The Obvious: All You Need to Know in Business. Period. [Hardcover]

James Dale (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 30, 2007

Binding should be B&W 5.0 x 8 (Demy 8vo) Case Laminate on Creme w/Gloss Lam

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

James Dale is the former president and CEO of advertising agency W. B. Doner & Co., whose clients included British Petroleum, Chiquita, Arby’s Restaurants, Klondike Ice Cream, CBS Sports, Johns Hopkins University, and Verizon Wireless. The coauthor of Bullies, Tyrants, and Impossible People, among other books, Dale is the co-founder of the business consulting firm Richlin/Dale LLC. He lives in Baltimore.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion (May 30, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401303218
• ISBN-13: 978-1401303211
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,792,641 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Well intentioned, But Light Analysis, July 11, 2007

By 

Miami Bob "Resurgent Reading" (Miami, FL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Obvious: All You Need to Know in Business. Period. (Hardcover)

Usually, lambasting such well-intentioned how-to books is not constructive. So I won't.

But, the title and "under title" of this book are both glaringly right and wrong, respectively. Everything said in this book is "obvious." But, everything said in this book is not "All you need to know in business. Period." Far from it.

The sterile confines of a book's pages can never depict and convey the heart of most business - personality. Personality is what makes many of the anecdotal stories of trade names and names of the trade. Individuals with unique and unforgettable styles is what separates the men from the boys in the horribly overcrowded arena of business - a world most competitive and professionally handled in capitalist America.

The fortune-cookie chapter headings, which are followed with short and pithy statements of truisms, are fun reading. But, far from everything that you will need to know. This book is not meant to be, nor will it be conceived to be, a rival to anything penned by Paul Samuelson.

If you must, read this book. But, do not expect it to deliver too much.

A book with similar delivery on similar content which I believe offers more is "The Unwritten Laws of Business" by J.W. King.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars If you can win friends and influence people, then you can probably do well in business and life., June 14, 2007

By 

Jeff Lippincott "JLIPPIN" (Princeton, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Obvious: All You Need to Know in Business. Period. (Hardcover)

Nice book. It was an easy read. I can't say I was crazy about it, though. Back in 1990 an employer handed me Dale Carnegie's book entitled How to Win Friends and Influence People which I read then and a few times since then. And in 2005 I attended (and graduated from) the Dale Carnegie Course. The instant book (The Obvious) seems to be a rehash of what Carnegie's book was all about. And it doesn't come close to being as good.

The Obvious has 15 chapters:

1. Work is a Verb
2. It's Not about You
3. Be Nice
4. Listen More than You Talk
5. Every Job is Sales
6. Simple is Better than Complicated
7. Less is More
8. Say What You Mean
9. Honesty
10. Open Your Mind - Let Ideas In
11. Reality - Deal with It
12. Don't Keep Score
13. Energy - The Unfair Edge
14. Imagine You Worked for You
15. The Inventory

I would have liked the book better if the subtitle hadn't been "All You Need to Know in Business." That is simply not a true statement. There is so much more one must know! Accounting, the law, marketing, sales, the Internet, and computers, are just some of the things that come to mind. 4 stars!

5.0 out of 5 stars Good and to the point (obviously), April 8, 2009

By 

David G. Bennett (Worcester, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Obvious: All You Need to Know in Business. Period. (Hardcover)

This book was short but sweet. Although, as the author reflects, most of what is written is obvious there were still many moments of "yeah, I'll have to remember that point" for me. I greatly appreciated the book and recommend it to those who are searching through the stacks of "how to be smart in business" or even "self-help" books for a particular book that will have lasting impact.