Business Book Summaries

The 33 Strategies of War By Robert Greene Published by Viking (Penguin Group), 2006 ISBN 0-670-03457-6 496 pages It has been a customary perception that peace-loving people triumph more in life. Few realize that this is the very idea that acts as a barrier to realizing and identifying indispensable provisions to thrive in the challenges of day-to-day living. Bestselling author Robert Greene shares 33 effective strategies of war to guide you through the realistic battlefield called life. Here are the 33 Strategies that are not only helpful in war, but also in life. Self-Directed Warfare 1 – Declare war on your enemies: The polarity strategy 2 – Do not fight the last war: The guerilla-war-of-the-mind strategy 3 – Amidst the turmoil of events, do not lose your presence of mind: The counterbalance strategy 4 – Create a sense of urgency and desperation: The death-ground strategy Organizational (Team) Warfare 5 – Avoid the snares of groupthink: The command-and-control strategy 6 – Segment your forces: The controlled-chaos strategy 7 – Transform your war into a crusade: Morale strategies Defensive Warfare 8 – Pick your battles carefully: The perfect-economy strategy 9 – Turn the tables: The counterattack strategy 10 – Create a threatening presence: Deterrence strategies 11 – Trade space for time: The nonengagement strategy Offensive Warfare 12 – Lose battles but win the war: Grand strategy 13 – Know your enemy: The intelligence strategy 14 – Overwhelm resistance with speed and suddenness: The blitzkrieg strategy 15 – Control the dynamic: Forcing strategies 16 – Hit them where it hurts: The center-of-gravity strategy 17 – Defeat them in detail: The divide-and-Conquer strategy 18 – Expose and attack your opponent's soft flank: The turning strategy 19 – Envelop the enemy: The annihilation strategy 20 – Maneuver them into weakness: The ripening-for-the-sickle strategy 21 – Negotiate while advancing: The diplomatic-war strategy 22 – Know how to end things: The exit strategy Unconventional (Dirty) Warfare 23 – Weave a seamless blend of fact and fiction: Misperception strategies 24 – Take the line of least expectation: The ordinary-extraordinary strategy 25 – Occupy the moral high ground: The righteous strategy 26 – Deny them targets: The strategy of the void 27- Seem to work for the interests of others while furthering your own: The alliance strategy 28- Give your rivals enough rope to hang themselves: The one-upmanship strategy 29 – Take small bites: The fait accompli strategy 30 – Penetrate their minds: Communication strategies 31 – Destroy from within: The inner-front strategy 32 – Dominate while seeming to submit: The passive-aggression strategy 33 – Sow uncertainty and panic through acts of terror: The chain-reaction strategy

All Marketers are Liars The Power of Telling Authentic Stories in a Low-Trust World By Seth Godin Published by Portfolio, 2005 ISBN 1-59184-100-3 208 pages What sells a product these days? Is it price point? Is it the buyer's need? Are product features and benefits the deciding factors for customers to buy? Seth Godin says it is none of the above. Consumers buy products when they fall for a marketer's story. A successful marketer has to be able to come up with stories that consumers want to believe. The stories should fit a consumer's worldview and encourage people to talk to others about it. When a marketer's story is authentic and remarkable, the product will sell. Telling stories is an age-old tradition used by people to make sense of natural phenomena such as seasons and sicknesses. Marketers did not invent it, but they have used it for years to sell products, services, and ideas. Godin suggests that marketers and consumers are conspirators in this lying, or story-telling business. Marketers tell the stories. The consumers, who lie to themselves, buy the stories. What makes a great story? Great stories should: · be true. · make a promise. · be trusted. · be subtle. · happen fast. · not appeal to logic, but often appeal to our senses. · rarely be aimed at everyone. · never contradict themselves. · agree with our worldview. Marketers Also Have Responsibilities. Since marketing is about spreading ideas, they have the power to affect people and even whole societies in both positive and negative ways. Storytelling, in the hands of the marketer, should always recognize its responsibility to the society. Marketing, Then and Now It used to be that marketers sold commodities that people needed by promoting practical and objective matters such as price and product features. These days, marketers answer more to consumers' wants than needs. Wants are things they covet for emotional reasons such as $125 Pumas or an $80,000 Porsche Cayenne. In the Golden Age of television, marketing was a matter of buying 60 seconds of airtime, and using that time to tell a simple story to create demand. It is not that simple now. Marketing, albeit still a very powerful tool, has become more complex and challenging.

Winning By Jack Welch with Suzy Welch Published by HarperCollins, 2005 ISBN 0-06-075394-3 384 pages Jack Welch has been asked thousands of questions on getting business right. Even after his retirement as Chief Executive Officer of General Electric, his advice – on just about everything from coping with Chinese competition to devising killer business strategies – has been in great demand. Most of the questions, however, come down to this one: What does it take to win? Jack assures everyone that first and foremost, winning is achievable. You must, however, learn what makes winning happen. One of the things Jack shares is what he calls “the biggest dirty little secret in business.??? That secret is candor. Candor enables everything and everyone to operate faster and better. The lack of candor blocks smart ideas and fast action. If people don't express themselves frankly, they damage operations and the company greatly. How does candor lead to winning? First and foremost it gets more people to interact. As a result, more ideas get discussed. Second, it generates speed. When new ideas are brought up they can be debated and acted upon quickly. Third, candor cuts costs by eliminating meaningless meetings and nonsensical reports that everyone already knows about. So why don't we have more of it? It's because candor unnerves people. As children, we were taught to soften bad news or tiptoe around awkward subjects. Speaking your mind can lead to a lot of anger and resentment, so it's easier not to do so. Candor is obviously very hard to instill in any group, but again, it's something that must exist in any company. Reward and praise publicly those who exhibit candor. You must remember though that showing candor is a genuine risk. In fact, it might even lead to some people losing their jobs. It will, therefore, be better if candor is instilled from the top. Open dialogue, however, can start anywhere. Candor works because candor unclutters. You do a lot of things for work even if they aren't easy. Candor should be one of them. Another aspect of winning is differentiation. Companies win when managers make distinctions between top- and bottom-performing businesses and people. Managers should cull the weak and cultivate the strong. When every business and person is treated equally, companies suffer. Differentiation is a way to manage people and businesses by allocating resources. Strong businesses or product lines should be invested in more than weak ones. You should use the same principle when dealing with people. Managers need to assess their employees and treat the top 20% like stars. The middle 70% should be motivated and given adequate training and assistance. The bottom 10% should be let go. It really is not as cruel as it sounds. Often, those who are let go are able to build successful careers in other industries. Remember that people are happiest and most fulfilled when they are doing something they are good at. In all probability, the 10% just aren't cut out for their current jobs. You must also remember that it is your responsibility to give people feedback on how they are performing. In some companies, though, this process can be corrupted by favoritism and cronyism. This sort of system won't last and it will collapse under its own weight. One last thought. If it isn't already obvious, differentiation only really annoys the underperformers.

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