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Category Archives: My Favorite Books

Google and History

I am very impressed with Google\’s recent launch of its News Archives Search. Basically, in partnership with major content owners, Google is indexing newspaper and magazine articles going back to the 18th century.

I spent an hour doing various searches and found the content very interesting, although a lot of the historic newspaper content is full of typos and OCR errors, and much of the best content is available only for a fee. Over time, more and more good historical content will be free. The Time Magazine content is very useful.

The Only Sustainable Edge

It\’s one thing to learn about a powerful strategy or management technique that works and it\’s another thing entirely to actually implement it.

One of the best books I\’ve read in years is The Only Sustainable Edge. It suggests that trying to do everything inhouse won\’t work anymore. That to be competitive you not only need to outsource everything that isn\’t your primary focus, but you also need to outsource to the firms whose capacities are increasing faster than others, and to partner with firms on the edge of your business.

Seth Godin Live

Last Thursday in New York I heard Seth Godin
in person for the first time. I\’ve been learning from him for many
years, ever since I read \”Permission Marketing,\” which is still my
favorite Seth Godin book — a must read for anyone doing business in
the age of web sites and email.

I like a lot of things about Seth. For one, he is a family man. A
friend of mine tried to get him to speak at a Utah convention, but he
rarely travels west of the Mississippi — it takes him away from his
family for too long. I really enjoyed his presentation.

Treasures at Your Local Business Library

I have often felt that librarians are among the most underrated and underappreciated professionals in the U.S. The reference librarians that I have known over the years are among the most intelligent people I\’ve met. They don\’t know everything, but they usually know where to find anything–and fast!

Never Eat Alone

I\’m reading a book that Tim Sanders recommended, Never Eat Alone. The author claims that no one succeeds alone and that the key to success in business is generosity. He says the most important thing we do in business and in life is form relationships. Which is why I can\’t understand how so many people meet so many other people and don\’t exchange business cards or contact information. The author has a Palm with 5,000 people who will all return his calls. Life is about who you know. The richness of life comes from relationships.

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