Sabine

After listening to motivational and business books, I needed something light. Unfortunately, I found myself driving around a lot more just so I could listen to this book...instead of working! It was just fun to hear from Penny after all these years. A fun listen because it was her telling us about her life. It sound just like Penny, but older. Some may say it was a book about all the names she dropped...well...that was her life and it was fun to hear!

I liked how she came from meager roots, didn't have much direction really, and just fell into her life. She never seemed to go after anything, it just came to her. If it worked, great. If not, well...on to the next. Kind of like me...no idea what I want to be when I grow up, I just move from one day to the next and take care of whatever comes along.

I loved that she still sounds just like Laverne. Which she said she played just like herself.

Yes, there are moments when you cry and moments when you laugh. Plenty of moments I didn't even know happened (why would I??). It was fun to have an insider view of Hollywood.

If you love New Yorkers, loved Laverne, like hearing backstage Hollywood stuff that is not on a tabloid, want to be entertained, laugh some, cry some, buy the book. You will enjoy.

Chip & Dan Heath give great insight in how to build your message to make your brand sticky. I felt it was easy to understand, flowed intelligently, had great examples to help you craft a similar version for your business, and the narration was not overly dramatic or choppy (as Charles Kahlenberg was in "Switch"). You do have to listen a few times to get all of the ideas, or listen during quiet times with pen and paper at your side. You will find gold. My biggest take-away is to craft my message toward "YOU". Not what I can do for you, but by putting YOU into the picture repeatedly showing YOU the benefits & difference YOU will receive by coming to my company. I now count the number of times I use YOU in my message. :)

I forced myself to listen to the book because I was warned by previous readers. They were right - great content, but highly dramatized & it didn't need to be. Just read the book! It is is as if Jim Collins is giving a State of the Union Address, his words are THAT important! LOL.

Funny thing, I had never heard the word HUBRIS before (and hoped I never would again!) because it is SOOOO overused in this book; when I just looked it up to make sure I was spelling it correctly, the short definition of the word is "exaggerated pride or self-confidence." It occured to me that Jim Collins is quite hubristic in his reading! LOL. I was thrilled to be done with the book so I never have to hear him say the word again, then I started on the next book (not his) and the word popped up again! OH NOOO...but so far, it was used only once. :)

If you are a listener than can gleen the content from the drama, this is a fantastic book. It is amazing to learn from the failures of great companies. If you can't get past certain types of narration however, you better forget this one; buy the paperback...because the content is truly awesome.

I predict the next company to fall is WalMart. It is now led by a new CEO who is so very full of hubris and in his fake attempt to "go back to the roots" he is putting up far too many new WalMarts and he will overextend the company. I have yet to see any new WalMart around me filled with customers (even at Christmas!). He is making a huge mistake 1) by fighting everyone for the right to build on certain locations; and 2) putting them up so close together. It comes to mind that new Sam's Clubs are right in there as well.

I have listened twice now and I purchased the paperback. I have my own business and have been struggling with figuring out what my why is...what do I provide? It is such a nebulous concept. I have been trying to get my agents to help co-create why we do what we do, get some core values knocked out, etc. But really, this is MY company and I have a vision for the future. I need to figure this out. It can't be co-created because they are not my partners in business. This book is a perfect road map to helping you sort through your brain to come up with the perfect few words. Do I have it yet? Not quite...but I think after I spend several mornings reading the paperback, making notes and spending time brainstorming after each read, I will have it figured out.

Awesome, awesome, awesome!

But these examples are extreme! LOL. This was fascinating. I love how the mind works and to see that with hoarders there is no real explanation. As fascinating as it was, I was very uncomfortable when I got to Chapter 11. This described my husband and I to a tee. It motivated me to tell him exactly what I think and that if we don't get rid of a lot of his stuff and get my house back to a HOME that I keep clean and LIVE in, some serious consequences will occur. He got the message. We are working on it. I will pass this onto others that I know have similar issues.

It also gave me a different perspective on saving things...or collecting things. I am now afraid to do either. If it isn't used, get rid of it. Keep life simple, clean & neat.

A good read that I highly recommend, especially if you suspect you live with a hoarder.

After hearing Joseph Anton by Salman Rushdie & narrated by Sam Dastor, I felt I HAD to listen to this book and see what all the fuss was about. I remember the hubhub about the book when it first came out, but I never gave it a thought to pick it up and read it. Good thing I didn't back then, I would never have finished it. The names, I would have constantly stumbled over them. But maybe the story line would have been easier to understand in print?? The listen was extemely hard to follow. As best as I can tell, it follows the main characters through several of their "other lives" & how they are interwined through eternity?? I am just not sure. But Sam Dastor made the listen interesting. It was fun hearing him spout off all those Indian names like he lived there and then change accents to fit the characters. It was also very interesting to hear how Indians talk to each other. My only experience has been the overly polite version on the other line when you call tech support or at the gas station (sorry...do not mean to offend.)

I listened through the entire thing, hoping for understanding. But it was confusing. I have to confess I just did not get the book. Nor do I get what all the drama was surrounding the book. It is just a book about ficticious characters. Whatever evil slams there were against Islam probably just went over the heads of most readers (as it did mine). So what was the big deal?

Because parts of this were quite fascinating, while still confusing the heck out of me, I do hope this is made into a movie. Maybe seeing what is going on will help to understand it. The book is a part of history, whether you agree with it or not. It is important to read & understand, then appreciate all that Mr. Rushdie endured to get it published. Kudos to him for sticking it out! I don't know that I would have had the fortitude.

Maybe this is better read...but trying to listen to it while driving is not good because it will put you to sleep! For a motivational speaker, Brian Tracy reading his book is dead boring. Content is a lot of what you should do's...not much motivation. I didn't even make it through the first chapter.

It was very difficult to listen to the high Oxford English of Sam Dastor combined with the long, descriptive writing of Salman Rushdie, but it was interesting to hear about his plight of 14 years. I remember the initial incident, but never that it ended or when. It was interesting enough that I purchased the Satanic Verses just to see what all the fuss was about. That is another reveiw...

This book could have been so much shorter though...really, there was much we did not need to hear. But I think it was a cleansing for Rushdie, to get out all of this thoughts, emotions & frustrations. I hope he feels better.

Sam Dastor was an interesting narrator. It took a long while to get used to the accent. But by the time I finished it was OK and I was actually happy that he was narrating the Satanic Verses. The way he changes voices and accents and also spouts off multiple names from different cultures was amazing. If reading the book, I would have tripped over all the crazy Inidan names. But he did it effortlessly.

I can't imagine hanging in to READ this book though. Far too descriptive. But listening in the car...not so bad...even if my mind drifted frequently.

...if you like statistics and stories, which Malcom Gladwell is famous for. But I would have appreciated a bit more "how to" than just the stories. Some good stuff though. I see a lot of my daughter and how she handles my grandson in the pages. Good for her! She must have picked up a lot from this long time ago because he is an Outlier. :)

Loved this book. Excellent information for any small business owner...heck any business owner. It is always better if the author reads their own book, and Sally is definitely easy to listen to and well worth the time. I was so disappointed to get to the end, that I am starting over again!

Works well with John Maxwell's 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership