32 of 32 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not for women only, January 9, 2003
This is an extraordinarily detailed book written in an incisive and engaging style that will serve not only as a "how to" and an inspirational, but as a work of reference as well. Take it on the plane, underline it. Read it for pleasure. Get it out at night and study.
Susan Harrow knows the PR business backwards and forwards, and reading this book can help you to know it too. She knows the pitfalls to media success, and she knows scores of secrets to success. Let me just say that if you are about to embark (or have been embarking) on a public career of any kind, you will find this book invaluable. I haven't used the word "invaluable" in over five hundred reviews. It applies here, believe me. This is why HarperCollins published this book (they undoubtedly had dozens of similar manuscripts that they could have published), and this is why HarperCollins and Susan Harrow are working hard to promote this work. It's the best of its kind that I have seen. I only wish I had this book when I was one and twenty or even one and forty. And now that I am more like one and ... there's still a chance I might put this to good use!
Harrow uses anecdotes and remembrances from her own experience to get across her points. One that I especially liked comes under her heading, "Trust in your own authority" on page 176. She recalls being in that infamous psychology experiment in which you are to give an electrical shock to someone in another room for some error. The point was to see if you, sadistic innocent that you are, would actually do it! Harrow reports that she opted out rather than administer the shock. I believe her because it is obvious that she thinks for herself and doesn't blindly follow authority.
As in books for learning something from the ground up (a computer language for example) Harrow uses many sidebars with distinctive icons. She has Warnings! and Invitations (the latter in a script font), HOT TIPS! in a military stencil font, and a rather daring pursed lips icon for "Harrow's Kiss of Approval." Curiously, this icon which might seem too familiar actually works well. Very creative.
Here are some items to give you a feel for the book:
Harrow is not content with presenting celebrity secrets of publicity (in Chapter 15). She follows that up with Chapter 16: "...Publicity Secrets of Spiritual Masters." An old friend of mine who sold things for a living once told me that the secret to selling success is to realize that you are selling love. That's what people really want: love. And he meant it sincerely. Harrow makes a similar point when she advises: "See the face of God in everyone." Goose bumps will appear on your own skin if you can do that, AND people will flock to you. Harrow calls this way of looking at people as "choosing to see their true nature." (p. 175)
She warns of the "three times you should refuse to be on Oprah or any other talk show." (p. 223) I'll give you number three: "They want you to air your dirty laundry." (It happens a lot. Even Barbara Walters is not above such an approach.)
In the chapter on becoming "mediagenic" Harrow gives a quick course in public speaking and she begins with what not to drink (coffee and tea can dehydrate and dry out your mouth) and adds this "Do" (which I know from yoga) "Do use salt water to cleanse and clear your nasal passages." This will "aid breathing and speaking." Alternate breathing exercises (a kind of pranayama) will do the same, I hasten to add, should salt be unhandy.
When sending out press releases or articles, include your title! (p. 96) Don't leave it up to the editor to do it. He might not do it so well, and--I can tell you from personal experience--he will appreciate the title and will probably use it since it saves him time.
This is also a beautifully edited and presented book. It's easy to see that a lot of work went into its production. The text is clear and thorough, lively and instructive. There are Internet and other resources near the back of the book, and there's an Index.
It has been said that women are more practical than men, a kind of stable wisdom from my formative years that I got somewhere. I've usually found this to be true. Harrow's book exemplifies the contention: whether it's preparing for a TV interview (Chapter 13) or simply reminding you that persistence counts (Chapter 20), Harrow is a master of the practical.
Bottom line: You don't have to be a woman to appreciate the value of this extraordinary piece of work.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Crowing Achievement among Public Relations Books, September 12, 2005
Most of us don't want to be packaged for sale like a used car.
If you have ever had a public relations agent, you probably know that the activity can be both unpleasant and fraught with peril.
If you haven't had a public relations agent, you are probably feeling daunted about what's involved in gaining publicity and what you will gain or lose from the experience.
If your situation fits any of those three parameters, this book is for you.
Susan Harrow does an exceptional job of combining
1) the basics of public relations
2) with detailed examples of how to do it while being yourself
3) as she also addresses common concerns.
The book also has an extensive list of resources that is worth the price of the book.
I was impressed by the book's special sensitivity to the issues of being a woman in the public relations arena. I thought that Ms. Harrow addressed those issues with sensitivity and wisdom, down to addressing Sharon Stone's famous movie scene of recrossing her legs.
Although this book touts itself as a Woman's Guide in the subtitle, I thought the advice was helpful and pertinent to me as a man.
The text is designed to be easy to follow, which I liked. The main text is listed in process order with clear numbers to direct your focus to each step. There are boxes with special reminders. You also have exercises you can use to apply the lessons from the text.
You could work with this book for months, and gain new insights from Ms. Harrow each time you open it.
To me, the most special part of the book came in the many examples of how others have created public relations materials that reflect them, rather than putting some "canned" face forward. There's a delicious, almost-outrageous quality to some of these examples that loosened me right up in thinking about public relations.
This book has a permanent place in my working library.
I strongly urge you to get your own copy and make this material your own.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Go Ahead, Be Fabulous, And let them all know!, May 16, 2002
"Day by day, step by step, getting it together," the song says. And that's just what Susan Harrow offers us in Sell Yourself Without Selling your Soul. Susan believes that by deciding what you want, clarifying what you have and plotting out the distance between those two points, you can make your dreams come true. "Sell Yourself" teaches you how to make the media sit and take notice -- and to keep noticing. It offers you ways to stay firmly centered in your integrity and passion. This book is about realistic, practical and doable steps for promoting yourself into your future. And it's fun and funny. It helps you be serious about what you want and encourages you to enjoy the journey. I'm glad it comes in hardback form, because it's a book I'm going to read and follow over and over again. Afterall, I deserve to achieve my dreams. And so do you. Buy the book and dream big!
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