Authors: Bob Burg and John David Mann
Publisher: Portfolio Books – A Division of the Penguin Group – 127 pages
Book Review by Nano Khilnani
This little book is about a company that is about to go out of business and its owners and employees.
You have probably heard or read the expression “it’s not about you” as it relates to success in an endeavor whether it be a business or something else.
Essentially, it brings back to our minds the adage we learned early in school “do unto others what you want others to do unto you.” It also brings to our minds Zig Ziglar’s saying: “You will get all you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want.”
I like this book because it tells a story to make some important points and helps readers learn some important lessons about business and about living in general. It is a good story and the authors Bob Burg and John David Mann tell it well. They are authors of “Go-Givers” and “Go-Givers Sell More.” Heard about “go-getters” I’m sure? Well, how about giving, for a change? Explore the relationship between the two types of people in this Of course, no one is purely a “getter” nor a “giver” But how much you get and give makes a huge difference in the level of success you achieve.
That’s what this book is about – giving. The simple lesson imparted here in this little book is: give without expecting to get anything back. Not everyone will give you back.
Probably most will not. My own experience has been that certainly if you give enough people something of value – whether it be a material good, a service or something of they want, you’ll get something in return. But don’t expect it. Just be happy that you gave it.
The other thing this book is about is – seeing. A business owner needs vision, no doubt. Many owners of businesses do have that. But what is more important for success is holding that vision in times of adversity. The lesson we learn in this book is that a business owner must have strong holding power of vision to make that dream a reality.
The vision has to be so powerful that it withstands all obstacles, all difficulties. In this book, the whole business that two brothers built up is wiped away in a few hours. Literally, the business burns to the ground. And they start all over again from nothing.
At least nothing physical. But because their dream and their vision persists, it is rebuilt.
The story starts at the point where their next major difficulty starts. This is a point where
the company has fallen on “hard times.” With a tough economy, uncertainty about sales, foreign competition, the company – a manufacturer of high quality chairs – now faces a cash crunch and its very survival is at stake.
It looks like the only two alternatives available to the owners are to either go out of business or be acquired by another company. What will they do?
A mergers and acquisitions company had made an offer to buy the chair manufacturer. The top salesperson at the acquiring company is given the job of convincing the two brother-partners of the manufacturing firm and their 500 or so employees to take the offer to be bought.
But the salesperson encounters difficulty in his first meeting with the owners and its top management. So what does he do and what is the eventual outcome of this story?
Read this unique book to find out.
