Tag Archives: Business Books

NY Times Hardcover Business Best Sellers – October 2009

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New York Times – Hardcover Business Best Sellers – October 2009

 

Yawn… Eleven months and Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers continues to dominate the NY Times hardcover business best seller rankings. We love this book, and yet it still seems a little unbelievable that one book could remain on top of such a dynamic list for so long. (To read our review of this outstanding book, check out our July 2009 best seller rankings.)

 

Upon further review, we understand why Gladwell can stay at Number One: Nearly all of his challengers deliver books with no real substance, very little entertainment value, and they fill no unmet need of the book-buying public. From the boring premise of Shop Class as Soulcraft, by Matthew B. Crawford to the asininely unnecessary The 50th Law, by 50 Cent (and Robert Greene), to the clearly miscategorized What Happy Working Mothers Know, by Cathy L. Greenberg and Barrett S. Avigdor, the NY Times business list is thin, at best.

 

Given the absolute drivel populating this month’s list, we simply cannot recommend anything in the Top Five not written by Gladwell. From Numbers Six to Fifteen, there is only Jim Collins’ How The Mighty Fall at Number Seven that is worthy of a leader’s time. (Might we recommend you take a look at some classically good leadership books instead?)

The Top Five – NY Times Business Hardcover Best Sellers October 2009 (to view the entire list, follow this link):

 

This
Month

 

Last
Month

1

OUTLIERS, by Malcolm Gladwell. (Little, Brown, $27.99.) Why some people succeed — it has to do with luck and opportunities as well as talent — from the author of “Blink” and “The Tipping Point.”

1

2

THE HEALING OF AMERICA, by T.R. Reid. (Penguin Press, $25.95.) How other industrialized democracies provide health care for all at a reasonable cost.   

9  

3

WHAT HAPPY WORKING MOTHERS KNOW, by Cathy L. Greenberg and Barrett S. Avigdor. (Wiley, $19.95.) How to be a successful parent and professional without sacrificing personal happiness.

 

 

4

THE 50TH LAW, by 50 Cent and Robert Greene. (HarperStudio/HarperCollins, $19.99.) Conquering fear to attain power: a philosophy of life.

  

5

THE TOTAL MONEY MAKEOVER, by Dave Ramsey (Thomas Nelson, $24.99.) Debt reduction and fiscal fitness for families, by the radio talk-show host.

     
     
     
     
     

 

 3

 

 

NY Times Hardcover Business Best Sellers – September 2009

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New York Times – Hardcover Business Best Sellers – September 2009

 

Ten months and counting for Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers as it continues to dominate the NY Times best seller rankings. To read our review of this outstanding book, check out our July 2009 best seller rankings.

 

Though not showing the staying power of Gladwell yet, two authors were able to hold their Top 5 rankings from last month: Mezrich and Ramsey. We have no comment on Ramsey’s “work,” expect to say that it likely should be moved from the NY Times business rankings. (How does dolling out credit card debt elimination advice to consumers with below average intelligence qualify as a business book?) Regarding Ben Mezrich’s The Accidental Billionaires, we can actually recommend this read for those of you looking for something with a little more entertainment than “how to” advice. We enjoyed Billionaires almost as much as we liked Mezrich’s earlier offering, Bringing Down The House, and we were pleasantly surprised that we walked away feeling we learned a little something.

 

We have no plans to read anything written by former Lehman VPs (A Colossal Failure of Common Sense) or how Bernanke prevented the second Great Depression (In Fed We Trust), though we do welcome your comments about these final two of this month’s Top 5.

The Top Five – NY Times Business Hardcover Best Sellers September 2009 (to view the entire list, follow this link):

 

This
Month

 

Last
Month

1

OUTLIERS, by Malcolm Gladwell. (Little, Brown, $27.99.) Why some people succeed — it has to do with luck and opportunities as well as talent — from the author of “Blink” and “The Tipping Point.”

1

2

THE ACCIDENTAL BILLIONAIRES, by Ben Mezrich. (Doubleday, $25.) How two Harvard undergraduates created Facebook.

2

3

THE TOTAL MONEY MAKEOVER, by Dave Ramsey (Thomas Nelson, $24.99.) Debt reduction and fiscal fitness for families, by the radio talk-show host.

3

 

4

A COLOSSAL FAILURE OF COMMON SENSE, by Lawrence G. McDonald and Patrick Robinson. (Crown Business, $27.) The inside story of the collapse of Lehman Brothers, from a former vice president of the firm.

8

5

IN FED WE TRUST, by David Wessel. (Crown Business, $26.99.) How Ben Bernanke and his Federal Reserve colleagues worked to prevent another Great Depression.

 

 

TheManager’s Leadership Book Review

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Don’t Bring It to Work – Breaking the Family Patterns That Limit Success, by Sylvia Lafair, PhD

I absolutely love it when an expert in a non-business field brings their knowledge to the business world. Whether it’s a former all-star athlete turned successful businessman (ala Julius Erving), or a rehabbed musician turned stock trader (ala Guns N’ Roses’ bassist Duff McKagan), they almost always provide interesting and important perspectives on how we conduct business, and how we lead and manage others.

One of the biggest problems in business today is that we already have all of the answers and we feel don’t need any new blood changing the way we do things. I’ve always been fascinated by the closed minded who fail to embrace or even believe that someone from the outside – armed with a fresh perspective – can make a positive impact. The fact that so many continue believe this despite the myriad of examples of outsiders who successfully bring change is nothing short of astounding. Dr. Sylvia Lafair is one such example of an outsider successfully delivering change.

Lafair, a former family therapist who now serves as the president of Creative Energy Options, Inc., brought her expertise to the business world and with it a unique point of view about office politics, leadership and workplace roles and relationships. From working with dysfunctional families to years of providing leadership training and insights into workplace behavior and relationships for corporations like Microsoft, Dr. Lafair operated in the greatest leadership laboratory of all time: The real world. In the process, she also penned a great read that captures the very essence of what’s holding so many leaders back: Their reliance on destructive family patterns. Her book, Don’t Bring It to Work, shows us that our behavior cannot exist independently from our interpersonal relationships, despite the facade we think we portray.

Charity Isn’t All That Begins At Home

If you buy in to Lafair’s premise, then virtually everything that’s holding you back at work is closely related to the role(s) you play at home. Whether you are a persecutor or pleaser at work, chances are you play this role in your personal life, as well. In fact, according to Lafair, you are basically compelled to play the same role at work that you do at home – you are simply more comfortable this way – unless you can be made aware of your behavior, understand it and then transform yourself by taking appropriate actions. (By the way, if you don’t buy in to this premise, then you’re likely a rebel at both work and at home; which means, of course, that Lafair is still right.)


Certainly, it’s not that uncomplicated; and bravo to Lafair for not trying to insinuate that we simply live in these roles and those are our only issues. Equally important to the role you play are the roles of those around you. If you are not aware that you are a slave to your personal patterns, then you are likely to have conflict with those who do not fit into your “ideal.” As Dr. Lafair puts it: “When our colleagues and bosses don’t match our expectations, we realize this in a matter of seconds, and just like that, the seeds of conflict are sewn.”

Unlike the typical easy-read coping tomes such as The Five Dysfunctions of a Team and Who Moved My Cheese, this book requires real dedication from the reader. In other words, it is not for the casual passerby who just wants to polish this or that about their behavior at the office. Just like real change, this book requires work.

The Recommendation

There is no doubt that I recommend this book, I do. My dilemma is whether it is more leadership, self-help or team dynamics. The truth is that Don’t Bring It to Work can help your personal and professional development much in the same way as Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits does. Just as 7 Habits applies as much to your home life as it does to your work life, so does Don’t Bring It to Work. And, just as Covey’s work is as much about leadership as it is about personal improvement, so is Lafair’s.

The mix of real world examples with a sometimes textbook feel (likely from the massive amount of footnoting early on) is actually very well done. I especially applaud Lafair for her inclusion of a recap called “Takeaways” at the end of each chapter. Because the concepts are sometimes very deep and the material sometimes very new to the reader, having this brief recap at the end of the chapters is very helpful.

While many can benefit from this book, I especially recommend if for two specific people: First, for the young manager who is tiring of seeing his colleagues promoted at greater frequency; and second, for the self-actualized leader who cannot seem to find anything wrong with her style or approach, yet her team is still a mess.

(To order Don’t Bring It to Work, visit Amazon.com.)

NY Times Business Hardcover Best Sellers – August 2009

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New York Times – Hardcover Business Best Sellers – August 2009

Nine months and counting for Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers as it continues to dominate the NY Times best seller rankings. To read our review of this outstanding book, check out our July 2009 best seller rankings.

Rounding out the rest of this month’s list, we can only recommend Jim Collins’ How The Mighty Fall – because we simply cannot find time in our busy schedules to read the other three. If we were forced to read one, however, we would likely sit down with Ben Mezrich’s The Accidental Billionaires. If it’s anything like Bringing Down The House we can be assured of a mostly accurate, highly entertaining read. The Total Money Makeover, by contrast, appears as appetizing as stale bread; and we can certainly wait until December for the updated version of The 4-Hour Workweek.


The Top Five – NY Times Business Hardcover Best Sellers August 2009 (to view the entire list, follow this link):

This
Month

Last
Month

1

OUTLIERS, by Malcolm Gladwell. (Little, Brown, $27.99.) Why some people succeed — it has to do with luck and opportunities as well as talent — from the author of “Blink” and “The Tipping Point.”

1

2

THE ACCIDENTAL BILLIONAIRES, by Ben Mezrich. (Doubleday, $25.) How two Harvard undergraduates created Facebook.

3

THE TOTAL MONEY MAKEOVER, by Dave Ramsey (Thomas Nelson, $24.99.) Debt reduction and fiscal fitness for families, by the radio talk-show host.

5

4

HOW THE MIGHTY FALL, by Jim Collins. (Jim Collins/Harper­Collins, $23.99.) Companies fail in stages, and their decline can be detected and reversed

2

5

THE 4-HOUR WORKWEEK, by Timothy Ferriss. (Crown, $19.95.) Because life isn’t all about work.

7

Enough Standing on the Sidelines – The Kindle is Worth the Money

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Amazon's Kindle is Worth the MoneyThe Amazing(?) Amazon Kindle

This week Amazon lowered the price of their popular six-inch Kindle by $60. No fanfare, no major announcements and no (á-la-Steve-Jobs) laser shows. In fact, Jeff Bezos was nowhere to be seen, just a new lower price on the Amazon homepage.

The Kindle, for those of you who’ve been under a rock the last year, is a small, thin, electronic display that can hold over 1,500 books. Amazon, the undisputed king of booksellers (online or offline), designed and released this device in advance of deep-pocketed rivals (like Microsoft, Google and Apple) to hopefully create a market for e-readers that they could control.

Amazon took a giant leap of faith and created a product that could destroy their original business model. A risky move, but one that was as necessary for Amazon as it was for Polariod. (Polariod, of course, failed to recognize the move to digital photography and ended up declaring bankruptcy.) Amazon’s bold leadership is strong enough to recognize that either they can destroy their business model, or they can allow a competitor to do it. Bravo Amazon – we only wish more businesses were willing to be so bold. (Did someone just say “General Motors?”)

The Kindle is the Kleenex of e-Readers

Much as Apple’s iPod has become the standard for all portable music players, Amazon is pinning its hopes on the Kindle to one day be the electronic reader of choice. Clearly, Amazon’s price drop to the psychologically appealing $299 level was a move to further popularize the Kindle before rivals have a chance to become established.


Amazon’s latest version of the Kindle is both an amazing home run and an unexciting walk – all at the same time. The Kindle 2, as it’s also called, has an advanced display that truly reads like real paper. Even in bright sunlight, the Kindle acts more like paper than a computer screen; delivering clear text and distinguishably crisp images. A true home run that comes in sixteen shades of grey.

It’s a Great Reader, but Where Are the Books?

If you’re a voracious reader like TheManager you have two needs when it comes to your books: variety and speed of delivery. A faster delivery time is the primary reason I made the switch from traditional paper to an electronic device. Using the wireless connection on the Kindle, I can download books in less than a minute. That is, when the book is available for the Kindle.

Amazon claims over 300,000 titles are obtainable for Kindle owners, but that’s out of the millions of paper books you can buy on Amazon today. An unexciting walk, if you ask me. (Not a stumble, mind you, but Amazon had almost two years to Kindle-ize every book ever published. If Amazon’s rivals have an opening, it’s to have more titles more quickly available for their e-readers.)

Rest assured that the most popular books are Kindle-ready; including every one of the TheManager’s Top Ten Leadership Books of All Time. And, Amazon seems to make daily announcements to add whole categories of books to its device.

The Kindle Family

Amazon launched the original Kindle in November 2007 with a $399 price tag. The relatively minor issues with this device (i.e., battery life, storage and visibility in direct sunlight) were solved back in February when Amazon introduced the Kindle 2 at $359 (now $299).

If you want the very best money can buy, and you’re willing to part with $489, you can get your hands on the 9.7-inch Kindle DX. This monster works just as sound as the three hundred dollar 6-inch model, though with a much bigger reading area. It totally feels more like you’re reading an actual magazine or newspaper – plus, the DX comes with a rotating screen and holds 2,000 more books than its smaller cousin.

While books and periodicals for either device are generally cheaper than buying the paper copies, they’re still not what you might call “cheap.” Clearly, there is room to deliver some periodicals (and maybe even books) as ad-supported content. There are some reports that Amazon is exploring ways to make the DX feel even more like reading a magazine by including advertisements on its pages. Of course, there are numerous critics of an ad-supported Kindle; though if it means consumers can receive periodicals at a reduced cost, it seems worth it to us.

The Bottom Line on the Kindle

We’ve recommended a large number of books, rolling briefcases and even an online chat program to our readers: We are now proud to add the Kindle to our small list of products that we stand behind.

So, should you buy a Kindle?

If you like to read and hate to wait for even the two-day express shipping, I recommend buying a Kindle. If you like to read, but hate searching for books on your shelves, get the Kindle. If you like to read, and don’t like to carry books, magazines and newspaper around (especially on an airplane), buy the Kindle. If you want to read newspapers from all over the world, but not on your computer screen, buy the Kindle.

And, if you can afford the extra two hundred bucks, I recommend you step up to the DX – ultimately, you’ll be glad you did.

If you’re a casual reader who cracks just a couple books a month, you may want to wait for an ad-supported version of this or some other e-reader. The good news is that Amazon has set the bar so high that the next generation of e-readers may be worth waiting for…

NY Times Business Hardcover Best Sellers – July 2009

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New York Times – Hardcover Business Best Sellers – July 2009

Okay, how long can this thing last?

What will certainly be recorded as the most successful business book written in 2008, Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers continues to dominate the best seller rankings for the eighth consecutive month. With success like this, Outliers truly stands to become an outlier itself. (For those who’ve read it, you may be asking whether Outliers would have performed so well had it been released in a bull market. Gladwell would likely argue in the negative.)

Given the unbelievable run normally reserved for motivational and self-help titles, we decided Outliers was due both a second read and a dedicated review this month. We even considered changing the title of this regular post to Outliers and the Other Hardcover Business Best Sellers.

What is the Best Book Released in 2008?

In January, we called Outliers “one of the best books released in 2008.” We can now definitively say after our reread that it is not one of the best books released in 2008… Outliers is the best book released in 2008; and second place isn’t even close.

Like similar mega-successful eye-opener Freakonomics, Outliers is not a “how to” book. In fact, it is unlikely that the book provides many readers with any practical knowledge that will easily translate into future success (for them). The only probable application of the lessons learned in Outliers is with future generations. Some readers of this book will certainly use the education gained to hyper-focus their progeny with 10,000 hours of hockey practice or computer programming. (Certainly this was not Gladwell’s intent.)

Outliers, like Freakonomics, is an interesting, enlightening and educational read. Its success during a recession is remarkable (since it provides little to no useful advice) and a testament to just how well Gladwell develops and presents its central theme and ideas. Gladwell knows his audience and he delivers what they want. He superbly delivers his educated observations in an entertaining and informative way.

Yes, But Will Pseudo-Intellectuals Enjoy Outliers?

Just like Freakonomics, Outliers has its detractors; and they are likely one in the same. Despite its success – or, more likely, because of it – there are those who declare they hate this book. (Hate is such a strong word, but it’s warranted here. Those who don’t find either of these books to their liking don’t simply recommend against them, they claim to literally and utterly despise them.)

Without detailing the most common complaints against a great read that (as of today) has spent 245 days on Amazon’s Top 100 list (currently at Number 15), let’s oversimplify it and say that those who dislike this book are mostly jealous, failed writers. Take this excerpt from an unbelievable 2,370-word diatribe masquerading as a review railing against Outliers on Amazon.com: “… McDonaldized salmagundi of information is itself is [sic] an inadequate account of the thesis proffered by Gladwell.”


Where do we start with this overly pretentious, unloved thesaurus user? His silly and revealing typographical errors? (Perhaps his book would be published if he would just proofread a little.) The length of his unreadable review? (This entire post is just 1,015 words long; 57% shorter than his Amazon attack.) His self-satisfying misuse of the made-up term “McDonaldized?” (I’m sure by his misapplication of the word coined by George Ritzer he means Outliers was written for mass consumption – shame on Malcolm for wanting to sell a couple of books.) Salmagundi? (Wasn’t that the guy who wrote The Satanic Verses?)

Okay, enough about the naysayers; other than to mention they remind me a lot of the fat guy in the Def Leopard T-shirt who told me in 1986 that “U2 sucks, man.” He was wrong, he knew he was wrong, but he couldn’t bring himself to like what others liked. His loss.

Alas, Outliers is not Perfect

Although it is the best book of 2008, Outliers is not The Old Man and The Sea and Gladwell is not Hemingway. Those expecting Hemingway or Salinger or Hugo are going to be sorely disappointed in Gladwell’s work; and in the work of the other 200,000+ authors who published books in North America in 2008.

…

Why do we read? People read for a number of reasons, though most would say they read to be entertained and/or informed; and Gladwell’s Outliers is entertaining and informative. That’s why it could very well remain Number 1 for twelve straight months. (Unless we just jinxed it.)

…

(While we said this article would be a review dedicated to Outliers, it would be disingenuous if we failed to brag that the cleverly titled 10-10-10, by Suzy Welch fell out of the Top 15 after just two months on the list. Way back in May, the AskTheManager.com editors bet that this tome and fellow May 2009 Top 5 read The Ultimate Depression Survival Guide, by Martin Weiss were headed straight for the bargain bin. Weiss’ drivel did not disappoint, and made it to the table-of-shame in June. It seems it took Welch’s formulaic pages a whole month longer. Look for either title on the clearance rack this month only if you’ve run out of good books to read.)

The Top Five – NY Times Business Hardcover Best Sellers July 2009 (to view the entire list, follow this link):

This
Month 		Last
Month
1 OUTLIERS, by Malcolm Gladwell. (Little, Brown, $27.99.) Why some people succeed — it has to do with luck and opportunities as well as talent — from the author of “Blink” and “The Tipping Point.” 1
2 HOW THE MIGHTY FALL, by Jim Collins. (Jim Collins/Harper­Collins, $23.99.) Companies fail in stages, and their decline can be detected and reversed 10
3 SHOP CLASS AS SOULCRAFT, by Matthew B. Crawford. (Penguin Press, $25.95.) A philosopher and mechanic argues for the satisfactions and challenges of manual work.
4 HOUSE OF CARDS, by William D. Cohan. (Doubleday, $27.95.) The fall of Bear Stearns and the beginning of the Wall Street collapse. 5
5 THE TOTAL MONEY MAKEOVER, by Dave Ramsey (Thomas Nelson, $24.99.) Debt reduction and fiscal fitness for families, by the radio talk-show host. 4


NY Times Business Hardcover Best Sellers – June 2009

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New York Times – Hardcover Business Best Sellers – June 2009

The big story from the June 2009 New York Times Hardcover Business Best Sellers list has to be that Gladwell’s Outliers continues to dominate the rankings month-in, month-out. As we wrote in January, Outliers could be one of the best books released in 2008, and seven months at the Number 1 spot confirms it. (Damn, we like it when we’re right.)

We, of course, can also admit when we’re wrong; and it seems we were wrong about the cleverly titled 10-10-10, by Suzy Welch. Last month the AskTheManager.com editors bet that this tome and The Ultimate Depression Survival Guide, by Martin Weiss were headed straight for the bargain bin. The simplicity of the premise and the strength of a famous husband not only kept 10-10-10 in the Top 5, but also propelled it to Number 3. Oh well, perhaps we’ll stick to reviewing leadership books.




The best of the books not making the Top 5 this month has to be Peaks and Valleys, by Spencer Johnson. Number 4 last month, this easy-to-read selection from the co-author of the easy-to-read One Minute Manager and author of the easy-to-read Who Moved My Cheese helps readers cope with tough times by understanding how to make good and bad times work for you personally and professionally.

The Top Five – NY Times Business Hardcover Best Sellers June 2009 (to view the entire list, follow this link):

This
Month

Last
Month

1

OUTLIERS, by Malcolm Gladwell. (Little, Brown, $27.99.) Why some people succeed — it has to do with luck and opportunities as well as talent — from the author of “Blink” and “The Tipping Point.”

1

2

WHO’S GOT YOUR BACK, by Keith Ferrazzi. (Broadway, $25.) Achieving goals by building close relationships with a small circle of trusted individuals.

3

10-10-10, by Suzy Welch. (Scribner, $24.) Evaluating decisions based on how they will affect your life in 10 minutes, 10 months and 10 years.

5

4

THE TOTAL MONEY MAKEOVER, by Dave Ramsey (Thomas Nelson, $24.99.) Debt reduction and fiscal fitness for families, by the radio talk-show host. (†)

7

5

HOUSE OF CARDS, by William D. Cohan. (Doubleday, $27.95.) The fall of Bear Stearns and the beginning of the Wall Street collapse.

2

NY Times Business Hardcover Best Sellers – May 2009

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New York Times – Hardcover Business Best Sellers – May 2009

The May 2009 New York Times Hardcover Business Best Sellers list looks a lot like what we saw the last few months with two exceptions: tomes ranked at Numbers 3 and 5. Of course, those previous lists also included books ranked at Numbers 3 and 5, the notable difference with this month’s contribution to those top spots will be how incredibly short-lived these two entries will be on the best sellers’ list.

Between Martin Weiss’ The Ultimate Depression Survival Guide and the cleverly titled 10-10-10, by Suzy Welch, the AskTheManager.com editors are taking bets on which one won’t make the Top 15 of any future list. Our best guess is that on sheer kitchyness and the strength of a famous husband, 10-10-10 won’t make the bargain table at Barnes and Noble for a few more weeks (we think The Ultimate Depression Survival Guide is probably already there).

Outside of the Top 5, we feel compelled to highlight Jonathan Lehrer’s How We Decide at Number 13. This terrific read is maintaining a presence on the NY Times list likely because we named it to our Ten Best Decision Making Books Ever list in March.

How We Decide introduces the reader to many concepts surrounding behavioral psychology and economics, and how these affect our decision making. This book is loaded with entertaining information that will stimulate your thoughts about how we think and make decisions in response to the complex situations we face. Although this book is enjoyable, it falls a little short in helping the reader uncover clear rules for making better decisions. (Still a recommended read, however.)

The Top Five – NY Times Business Hardcover Best Sellers May 2009 (to view the entire list, follow this link):


This
Month

Last
Month

1

OUTLIERS, by Malcolm Gladwell. (Little, Brown, $27.99.) Why some people succeed — it has to do with luck and opportunities as well as talent — from the author of “Blink” and “The Tipping Point.”

1

2

HOUSE OF CARDS, by William D. Cohan. (Doubleday, $27.95.) The fall of Bear Stearns and the beginning of the Wall Street collapse.

2

3

THE ULTIMATE DEPRESSION SURVIVAL GUIDE, by Martin D. Weiss. (Wiley, $27.95.) Strategies for protecting your money in the worst of times.

4

PEAKS AND VALLEYS, by Spencer Johnson. (Atria, $19.95.) Making both good and bad times work for you personally and pro­fessionally.

4

5

10-10-10, by Suzy Welch. (Scribner, $24.) Evaluating decisions based on how they will affect your life in 10 minutes, 10 months and 10 years.