Read Now: Rules of Thumb by Alan Weber
Nick Fellers | October 30, 2009
Tom and I recommend a ton of books. However, note this as an über-recommendation. Alan Weber’s Rules of Thumb – 52 Truths for Winning at Business Without Losing Yourself is the best book for entrepreneurs I’ve read in five years… hands down.
Usually you read a business book and you can boil it down to a few juicy nuggets or takeaways with a lot of filler and fluff and the token story about Southwest Airlines or Dell. I’ve been chewing on every sentence in this book. The last time I remember doing that was when I first read Marcus Buckingham and before that, my first encounters with Peter Drucker.
I wish I could/did write this book. It’s awesome. Some randomly picked nuggets:
- “If you’re a leader, your people need three things: clarity about purpose, honesty about values, and focus on metrics.”
- Rule #5: Change is a Math Formula. “Change happens when the cost of the status quo is greater than the risk of change: C(SQ)>R(C).”
- Rule #10: A Good Question Beats a Good Answer.
- Rule #20: Speed = Strategy
- Know the difference between text and subtext [extended discussion about].
- “Numbers, charts, and graphs appear to be specific, but without verbs it’s hard to know what the numbers actually mean. The numbers may look “hard,” but they’re actually soft. Stories may appear “soft,” but the verbs make them hard.”
- “When in doubt, leave it out. Less is more and more is too much.”
- Rule #36: Message to Entrepreneurs – Managing your Emotional Flow is more Critical than Managing your Cash Flow.
- “If you don’t ask, don’t expect the investor to make the pitch for you.”
I’ve put through a bulk order for this book with Amazon. Will be giving away many copies… leave a comment below (first three to do so) and I’ll mail a copy to you.
5 Comments So Far
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Jessica Coleman - October 30th, 2009 11:00 am
Looks like a great book. I have several people in mind already that i think I’ll recommend it to.
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Martha - October 30th, 2009 11:18 am
Rule # 5 may have to become my new mantra! It’s always rough thinking about change, but measuring the cost of NOT changing is crucial.
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Eric Berglund - October 30th, 2009 11:43 am
If you get this excited about it, the book must be great. I can’t wait to see how well it fits the ForImpact framework.
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Maggie Moorland - November 2nd, 2009 1:17 pm
A Good Question Beats a Good Answer…
Great. You always come out better from a conversation by asking questions rather than spitting answers at a person.
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Gwen Woody - November 10th, 2009 5:37 pm
When you stop learning your dead in the water.
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