Get rich, stay rich
By David MacGregor,
I read a lot of business books. Three in a good week (or a very dull one). Every so often I read one that makes my palms sweat … Tom Peters’ In Search of Excellence; Gonzo Marketing by Christopher Locke and John Grant’s After Image and New Marketing Manifesto all come to mind—I can trace shifts in my thinking to each of them.
Mavericks at Work: Why the Most Original Minds in Business Win
By William C Taylor & Polly LaBarre (HarperCollins), 2006. $49.99
Mavericks at Work: Why the Most Original Minds in Business Win is very nearly one of those books. Its authors shouldn’t feel too bad about the ‘nearly’. Taylor and LaBarre are journalists, not innovators, although both are founding contributors to Fast Company magazine—which has given me many sweaty palm literature moments.
The central thesis of Mavericks at Work is that ‘safe’ business strategies are the riskiest ones. The book details many cases of unconventional businesses that have disrupted categories, from the often-cited Southwest Airlines to Sex and the City broadcaster HBO and the manufacturing and marketing behemoth Procter & Gamble.
Many of the ideas in the book will have comfortably successful business owners scoffing. Because, having been successful they make the assumption they will remain successful. So you, and you know who you are, consider the sage wisdom of Dan Wieden of Wieden+Kennedy, the famed Oregon advertising agency. His company has branches worldwide, produces over US$1 billion in revenues and he personally created one of the most famous and successful ad campaigns of all time, Nike’s Just Do It. He must know all there is to know, right? Wrong. He touts the philosophy of ‘walking in stupid every day’ to keep things challenging, to seek out unexpected ideas and new perspectives on old problems.
I have to confess bias in reviewing this book. It fits my worldview. In the context of a business environment, literary merit doesn’t count for much. But the facts are not enough. This is a business book of the best kind. It is utterly readable, yet it took me forever to read as I kept being distracted by having ideas. But, dammit, that’s the measure of a good book! They’re not supposed to tell you what to think, but to get you thinking.
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