Book review - Blake: Leader

Peter Blake was well and truly one of the great leaders, planners and masters of execution within sport in New Zealand.  He was a gentleman and a scholar.  Of that there is no doubt.

What Mark Orams has managed to do is to pull together the real and tangible aspects of Sir Peter's leadership style and has captured then within this book.  There are a multitude of real life working examples that clearly illustrate the points being made.

From what I understand and have learned from this book is that Sir Peter was both a leader as well as an enabler.  The challenges that he faced werent faced by him and him alone but rater the responsibility and accountability was spread around the team.  

As with any book, photo or description of someone - the ability to capture the X factor is nearly impossible.  There is just no simple method of bottling that essence.  What this book does is it lets the reader get a feel for the magic, a sniff if you like of the chemistry.  When reading this book if you open all your senses then you too may sense the spirit Sir Peter as it wafts past on the breeze.

Feek free to dive into this book at any chapter.  Each chapter in it's own is a stand alone manual on excellence in people management and strategy.  The chapters open wih a direct quote from Sir Peter Blake and then the lessons follow on from that point.  And then each chapter finised with a recap of the general main points followed by specific lessons for leaders.

What I really liked most about this book was the can do attitude of it.  It is written in a way that the average person can implement the lessons of leadership directly into their own lives with ease.  This book is a how to manual.  Here's how you do this followed by here's how you do that.  Down to earth, easy to read, practical in every sense of the word.

The other great thing about this book is that it was written by someone who was there.  Having a writer tell and recall stories from a first hand experience carries much weight and also adds a certain depth and reality that supersede's an intellectual or academic approach from someone else.

If I had to choose one word to sum up this book it would be "Spirit".  Read this book and you too may begin to realise some of the spirit that flowed through Sir Peter flows through you too.

 

 

Podcast review - "Creating Enchantment" by Guy Kawasaki.

I enjoy running.  Running is a great hobby because it only requiires you (one person) some shoes and some exercise.  One of the benefits of running is the time that you have available to think, reflect or listen.

The Stanford Entreprenurial Thought Leaders series is one pocast that I have been listening to for the past 12 months (ever since I finally managed to get an iPod).  And for the past 12 months this series of podcasts has continued to be listened to - week in and week out.

I was blown away by the awesomeness that is the podcast by Guy Kawasaki.  This is a totally well rounded speech delivered by the consumate professional that is Mr Kawasaki.

What is delivered is a 60 minute master class in both management and innovation techniques, as well as a tutorial in how to write a speech, create a presentation and how to pull it off with ease.  This presentation, I think, was set up as a sales pitch for the new book "Enchantment" by said author stated above.  What really happens is the presentor takes the big lessons of the book, breaks them down into a series of easy to understand points and leaves the listener with the challenge of applying all the lessons to themselves.

Here;s some background on Mr Kawasaki -

"Guy Kawasaki is the co-founder of Alltop.com, an “online magazine rack” of popular topics on the web, and a founding partner at Garage Technology Ventures. Previously, he was the chief evangelist of Apple. Kawasaki is the author of ten books including Enchantment, Reality Check, The Art of the Start, Rules for Revolutionaries, How to Drive Your Competition Crazy, Selling the Dream, and The Macintosh Way. Kawasaki has a BA from Stanford University and an MBA from UCLA as well as an honorary doctorate from Babson College."

(Source: http://www.guykawasaki.com/about/)

So if you a) enjoy running, b) enjoy great presentations or c) want management advice - then I recommend you download this podcast.

Here is the presentation - http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2669

Book review: The Management Mythbuster

I read this book at one speed - FAST!  The best way to describe this book is to use two words - common sense.  And probably this quote as well - :“Common sense is the knack of seeing things as they are, and doing things as they ought to be done.” C. E. Stowe.

What David Axson manages to do is peel away the veneer and false front of modern management trends and actually get to the heart of the matter.  What this book managed to do was to confirm both my and most likely your suspicions and thoughts on what happens in the shady world of business today.

Here is how the book plays out - each chapter is between 6 and 10 pages long.  The chapters open with a mock company and the playing out of the appropriate scenario.  The author then incorporates the management area he is looking at into the story line.  So there are real examples of how such scenarios would play out within a company.

One thing this book does lack in is positive answers.  There are plenty of examples of what not to do but few examples and explanations of what you should do.  Maybe that will be released in the sequel "The Management Makeover"? 

Yes I enjoyed the book and recommend it.  I especially recommend it to people who are new to the corridors of power and senior management and want to be able to cut through to the true heart of the matter!

The real kicker is the very end of the book  A lot like real life it is a scary proposition...

Book review: The Management Mythbuster

http://davidaxson.typepad.com/american_idiot/2010/01/the-management-mythbsuter-pay-for-performance.html

I read this book at one speed - FAST!  The best way to describe this book is to use two words - common sense.  And probably this quote as well - :“Common sense is the knack of seeing things as they are, and doing things as they ought to be done.” C. E. Stowe.

What David Axson manages to do is peel away the veneer and false front of modern management trends and actually get to the heart of the matter.  What this book managed to do was to confirm both my and most likely your suspicions and thoughts on what happens in the shady world of business today.

Here is how the book plays out - each chapter is between 6 and 10 pages long.  The chapters open with a mock company and the playing out of the appropriate scenario.  The author then incorporates the management area he is looking at into the story line.  So there are real examples of how such scenarios would play out within a company.

One thing this book does lack in is positive answers.  There are plenty of examples of what not to do but few examples and explanations of what you should do.  Maybe that will be released in the sequel "The Management Makeover"? 

Yes I enjoyed the book and recommend it.  I especially recommend it to people who are new to the corridors of power and senior management and want to be able to cut through to the true heart of the matter!

The real kicker is the very end of the book  A lot like real life it is a scary proposition...

Book review - Linchpin by Seth Godin

I have heard it said that sometime's there are books that come and find us.  It's like someone wrote a book and it has been sitting there waiting for the right moment to either jump out at us or it places itself in our way so that we have no choice but to trip over it and start reading it.

Linchpin was one of those books for me.  Linchpin is written by one of the most inspiring people of our time - Seth Godin.

Seth Godin is a guru.  Okay - that is debateable but probably true.  What he does he the best is write books, blogposts and give talks that inspire and encourage people to think differently and view the world from a different perspective.

The book Linchpin is no different.  You will not find in this book the three keys to success or easy to follow formulas that will guarantee succcess.  What this book is - is a series of daily, easy to follow challenges for the authentic self to come to the fore.

Linchpin takes a central theme of life being art.  And based on the art theme - everyone is an artist.  The question is - are you creating art?  I won't give too much away but the whole art theme is both a metaphor and a literal sense of what we do with our time.  Artist or cog - the choice is yours.  Whether you are a cleaner or a CEO the questions and the challenges are the same.  Bring your authentic self to your work, create art and let the good times roll!

The book is super easy to read and understand but at the same time it cuts straight to the heart of the matter.  There are no mysteries or hidden messages.  In this book what you see is what you get.  Simple.

My overall rating for this book - 4 and 1/2 stars.  Yes, it is that good.

Book review: Barack, Inc.: Winning Business Lessons of the Obama Campaign

This is a neat and tidy little management book that describes and explains the hows and whys of the strategies used in Barack Obama's successful presidential campaign.

Common sense approaches to management - people and campaigns.  That is the easeiest way to describe this book.  There is nothing to flashy or gorund breaking about this book.  Rather it neatly captures the essences of what President Obama did right in his campaign.  There are plenty of anecdotes and nice stories that back up what the authors have written all the way through.

Here are the three core things I got from the book -

• Keep cool.  Temperament is vital.
• Keep in touch.  Social media is where it is at for allowing people to interact with you.
• Keep in front.  This relates to both leadership and direction.

It is a simple book that has been well written.  A good reader could complete this book in 3 to 4 hours.

The 2010 scorecard - how did I measure up?

To be perfectly frank - 2010 was a fantastic year workwise.  I originally set out with three work goals that were focussed on both my individual performance as well as lifting the overall performance of my team.

Thise goals were -

• Compliance. 
• Excellence.
• Teamwork.

Here are the big wins -

• Pay rise.  (Always nice to get)
• Travel - domestic and international.
• Additional team member.
• Confidence and growth.

What didn't go so well?

• Allowing others to take responsibilities that fall under me.
• Inability to deal with poor perfornance.
• Lack of forwardness.

Overall 2010 was a completely stand out year.  My key goals were not only met but exceeded.  I am really looking forward to 2011 and seeing what possibilities and opportunities lay ahead.

Review: How I did it... Anne Mulcahy

Anne Mulcahy is a person whom I had never heard of before until earlier this year.  Since then I have been excited, encouraged and enthused by her and what she has achieved in the world of business.  Being the CEO of Xerox is no easy task and one that has plenty of opportunities as well as pitfalls.

In the October 2010 edition of the Harvard Business Review Anne outlines in an article the whys and how’s of both succession planning and handover.  The story and the article are very honest and very little is hidden.  There are quite a few lessons and stories shared that have a lot of wisdom about them.

I enjoyed the honesty of the situation and the way the entire process was handled.  Another interesting part to this story is the fact that not only was one woman in charge of Xerox but she handed over the controls to another woman.  The fact that both Anne and her successor were able to garner the confidence and support of the board and directors is phenomenal.

If you were to only read one article or story about business this year - this would be the one that I recommend.

 

Book Review - The Time Trap

Any book that manages to make a fourth edition is well worth reading.  The book must have - readability, credibility and be practical.  'The Time Trap' by Alec Mackenzie fills all of those criteria.

Common sense and practical tips abound.  There are a myriad of time management strategies for both new and old players.  There are tips on project management, delegating and assignment assessment amongst others.

This is a no frills book that gets to the point and does not include language that is flowery or superfluous. (not like this sentence at all).  I particularly enjoyed the no-nonsense approach to time management that is explained.

There are no silver bullets or magic formulas in this book.  Rather the author lays out everyday tips and practices that can aid people in all manner of different industries.

I recommend this book to anyone and everyone I know.  Easy to read, packed full of sound advice and common sense.  This book would make for 'the perfect Christmas present'.  =)

Book Review - This Little Kiddy Went To Market

"This Little Kiddy Went To Market" is a very sobering and interesting book that looks at the effects of business management practices in and on educational systems.  The author has conducted and collated  a survey and review of practices across a number of western world school systems including countries such as - USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

What this book does is assess the impacts on children and school management in action due to the increased involvement of businesses in the education arena.  The book covers subject areas including the supply of branded resources by big business, the results of private businesses managing schools and the teaching of consumer values to school children.

"Children have never before been under such pressure to 'succeed, conform and look good'.  It is little wonder that so many children grow into youths who are unhappy, stressed, fat, delinquent or self-destructive"  (Excerpt from introduction: Sharon Beder).

If you want to know how and why the author reached these conclusions - read the book.  Every one of those statements can be backed up by well researched information and facts from the public arena.

So what did I think?  This book will make you think. The facts are presented in a clear light and very little personal opinion is recorded.  Rather the book requires the reader to draw their own conclusions on every matter listed.  I was astounded at some of the areas of interaction and even learnt some interesting marketing techniques should I ever choose to start marketing to children.


My give this book a two thumbs up rating.  This book is easy to read, broad in scope and definitely worth a read.  Your thinking will be challenged and think you will review your position on topics that up until you now you may not have considered important in your childs education.