Vital Friends: The People You Can't Afford to Live Without (Hardcover)

by Tom Rath (Author) "How did you end up on the streets?..." (more)
Key Phrases: vital friends, workplace engagement, workplace friendships, Vital Friends, Best Buy, Mind Opener (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Friendship may be coming into vogue as a topic (to wit, Joseph Epstein's new book Friendship: An Exposé), but Rath (coauthor of the bestselling How Full Is Your Bucket?) takes a pragmatic rather than philosophical approach. He explores the inherent value of friendships and says that the need for friends goes beyond commonality or companionship; in particular, he devotes a section to friendship at work, which, unlike many companies and managers, Rath sees as a positive force. Rath's research shows that employees who have a best friend in the office are more productive, more likely to engage positively with customers, share new ideas and stay longer in a job. Citing illuminating cases and surveys (many conducted for the Gallup Organization), Rath shows that many people succeed or fail based on the support and involvement of their best friends. Rath posits eight vital roles friends play: some are champions for each other; some collaborate; some connect people with others; and some build each other up through encouragement and trust. Rath's bullishness on friendship is based on solid research and couched in intelligent prose. 150,000 first printing. (Aug. 1)
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Review

"A workplace without friends is an enemy."
-The Washington Post
"Friendships are good for business. Companies are coming to discover that, yet are at a loss at what to do about it. . . . what Gallup has uncovered about best friends stands out as novel."
-USA Today
"Let friendship ring. It might look like idle chatter, but when employees find friends at work, they feel connected to their jobs. Having a best friend at work is a strong predictor for being a happy and productive employee."
-TIME magazine

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Gallup Press; 1 edition (August 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1595620079
• ISBN-13: 978-1595620071
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #34,542 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Great Second Effort from Rath, August 1, 2006

By	Joseph Valentine Dworak "JVD" (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Tom Rath stepped up to the plate for his sophomore effort at a book, and delivered a good book. Vital Friends asks you to evaluate who you have in your life that is a friend, and what kind of friend they are.

This book continues on in Gallup's use of theory that asks us all to not expect people to be what they are not, and tries to help people be who they were created to be.
If your friend is an encourager, let them encourage, but they might not be the strongest mentor that you will have in your life. Do not put your friends into roles they are not capable of fulfilling - have lots of friends - Rath makes all these good points and more in his book, "Vital Friends."

An easy read, Vital Friends explores why relationships are important to success in life, career, family and more. This book is worth reading - another good effort from the folks at Gallup, and Tom Rath.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Book Group Book, August 2, 2006

By	W. Jamison "William S. Jamison" (Eagle River, Ak United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Imagine reading this as a book group selection -- read it with friends! Just think of the intriguing possibilities. What kind of friends do you have in the group? This will spark such discussion. How many frineds should be in the group? The more the merrier? Each friend added adds more depth even to the friendships we already have with others since each new friend brings out more in our friends than we would have found out without them. Book groups should pick this one even if they do not think of their memebers as friends.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Vital Book, December 26, 2006

By	Ana Ritter "Book Aficionada" (East Meadow, NY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Vital Friends outlines the necessity and importance of friends in your personal and professional life. Tom Rath clearly illustrates the "Eight Vital Roles" that friends play in your life: Builder, Champion, Collaborator, Companion, Connector, Energizer, Mind Opener and Navigator. He includes steps on how to strengthen and/or create these friendships. After reading Vital Friends (short read-2 ½ hours) I have a new filter that I will use to view my friendships through and will definitely spend more energy building and strengthening these relationships. The book also includes an online diagnostic that allows you to analyze specific friends and build a website around these friendships provided you have the access code included in the book.