Customer Reviews

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

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

 

 

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.

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!

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.

Obviously a great book, especially for people about to start a career in the business world. It's an easy read that is light-hearted and funny, but it's also informative. Although many of these ideas may be obvious, they're not all that apparent to those who are just getting started in business. I received "The Obvious" as a gift, following graduation, and I've already bought a couple copies for friends in similar positions.

Or so says James Dale in this short and useful book, which ,like the books of Harry Beckwith and Jeff Fox, contains lots of short chapters but is unlike theirs in that he talks about business with a capital B, not marketing or personal growth. Dale pounds away on being honest in just how well your business is doing(as a client once told me,"all news is good news"); don't brood on bad days or do jumping jacks on good ones; and realize, as Tom Watson said about playing in big time golf tournaments, "it is just me versus the course" , that comparing yourself to others is playing a losing hand. The advice is frank and useful(love his chapter on the types of apologies). Well worth it and only 229 pages.

James Dale may have forgotten to include one chapter in this overly simplistic and preachy book : 'Don't ever buy a book that promises to tell you everything you need to know about business.'

Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Ed Kellerher,...if they wrote a book like this, I'd probably take their advice to heart. Dale's qualifications, however, include the fact that he wrote a funny ad for the Klondike bar 15 years ago(according to a podcast interview I heard last week). And he was the CEO of a major advertising agency that took off soon after he left to pursue other interests. I found it especially interesting that this book provides very few examples of the ways Dale walked the walk that he talks so knowingly about. Could this be because he can't?

Condesending chapters with titles like: "Shut up," "Work is a verb. Get Going," "This is reality. Get over it" are delivered with finger-in-your-face arrogance. It's unimaginagible that this is the guy who also co-authored a book called, "The Power of Nice."

Throughout the years I've read almost every self-help career and business book that comes along. Most are gimmicks and get-rich-quick schemes that don't work. But I keep searching. With The Obvious, I finally realized the secrets to business success are staring me in the face, things I've known and should have been practicing all along. It works! It took me a while, but thanks to The Obvious, I got it!

Should be required reading for anyone who comes into contact with another human being. The Obvious is the handbook for better business practices. Concise, to the point, immediately useful and fun to read. Mr. Dale shares his business philosophy with us and successfully merges it with case studies of the heavy hitters in business. The result is a 229 page smart bomb with universal principles and a clear message to do no evil.

I'm in the sales and hospitality industry(have read many of the popular books) and everyone I speak to agrees that people are starving for good service. The Obvious addresses this famine with obvious (but often absent in business) four star service solutions.

The first page of Chapter 1 says there are enormous opportunities and rewards for anyone who's willing to give people what they want. I know, I know, it's obvious, but it's a superb way to excite and compel you to read on.

Mr. Dale knows that business is ever-changing today and he encourages us to go ahead and reinvent it. The chapters are short but deliver powerful remedies. Chapter 14 is "Imagine You Worked for You." What an unusual and provoking way to take stock of yourself.

The Obvious is just the right size, too, so it's very portable. It's a must-have for your personal and professional growth. Read it, share it, practice it, feel better about yourself, move ahead, stand out, be memorable, build sound relationships and reap the rewards. I love this book! I'm giving it 5 stars.