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How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big: Kind of the Story of My Life by [Adams, Scott]
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How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big: Kind of the Story of My Life Kindle Edition

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4.6 out of 5 stars 1,035 customer reviews
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Length: 260 pages Word Wise: Enabled Enhanced Typesetting: Enabled
Page Flip: Enabled
The Lyrics: 1961-2012
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Product Details

  • File Size: 4766 KB
  • Print Length: 260 pages
  • Page Numbers Source ISBN: 0241003709
  • Publisher: Portfolio; Reprint edition (October 22, 2013)
  • Publication Date: October 22, 2013
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B00COOFBA4
  • Text-to-Speech: Enabled
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  • Word Wise: Enabled
  • Lending: Not Enabled
  • Enhanced Typesetting: Enabled
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,524 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsConsumed My Whole Day - Very Enjoyable Read & Interesting
By Chad M. Sorenson on October 23, 2013
Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase
I had this pre-ordered after reading the WSJ article. It came yesterday around noon and I finished it at 4:00 AM this morning, with few breaks within that time frame. It wasn't the plan for my day, but I don't regret changing my day around to read this book.

I would say any book that holds my interest like that deserves a 5-start rating, though there are a few things that I'd tweak to get it closer to perfection. My official score, being a tough grader, is a 4.6/5.0 and I wouldn't resell it for twice what I paid ... especially now that it's fully highlighted and sticky-noted throughout (which makes the book more valuable to me now because I've identified the portions that spoke directly to me and my own experiences).

I really enjoyed Scott's independent thinking and challenges of conventional wisdom throughout this book, especially as it contrasts with other self-help, goal-setting or business advice books. For instance, choosing an opportunity for which one has some sort of inherent advantage rather than blindly prescribing "you can do whatever you want" appeals to my pragmatic mind. I have wrestled with this exact conclusion within the past year as I work through my own list of new ideas and opportunities, so I enjoyed that perspective as it resonates with my own thinking.

I really enjoyed the thinking on pg. 40, which is fully highlighted, less perhaps a couple sentences. This is where Scott talks about his mental model of not wanting to sell his time due to limited upside and finding a product that is infinitely scalable. I appreciated this candidness, which allows the reader to better understand the later "luck" and apparent rapid success of Dilbert.Read more ›
5 Comments 377 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback...
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5.0 out of 5 starsexcellent advice
By Amazon Customer on October 26, 2013
Format: Kindle Edition Verified Purchase
The book was a joy to read

His key ideas are easy to follow because he keeps it simple and Scott Adams writes in a clear and witty manner

For example the chapter on applying a system vs setting goals and trying to follow them was worth the price of the book many times over for me (and this is reinforced through the book). In his own words goals are a reach-it-and-be-done situation (where you are often waiting to achieve it someday in the future) whereas a system is something you do on a regular or daily basis with a reasonable expectation that doing so will get you to a better place in life. Wanting better health or wanting to lose 10 kg are goals. Being active everyday is a system. One is tied to another - but goals people are fighting the feeling of discouragement at each turn and the systems people are feeling good every-time they apply their system.

I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone smart and weary of reading tired cliches in the self-help genre. The book is a breath of fresh air!
3 Comments 174 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback...
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5.0 out of 5 starsLifts Your Spirits with Accurate and Positive Perceptions
By GLK on October 26, 2013
Format: Kindle Edition Verified Purchase
This book is absolutely great. But, you might think, yeah, I'm probably just another Dilbert nut so I'm clearly biased. And, you'd be wrong. I like Dilbert but I'm not a rabid Dilbert fan. I admit I read Scott's blog and sometimes write comments on it. Aha! Now you're saying, he's a Scott Adam's fan and therefore must be biased. Wrong again Kemosabe. Many times I disagree with Scott. However, when I do agree with him it's almost like we're the same person, or he has my house bugged and follows me around ala the Truman Show. I'm not sure. But one thing's for sure, reading this book expanded my own insights and put me in a very positive frame of mind. Thank you for that, Scott. I think any intelligent person possessing a healthy curiosity about the nature of success and its many iterations will thoroughly enjoy this book. After reading it you may not get rich but you should get enriched perhaps in ways you didn't see coming. To my mind that's worth the few bucks I dropped on it and worth recommending to my friends and even strangers like you. I don't typically re-read too many books, but I'm going to do just that right now, see if I missed anything. So, buy the book and it just might make you a happier, more enlightened person. Or it might reinforce what you already knew but never addressed in detail. Either way, thanks Scott, it's all good.
2 Comments 74 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback...
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4.0 out of 5 starsAn Almost Successful Book about Success
By William Carpenter VINE VOICE on October 24, 2013
Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase
Scott Adams's How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big: Kind of the Story of My Life is almost a success. In it Adams tells us about he succeeded and offers his readers his advice on how to be both successful and happy.

Adams is at his best when he writes about figuring out how things work and what is important. Readers of his popular blog will recognize such topics as the moist robot, the single most important metric to measure, the five most important factors for happiness, how to thrive without using freewill, and other such topics.

One of his key principles is to distinguish goals from systems. Generally, it's better to pursue a system to get what you want rather than to pursue a goal. Goals are generally bad things as they focus you on what you have not accomplished and therefore feel negative. Unfortunately his discussion of the difference between goals and systems is confused and unclear. He seems to be saying that the reader's goal should be to come with a system that works.

I do appreciate that Adams consistently urges the reader to experiment, to be open minded, and not to follow the advice of cartoonists. The focus should be on what works for you. His humility is a welcome relief from much of the Success literature.

Some parts of the book, especially in the middle chapters, read like annotated lists constructed quickly from Internet searches. Other parts of the book are much better and many of Adams's insights are interesting, captivating, and even brilliant.Read more ›
5 Comments 112 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Sending feedback...
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

Scott Adams is funny and insightful! Very entertaining book.

Published 16 minutes ago by Rilo Girl
5.0 out of 5 starsLet's Be Reasonable and Optimistic Again, I Will If You Will, 1 2 3...

Scott Adams is so much more than a cartoonist. His book and blog fit in the rational, reasoned, realistic but optimistic sphere. We all need more of that.

Published 9 hours ago by Amazon Customer
1.0 out of 5 starsMakes decent toilet paper

I could not have been more disappointed in this book. Upon buy it, I found it lacked any real substance. Read more

Published 12 hours ago by Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

Worth the time for insights based on real experience.

Published 1 day ago by Searcher
5.0 out of 5 starsRead this Annually

An easy, funny and highly informative read. So much information to process and apply, it should be read annually.

Published 2 days ago by Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 starsDry but helpful

This book is a little dry reading, HOWEVER, it is good information/example of life at work. I particularly like the reminder to seek jobs that keep building your skills in the... Read more

Published 2 days ago by Douglas Rinehart
5.0 out of 5 starsInsightful, Helpful and Humorous

Great read in which Scott shares his secrets to being successful and learning about the world. I particularly enjoyed his insights on persuasion and biases. Read more

Published 3 days ago by Howard
4.0 out of 5 starsFour Stars

I just like many of his ideas. Common sense stuff that doesn't get into intellectual weeds.

Published 3 days ago by David Halonen
5.0 out of 5 starsOne of the best and most-entertaining

One of the best and most-entertaining, non-nonsense self-improvement books ever. No esoteric or new-age BS, just great, common-sensical insights by a highly intelligent, remarkable... Read more

Published 4 days ago by A User
5.0 out of 5 starsGreat Book

Great book, helpful and entertaining. If you like this, you would probably enjoy his blog and periscope.

Published 4 days ago by Andrew Neville

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