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37th out of 56 books
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47 voters
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Rules of Thumb: 52 Truths for Winning at Business Without Losing Your Self
We live in a world of dramatic, tumultuous, and unpredictable change--change that is wiping out time-honored businesses and long-standing institutions and ushering in unprecedented opportunities for creative individuals and entrepreneurial organizations. So pervasive is change today that it has redefined our first task: The job is no longer figuring out how to win at the
...moreHardcover, 270 pages
Published
May 1st 2009
by HarperBusiness
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The book jacket bio says of Alan Webber, "he calls himself a 'global detective,' which has the benefit of meaning little but sounding cool." That's a nice summary of a lot of the business advice in this book. Webber seems to have spent too much time writing speeches, so the book is loaded down with sound bites in which he's sacrificed meaning for quotability. My favorite example: "It's a race to the future. Whoever gets there first wins." Now THAT is some useful stuff.
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I got so frustrated while reading this that I started digging my nails into the pages and accelerating my reading speed. Webber's a smart guy and the rules are fine, but the chapters on each rule feel padded out. Or perhaps it's that each rule needs a story but the stories were all from the same examples, and I began to get sick of Fast Company and Portland.
The rules themselves make sense and are good business basics, but there isn't a lot new here for people that have read a critical...more
The rules themselves make sense and are good business basics, but there isn't a lot new here for people that have read a critical...more
Alan M. Webber founded Fast Company magazine with Bill Taylor and helped define a Zeitgeist. It was the Internet era, it was cool, and it was fast. A decade later, it doesn't seem so cool or fast, unfortunately. There's nothing wrong with these 52 rules of thumb; most of them are good. It's just that Alan is late to the party. Most of them have been put forward in other management books of the past decade. Alan's stories are good, but he's coasting with this book.
Even though I'm not in business, this book is definitely worth reading. I am a psychotherapist by profession and almost all the rules that Mr. Webber suggests fit very nicely into that work. I was quite surprised by that but very intrigued and look forward to reading his new book, "The Global Detective".
I've read many business books, and found Rules of Thumb very good. The manner is which Webber provides the background information for each rule and the describes the "So What?" of each rule makes a pairing that clearly and insightfully supports the rule. The text is engaging; I had difficulty putting the book down. I recommend this for anyone in business.
I thought this was a pretty good book with some nice insights on business and life. I did not agree with all of his "rules of thumb" but overall it was informative and insightful.
So much wisdom. Want to re-read again sometime. Proabably will have to buy.
Great little rules -- not just for business, but for life. Really inspiring. :D
Great little rules -- not just for business, but for life. Really inspiring. :D
52 short and independent chapters that you can easily grab while commuting. Nice reading. Recommended.
Great lessons in business and life in an easy-to-read form. (Full disclosure: The author is a friend.)
One of my favorites. Read one rule a day for great lessons (and stories).
Founding editor of Fast Company shares what he has learned.
So far, I've learned that I'm being overly influenced in my book selection by Amy! No really, this is pretty good--nice, brief little anecdotes that are very manageable over lunch... Useful stuff, even if you aren't in "business" per se.
If you plan to start a business or reinvent an existing company, then this book is a must read. Jargon free, straight-talking style and superb content that distills the learning of a lifetime.
Pithy, accessible rules. Bite-size format allows for the reader to easily dip in and out of the book.
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