moment that a buyer needs it.” (Chapter 1)
3. The starting point for any New Rule program is to create customer personas. If you’re going to have extraordinary content that motivates buyers to take action, you’d better know your customers inside-out.
David explains how these three principles should influence not only your corporate Web site, but every other online program you undertake.
Thankfully, David is understandable as well as instructive. One reason I’ve enjoyed his blog for over a year is his conversational, entertaining writing style. He makes learning easy (which is harder to do than you might think). Anyway, his book is just like his blog–illuminating and fun.
The New Rules of Marketing & PR presents the most complete picture of any book I’ve read. For the marketing specialist, it will fill in the gaps. For the generalist, it will open up a whole new world.
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Jill Konrath
Review by Jill Konrath for The New Rules of Marketing and PR: How to Use Social Media, Blogs, News Releases, Online Video, and Viral Marketing to Reach Buyers Directly, 2nd Edition
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By embracing the strategies in this book , you will totally transform your business. David Meerman Scott shows you a multitude of ways to propel your company to a thought leadership position in your market and drive sales – all without a huge budget.From my perspective, the best thing about this book is that everyone can gain value from it. There are so many places you can start applying these new rules of marketing and PR. For example, I’m an experienced blogger, considered an expert in my field and already have a strong online presence. Yet I’m immediately going to start applying the lessons in Chapter 14: How to Use News Releases to Reach Buyers Directly.
Here’s what else I like about this book:
1. The author includes numerous examples from a variety of businesses in different industries & sizes that have all used these strategies for success.
2. The book shows you multiple venues to reach your buyers directly. This circumvents the high costs of mainstream media enabling firms who are running bootstrap operations to compete with the big boys.
3. The “how to” guidelines on leveraging news releases in a web-based world are excellent. You’ll learn how to create news on a regular basis, capitalize on various distribution services, focus on key words/phrases in your writing that are used by your buyers, and incorporate social media tags.
4. The insights on optimizing a website’s online media room for search engines is another easy-to-implement technique with high payback.
In summary, I guarantee you that your investment in this book will be paid back many times.
~ Jill Konrath, author of Selling to Big Companies
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Janice King
Review by Janice King for The New Rules of Marketing and PR: How to Use Social Media, Blogs, News Releases, Online Video, and Viral Marketing to Reach Buyers Directly, 2nd Edition
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If you are a marketing or PR professional who pays attention to new trends, you likely know much of the information in this book. Some sections may be useful for your executives to read when you are having trouble justifying investments in blogging and other new media activity. You may also find some useful ideas or techniques in the many examples presented here.However, the author’s arguments are hindered by his assumption that corporate marketing and PR staff are dinosaurs stuck in the practice of indiscriminate push advertising and media pitches. Scott spends too much time touting press releases as the best way to reach blog readers, a concept that ignores the true potential of blogs and related media for communicating in a deeper and more engaging way with potential customers. He also ignores the very real legal and market constraints that control much of corporate communications in his longing for businesses to adapt the free-for-all communications style of the independent blogging world. It is an unfair judgment to criticize corporate communicators for not living up to this unrealistic expectation.
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M. Ward
Review by M. Ward for The New Rules of Marketing and PR: How to Use Social Media, Blogs, News Releases, Online Video, and Viral Marketing to Reach Buyers Directly, 2nd Edition
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Get rich, be successful, blog, podcast, blah… I feel like it is 1999 all over again.My issues with this book are:
1. It is very light on critical analysis of when these technologies are of value. Face it — hundreds of thousand of businesses should not have blogs or employ most of these technologies.
2. There is almost no information on the return on investment of these technologies versus other marketing media or tactics. Having a media / PR person spend 10 hours developing a sketch media plan, buying ads in a circular, building an email list, etc. could be 1,000 times more beneficial than spending the hundreds of hours that costs to implement most of these tactics well.
3. The goals for using each technology should be crystal clear and realistic and the hype in this book does not reflect that.
4. Rising above the noise on the Internet is really, really hard. This book gives you no information on how to do that beyond the age old adage of “know your buyer.”
I started to write – it’s ironic that there is a chapter on “how to develop thoughtful content” and then I had a realization that the author is actually a good marketer. This book isn’t about imparting knowledge and being useful to businesses and organizations. It’s about selling books. The author is very aware of his buyer – it is somebody who is rightfully in awe of the Internet and its viral potential, heard Dell figured out how to make $3 million on twitter (their ad budget is $1.5 billion per year), and doesn’t know what their first step should be. Unfortunately, this book isn’t a good place to start. That person would be better served by learning about these technologies on wikipedia, reading the ClickZ website (an actually useful resources for online marketing) and asking themselves the critical questions about how these new tools could realistically improve their marketing effort.
More critical analysis of when these technologies should be used is needed, not this drivel.
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Suzanne Del Rossi
Review by Suzanne Del Rossi for The New Rules of Marketing and PR: How to Use Social Media, Blogs, News Releases, Online Video, and Viral Marketing to Reach Buyers Directly, 2nd Edition
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David’s book integrates what he has learned as a corporate marketing strategist, and now teaches as a business speaker and seminar leader, into a practioner’s guide for Marketing and PR in today’s dynamic and competitive business conditions.He emphasizes that while the most advanced technology cannot replace a fundamental and sound marketing plan and execution, the new age of web and wireless communication demands that marketing and PR people know and understand the latest tools and techniques.
The new rules of Marketing and PR, David points out, are especially beneficial for small businesses and organization, in that marketing staffs can now more easily select, focus, and reach their target markets in a more cost effective manner. Traditional mass media marketing and public relations activities have given way to a more advanced electronic and information technology based methods.
Throughout David’s book, he introduces and explains by real case scenarios how the new marketing and PR tools can most effectively be used. Examples of the new techniques are detailed throughout his book and include:
* Social media
* Blogs
* Video/Audio Enhancements
* Podcasts
* Online PR & News Releases
* Internet & Search Engine Optimization (SEO)David continually recommends and reinforces his central theme of leveraging online media and use of current technology to successfully achieve your marketing objectives–here are some examples:
Social Media & Target Marketing
Through social networking sites (e.g. Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Wikipedia) and blogging, one can reach target markets and drive them via links to your website. People and see and share content and ideas, plus make recommendations to others on specific products and services.Video & Audio Content
Advancements in video technology, especially small, powerful, and inexpensive video cameras, allow a marketing/PR person to be their own videographer and greatly enhance the content and features on a website. Target market customers can see and hear the best attributes and amenities of places they want to visit as they conduct their decision making process.Search Engine Marketing & Optimization
This highly significant and powerful tool drives target customers to your website. Through ensuring and words and phrases on your website, blog, or other web links can be found by search engines, which brings already interested customers to your website and to your sales and marketing staff to be contacted, qualified, and potentially closed for a sale. Search engine advertising is another tool by which a marketer purchases words and phrases that appear prominently on a pay-per-click basis, whenever customers click the link to your website.I’m a little rusty on how to use social media in my marketing efforts as Vacation Rental Manager for the Village of Nashaquisset on Nantucket; I am confident David’s recommendations will help immensely.
J. Brown 7:51 pm on October 31, 2010 Permalink
Review by J. Brown for Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School
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I believe personal productivity and performance as a leader are directly correlated. Just like we have to lead a team, we have to lead ourselves to a higher level of a productivity and effectiveness. In all of the leadership classes I teach, emphasis is placed on knowing yourself. When you know yourself it provides you the ability to adapt to weaknesses and leverage your strengths (increase your personal productivity and effectiveness).
Knowing how your brain functions is part of knowing yourself.
This book is so insightful and valuable that I sent copies to my clients. The value of the book hinges on the understanding of the brain and how it works which allows me to leverage that knowledge for increased personal productivity and in my interactions and relationships with others.
Myth Busters for the brain!
The book is a fairly easy read because the author uses stories to illustrate the functionality of the brain. This book is not a “leadership-lite” book filled with cute and truthful antidotes, but a book with hard science communicated in an interesting way. Dr. John J. Medina is a developmental molecular biologist. He also shares what scientists don’t know about how the brain works!
This book gave me many, many take-aways and here are just six …
I. Some parts of the brain are just like a baby’s and can grow new connections and strengthen existing connections. We have the ability to learn new things our entire life. Medina states this was “not the prevailing notion until 5 or 6 years ago.” So much for the “you can’t teach and old dog new tricks excuse.” The old dog line is exposed for what it really is…an excuse.
II. Humans can only pay attention for about ten minutes and then need some kind of reset.
III. The brain can only focus on one thing at a time. This is further rationale on the futility of multi-tasking.
IV. Exercise increases brain power and aerobic exercise twice a week reduces the risk of general dementia by 50% and Alzheimer’s by 60%.
V. There is a biological need for an afternoon nap.
VI. The brain is very active during sleep and loss of sleep hurts cognitive and physical ability.
Buy and read Brain Rules. It will benefit you.
One of the reasons I read leadership books is to learn new things but also to get old truths hammered into my thick skull so they result in action. Action! So you may know or have heard of some of the truths in “Brain Rules” but I guarantee the author brings them to you in a unique an interesting way with solid depth that will allow you to easier implement those truths into how you handle yourself and others on a daily basis.
Dr. James T. Brown PMP PE CSP
Author, The Handbook of Program Management
Thomas Duff 8:33 pm on October 31, 2010 Permalink
Review by Thomas Duff for Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School
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When an author and industry expert you hold in high regard says a book is the best one s/he’s read in 2008, it’s probably a good idea to take notice. So when Garr Reynolds of Presentation Zen fame recommended Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School by John Medina, I decided that should be something I get sooner rather than later. After reading, I can see why he recommends the book so highly. Medina’s 12 “brain rules” are based on solid science, but they’re presented in such a way that you can actually apply your new-found knowledge.
Contents:
Exercise – Rule #1: Exercise boosts brain power.
Survival – Rule #2: The human brain evolved, too.
Wiring – Rule #3: Every brain is wired differently.
Attention – Rule #4: We don’t pay attention to boring things.
Short-Term Memory – Rule #5: Repeat to remember.
Long-Term Memory – Rule #6: Remember to repeat.
Sleep – Rule #7: Sleep well, think well.
Stress – Rule #8: Stressed brains don’t learn the same way.
Sensory Integration – Rule #9: Stimulate more of the senses.
Vision – Rule #10: Vision trumps all other senses.
Gender – Rule #11: Male and female brains are different.
Exploration – Rule #12: We are powerful and natural explorers.
Acknowledgements
Index
When Reynolds reviewed the book on his site, he focused on how these rules pertain to the art of making presentations. Attention, as explained by Medina, means that the brain does not multitask (much to your bosses dismay), we notice patterns and abstract meanings better than recording detail, and you have basically 10 minutes before the audience checks out without a new stimulus. Vision, the sensory “trump card”, is the dominant sense, our brain controls what we see (and it’s not totally correct), the processes to “see” something are very complex, and most importantly, we remember and learn best through pictures and not written/spoken words. That one insight alone should be enough to make you totally rethink the way we attempt to present to people…
Now, even if you’re not approaching the book from a presentation angle, the book is still outstanding. Something like memory, an act we take for granted, is a deep mystery that we still don’t understand. Medina shows by studies and real-life examples how things *might* work, knowing full well we haven’t even begun to understand but a fraction of what goes on there. Sleep, something that boosts brain power, is *not* a time of relaxation for the brain. In fact, it often kicks into overdrive. Why? There are still no definitive answers. But he does go on to prove how *lack* of sleep can utterly render you incapable of rational thought and physical action. When you’ve worked through all 12 of the brain rules, you’ll have a more complete understanding of how you can affect the quality of your brain functioning, all the while being entertained and amazed at what lies between your ears.
Every time I got to the end of a chapter, I started to put the book down. But then I’d think “just one more and then I’ll turn out the light.” Needless to say, I was at the end before I knew it. Like Garr Reynolds, this is one of the best books I’ve read this year, and one that I’d recommend to others for a number of reasons and purposes.
David M. Brenner 8:43 pm on October 31, 2010 Permalink
Review by David M. Brenner for Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School
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The genius of this book is that it uses the most recent scientific research, discussed in a very entertaining way, to identify 12 rules for optimizing your most important tool – your BRAIN. Read the chapter on “Attention” and you will never give a presentation in the same way again. Read the chapter on “Sleep” and you will understand why an afternoon nap can be the most productive 20 minutes of your work day. Read the chapter on “Exercise” and you’ll finally get why great ideas (ok, and maybe some clunkers but at least you’re thinking!)come to you in the middle of your workout. Like the author, you may toss the guest chair and put a treadmill in your office with a bracket for your laptop – this gives new meaning to the concept of management by walking around. The bottom line is that brain science is beginning to produce really useful information about how our brains are wired; this book is a user’s manual on how to work with the way we’re wired instead of fighting against it. I highly recommend it.
ScienceReader 9:34 pm on October 31, 2010 Permalink
Review by ScienceReader for Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School
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Having read a number of fairly substantive books about the brain in the past few years, I was intrigued by this title as I am looking for applications that I can use in my teaching. What a disappointment. Medina throws out a number of interesting ideas but never develops many of them thoroughly. Most importantly, there are no citations in the book. He often mentions research studies but neglects to document their sources. And the accompanying CD adds virtually nothing new and seems more like a promotion for Medina’s consulting and website. Thin stuff.
K. Sampanthar 10:12 pm on October 31, 2010 Permalink
Review by K. Sampanthar for Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School
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The Summary
John Medina has written one of the best brain books I have read. He is a molecular biologist and director of Brain Center for Applied Learning at the Seattle Pacific University. He explains the latest research on the brain, and there have been a lot of advances recently on how the brain works. He boils them down to 12 rules that will help you in all walks of life. If you want an owner’s manual for the brain then this is probably the one that should be handed out with every new-born.
The Audience
Everyone and I mean everyone should read this book! As long as they have a homo-sapien brain, if you have one of the older models; homo erectus, neanderthal you should probably wait for evolution! This is truly an owner’s manual for the brain! If you are a student or knowledge worker you should run; yes running will actually help you digest the material in the book better (Rule #2 – Exercise – exercise boosts brain power); to buy it and read it! Medina outlines some of his own thoughts on how to leverage the rules in the home, school and work.
The Details
John Medina has written one of the best brain books I have read (Rule #5 Short Term Memory – repeat to remember, Rule #6 Long Term Memory – repeat to remember). There are many books out at the moment that talk about the latest research on brains but John’s is undoubtedly the best. Neuroscience has taken some giant leaps in the understanding of how the brain works in the last 20 years. I was researching AI back in the early 90′s and since then there has been a lot of new research in this area. For the last year I have been catching up and reading everything I can find on neuroscience and that was how I stumbled across Medina’s book. I nearly put it aside since it seemed too basic but boy am I glad I didn’t. This book is fun to read and I learned a lot. I love John’s approach of only including research that follows certain criteria. For a study to appear in this book it has to pass the Medina Grump Factor (MGF) – (John refers to himself as a grumpy scientist)
1) Research must be published in a peer-reviewed journal
2) The research must be successfully replicated
Even though the material in this book is based on cutting edge research you should not feel intimidated. This book is well written and the material is presented following many of rules that are outlined. The book is actually a pleasure to read!
Following these rules has lead Medina to not only structure the book so it is easy to digest; adding stories, chunking information, providing summaries etc but he has also included a DVD with videos and an accompanying website with more information and references. This is truly a full sensory experience (Rule #4 – Attention – We don’t pay attention to boring things!, Rule #9 – Sensory Information – Stimulate more of the senses, Rule #10 Vision – Vision trumps all other senses)
If you want to understand your brain and improve it; and everyone should want to understand their brain and improve it; you should read this book.
The Take-Aways
I can’t say enough good things about this book. John Medina has written an excellent book leveraging all the latest research about the brain and turning it into a set of rules to remember. Your brain will never feel the same again! Read and then follow Medina’s advice on how your brain remembers new information and how often you should review it (Rule #5 Short Term Memory – repeat to remember, Rule #6 Long Term Memory – repeat to remember).
Kes Sampanthar
Inventor of ThinkCube