Matt
ex-m@Triate
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- Jan 14, 2005
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Thought I would start a thread on this seeking recommendations, thoughts and reviews of various books on management, personal productivity and so on.
A few things I have been through recently/currently working through.
I really enjoyed the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. It is a bit self-helpy in places, but on the whole, I like the principle centred approach and the logical way in which it orders its steps. Went through it (audiobook, I cheated) a month or so back, and on the whole, was impressed, and am still pondering it, and working out how it fits into my life. I regard this as an endorsement of it...I didn't just read it and forget it.
I was less than impressed with the McKinsey Way. I think he had 3-4 chapters of worthwhile material, pretty stringent constraints on disclosure, and about 200 pages to fill. So...we got 150 pages of filler - including a chapter on what to pack when you travel (thank you McKinsey Alum, without you, I would never have thought to bring a toothbrush). Would have loved better insights in to the consultancy and the consultants than this book delivered. Didn't bother with the sequel.
One Minute Manager I thought was a cute little read - was about 45 minutes cover to cover, and that was time well spent on a couple of really basic things that are easy to forget otherwise. In the same vain, I liked The Present for the same reason. A quick, easy read, with some good solid advice - albeit occasionally a little preachy - that is otherwise easy to overlook in the daily kerfuffle.
I stumbled across the MBA for Dummies book in a discount bin at HK airport a while back and read that. I have long pondered whether I should do an MBA, so really read this as kind of an expanded course syllabus rather than a text in its own right. In the end, I thought it was well written, clear and concise, and covered a lot of ground for a book of its size, but in so doing, provided only a very cursory nod to the fields it was covering. This is a natural trade off of course, but even viewing it as an expanded syllabus, I learned very little that my undergrad didn't already cover, and didn't see much in there that made me think "Damn, I have to do my Masters"...but I am still open to it under the right circumstances.
I read Getting To Yes as an undergrad text book, but like most things undergrad, I lacked the perspective and context for it to really resonate with my own experiences. So, that is my current audiobook of choice for when I am cruising around on my motorbike here. Good, solid negotiating tips. Some of which have been challenged with the passing of time, but essentially it remains pretty sound.
OK guys, turn it over now...books you are reading, have read, are about to read, thoughts on my reviews above, books you would like to read...go!
A few things I have been through recently/currently working through.
I really enjoyed the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. It is a bit self-helpy in places, but on the whole, I like the principle centred approach and the logical way in which it orders its steps. Went through it (audiobook, I cheated) a month or so back, and on the whole, was impressed, and am still pondering it, and working out how it fits into my life. I regard this as an endorsement of it...I didn't just read it and forget it.
I was less than impressed with the McKinsey Way. I think he had 3-4 chapters of worthwhile material, pretty stringent constraints on disclosure, and about 200 pages to fill. So...we got 150 pages of filler - including a chapter on what to pack when you travel (thank you McKinsey Alum, without you, I would never have thought to bring a toothbrush). Would have loved better insights in to the consultancy and the consultants than this book delivered. Didn't bother with the sequel.
One Minute Manager I thought was a cute little read - was about 45 minutes cover to cover, and that was time well spent on a couple of really basic things that are easy to forget otherwise. In the same vain, I liked The Present for the same reason. A quick, easy read, with some good solid advice - albeit occasionally a little preachy - that is otherwise easy to overlook in the daily kerfuffle.
I stumbled across the MBA for Dummies book in a discount bin at HK airport a while back and read that. I have long pondered whether I should do an MBA, so really read this as kind of an expanded course syllabus rather than a text in its own right. In the end, I thought it was well written, clear and concise, and covered a lot of ground for a book of its size, but in so doing, provided only a very cursory nod to the fields it was covering. This is a natural trade off of course, but even viewing it as an expanded syllabus, I learned very little that my undergrad didn't already cover, and didn't see much in there that made me think "Damn, I have to do my Masters"...but I am still open to it under the right circumstances.
I read Getting To Yes as an undergrad text book, but like most things undergrad, I lacked the perspective and context for it to really resonate with my own experiences. So, that is my current audiobook of choice for when I am cruising around on my motorbike here. Good, solid negotiating tips. Some of which have been challenged with the passing of time, but essentially it remains pretty sound.
OK guys, turn it over now...books you are reading, have read, are about to read, thoughts on my reviews above, books you would like to read...go!
