Customer Reviews

The Mirror Test: Is Your Business Really Breathing?

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Unlike everyone else that reviewed it, this book didn't really do much for me.

There's a lot of good ideas and suggestions, but nothing particularly unique.
If you've read many business books, you've heard it all before.

A good "reminder" so I'm giving it 3 stars.

What happens (not literally) when advicemeister Dale Carnegie and marketing guru Seth Godin meet coaching terror Bobby Knight? This book by Hayzlett & Eber. It covers the essentials of successful business relationships and mindsets in the digital age, and motivates the reader to do what's necessary to win.

While the subtitle of the book implies that the mirror test is used to see if your business is alive enough to survive, the real mirror test is this: Can you take a good long look at YOURSELF and honestly say you're doing everything you can to succeed?

This is not some thin, one-idea, cheese-oriented concept that can be conveyed in two sentences and then takes 150 pages to do it. It's a rapid ride of a book that covers a lot of ground in a short space. Hold on tight. There's no single magic box, no secret sauce, no silver bullet. But there is an abundance of the kind of need-to-know and already-know-but-need-to-do pearls that most of us in business can benefit from. It almost has a checklist quality to it; whether it's literally wearing one's loyalties on his sleeve (or shirt, or tuxedo), knowing why to fire people, or standing to the right in every group photo (what a simple and smart tip this is!), as a business person I often found myself thinking: I've got to remember this, and, I need to do more things like this.

This book is a business classic. It is written in a refreshing style with, believe it or not, an in-your-face attitude, but an attitude that pairs well with the no nonsense, practical business advice offered. It is about scaling from small business to Fortune 500 and back again. It is about real ideas that have been tested, tried and applied. It is written in an engaging story telling format. I read the book on a flight from Dulles to Vancouver and by the time I was finished my mind was spinning off the pages with thoughts on how I could impact my business by applying some of Hayzlett's concepts. In short, "The Mirror Test: Is your Business Really Breathing?" left me breathless just thinking of all of the possibilities that this creative and authoritative writer has shared.

Now I'm going back to read it again and create a list of to do's to get done.

I read the book on my flight to Miami earlier this week, then yesterday on a flight I re-read the sections I highlighted. Congratulations, you wrote a business book that is fun to read, provides scalable real-world advice for any size entrepreneur and struck the perfect balance between layman and businessman voice. I literally wrote notes on pages that correspond to my start-up projects and will be putting the businesses and my co-founders through those tests and metrics.

I read a ton of books on the road and most business books are the opposite, they either have very little advice that is scalable, state the obvious but take 200 pages to do it, are filled with MBA vocabulary or are just plain boring. I'll be buying lots of copies for birthday and holiday gifts in the future, and I'm going to give it to my Little Brother for his high school graduation gift. He's gone from a 1.8 GPA to a 3.65 and headed for college in the fall - a complete turnaround in the 4 years we've been matched in the program. He's got a craving to start a business and I know he'll love the book.

Jeff's larger-than-life personality leaps from the pages. This is the book for anyone who wants a no-nonsense, practical guide full of ideas that can be put into action immediately. It's full of stories that help the reader assimilate and retain the information. The actual format is excellent. The organization is logical, and clearly presented. Interesting, thought-provoking tidbits are highlighted in boxes throughout the book. Those alone are worth the cover price of the book! But, best of all, when you're finished reading the book, you'll feel as if you just had an incredibly entertaining and educational conversation with Jeff.

The Mirror Test: Is Your Business Really Breathing?
Enjoyable... fast paced reading!!! It's really a great, practical tool for TODAY's marketers. Marketers that ARE ACCOUNTABLE on challenging, ever changing marketplaces. It's a PROVEN TRACK practical tool that comes from within! You can MEASURE your UNIQUE selling proposition by using Jeff's "118 Elevator Pitch", DISSEMINATE it strategically through your business by empowering your sales force. Moreover, you can actually challenge and fuel nowadays Marketing students at the University classroom by using this pitch to uncover their talents, strengths, abilities and streamline opportunities. Thanks Jeff! On today's economic, challenging times, it's actually a VERY USEFUL, SIMPLE tool that ALL g-local and global strategic minds DO NEED to SUCCEED! Two thumbs up!!!!

The calculated lesson plan in The Mirror Test: Is Your Business Really Breathing? is unmistakably sincere yet relentlessly stern in its presentation, and the latter might be more impinging for more sensitive readers. But author Jeffrey Hayzlett explodes the metaphor of the mirror beyond the generic and moves the symbolism to its righteous place in business today - specifically, in taking the vital signs of your enterprise. We are urged to be aware of our reflection at all times, but the physical act of fogging one's mirror is where a tenacious marketer sees and seizes opportunity.

With just the right blend of traditional marketing and leadership to satisfy the purists, The Mirror Test is more of a businessperson's syllabus rather than just another practical roadmap. Hayzlett motivates at every turn, channeling his inner-coach and cracking the whip with just enough force to move us out of our comfort zones. He spells out the protocol for three well-actualized mirror tests, then throws down the gauntlet, challenging us to hurdle them with intensity and focus. In guiding us through this triad, Hayzlett reminds that the mirror is terminally honest and we need to embrace our transparency.

Passing the mirror test is only part of the total grade. Great businesses stay great by adapting. Hayzlett submits that complacency is Public Enemy No. 1 for businesses today. The adapt-or-die mindset is necessary for viability, let alone sustainability. To scale is the rule. What makes The Mirror Test such a transformational read is that the author is his own disciple and has successfully carried out his own directives. Hayzlett is one of the great corporate evangelists of Social Media in the global marketplace. He urges people to do what he does - specifically, leverage the platforms for their marketing initiatives - and questions why they wouldn't. "It pays to be engaged," he says with tongue firmly in-cheek.

Along the way, there is plenty of experiential content - to be sure, Hayzlett has the history, the pedigree, and can strategically weave in a relevant vignette - that templates our own mode of taking personal inventory. This is a true cowboy at heart, a dyed-in-the-wool fan of print, and a change agent of the highest order braided into one imposing brand.

There's no saving of breath here. When Jeffrey Hayzlett insists you "fog your mirror!" you have no choice but to smile and do it.

This is a terrific book for any businessperson...or anyone who works for a living.

This review is short because I'm not here to promote it.

I'm here because I've read the book from cover to cover, and it's a refreshing change from the "Look How Great I Am And Here's How I Became Great" fare that typically clutters a bookstore's business section.

It's smart, easy to read, no-nonsense, and -- best of all -- not a rehash of other people's platitudes.`

Jeffrey Hayzlett is person overflowing with enthusiasm, energy, confidence and self-determination. This book reflects those characteristics. This is not a technical business book, but one filled with interesting stories from his personal experiences which bring to life many good ideas, both practical and theoretical, that will help anyone in business become more successful. Reading about how he dealt with a particular car salesman, reinforced what I already knew; Jeff is a man of integrity and his actions follow what he preaches. I met Jeff once and took his picture with a Canon camera. I quickly reminded him that the camera used Kodak technology. Being a true living icon of his employer, Eastman Kodak, my explanation didn't do much to sway him that I should be using any camera other than one made by Kodak. Jeff is a top notch promoter, one of the best around. And, his message is one that everyone will benefit from. The Mirror Test is a book worth reading, whether you use Kodak products or not.

This is an awesome book as it really helps to decide what & where to set your Sales vision for your company irrespective of the fact if you are small or a big company.

Truly inspirational and a useful guide towards achieving your goal.