Customer Reviews

Ben Franklin's 12 Rules of Management

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Most books built around the theme of a famous person's leadership or management principles are pretty thin on substance. This book is an exception, and is probably the most effective version of that genre that I have seen. Naturally, it helps to begin by having Ben Franklin's witty observations and common sense to build on. But the author does a fine job of supplementing those foundations with modern examples, analyses of the meaning of Franklin's life and experiences, and ways to apply the principles in your own life.

If you haven't read the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, you have a real treat ahead of you. In fact, I would recommend that you read that before reading this book. You need a bit more context on Franklin to fully appreciate the lessons outlined in this book. Everything in this book is drawn from that as a source.

The main drawback of this book is that the quotes by Franklin (which the author apologizes for and warns about in the introduction) are hard to read. Franklin loved to capitalize a lot in a seemingly random fashion compared to how we do it today; he adored ampersands; and he used archaic nouns and verbs not familiar to us today. On the other hand, I think you will find them rewarding in most cases if you take the time to absorb them. I suggest reading them aloud.

A strength of using Ben Franklin as a source is that he was, in fact, a very successful businessman who retired at the age of 42. He was talented in many other ways, as well.

I see the 12 rules as being great stallbusting material. He encourages people not to use humble beginnings as a reason for not striving for the top. Franklin emphasized self-management as a precursor to managing others. (Your own bad habits will get you into more trouble than anything your subordinates and colleagues will do.) There is good advice on overcoming communications stalls (people want to appear to be reasonable). The advice on the importance of experiments will help overcome the dangers of creeping complacency and bureaucracy. The concept is kaizen may have had its first expression in Franklin's encouragement to master lots of little things.

A beauty of this perspective is that when we find that something was important to Franklin, and is still important to us today, we have probably discovered a fundamental element of humanity that needs lots of attention.

I strongly recommend this book for management fans, Ben Franklin fans, and those who would just like to help get rid of some bad habits. Although it is certainly not one of the top 100 management books ever written, it is certainly a solid and well-done one.

Free yourself from excuses about why you and your organization cannot make progress!

Donald Mitchell

Coauthor of The Irresistible Growth Enterprise (available in August 2000) and The 2,000 Percent Solution

(donmitch@fastforward400.com)

This book is an interesting read, as it uses Ben Franklin, one of the most celebrated characters in history, to give substance to certain abstract concepts relating to good managers and leaders.

In many ways, it is a very pragmatic book, even Machiavellian. For example, Franklin made sure people had an impression of his being a hard worker, by keeping his lights on till very late and by making sure people saw him leaving his work very late. Translated to today's world, such a rule could be translated into the realm of "face time". Like this one, the rules in the book are timeless.

My only concern about the book is the limited historical scope of it. It focuses on the period before Franklin got involved with politics and the revolution, so the more interesting parts of his life are not present. When I grabbed this book, I was expecting both a management lesson and a history one; forget the history one.

One should keep in mind the title of the book: 12 Rules of MANAGEMENT. That is very accurate, and it is clear that those rules are focused on management and NOT leadership. If you are looking for good manager advice, this is a very good book.

One of my ancestors was among the signers of the Declaration of Independence, a fact which helps to explain my special interest in late-18th century American history. Of course, Ben Franklin played a major role then and remains one of the most highly regarded of our nation's "founding fathers." When I first obtained a copy of McCormick's book, I was immediately suspicious. I consider Franklin's Autobiography a masterpiece and feared that McCormick would simply "package" some of Franklin's best ideas after marinating them in contemporary business jargon, make a quick buck or two, and then move on another writing project (eg Secrets of Paleolithic Leadership).

In fact, this is a solid book. McCormick wrote it for "current and future managers, supervisors and small business owners" but I think it has value for managers within ALL organizations, non-profit as well as for-profit, regardless of size or nature. The scope, depth, and clarity of Franklin's ideas continue to have wide and deep relevance.

A very informative Introduction is followed by 12 chapters (one per "Rule"). At the conclusion of each chapter, there is a checklist of activities. Throughout the book, Franklin is quoted extensively but McCormick does not (to his credit) depend on the Franklin quotations to "carry" the narrative. On the contrary, McCormick's all-important role is to correlate Franklin's "Rules" with the contemporary business world and he does so with considerable skill. So, I was surprised and pleased as I read this book.

A few final points. In the Conclusion, McCormick expresses the hope that his book will help its reader to become a better "businessperson." With all due respect to the most advanced technologies today, they will never replace the need for human beings. Franklin knew the limits of technology as he observed the development of the Industrial Revolution in his own time. There will always be a need for human beings in business...but what kind of people? McCormick's book helps us to recognize and appreciate the relevance of Franklin's ideas to modern management. I share his hope that Franklin's ideas can also nourish the humanity of those who manage.

I think it is important to understand who writes these reviews and where they are coming from. I am a Team Leader for a 70 member real estate firm. Therefore anything that can help me better manage 70 independent contractors is well worth the read. I found this book to be exceptional because (1) it kept my interest peaked, (2) it contains a lot of great quotes and theories, (3) it reinforced what I am doing right and (4) more importantly, provided me with food-for-thought about how I can do a lot more things better. I intend to use Ben Franklins method of concentrating on just one "trait" per week and then grade myself on how well I advanced the concept during the week until I work my way through all 12 Rules. Should be an interesting couple of months. I highly recommend this book to anyone in management or who is interested in business.

I have a weakness for reading every management book that tries to teach management concepts by relating the ideas to an historical hero. I've read management by Lincoln, Grant, Lee, Achilles, and even Star Trek characters. They all follow the same format and for the most part do does McCormick.

One significant difference, however, is that McCormick recognizes and cautions the reader from applying Franklin's rules willy-nilly. Yes, a lot of the moral training Franklin tried to push in the 1700's would equally apply today but the environments do differ.

I, too, read Franklin's autobiography many years ago. This book makes Franklin's ideas much more reachable by the masses but I liked the poetic syntax and cadence of the original Franklin. It's like hearing a story from your grandfather rather than hearing a second-hand version from your brother.

Nevertheless, I liked the book and will be thinking about and trying to exercise the points for many weeks to come.

After reading McCormick's book, being a first year business student, I had no trouble at all understanding the points made in each chapter. I thought the overviews at the end of each chapter made the vital points clear and helped me follow along with what McCormick was trying to convey to his readers.

Not having too much business experience, I can say that after reading this book, business is definitely something I want to look further into.

In Ben Franklin's 12 Rules Of Management, Blaine McCormick presents and adapts the wit and wisdom of Benjamin Franklin in terms of Franklin's business and leadership philosophy. Very similar to our own "digital age", Franklin's colonial world was market driven, with inventive technologies impacting on the business community. Each chapter includes special sections that stimulate and provoke improvement and performance with a Franklinesque flavor and concludes with "What Good Shall I Do Today" checklist of activities designed to integrate Franklin's wisdom into everyday business. Ben Franklin's 12 Rules Of Management is highly recommended reading for anyone engaging in contemporary commercial activities of any nature, form or format.

If someone were to ask me to name the 10 best management books ever written I would not include this as one. However, there are certainly keen and often overlooked observations made by both the author and by Benjamin Franklin himself.

I would offer that this book should be read as a supplement to other more concisely written texts. Whereas many other management books offer clear guidelines and strategies to apply to present day situations this one is more concerned with enumerating principles and then evaluating them in both colonial and modern day contexts. But the author does a very good job of not emphasizing the literal interpretation of some of the principles put forth. Rather, he states Mr. Franklin's principles and then explores scenarios that demonstrate their validity.

Well worth reading just not necessarily the best.

I strongly recommend this book for anyone who is or intends to be a manager, as well as a grown up.

The information here is timeless and makes so much sense to the things we come across in work or the personal parts of our lives.

I have recommended this for so many people I have come across and this makes a great gift for all workers who are going to be a manager. It should be the Bible for managers everywhere!

Buy this book and read it for yourself!

Studying the philosophies, techniques and knowledge of anyone you consider to be successful can be an awesome and powerful influence. This book helps you to think about some proven principles. If you are lacking focus, organization and leadership skills. This book is one you should consider adding to your library. Take action today!!! This book and the ideas can save you money.