Strengths Finder 2.0 by Tom Rath

Strengths Finder 2.0 takes a different approach to helping yourself then most books I've read. Instead of telling you how to improve in areas you need improvement, or don't naturally succeed, it says to figure out what you naturally succeed in, and develop those further to become better. By starting out in what you are already good at, you can get farther with less work. Not only does the book explain why this is a good idea, but also gives a code to use on their website to take a test to find out your strengths. And once those strengths are found, the book explains what they mean, and how to improve on them. The book is a short, fast, and interesting read. I would advise anyone to read it.

John Fynes

Mitch Albom “Tuesday with Morrie”

I will introduce this book, “Tuesday with Morrie”, for my classmate. I like this book because I am not good reader but this book still is on my mind. When I was high school, I think about me again because I did not find my future. So, I thought what I do after my future. At this time, I met this book. First of all, I will introduce author, Mitch Albom, who writer about this book. Tuesdays with Morrie is a true story about an elderly man named Morrie Schwartz diagnosed in his seventies with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, AKA Lou Gehrig’s disease. This is memoir between Morrie and Mitch. Morrie is a former professor at Brandies University, and his former student Mitch Album who is employed as a columnist for the Detroit Free Press. As the disease progresses, Morrie shares his outlook on such issues as family, love, emotions, and aging.  Although the cover states “an old man, a young man, and life’s greatest lesson,” Tuesdays actually provides life lessons, and provides an eternal instruction from one of the greatest teachers who ever lived. Why I introduce this book in this class, management also is dealing with person. This is persons' story that can help to mange the person. I think management means have to know how to live this life. So, I introduce this book in this class. Tuesdays with Morrie is an amazing tale of a hero both in life and in death and I firmly believe that every person should listen to the wise words of Morrie Schwartz.  Although many students may have a hard time relating to death, as adolescents often feel a sense of invincibility, the messages of this book is essential.  Students and teachers, youthful teens and aging adults, would greatly benefit their daily lives from reading this simple text.  Through his short aphorisms and “can’t help but love” personality, Morrie Schwartz becomes somewhat of a father or grandfather figure not only to Album but also to the reader as well.  As the final pages grow thinner so do Morrie himself and the reader understands that their time with Morrie as well as his time on Earth will quickly pass by.  The most difficult part of reading Tuesdays is bidding farewell to the man we grow to love for welcoming us into his family.  Luckily, thanks to Mitch Album, we as readers have the ability to connect with the late Morrie Schwartz and hear his powerful words.  One thing that Morrie wanted more than anything else was simply to be remembered and with a text of this magnitude he surely won’t be forgotten anytime soon.  These words of power will reverberate as long as Tuesdays is in print and even long after, for the lessons Morrie offers are timeless and will likely to be passed down from generation to generation. I love this book and I read again and again. If I chance to present for someone and he like to read the book, I usually buy this book and recommend to read it because this book show us how the life is important and Morrie teach to us whole of our life. I like this book.

Ted Lee

I Dislike a Good Company

The title of the book that I reviewed is called  Be Our Guest: Perfecting the art of customer service. by the Disney Institute with a foreword by Michael D. Eisner.

One of the first things that attracted me to the book was its size, but when I saw other books that were smaller I regretted getting this one. I personally don't like Disney. Well, maybe a couple of movies, but I think it's all undercover porn. (look closely and you'll see) The book at first was kind of disturbing. Employees were cast members, uniforms were costumes, a job was a role I mean stuff like that can get someone mentally ill. Despite my negative outlook on Disney itself I think that this book gives great ideas on how to successfully run a business. It gives us great examples on how to treat our new employees and also on how to keep our veteran employees happy.  

This book is under 200 pages and it's an easy read. Fast to read and easy to understand that is the type of book that is preferred by college students, right? So, in conclusion I recommend this book because it's a book that will help you on your future jobs. Great ideas and great examples. Two thumbs up.. (I still think it's undercover porn) 

E.Morlaes

Manager Mechanics

Manager Mechanics by Eric P. Bloom is a great book to read if you’re going to be a manager for the first time. It teaches you the importance of being a successful manager and the skills that any manager should be aware of in order to have a pleasant working environment, not only for your co-workers but as well as for yourself. This book mentioned a great point, which is, being a parent is great training for being a manager, because in both, you provide praise, discipline, guidance, direction, leadership, and a pleasant environment.

Each chapter in this book features easy-to-access key points, lessons that each manager should be aware of, and most importantly people skills, especially because as a manager you are constantly communicating and setting examples for people as well as being a role model. As Eric P. Bloom quoted in this book, “Leadership is proactive and management is reactive. The best managers have a combination of both”.

The Future of Music: Manifesto for the Digital Music Revolution

"A future in which music will be like water: ubiquitous and free-flowing."
The Future of Music should be read by anyone interested in music, period. It provides a detailed explanation about how the soon to be extinct model of music distribution is outdated in the wake of the internet and new technology. The book reveals the misconceptions surrounding the music industry and gives readers an accurate picture about how the business really works. Most importantly, the authors make many bold predictions about how we will all enjoy music in the future. After reading their book any music fan will be praying their visions are realized.

Book Review

SALES MANAGEMENT DEMYSTIFIED is a step-by-step how to book on sales management. This book is especially handy for a newly promoted sales manager. Each chapter has sub chapters pertaining to the overall topic. The author even includes examples of how to write a job description and what to look for in a resume or a candidate profile.
New sales managers need to know what to look for in applicants. This book offers all that needs to be included. The book covers more then just hiring employees, author Robert Calvin also covers topics for any situation you could encounter.
He covers selling tips, how to make an idea a successful habit, and future planning for the company. Overall, this book is a complete guide to successful sales management.

Ethics 101 by John C. Maxwell

Overall, this book was a very great book. Short, concise, and straight to the point is how I would put it in three words. John C. Maxwell pulls through with several different theories and patterns all relating to true true-to-life theories, sports, and even business stories.
Maxwell bases the whole book on the his theory known as, the "Golden Rule". The Golden Rule builds morale, increases productivity, encourages team work, lowers employee turnover, and keeps clients coming back. Basically, if you want to run a successful business, the Golden Rule is the rule to follow.
Following the Golden Rule actually relates to doing the right thing in any given situation you are put in: Making character decisions, sacrifice finances for family, developing relationship with your actions, etc. Living with integrity is how I would like to put it. Never take the easy way out if you know its sleazy or wrong.
Other concepts of the book Maxwell writes about are the 5 Pitfalls that throw people off the ethical track in business: Pressure, Pleasure, Power, Pride, Priorities. By making or following these 5 wrong moves you can and will jeopardize your future in a corporation or even your own business.
Overall, I thought Ethics 101 by John C. Maxwell was a very good book. It was short, concise, and only about 100 pages long. If your looking for something short to read and uplifting towards your business ethics this book is the one for you.

Living Rich by Spending Smart by Gregory Karp

Living Rich by Spending Smart by Gregory Karp seems like a book that lists practical advice for people who like to spend their money. He says that you do not have to deprive yourself of the things you want, but spend wisely in other areas of your life in order to afford the luxuries. I found many of the ideas that he had to be common sense, for instance, making your own meal will save you more money than going out to eat. Some ideas were new to me, such as saying that life insurance is only for those who support others financially. This book is for people that do not know how to cut back, or who could still use the advice on how to cut back even more. While he doesn't like to use the word "budget" often, that is basically what this book is about. Learning what you need to spend your money on, what you want to spend your money on and how to look for the best prices in order to obtain these wants and needs. After reading Karp's book, I have revised a few of my habits and have already saved a little money. If you would like to save money a little at a time and wouldn't know how to do so, this book will help you figure how to do so.

How to Sell Anything to Anybody

How to Sell Anything to Anybody

By Joe Girard

Joe Girard is the Guinness Book of World Records holder for the world’s best salesman, with a career spanning 15 years in which he sold 13,001 cars. Although he sells cars, this book is aimed for anyone that is looking to expand their abilities in sales in general. This was a somewhat interesting book, but to be honest I didn’t get much out of it at all (and the writer’s “friendly” informal style didn’t help much either.) In fact, I was annoyed that the entire first half of the book consisted of Girard explaining how he was “especially poor” and had an “especially bad life”, and how he turned into being an “especially” amazing salesman. Learning how he made it was an interesting read because he actually did go through a difficult young life, but I got tired of it quickly. I was still able to absorb some of the major points he nailed down throughout the entirety of the book, and there were 3 in particular that were helpful.

First, (and this remains of key importance throughout the book) keep your contacts around, as selling to a returning customer is more likely than a new one, seeing that you were good to them in the first place.

Second, don’t treat your customer as “The Mooch,” or someone that wants to waste your time looking at what you have to offer. They are there to make a deal and if you can satisfy the customer, he or she will not only bring more customers to you, but will return to you for help in the future. “Sales should be a bloodless battle where both parties are satisfied at the resolution.”

Last, it is important not to get confused with becoming a “salesman.” You are there to sell a product to a working human, and it is important to reach them on a human level. Share your name at any opportunity, show excitement, and be yourself. Along with this, you have to WANT to sell, because being at work and not putting forth your full attention to wanting that sale, you won’t get it.

Business Management in Girl Scouting

This very outdated 1979 book produced by the Girl Scouts of America on Business Management in Girl Scouting is a very interesting read. When you think of Girl Scouts, you don’t really take into consideration that they need business management. However, after reading this book, it is very clear to see that Girl Scouts actually have a lot to keep track of.

This book goes through all of the expenses that each troop has to front, and the money that they receive. Girl Scouts do fundraising for their troops, and therefore as a good exercise to life in the real world, Girl Scouts need to learn how to manage their earnings effectively. This book gives very helpful tips on how to organize and file all of the money that they come across. This is also a good exercise for all of the Girl Scouts for when they sell their delicious Girl Scout cookies. There is actually a whole chapter dedicated to the Girl Scout Cookie sales, and how to best organize their orders and their payments to make everything flow smoothly. Other chapters also include budgeting, time management and overall organization.

Although it is very outdated by nearly 30 years and some technologies from then have changed, not only is this a good business management book for Girl Scouts, but everyone else too.

Managing Performance to Maximize Results

The title of this book says it all. If you are looking for a book on how to manage and maximize result this is it.  The book consist of different articles from the Harvard Management Update and the Harvard Management Communication Letter.  This way you get a perspective from a group of different authors and find out what worked or didn't work for them, instead of just from one single author.  In reality no one method will work for every one.  

The book is separated in different sections from how to give performance reviews to catering to each employee's different strengths and weakness, which is very important because knowing what position to put  a person in can be the difference between having them being motivated to get work done or not.     

The main reason I recommend this book, is that it caters more on the side of the employee.  As a manager you should be more of a coach than a boss.  For example, instead of giving feedback, have a conversation.  This way you can find out what the problem is and how to go about solving it.  Also set goals for them to handle in regards to their job description rather than setting the expectations too high, which often may lower productivity.

Not every management technique is going to work for every company.  This book acknowledges that and gives you plenty of real management examples from real companies, on how they went about handling their situations.  For instance the book shows how to deliver critical feedback based on how the each employee operates within their own working environment.   

I personally think that anyone wanting to learn how to be a better manager should read this book.  It's short (less than 200 pages) and to the point.  Also the book can be applied to any kind of business, from managing Burger King to a big corporation like Google.  

-Andrew Corpuz          

"Managing Media Convergence: Pathways to Journalistic Cooperation"

The main focus of media convergence gives a vivid perspective of management skills geared toward students, business employees, and industry employers. The new and improved insights on media management offer new information that ultimately illustrate the constant media convergent. This book allows new grounds to be set for those individuals that thrive in the journalism field and marketplace. The book tends to focus convergence. Converging into traditional management level, political and social aspects, organization, concepts, and essential regulations.
The author strongly believes that convergence is an intermediate solution to long term media integration or what integration will ultimately take place. The future needs to prepare for regulatory integration of media, and the convergence of new ideas instead of going against it.
Furthermore, the book entails potent information to guide individuals through the world of journalism to perfect the necessary skills of writing for media, and understanding the qualities that it takes to improve media for the public.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book for the purpose of comprehending the effort that is put forth into the journalistic media industry. Also, how relevant change is to the media society. Once one is receptive to change, or convergence, then traditions can be broken and new information can be aquired.

--Camille A. Evans

The One Minute Manager

In the book, “The One Minute Manager”, by authors Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson, several aspects of management are covered. It basically sums up the different areas of management, and gives simple information and advice about each of these areas. Millions of people from thousands of organizations have taken advantage of the beneficial information that this book has to offer. This book was originally published in 1982; people in organizations read it to “increase their productivity, profits, and prosperity”. One quote that stands out from the book is as follows, “Effective managers, manage themselves and the people they work with so that both the organization and the people profit from their presence”. The book also teaches that people, who feel good about themselves, are frequently the ones who produce good results.

The book is well organized and concisely to the point. It is good for someone who wants quick tips to management, or a manager who feels they need to refresh their tactics. It provides great motivation and advice as well. I enjoyed reading it because it was clear, with no grey areas. I suggest each person studying management, or currently in a management positions to give it a read.

Title: “The One Minute Manager: The World’s Most Popular Management Method”
Authors: Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson
Publisher: 1981

Think & Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill

Selling millions of copies and changing the lives of millions of people, this is one of the greatest books of all time. The book covers thirteen basic principles that can make the poorest person become rich, not only financially but spiritually as well. Similar to the modern book, The Secret by Rhonda Byrne, this book emphasizes on the law of attraction but leaves it to you to discover the secret. Confused? Don’t worry about it. Read the book, apply the principles with faith, and you will get whatever you want out of life.
- Carlo Porras

The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell

Title: The Tipping Point
Author: Malcolm Gladwell
0-316-34662-4

Most of us in a society see things that happening around us from a simple perspective by making pre-assumptions. However, what we assume will happen may not be the actual result. Gladwell argues that there are specific little things that have a huge effect on the outcome.

According to the author, there are three rules that start and create a way of epidemics. Those rules are the Law of the Few, the Stickiness Factor, and the Power of Context. First, the Law of the Few argues that there are some people, minority in our society, that are gifted with knowing how to create highly powerful social relations. Gladwell argues that those gifted people can easily spread an idea in a society unlike the majority. In the end, the important point is the nature of the messenger according to the rule. Next, I believe that the rule of the Stickiness Factor is very important in the media industry. This rule focuses on how some ideas, products, or words can stick in minds or how catchy they are while some are not. The rule argues that the content of a product is very important; if the content is weak then the idea or a product cannot be spread easily in the society. Last, the Power of Context is about how the decisions of a person can be changed relating to a different place or situation.

The book is very well written. Gladwell is very careful at backing up his arguments by the results of experiments and scientific research, which increased the accuracy of the book. Most of the parts in the piece are very much related to media business. Additionally, the interaction of people to objects and ideas are very important in the media. As a result, I recommend The Tipping Point especially to my colleagues that is a helpful source.

The Carrot Principle

In short, the writers “The Carrot Principle,” Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton, posit that the most effective and therefore profitable businesses are the result of a motivated set of employees, and the most effective way for a manager to motivate her employees is by providing them with positive reinforcements. They provide a good deal of evidence, form a number of studies to prove that the real factors that motivate workers are not things like money or benefits, but are things like recognition and career development opportunities. The allusion being that the carrot is a better motivator than the stick.
To me this thesis, doesn’t really seem like anything new, since it is basically the same as Frederick Herzberg’s theory of motivational and hygiene factors. Things like pay and job security are the things that people see as essential necessities at their job, but the things that make people truly happy are working in an environment where they feel that they are appreciated and are making a positive impact.
While I think that the message of this book is for the most part right, the fact that such a short message was spread out over a couple hundred pages was a little annoying. I would recommend that people read the first couple chapters of this book or skim through it rather than read the entire thing.

Overcoming the FIVE Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni

It is called a field guide. Why? Because Patrick Lencioni, who is a CEO of a consulting firm called The Table Group, claims in his introduction that this book will provide managers and team leaders a practical tool for helping implement the concepts of The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. The Five Dysfunctions of a team is stated in his book as absence of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of accountability and inattention to results. Lencioni uses a story format (or Leadership format as he calls it) in trying to get his point out. He gives personal accounts of how he works with his teams as well as other leader examples (He uses Michael Jordan as an example, Nice). Within the read, you come across passages in story form to give you a better explanation into what he is saying. The book adds a lot of human elements into dealing with management instead of hitting management as x’s and o’s. For example, the book says time does not build trust, it’s courage. An interesting take the book goes into is that they recommend conflict in meetings because the lack of conflict makes meetings boring and boring meetings cause bad decisions. But obviously, he explains later how to resolute the conflicts as well. The book is a very easy read and it also acts as a fun reading text book with a summary like section on the end of each chapter called “Key Points” which goes over the main points of overcoming that dysfunction. I do like the message the book tries to give out especially how you can apply it to any type of team such as sports or even if you were a manger for a small store, the book definitely conveys strong insights in being a good and effective leader.

- Anton Ayson

Starbucked

If you are a passionate coffee lover such as myself, then this is the book for you. I would recommend this book to anyone who is curious about the inner workings of the Starbucks Corporation.

The book talks a lot about the history of coffee in a nutshell. Taylor Clark, the author, offers a lot of interesting information to the uninformed coffee aficionado; he gives some knowledge of where Starbuck’s heavenly coffee originates. From the foundation of the company to the present, “Starbucked” gives readers the history of where the name Starbucks comes from, how the logo was chosen, the look of Starbucks, the consumers, the locations, and the history of the beverages with a particular emphasis on Frappuccino drinks. The book even explains the logic behind why the sizes are called “tall,” “grande,” and “venti.”

People who buy from Starbucks will have a better understanding of what they are partaking in after they give this book a read, and it goes into great detail about just what is the “Starbucks Experience.” The book illustrates that for the price of a cup of coffee consumers get more than just that; they have a chance to enjoy a nice environment, and most customers say that Starbucks is more than just a cup of coffee - it’s a part of their lives.

Overall, this book is a good read, but don’t cite this as your primary source of information on Starbucks. The founders of Starbucks have written books about the company’s history (these are mentioned by Taylor), but “Starbucked” is a good read if you want to have a general knowledge. If you just don’t understand the seemingly magnetic draw people have to Starbucks, Taylor Clark goes into enough detail to give you an idea and he might even make you laugh.

The Winner Within A Life Plan For Team Players

The Winner Within is a book by the legendary basketball coach and player Pat Riley. It's an inspiring book about management told from the perspective of the sporting world but can be translated into any aspect of life. He talks about what makes a good team and the challenges and struggles that prevent great chemistry.

The book is very motivational and it helps the reader understand being a team player, living up to there full potential, and creating and environment in which they can flourish as a human being. He says his philosophies work the same whether you're on a sports team, work at a corporation, or are part of a family. He explains that our significance comes from our connections to others.

I recommend this book to any body that wants to improve on realtions between the team that they're in whether it's at work or in a sports environment.

12 Simple Secrets

David Thielen’s The 12 Simple Secrets Of Microsoft Management takes the reader behind the scenes, into the world of Microsoft’s core management strategies to reveal many of the secrets behind the companies unparalleled success. From “Total Market Domination” to “Perform, Perform, Perform”, Thielen explains Microsoft’s management principals, and offers up practical examples of how to implement them into any business. The 12 Simple Secrets of Microsoft Management is a quick read that could change the way we think about management.

Review By
Gregg Rosenblum

Never Wrestle with a Pig

Never wrestle with a pig is an amazing book perfect for college students and people wanting to build a business and career. Mark McCormack provides real life situations, his own experiences as well as others, and situations that everyone can relate to and learn from. The creative thing he does is relates management to all areas such as sports, commercials, school, relationships and other areas one wouldn’t expect. This book allows you to give yourself a reality check, something most people forget to do. From personal priorities and goals to work ethics and character this book makes you discover yourself and how you can manage your time, better your work skills and stand out. Never wrestle with a pig focuses on people skills, creative thinking and humane behavior. It provides great advice, pointers and highlights that even the smallest things are significant.

McCormack’s book really got me evaluating myself as a person and worker. The use of metaphors really affected me because it was really meaningful. As a college student, I felt this book has provided great advice about businesses and how I can be beneficial to the company I work for. But one of the biggest things to learn is to never wrestle with a pig!

Blue Ocean Strategy-highly recommended!!!

Blue Ocean Strategy by W.Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne is an interesting and quick read. It won me over and I could not stop reading it. This book provides you with the sufficient tools and principles to achieve a successful business.

It takes an interesting approach to the cut throat world of business. This book uses the metaphor, blue and red oceans to describe the market place. It recommends that red oceans, the competition blood bath, move out into blue oceans, the new market, to ultimately make competition irrelevant. The authors believe that leading companies will succeed not by battling competitors, but by creating these “blue oceans”. It offers many useful techniques and strategies to change the way business is done today. It introduces six principles and hundreds of different strategies to formulate a successful business by creating a blue ocean.

This is the first business book I have read and I found the way they look at business extremely interesting. It provides a new way of looking at the market and challenges you to think about the market. It provides you with valuable information and tips for a successful business.

I highly recommend Blue Ocean Strategy. This is a must read book for anyone interested in starting a new business or enhancing their existing one.

The Google Story - Inside the Hottest Business, Media and Technology Success of Our Time

David A. Vise and Mark Malseed's National Bestseller "The Google Story" is a triumphant account of the history of the world's favorite website. The book delves more into the human side of the booming company rather than dissects and analyze, and it highlights important events that have brought Google to where it is today. It is a remarkable tale of how two techy guys from Stanford, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, wanted to improve online search capabilities. Their dream quickly became a reality, and with the help of CEO Eric Schmidt and some risky Silicon Valley venture capitalists, Google went from a Palo Alto startup to Microsoft's biggest competitor in just a few short years. I found out that by the summer of 2006, Google's stock was more valuable than Amazon, eBay, and Yahoo combined.

This book is a must for anyone curious about how the familiar blank-paged search engine makes money through advertising within search results, much like traditional media companies. The behind-the-scenes research done by the authors gives the reader an insider's view of the unique company. They preach their motto of "Don't Be Evil" to employees and have a 20 percent rule, where their employees are encouraged to spend 20 percent of their working time on projects that personally interest them. This new-age approach to management is what led to Gmail and Google News. The book reveals what life is like at the remarkable Googleplex, where the staff is treated to daily, healthy gourmet meals for free and how the casual atmosphere feels more like a college campus than a Fortune 500 company. The encouragement of working in small groups without the dominance of managers is how Google keeps their employees motivated.

"The Google Story" tells of the problems the company had with privacy issues, particularly with ads in users' Gmail accounts, tailored to match keywords in emails. You will also learn how Google dealt with overbearing investors and Wall Street, and how they went public and made the founders instant billionaires. During Google's first year after going public, it was worth more than media conglomerate Time Warner, and the hardly-decade old company was also worth more than the combined value of Disney, Ford, and General Motors. A truly fascinating story of new media's star child, this book is a highly personal as well as informative read. Just be warned that the authors never speak unfavorably about Google, but rather defend it in every tale of fighting lawsuits and privacy groups. If you can get beyond that and accept that Google would be the ideal employer, than I highly recommend reading "The Google Story".

Published by Delta, Updated 2006 Edition.

All I Ever Needed To Know About The Music Business

"Should be required reading for anyone planning or enduring a career in the biz."
–– Rolling Stone

Good call, Rolling Stone. "All You Ever Need To Know About The Music Business" (6th ed.) by Donald S. Passman is an excellent introduction and guide to anyone who is thinking about entering the music or entertainment industry. It acts as a guide for planning and executing a career in music. Although a lot of the book tends to speak to the up-and-coming (or down-and-out) musician, about what they will face and what they should do to be prepared for it, it really is adaptable to a lot of different media careers.

The management section of the book covers two topics: personal management and business management. Really, it tells musicians what to do to get a manager, what the typical contracts should look like, and precautions to make sure the musician gets a fair deal. It offers great financial advice relating to business managers who are really acting as accountants for the group.

I think that the contractual information Passman offers in this book is the most useful knowledge for a media student. He gives great advice about how to negotiate and maintain an edge in successfully negotiating contracts. I would recommend this book to all media students, particularly those interested in careers in the music and entertainment industry.

––Geoff Meisner

A Peacock in the Land of Penguins

A Peacock in the land of Penguins, by BJ Gallagher Hateley and Warren H. Schmidt is a beautifully written,modern day corporate fable. It is a book on management, sure, but something more. It is about learning to work with all sorts of personalities and backgrounds, and drawing out true talent to make a beautiful product. A Peacock is that amazing person, the beautiful, creative, intelligent go getter that accomplishes what they want, and a penguin is, well, the guy that follows everyone else, is pretty average looking, and just tries to make it through the day. Every employer needs penguins, the kind who are focused and set in their ways and will get their job done, but a smart manager needs peacocks. This book really illustrates how everyone can become a peacock, and can use their creativity and talents in a way that is entirely unique. Everyone is different, and their are different birds to describe everyones style--an aggressive hawk, a powerful eagle, a vulture, the quiet swan. However, the beauty of a successful team is the culmination of everyones talents, of learning to accept, and appreciate differences, and not being afraid to show off how amazing you really are. With so much corporate pressure to be one way, to dress and talk and work according to rules, it is a refreshing perspective to know that diversity is mandatory for a team to truly become the best.

"Ten Clowns Don't Make a Circus" - Marc Abrigo

Ladies and gentlemen, make no mistake -- this book is not an biography on P.T. Barnum, but rather a fun and straightforward read that anyone wishing to be a leader should pick up. Written by Steven Schragis and Rick Frishman, two men whose collective clientele ranges from Donald Trump to Harvey Weinstein, "Ten Clowns..." offers 250 well-scouted and insightful strategies to ensure management success. The book is not separated into chapters like other management books, and it does a good job of going through each of the rules and explaining their relevance to the world of business.

Now, many of them are things we've heard before, but the way it is written grants the reader further insight as to how and why these strategies work and will continue to work. If one were to read just a few of these rules and strategies a day, he or she should be in the proper mindset to become a great asset in the workplace in no time.

Joyce Meyer's, "Managing Your Emotions"

I had the pleasure of reading Joyce Meyer’s Managing Your Emotions-Instead of Your Emotions Managing You. Joyce has been teaching the Word of God since 1976. She has written many books that specify different aspects of her ministry, along with hosting her own broadcast radio and television show.
In this book, Joyce teaches the reader how to mange the different emotions and feelings that we have throughout our everyday lives. She explains that it is ok for us to be emotional and feel emotions; for they teach us to recognize how we are being treated by others, treating others, and treating ourselves. The challenge is being able to manage those emotions so that they don’t control us, but rather we control them and react in a positive manner versus a negative one.
Joyce breaks the book down into different emotional issues such as: Healing of Damaged Emotions 1&2, Emotions and the Process of Forgiveness, Mood Swings, Understanding and Overcoming Depression, etc. She writes this book in a way that any personality type would be able to recognize themselves in her writings. Joyce uses experiences from her own life and marriage as examples of issues that we all go through. Everyone goes through emotional conflicts and breakdowns, and in this book Meyer teaches us how to understand different personality traits, as well as the emotional conflicts that are associated with those traits. I truly enjoyed reading this book. Immediately I was able to associate myself with some of the emotional characteristics that she spoke about. I feel that I have grown from reading it and that others will be able to do the same.

Do the Right Thing by James F. Parker

Motivational Management Book Review

Do the Right Thing: How Dedicated Employees Create Loyal Customers and Large Profits, by James F. Parker
Wharton School Publishing
Copyright 2008

On 9/11/2001, when terrorist attacks nearly halted the air travel business, James F. Parker the CEO of Southwest Airlines was responsible for keeping Southwest within one percent of the previous year's revenue. Through his application of his management theory and a few key business moves, he was able to succeed in the midst of failure.

Parker's management theory focuses on two major philosophies. The first is that "leaders are everywhere", at all levels of employment. These leaders within the company are responsible for consistently driving excellent performance of those around them. A successful leader is one who possesses the ability to identify people's strengths and praises them. Even the pilots of Southwest are encouraged to accept input from his crew.

His second major philosophy emphasizes that in order for employees to succeed, they must be empowered. When the right people are recruited and hired, they can be taught to think like owners; motivated to make good decisions for the company as a whole. "Doing the right thing" means focusing on employees first, then customers, and lastly the shareholders; an important distinction for successful companies.

By drastically cutting the price of flights, and emphasizing the managerial necessity of hiring and empowering quality employees at all levels, James F. Parker made Southwest successful, even during 9/11, a time when the business was at a historical low.

In Do the Right Thing, Parker writes in a straightforward, yet passionate manner. His most important key to a business's success and admiration is management's elevation of the employee. While his book is not revolutionary, it is an inspiring read. It gives hope to the moral humanitarian with its powerful message that "doing the right thing" can lead to success.

-Victoria Petersen

How To Win Any Argument: Without Raising Your Voice, Losing Your Cool, Or Coming To Blows by Robert Mayer

In the business world you will be faced with people who argue about anything, or even worse, about nothing. This book, by Robert Mayer, guides the reader to achieve the ability to win arguments with confidence, grace and ease.

It’s a really easy book to read, and each chapter is named after a tactic, which defines which would be the most helpful for a reader. In each chapter, sections are introduced called “heads up” where the author points out a main idea when looking at arguments. For instance, a major reasoning to win any argument is to gain absolute and total self-control by understanding the power to pause, observe, absorb before acting and be aware of alternative solutions. Controlling an argument begins by controlling how you will be.

Also, the book has a “quick quiz” section that refers to the chapter you just read to test if you learned the previous policy. Also, in every chapter, Mayer includes real life examples where public figures and companies went wrong when it comes to assumptions, expectations, and underestimating competition.

Not only does this book help you with arguments in the office, but also it dabbles with disagreements in relationships, family, and on the phone. I thought this was an interesting read for a business book, because it doesn't bore you with only management ideas but issues regarding people you will face in the workforce. I would recommend this book, just as it says, “No matter who you are, what you do, whatever the situation, there ware bound to be arguments.”

The Entertainment Economy

The Entertainment Economy: ­ How Mega-Media Forces are Transforming Our Lives, is a book written by Michael J. Wolf. Made in 1999, the book was published by Times Books. What Wolf states is that the driving force behind the American economy is actually the entertainment industry. And after reading through his book, I tend to agree with his viewpoint.

A terms that really stuck out was "Hedonomics". The idea of "Hedonomics" is the theory of the ability to understand the consumer who is primarily focused on fun. The average person is continuously pressured from work or school (or all the other stressful situations we have), and there is extra time available, they usually fill that void with entertainment.

He says that there are people called "alpha consumers" who pretty much make or break the products we see. These "alpha consumers" (like high tech phones with business people), can make or break the product with a positive or negative response. If the "alpha consumers" enjoy the product, then it has a better chance with the mass market, as they would simple follow.

Michael Wolf also states that one of the biggest selling points that companies need to pay attention to is creativity. And it makes sense, as creativity is the key to an ingenious commercial, a catchy song, or even an aesthetically pleasing advertisement.

Overall, I have to say that this was a fascinating book and should be on any Media/Business majoring student. Highly recommended for anyone looking for insight on how to advertise or on the American economy.

My Bucket is Full... After Reading this Motivational Book

How Full is Your Bucket? is an inspirational book about positive strategies in managing your business and your life.  The authors Tom Rath and his late grandpa Donald O. Clifton present their thoughtful research into a short read of how we can benefit from having a full bucket.

The book incorporates personal stories from the authors and explains their connections with having a full bucket.  The theory of the bucket is implying each of us have a bucket and a dipper, which we use whenever we interact with others.  By doing positive actions and encouraging or motivating others, we fill others buckets, therefore filling our own.  If we are negative or discouraging, we take from others buckets, therefore taking from our own. Others may fill our buckets for us, when we need it, and we are to do the same.

The connection to our work environments is made with how we interact with our co-workers and bosses.  The studies they did found that the fuller employees bucket were, the more enjoyment they got from doing their work.  They made a point that when people enjoy their work they get more done.  Managers are encouraged to fill buckets with encouragement and learn more about each of the employee’s personal lives to better the workplace.

In life, a full bucket means we possess a positive spirit and it makes us more willing to fill others buckets too.  In the book they said there needs to be a 5 to 1 ratio in relationships… 5 positive interactions to every 1 negative.  They were clear that we still need our constructive criticism.

I personally really enjoyed this book, and I am going to mail it on for others to read.  I think it is a read that possesses many truths about life and work.

Published in 2004. 

Basic Black by Cathie Black

Basic Black chronicles the career and life of Cathie Black, now president of Hearst Magazines, throughout her trials and tribulations as a woman swiftly climbing the corporate ladder in the world of print media. Cathie gives an insight on how to get the job you want, including useful interview and resume tips, how to keep your job and excel at it, and how to find the most satisfying career and industry in which to work.

Cathie splits up her book into nine chapters in which she titles Drive, Risk, People, Fear, Power, Passion, Attitude, Leadership and The Future is Now. In each chapter she gives examples from her own life and her peers in the industry to teach lessons on how to handle situations in your own career.

This was the first business book I have ever read but let me tell you I was motivated, inspired and encouraged after and during the time that I read it. This morning I got up early, got dressed and turned over a new leaf in my life and my career aspirations.

Cathie speaks to all people in her book but I find that she is especially trying to reach women in the corporate world. She teaches values and morals of hard work, determination and diligence to obtain what you want in your career and also how to balance that with your personal life. This is a book for anyone wanting to kick start their career and start their ascend on the corporate ladder.

GOOD TO GREAT

Many people wonder how good companies become great. The author Jim Collins did an excellent job gathering real life business samples and data points from all different kinds companies. The point was to draw correlations between the good companies and the great companies. We also learned why some companies are never able to make that jump from good to great.

The first main point of the book concentrated on the possession of a level 5 leader. What is a level 5 leader? This is a manager or leader who intrinsically has the best interest of his employees in mind. It’s someone who puts the company ahead of his/her own personal accomplishments. Someone who is more concentrated on the overall vision, rather than short-term successes. This person is an expert at matching individuals strengths to job responsibilities within the company. An analogy they used often was this: “You need to get the right people on the bus. Once you have all the right people on the bus, you can take the bus anywhere.” This analogy really resonated with me because so many times companies hire because there is a demand for a position and rather than wait for the right person for the position they settle.

The second point talked about momentum. Changing small things within your organization to help create internal momentum. When your employees feel this momentum, and it is contagious, they become self-motivating. In many cases you can pin point where the Level 5 leaders had created that long lasting momentum.
In conclusion, this book really opened my eyes to the subtleties that catapult companies from good to great. It also made me think about looking for these qualities when choosing my profession. I hope I find a level 5 leader within a great company.

How Full is Your Bucket: A Book on Feeling Good

A few years ago, Tom Rath and Donald Clifton wrote How full is Your Bucket: Positive Strategies for Work and Life. It soon became a national bestseller and is still today. The remarkable part of this book is that it is so short, not that revolutionary in concept, and yet became the hit in business publishing. The book revolves around one concept that the authors have dubbed "bucket filling." The theory boils down to this: When you do nice things to people it fills your proverbial bucket just as it fills when others do nice deeds for you. People who spread negative energy in the work place empty the buckets of others and essentially ruin productivity.

While I do enjoy the sentiment behind the book, the statistics the authors preset can be very stretching at times. As far as the message in the book, I believe it to be a very strong and positive one that can indeed help make an organization run better. It's just that How Full is Your Bucket could have just as easily been an orientation pamphlet than a 128-page book.

Running Your Own Business - Chris Ritter

Despite being 20 years old, this did a good job in breaking down what has to be done in starting a business. This went into detail about how to get loans, what type of people to look for into who you would want working for you, and what makes an efficient manager. After reading this, it made me second guess into any thoughts of starting a business. You seem to have to put in a lot of your own money and make sure you reach the right type of consumer. Also, the legal parts seems to be risky. I read about layers and chances of being sued, even if it wasn't my fault and the fault of a person that worked for me. What I didn't realize is how possible it can be to think of a product. I could already take something that has been created and make it more appealing by offering more advantages like appearance or a lower price. This also covered things that have already learned like budget sheets and assets. There were only two problems I had. The first made me believe this to be sexist. When it was time to describe a manager, all I read was he this and he that. And, I always read business man and never a business person. I don't think the words she or woman were used in this book. I also didn't understand that I would only need to know a little of what I was selling. I would believe that I would be better off to know everything possible about a product and for sure more than any customers of mine may know.

“Blink” A decision-Making Strategy By Bonnie Smith

Have you ever just leaped to a conclusion about something, without thinking through all your options, but just have this innate feeling that your conclusion is right. This is the part of your brain that is called the adaptive unconscious; a decision-making system that is capable of making very quick judgments based on very little information.

In Malcolm Gladwell's book, Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking Gladwell suggests management decision-making should be more about intuition, or a gut-feeling, rather than informed, data-driven decision making.

Gladwell examines rapid, almost instantaneous, decision-making, and how those decisions can produce the same results as a decision made after tough analysis. He explores how military commanders, firefighters, doctors, law enforcement officials, and business executives face similar situations in the ability to have to make extremely rapid decisions under conditions of extreme stress, and even for very high stakes.

Blink explains many different theories and studies based on “thin-slicing” or the ability to make sense of something quickly. He gives some very powerful examples such as, the Pepsi challenge, the fake Kouros statue at the Getty, first impressions of people, and many others. This book gives a lot of insight about “blink of the eye” decisions when it comes to business decisions, marketing, as well as everyday decision-making at home or while out meeting new people.

Although this book is a very interesting read, I don’t know if it will help you to become a more wise and thoughtful decision-maker, specifically in the workplace and business arena, but it does get you to think.

Cash Management; Making your business cash-rich...without breaking the bank. By Tony Dalton

Dalton’s Cash Management is wealth of knowledge for the everyday small business owner. If you are looking to increase the cash of your business now, Dalton’s book is for you. He gives you simple solutions that can bring money into your business without going to the bank. This is not a textbook that gives you solutions based on numbers and theories but more of a handbook that shows you the pros and cons of each step of the way from a more personal approach. Dalton offers first hand experience in owning small businesses as he owns several and gives you an insider take on small business management.

One thing that I enjoyed very much in this book that helped me understand certain aspects of business practice is the real life experience and the real world application he reveals. For example, when reading about assets, I had a hard time understanding the intangible value of intellectual property, copyrights, and patents, until he applied it to tech companies. By asking which is more valuable, the chips that Intel produces or the intellectual property that created them? Obviously the intellectual property because without the method their would be no product. That question put things in perspective for me and helped me understand that even though I can not chart the value of patents, copyrights, and so on, they are still very profitable to my business and can increase the value of it.

Dalton’s book is perfect for you if you are a small business owner looking to increase your cash-flow and do not have time to take a class or read a large textbook. His real world applications and personal experience will help you understand each chapter and help you run your small business more effectively.

By Adrian Janowicz

THE 4-HOUR WORKWEEK; customer service, organizational behavior, motivational.

Can you believe that the author, Timothy Ferriss, would title his book The 4-Hour Workweek? (published in 2007). Afterall, I learned in my JOURNALISM 200 class freshman year at San Francisco State University that it was grammatically inncorrect to print digits 0-9 in its numbered form on paper; but rather you are supposed to spell-out digits 0-9. So, technically, the book should be titled "The Four-Hour Workweek," if it were to be grammatically correct. Fortunately, I don't personally care about 'correctness' and niethier does the author.
Ferriss does the opposite in his book. He doesn't just write differently, he explains in his book how to make money and manage your lifesyle differently, both financially and personally, in a way that corrects exisiting conventions on how to do so. Ferriss is about efficiency, but stresses the importance of being effective with what you WANT to do. He makes money and lives his life the OPPOSITE way, and encourages and explains to his readers the possibility of doing so immediately. Not tomorrow, not next week, but Now! Ferriss organizes his his book into 4 (OOPS! I meant four, see...) sections, which explain in clear detail how to live your life as THE NEW RICH (NR). The NR abandon the deferred-life plan of working the arbitray " 9 to 5, " which produces less rather than more ambiguous results, and then retiring when you're exhausted and old, only to vacation at some second-rate resort still drowing in debt and cheap scotch. Many people fear living this unfullfilling and boring reality of 'work for work,' but Ferriss and the NR create luxury lifestyles in the present using the currency of TIME and MOBILITY to get what you want, where you want, when you want. Sounds like a dream? That's the point.

Doing what you want, where you want, and how you want is a possibilty that Ferriss makes clear and POSSIBLE, and Ferriss demonstrates that if he could become a serial entrepreneur and ultravagabond, speak six languages, run a multinational firm from wireless locations worldwide, become a national champion in Chinese kickboxing, and an actor on a hot television series in Hong Kong, all at the age of thirty years old--THEN YOU CAN TOO. And, Ferriss does show the reader how to 'accomplish it all' doing anything, just like he did, by providing resources and activities to perform and practice both in the book and on the Web. If you buy the book, Ferriss gives the reader access to his online website, http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/, which has additional activities, resources, an extensive glossary, and BONUS CHAPTERS that can be used to reference as you become NR.

Life doesn't have to be so damn difficult! I recommend this book to anyone. It's a quick read (about 300 pages), packed with a lifetime of useful information and resources. Pick up Ferriss's book, and start finding out for yourself--What work and life management means and is supposed to be!

In debt,

Frank Nappi

"IT'S SUPPOSED TO BUBBLE. FUCK YOU AND YOUR PUSSY BITCH"-PIMP C

You Don't Need a Tite to be a Leader

“Leadership is the art of getting extraordinary performance from ordinary people.” You Don’t Need a Title to be a Leader by Mark Sanborn is a very inspiring and positive book. This book helps people to want to become better people and great leaders. The author had articulately expressed the attributes of a true leader. One example of an attribute is that genuine leaders look for ways to lead. He explains what makes a great leader and how to be one. And the most important point that the author stresses is to remember that having a high power title doesn’t really mean anything. Overall, I highly recommend this book because it is a great motivational tool to become a better leader.

Shaping Your Career by Harvard Business Press. Published by Harvard Business School Publishing (2008)---Advising

Shaping Your Career gives detailed information on how to be successful by assessing career objectives. Timothy Butler and James Waldroop, business career psychologists from Harvard Business School, share their insights on the necessary steps to build a career through careful planning and development.
The book is organized in a way where the Harvard mentors help the reader define their career, skills, business interests, work rewards, and the ability to grow with a prospective company. Shaping Your Career gives advice and assessment tools in every chapter to help guide the reader. This book can be used by anyone who might need some direction on how to become successful both professionally and personally. The purpose of this book is to help people make the best career decisions and guide them to become better business-oriented individuals at the end of the day. Shaping Your Career had done a great job achieving its purpose by creating tools that help people realize their career potential.
The book, Shaping Your Career, excels in advising and mentoring which is why I recommend it to business-oriented individuals. All of the readings were very informative and filled with charts and surveys which that helps individuals find a career path. Shaping Your Career is a MUST READ because it gives great advice and uses tools to identify an individual's strengths and weaknesses that are the building blocks for a gratifying career.

Essential Managers: Influencing People

The book I have read is on how to influence people at work. The book points out 3 important needs to become influential; to be logical and specific about your idea, to be a good motivated/motivating colleague, and to be a good presenter. The book is organized with index so that readers can easily identify what the whole section is about. The target audience of this book is a broad range of ordinary workers at any company or organization since the book gives general ideas about influence rather than narrow and specific situations. The purpose of the book, to inform how to influence people, is generally accomplished, but the book does not contain many examples, and this keeps the book from being well informative. The part I liked was where it teaches why we should be logical and how it affects the reputations. Other sections have some useful suggestions, but they are things we can learn at school. Overall the book is so-so.

Johnson, R. & Eaton, J. 2002. Essential managers: Influencing people. DK Publishing. NY.

12 Simple Secrets of Microsoft Management

In The 12 Simple Secrets of Microsoft Management David Theilen presents Microsoft’s management principles, which are the secrets to its total world dominance. Theilen outlines many steps that Microsoft uses for an advantage over their competitors. Maybe one of the most important and possibly more overlooked advantage that Microsoft has is their focus and drive for greatness like a small start up company but obviously with the resources of a large corporation. This book will disappoint you if you are looking for a step-by-step process on how to create and manage an extremely successful company like Microsoft, but it does give some good advice on how to run your company coherently, even if it is in a cookbook manner.

Becoming a Person of Influence; John Maxwell and Jim Dornan

Becoming a Person of Influence: How to positively impact the lives of others; is by the author of many other books involving leadership and working with others. Although the back of the book lists managers, salespeople, and coaches as people who would benefit from this book. I think everyone could take something from this book. After all, who wouldn’t want to be a positive influence on someone?

This book breaks down four steps to become an influential person. Model, Maxwell emphasized the importance of maintaining your personal integrity in all situations. Motivate those around you through nurturing, encouragement and appreciation. Maxwell and Dornan also stress the importance of developing your listening skills to help you better understand people. Steps that not everyone achieves are mentor and multiply. Both of those steps require a lifetime of support to others. Mentoring involves enlarging the lives of others by exposing them to new experiences and helping navigate them through their journey. Multiply comes at the end of the process, by the person once being mentored now being an influence to others.

I would recommend this book to others. It helps you take an introspective look at how you treat and interact with others. At the end of each chapter it also has a checklist for the reader so it makes it somewhat interactive. This book is an easy read and is full of examples and anecdotes from the authors.

The Future of Management by Gary Hamel and Bill Breen, Harvard Business School Press

This book is actually a fascinating read that is full of thought-provoking ideas that are fairly unorthodox. I do not think that most of the ideas are actually practical in most business environments, however, I believe the purpose of the book is to discuss innovative ideas and its possibilities. Hamel discusses the current model and contributes his own ideas on rethinking decision-making practices, organizational structures, and argues news way of managing people and organizations.

Hamel takes the time to break down the structure of specific companies like Best Buy, Whirlpool, and IBM and commend their forward-thinking management system. He also talks about Google and how it started out as an inventive work environment that is difficult to recreate in other companies.

Overall, this book is very creative and has some interested ideas. I consider it a lively read for its genre. I’m not sure how much clout Mr. Hamel holds because from further research of him his previous book, Leading the Revolution, he praised Enron as a “genius for innovation”.

Creating Powerful Radio: A Communicator's Handbook by: Valerie Geller

This book is actually one of many written by Geller which tackles the obstacles of creating and managing modern radio. Aside from several chapters dealing with news techniques, developing new talent, and creating "entertainment" radio, Creating Powerful Radio examines how to deal with managing high-ego talent; more specifically, how to motivate the know-it-all, non-listening, self-loathing prima donna talent to do their best. Admittedly, the book is dull (at times) and very repetitive... but it's informative and worth the read if you've got a free evening or minimal flight anywhere west of the Mississippi.

The Ghosn Factor-24lessons from the world's most dynamic CEO by Miguel Rivas-Micoud, published by McGraw-Hill in 2007

The main purpose of this book is to introduce Carlos Ghosn’s management style. He is a well-known business manager who recently succeeded in the corporate revival of Nissan. The book introduces 24 teachings of Ghosn’s way of doing management, how a leader should be or do. To be honest, many concepts of his are too basic and are not too exciting to read, and some of them are regarding the mindsets of leaders. For instance, one of his “24 lessons” is “be patient,” which seems pretty a conventional idea that many already know. There wasn’t a lot of materials in this book by which I was absolutely surprised or blown away. If you are completely new to management, which I am, this may be a good start, but if you are looking for more practical and technical information and concepts, you are not going to get any of that. Overall, I enjoyed reading this book. It was not too difficult, fairly easy to read, so if you want to start learning about management, particularly leadership, this book can be your friend.

Perfect Phrases for Building Strong Teams

Being a part of a team is an important part of any business. “Perfect Phrases for Building Strong Teams” By Linda Eve Diamond is a great management reference book because it offers hundreds of ready-to-use phrases in order to effectively communicate with a team.

The book is divided into 3 parts (1. Who is on your team 2. Building Strong Teams and 3. Team-Building Exercises). Diamond opens the book by explaining in detail the stages of team development which are; Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing and Adjourning. A great thing about this book is that the author remains in order with these stages making it very easy to follow along.

But what I enjoyed most about this book is the fact that every situation or scenario one can think of in regards to a team is in this book. Ranging from recruiting and hiring with phrases such as, "What was the most important thing you learned from your last team experience" to blame games with phrases like, "Let's not worry about who is at fault; let's concentrate our efforts on resolving the issue" to problem solving, individual recognition, and even "virtual" teams. In the last chapter, the team-building exercises are also very beneficial.

I would recommend this book to everyone because at some point in our lives we will be part of a team and this book proves that our words are the most powerful team-building tool we have. As the author Diamond states, "Nothing is more powerful than the words and actions of a leader with a strong mindset." This book definitely helps!

--Cassandra Ramirez

Winnie-the-Pooh on Management: In which a very important bear and his friends are introduced to a very important subject

I chose to read the book, Winnie-the-Pooh on Management: In which a very important bear and his friends are introduced to a very important subject, published 1994. Yes, it is a book for adults. The author Roger E. Allen creates a character referred to as “the Stranger” that show up in the forest and teaches Pooh and his friends about management and management theories. The Stranger tries to explain that people get so caught up in theories and analysis of jobs that managers now often forget about the basic skills of managing.
The book overall I think was good for someone who is starting in a management position or needs a refresher on how to be a good manager. Allen uses stories of Pooh’s adventures to explain how they relate to management, and how, sometimes, Pooh could have been a better manager, and other times how he did a wonderful job while in charge. One of the stories when Pooh was trying to explain what a manager is was the story of when Pooh gets stuck in Rabbits door/hole because he ate too much, and after Eeyore says a manager is, “To get out of tight places when you eat too much?” (155) And Pooh responds, “To get everyone to pull together in order to accomplish an objective”(155).
About half way through there is a point where you get a little bored with the children’s tales, but then Allen returns with one you remember from your childhood and it raises your attention back to the book. One of his last points was, “I our society, we can’t always count on a Christopher Robin waiting in the wings to help. We need to rely on out own and our collective talents, abilities and resources. Excellent managers are needed, and the need will be eve greater in the future”(161)

Straight Talk FromThe World’s Top Business Leaders: Leading By Example

Well Done: A

Leading By Example is a book contributed and written by various CEO’s, Executives, and Business Leaders all over the U.SA. Leading By Example is part of a the book series The Lessons Learned that was published by Harvard Business School Press in 2007. All the books showcase voices of the world’s experienced leaders, sharing their occurrences of challenges and hard-won lessons learned .Leading By Example is divided into fourteen stories, all told by several “leaders” who have all learned through their own actions of what being a good leader entails in the business world. I feel this book is well done because each story varies in author and profession, making the reader able to relate on different levels. Each story gives a valuable lesson to be learned and at the end of each story the book offers “Takeaways” which basically are the key concepts of the story and what the reader should take from them.

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For example, one of the chapters, Setting the Right Tone at the Top features Sir Michael Rake, the Chairman of KPMG International. He states, “I think that the basic lesson here is the huge responsibility on any leader to set the right tone at the top, to live the values the company espouses, and to really lead by example.”

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The audience for book I feel is geared to prospective leaders in the business world who wish to pursue a career in management or supervise a company. I personally would recommend the book because it reads easily, it gives great examples of lessons learned in a daily business oriented world, and it gives a great insight on what it takes to be a respectful leader in any field you are in.

Marissa de la Torre

The Ecomics and Financing of Media Companies

Robert Picard is the author of this book who discusses the financial systems of media
companies. He also talks about what consumers want in an economic market. He also talks about how stock markets are a means of capital accumulation that can bring companies together persons and institutions with money to invest and companies that sell shares of the ownership in exchange for capital. Robert talks about how Large Media companies are turning to stock markets to expand their need for capital.
He also goes into depth on the economic factors that affect the media. He states that during a twenty-four hor day of which, two-thirds is typically devoted to sleep, work, education and household maintenance, individuals have roughly eight hours per day for leisure and other activities including media use. He states that the demand for media products and services is related to the activity choices related individually.
This book is worth reading if you want to get into the economic factors of media businesses. Otherwise I would not recommend it because it was hard to read and keep my attention because it was boring.

Manage Your Time Written by Tim Hindle

Manage your time written by Tim Hindle gives good incite on how to manage your time, in life and in work. The very beginning of the book starts with first understanding your time and deciding which is most important by analysis. After understanding your time, the next step is to plan for success by working out priorities, and finding what your work patterns are that are holding you back in time management. The book then moves on to making instant changes to improve your time management. The final chapter explains how to manage the time of others when working in a large group setting.

I felt that this book is helpful because unless we are able to manage our own time and work effectively and efficiently, there is no way that work can be done in a timely manner. The chapter which is assesses how to break down your own time and how well time is being spent, was very helpful when looking at general life. I especially liked the diagrams on where time is going when working in groups, and how to delegate time to the right people when managing projects.

I would recommend this book to everyone, no matter what type of job or where in life you might be. Knowing how to manage time might be a small part of the managerial battle but to me is the most important. I will defiantly look back at this when I am feeling like I am in a time crunch and need to asses and prioritize.

The One Minute Manager - Highly Recommended!

The One Minute Manager by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson, is a quick and easy read for people interested in simple and basic management skills. It provides insightful information for those interested in practical management techniques. Originally published in 1982, The One Minute Manager has become an "international sensation" as companies and small businesses around the globe have used it to increase productivity and overall job satisfaction. Short and concise, with simple lessons and motivational suggestions, such as "Help people reach their full potential...Catch them doing something right" while applying the one minute praise technique, has helped many people (including myself) in management as well as in their daily lives.
When I first picked up this book, I was attracted to its small size and simple format. On the cover it said "The All-Time #1 Bestseller on Managing Your Work and Life". I figured it had to have some useful information in it to be able to claim itself as the "World's Most Popular Management Method." After opening the cover, I noticed all the testimonials from various companies, which gave it credibility (in my mind), so I decided to buy the book and write my own review. Inside the book, suggested one minute praisings, one minute reprimands and one minute goals (known as the 3 secrets) to it's readers. In the end, I thoroughly enjoyed reading its content and have made an effort in using its advice.
It's no wonder why this book has become a business classic. I give it two thumbs up!

Managing in the Next Society by Peter Drunker Published by Truman Talley Books (2002)

Peter Drunker is the godfather of management studies and literature. He coined the term “knowledge worker” and that is exactly where this book was headed. He compared the Information Revolution of today with other pivotal revolutions throughout time, such as the Industrial Revolution. Just as the steam engine was the start of the Industrial Revolution, the computer is the start of our current Information Revolution. These inventions that started the revolutions changed so much more that just business; they in turn changed society itself. How people got jobs, and how the jobs affected the people and society.

Drunker noted that the “next society” of workers is in the knowledge business. Everyone is a professional in their own area, and the formal boss mentality if fading. I also found it interesting that he noted the society is getting older through various stats. Being that worldwide birthrates are at a low, the scales are tipped to the older generations. People will be working till they die. People will begin to out live companies they work for. A trend of second careers will be more relevant in the near future.

This book was an interesting take on where business is going. It was an informative articulation of what we are experiencing right now. The style was a bit bland, but the facts and bold assertions were revealing. Social impacts of the Information Revolution will determine where business is going. Not the other way around. This book is good for insight, but not for any entertainment value. It is also almost stating the obvious. Maybe in 2002 when this book came out it was news. But now we are living it and society is finding out the truths of the Information Revolution.

The Ugly Truth About Managing People by Ruth King Published by Sourcebooks, Inc. 2007

This book is a general book about managing. It's purpose is to give a the reader real situations that managers and employees encounter in the workplace. Yes, there are books with guidelines to being a manager, rules, and regualtions, but those books can never cover every situation that a manager may encounter.

The book starts of with 50 true stories about people and their managing experiences, how they handled them, and what they learned. It goes on to describe 17 critical survival strategies you should use as a manager. Then to six steps to successfully groom your next manager. Then to the seven greatest management myths. Lastly, it ends with words of wisdom.

I thought this was a great book because it was very interesting unlike many other management books. It was also very realistic and I learned a lot from all of the stories told. It talked about relationships with employees, how to hire and fire employees, how to learn from, as well as teach, your employees. It gave tips on how to be an effective manager by getting to know different personalities, and how to handle akward situations. It even gave tips on how to become a manager.

I would definitely recommend this book to all students whether they want to be managers or not because it also talks about how employees should relate with their managers, and most importantly, how to succeed in your career.

All in all, The Ugly Truth About Managing People was a fun, interesting, and beneficial read. I will definitely use a lot of the tips I learned from reading this book.

Ashley Lay

Great Motivation Secrets of Great Leaders--A review

Great Motivation Secrets of Great Leaders
John Baldoni
(2005)

This book explores the way that motivation has worked for past leaders by highlighting key motivational techniques and successes. Baldoni draws from some of the most influential leaders in business and other professions and provides important lessons that aspiring leaders can put to use in their own organizations. He stresses the importance of leading by example and this book is a perfect representation of this.

As stated by Baldoni, the purpose of this book is to demonstrate ways in which leaders can create an environment that allows people to succeed and organizations to thrive. The main audience for this book would probably be upper management professionals in sales or business. However, I think anybody can benefit from this book because the secrets are applicable for every day life.

The book is divided into different components of motivation such as empowerment, inspiration and recognition. Each chapter contains case studies of “leader-motivators,” expert insight and a useful motivation-planner. From Magic Johnson excelling in business and basketball to Ernest Shackleton leading men out of Antarctica, each leader has an inspirational story to tell; one that we can all learn from.

I would recommend this book, mainly because I find it quite interesting to read the story of someone’s life, their struggle for success and their eventual overcoming of obstacles. The book reads quite nice and is not as stiff or, yes, boring as the more straightforward technical management books. I think everyone can take away something useful from Great Motivation Secrets. Some techniques might work for you, some may not but just reading about these leaders is motivating within itself.



*John Baldoni is a Fortune 500 communications consultant.

Start an Independent Record Label by J.S. Rudsenske

As I was wandering through the bookstore, I gravitated towards the music business section and found a book on starting an independent record label. Since the book was written by an entertainment law attorney, I figured it would be a good starting point for figuring how to go about starting a label on my own. The chapters in the book covered such topics such as contracts, recording royalties, copyrights and promotion. Each chapter also ended with avenues you can take to achieve the goals outlined within each chapters. In the end this book gave a broad description of everything involved in running a recording label. However, I didn't like this book because it felt like a big advertisement for paying an attorney for legal advice. I would recommend other books if you are looking for more in-depth information on each aspect of the business. Specific books on copyrights, publishing, recording, etc. would be more useful. This book could, however, serve as a shopping list for learning more about the recording label business.

-Lawrence Rocha

The Professional Musician’s Legal Companion

The book I chose to read is titled The Professional Musician’s Legal Companion by Michael A. Aczon. It serves as a motivation management book for the starting out musician. But I feel it also very helpful for anyone who wants to work in the music industry.

Since most aspiring music artists start out managing themselves, this book explains all the basic legal situations that will be brought up before and after a manger is hired. It basically explains all the situations and terms and manager need to know. The way the book is organized makes for a very easy read. At the end of every chapter the author gives a hypothetical situation so the reader can understand how the chapters’ information can be put to practical use. Since the book was published in 2005, the information is still very relevant as well.

This is a motivational book and is a great read and a great resource for anyone interested in the music business and especially artist management. I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone interested in music management.

Primal Leadership: Learning to Lead With Emotional Intelligence

Primal Leadership: Learning to Lead With Emotional Intelligence

Well Done: B

This book creates a language for discussing emotional development in adults, applying real life examples of success and failure in business leadership. Though the authors tell perfect stories to explain the applicable theories, the language itself can be somewhat redundant and cumbersome.

“When people feel good, they work at their best. Feeling good lubricates mental efficiency, making people better at understanding information and using decision rules in complex judgments, as well as more flexible in their thinking.” - Pg 14

This book is essentially an applied business guide to Daniel Golemans' Emotional Intelligence Theory, based on the inability of IQ tests to accurately predict a persons' success beyond education. It was originally designed as a psychological study for the mentally disabled, then highly regarded and disputed in the educational realm for challenging the standards upon which our educational system is based. After Golemans' book Emotional Intelligence became a New York Times bestseller, he became a business consultant for upper management teams, applying his theories to the professional world. Goleman's findings are shaping the way that America understands education, business, and social development. Though his writings often feel emotionless and scientific in nature, the subject matter still revolutionizes the way social interactions are perceived. The structure of the book itself seems to move from theory to theory, example to example. Personally, I mostly enjoyed his inclusion of both success and failure stories to illustrate examples of his theory, and give clarity to the reader.

At the very least, it is worthwhile to pick the book up in a library and photocopy appendix B on page 253 for Golemans' excellent examples of language, such as Organizational Awareness and Change Catalyst, without the less necessary terms like Stealth Learning or Neuroanatomy of Leadership.