dispatches from the new world of work

Summer Reading

In Re-imagine, we used the term "not optional" on several occasions. That's the way I feel about China reading. NOT OPTIONAL. The "story" is huge, growing at an "insane" rate, and affects all of us. My "not optional choices": Three Billion New Capitalists, by Clyde Prestowitz. (Mentioned here before.) And: China Inc., by Ted Fishman. Almost "non-optional," same topic: Tom Friedman's The World Is Flat. (Most would put this at the top of the list, but I liked the uncompromising language of the first two a little better.)

I talked about "presentation excellence" recently. My friend Tim Sanders recommends Working the Room, by Nick Morgan. I agree! Though I don't buy everything Morgan says, I'll almost guarantee it's by far the best book on speechifying!

Also: Sanders' own The Likeability Factor; Dan Pink's A Whole New Mind; Richard Florida's The Flight of the Creative Class; Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne's Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant; Marcus Buckingham's The One Thing You Need to Know; and Seth Godin's latest, All Marketers Are Liars: The Power of Telling Authentic Stories in a Low-Trust World.

For what (little) it's worth, a few of my fiction/beach reading favs: Edmund Murray's The Peregrine Spy. Anything by Peter Robinson; his current hardback is Strange Affair. Charles Todd's A Cold Treachery.

(Don't read the China books on the beach; you'd likely jump in and head as far out to sea as you could go.)

Tom Peters posted this on 06/09/05.

Comments

Note to self - don't read China, Inc. at the beach. Might cause severe and undesirable location change. : )

While I've come across all of those books already, I had forgotten to go pick up one of them. Thanks for the reminder.

Posted by Tony May / Mayday Media at June 9, 2005 4:08 PM

In regards to presentation excellence, might I recommend your local Toastmasters group? Out here in Walnut Creek, CA, I'm a very active member of the Toastmasters Sun Valley 998 chapter. Though I had some fairly solid experience speaking before joining, I've found the weekly speaking requirement (usually at least two minutes, often not more than 10) to be a tremendous way to get some further practice. And the heavy emphasis on evaluating - everything from the speeches and speakers to the meeting itself - really helps one target and dramatically improve their weak areas.

I love books, but I gotta say that I agre with you on the whole poor presentation skills thing, and, to me, nothing beats practice, practice, practice in front of a warm-blooded audience. Go to http://www.toastmasters.org and find your local group, drop in and give 'em a try. The dues are unbelievably reasonable and it costs nothing to try it. (And, if you're in the East Bay, California, drop by TM 998 7am at the Holiday Inn on North Main near Treat in Walnut Creek).

Rob Zazueta

Posted by Rob Zazueta at June 9, 2005 7:42 PM

In Re-imagine, you used the term "not optional" on several occasions.
That's the way I feel about China reading. NOT OPTIONAL.

The "story" is huge, growing at an "insane" rate, and affects all of us. My "not optional choices":

Three Billion New Capitalists, by Clyde Prestowitz. (Mentioned here before.) And: China Inc., by Ted Fishman.<<

Tom - These HIGH-impact cumulative trends have been underway for over 20-years without much attention or fanfare ...

CQ:: Does this WOW-RANT reflect a pervasive "OUT of sight, OUT of mind" attitude?

Suggested PBS-TV website scan: Voices of Concern :: Ding Yihui

See NOVA's World in the Balance homepage
@ http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/worldbalance/voic-yihu.html

When it comes to the impact that a changing global climate will have
on both natural and human environments, China is a place to watch

Also see related China feedback comments posted under your Kan-ed blurb.

Posted by Bob-RJ Burkhart, LCDR-USNR, Ret. at June 21, 2005 9:06 PM

Check out CHINA perspectives from Society for Competitive Intelligence Professionals (SCIP)
after scanning Environmental Industry Analysis PDF @ http://www.interliance.com/china3.htm

>>
Importance and Value of Relationships in China

In China, the relationship comes first, group agreement or group consensus comes second, and finally, the business deal is last.

Our extensive relationships range from the highest government officials to the local leadership, and have enabled us to work successfully with and influence many of China's top 1000 companies and state policymakers in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, bankruptcy and restructuring, human resources, and market transformation. <<

Posted by Bob-RJ Burkhart at July 3, 2005 6:17 PM