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Hardcover
Publisher: Portfolio Hardcover
Format: Bargain Price
More uncommon common sense from the bestselling author of The Art of the Start.
In Silicon Valley slang, a “bozo explosion” is what causes a lean, mean, fighting machine of a company to slide into mediocrity. As Guy Kawasaki puts it, “If the two most popular words in your company are partner and strategic, and partner has become a verb, and strategic is used to describe decisions and activities that don’t make sense” . . . it’s time for a reality check.
For nearly three decades, Kawasaki has earned a stellar reputation as an entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and irreverent pundit. His 2004 bestseller, The Art of the Start, has become the most acclaimed bible for small business. And his blog is consistently one of the fifty most popular in the world.
Now, Kawasaki has compiled his best wit, wisdom, and contrarian opinions in handy book form. From competition to customer service, innovation to marketing, he shows readers how to ignore fads and foolishness while sticking to commonsense practices. He explains, for instance:
• How to get a standing ovation
• The art of schmoozing
• How to create a community
• The top ten lies of entrepreneurs
• Everything you wanted to know about getting a job in Silicon Valley but didn’t know who to ask
Provocative, useful, and very funny, this “no bull shiitake” book will show you why readers around the world love Guy Kawasaki.
| Customer Reviews: |
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| Reality Check, Kindle Version |
| Customer Rating: 2 out of 5 |
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I have yet to buy this book (on Kindle), but while I am deciding ... $15 for a digital version??!? No distribution costs, no inventory to carry and still about the same cost as a printed copy? Amazon (or Guy) - what's up with that?
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| What a compilation of thought and examples !!! |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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I was flubbergusted by the flow of the ideas within this book and its back up by real exmaples. This Guy certainly has had a touch with start-up environment and offers (for few cost of few bucks, that is price of this book) a great compilation of information for anybody that is just about to start new business or just make a damn difference in his-her job from within the oranization.
Well crafted.
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| Beyond commonsense |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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This book has helped me immensely. A particular strength of Kawasaki is his ability to smash real world advice right into all the ideas we read about in magazines, newspapers and see on TV. Nothing in here is just "common sense", actually it's the exact OPPOSITE. Here are a few examples if you're thinking of starting your own company:
- "Management consulting is bad because it leads you to believe that implementation is easy and insights are hard, whereas the opposite is true in start-ups."
- "Investment banking - "Accounting is bad because it leads you to believe that history not only repeats itself, it predicts the future."
- "The downside is that earning an MBA (and I have one) causes most people to develop the hollow arrogance of someone who has never been tested."
Fight those feelings you'll hear around you when you first start your company, because ALL of us entrepreneurs feel this way at some point! Kawasaki gave this SAGE advice following a talk with an experienced entrepreneur: "First, I'm not so smart if a company that I invest in succeeds. Second, I'm not so dumb if a company that I invest in fails. Third, you take your best shot at analysis, place your bet on the table, work your ass off, and don't look back. That's how you build a great company."
Kawasaki also smashes reality into ongoing challenges ALL business people face:
- "Execution is not an event--a onetime push toward achieving goals. Rather, it is a way of life."
- "I can boil down innovation to one challenge: Do not rest until you make meaning and jump curves."
- "If you have a seemingly stupid idea, according to the "experts," how do you know if it will succeed or if it's truly stupid? A: Don't shoot me, but the answer is, we can't know. Not for certain. That's where all the fun and misery come in. Many stupid ideas have been successful and many great ideas have died on the vine, and that's because success hinges on factors outside our control. The best bet is to be an experimenter, a tinkerer--to learn to try out ideas cheaply and quickly and to get out there with people instead of fantasizing in ivory towers."
- The best type of forecasting is a "Waterfall Forecast, a report that shows how your forecast changed over time. (Google "waterfall forecast" to find more details.)"
The reality is, we don't know reality until we are in it. If you love business, if you love start-ups, this book can help you. You don't have to be a n "entrepreneur" to get good advice out of this book. Some of the best "start-ups" have happened within existing companies. Get inspired guys, buy this book and read it. I couldn't put it down.
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| Great book |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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This is a nicely laid out audio book. It's an easy read too. Great tips (NOT A HOW TO)
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| A Must Have |
| Customer Rating: 5 out of 5 |
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With practical tips for presentations, pitches, and most things professional, this book is essential. It is direct, pithy and timeless.
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