Why Do It The Hard Way?... Read This Book Instead
588694
The challenges faced by landlords/long-term investors can be overwhelming at best, and at worst, financially, and emotionally, devastating. The best thing you can do as an owner/landlord, is be as prepared as possible. This book breaks down the issues into easily understandable pieces that will prepare you for those challenges.

It is obvious, Mrs. Rittenhouse knows her stuff. Highly Recommended for anyone thinking about becoming a real estate investor, and for those at the beginning and intermediate levels of investing.
386741
The more open your mind is, the more you'll enjoy this book. It preaches a different way of working and living and cites great examples of people who have walked the talk. (Personally, I don't have the courage to pack up and head for Iowa, but I admire people who do.)

 Even if you do remain in New York or Silicon Valley, Rich's book will make you think about what really matters. (How many books can you say that about?) So read it and leap...to a better life. As we used to say at Apple, "There must be a better way." Here's a book that can help you figure out the way.

 Full diclosure: like Andy Kessler, I too am a friend of Rich Karlgaard. But so what?
4025667
Here's why you should buy this book:

1. The book is engaging, well-written, and reasonably short. Youll easily finish it.

2. The pure optics of a successful Wall Street wealth manager telling working class people on Main Street that they are a significant part of the problem is strangely a breath of fresh air. Because truth is always a breath of fresh air.

3. The book is uncanny in its way of illuminating the key issues on a host of topics about which people simultaneously feel passionately and yet know far too little. The financial crisis, Wall Street, Free Trade, Immigration, crony capitalism, school choice, higher education, government corruption, and more. In short: you will know far more after reading this book.

4. David has the ability to distill complex, messy issues to their core problems, and then to identify prudent, actionable solutions. In short: you will think better after reading this book.

5. The noise level of our cultural moment is deafening. Clenched fists, raw throats, pointed fingers, everybody screaming at everybody with accusations of blame for our problems. Left v. Right, Conservative v. Progressive, Republican v. Democrat, Elite v. Working Class, Urban v. Rural, Establishment v. The People; it is mind-numbing white noise. Davids is one voice you need to listen to because he will not just tell you what you want to hear. With unvarnished honesty, with no immunity for anybody, any side, any institution, he will likely expose some blind spots and tell you who is really to blame, and (uncomfortably enough) it will not be the bogeyman you think. In short: you will be more self-aware after reading this book.

6. David does not just orbit around in the intellectual upper atmosphere; he brings it down to where the rubber meets the road. His penultimate chapter is filled with practical advice on how you can overcome your addiction to blame, paving the way for you to flourish in your potential as an image-bearer of God. In short: you will become more successful after reading this book.

7. If everybody in our country read this book and took it to heart, we would wake up the next day in a very different place, politically and culturally. That will not happen, of course. But what if enough of us read this book and took it to heart? Who knows what a small groundswell of people committed to personal responsibility rather than the blame game might accomplish in, oh, say, a generation or so?
3335499
These days both men and women find choosing that special someone to give their heart to harder than ever -- and there's no indication things are getting any easier soon!  Consider: What do your REALLY want in your life partner, and how will you know when you're looking at that person after dating countless losers?  Would you like a method for answering these questions that was independent of your current mood or level of erotic stimulation?
If so, this is the book you've been looking for -- if you're a woman, that is.  You'll get tried and tested criteria to judge any man's potential to sustain and grow a longterm, committed relationship with you: his ability to see you as more than a sex object, "compassion quotient", level of anger management ability and much more.  Drawn from the author's own experiences and laced with humourous straight "girlfriend wisdom" and clear, understandable rationales for each item, the test is designed to take the guesswork and indecissiveness out of your path on the road to declaring someone your boyfriend, and meaning it in the best sense.
Where this book falls down is in what sometimes feel like man-hating generalizations and Ms. Walsh's stereotyped views of the sexes in general.  There is a troubling contradiction between her progressive views of women and her insistance that men must play the dating game a certain way to be worthy of consideration.  One feels she really DOES feel compassion and sympathy for men, but (as she readily admits) has made so many bad choices in the past that she's now too jaded to give them many breaks.  If you're a woman frustrated by the many losers you've been going out with, this is exactly what you'll love about this book.  If you're a man hoping to pass muster with a classy woman, it will seem just hurtful and discouraging.
Overall, "The Boyfriend Test" delivers what it promises, and does so in a way any smart woman serious about changing her love life can benefit from.  Its core is a set of fifty questions devided into five increasingly difficult sections to cover the various stages of getting intimate, from the first "Meet and Greet" to the final moment you utter the word "boyfriend", and see how he reacts.  Just as in school, a man must score well toward a hundred (with letter grades to match) to continue on to the next level, and by the end must score a solid A+ to be worthy of the title "Boyfriend".  But unlike in school, Walsh makes you meet him halfway, with fifty free points at the start of each test.  The various possible ways he may behave are given certain point values, plus or minus, so the score he ends up with will reflect both his actual behavior and all the other things you like about him that aren't covered in the book.  Of course not every possible way a man may behave or every conceiveable REASON for his behavior can be covered in a book, and that probably also has something to do with giving hikm fifty free points to start with.
It would be much better if it didn't see all men as members of a single class, but overall "The Boyfriend Test" gets my approval as a man.  In intent if not design, it's a fine way to pick a man.
3850149
This book is filled with both well known business "facts" as well as unconventional perspectives.  It is an excellent book; however it is a rather difficult read.  I consider myself to be an above average reader particularly with business jargon, but still I had trouble.  The purpose of reading is to expand your mind and grow.  Overall this is a book that I would recommend.  Be prepared for a challenge.
4567524
This book affected me with the aggravation and annoyance I suspect I will experience if ever I allow my arrogant self to come under the guidance of a flesh and blood teacher.

Here are thoughts I have about why this book is hard for many of us to take.

Steven Hagen is sure in his beliefs and despite knowing that Buddhism is not what you think (and therefore cannot be experienced by reading the written word), he is trying to explain things to those of us who have a longer way to go (or we wouldn't be reading this book).

I still would recommend it - it has some good stories and if you just read it to read it, without high expectations, parts of it may settle in well.

The book is divided into three sections.

The first, Muddy Water, addresses our confusion about what we think we see and experience in the every day world.  (Human beings).  We are confused. We think we know, or we think we can know.  This section is very wordy, long and thick.  So are we.  Hah.

The second goes back and tries to view our experiences with a different view.  Pure Mind.  It offers some thoughts and stories, some explanations about why we are so muddy and what it would be like if we were not.

The third section, Purely Mind (a small section indeed) on being in the moment.

The book is a frustrating experience because it is a book. It contains thoughts of someone, when perhaps we are seeking experience.

I read and read, looking for explanations and answers that I know, from brief moments, are not 'there' and cannot really be explained well.

Until we stop reading the books and 'get it' I don't know that a book will be what we want in finding freedom beyond beliefs. Because Buddhism is not what you think.  Nor what you read.
34612
Honestly, this is one of the most important books I've read in recent memory.  But it's hard for me to quantify exactly what makes it so wonderful.  Yes, the author gives unique perspectives to truths that made this 50 year old, been-in-church-all-my-life woman highlight text like crazy.  And yes, this book came to me at just the right time...when I've felt burdened by wasted time, and by the desire to make my life matter more.  But still...how can I explain why you should definitely read this book?  (And you definitely should!)
  It's not a dry how-to manual.  It's not a guilt trip.  It's not a fluffy dream fulfillment cheerleading book.
  It's nitty-gritty story telling with a punch of the kind of wisdom that only comes from walking through fires with God and coming out ready to suffer anything for the privilege of sharing the yoke with Him and letting Him lead.  I know that this is one book I will come back to often.
1502578
This book is well-written and very nicely designed. Beyond that, it's hard to see what the fuss is about.

First of all, and on the one hand, the book isn't the torrent of Machiavellian amorality you may have been led to believe. The author does go out of his way to make it _sound_ as though he's presenting you with sophisticated, in-the-know, just-between-us-hardheaded-realists amoral guidance. But as a matter of fact almost every bit of this advice _could_ have been presented without offense to the most traditional of morality.

(For example, the law about letting other people do the work while you take the credit is made to sound worse than it really is. Sure, it admits of a "low" interpretation. But it's also, read slightly differently, a pretty apt description of what any good manager does.)

Second, and on the other hand, the advice isn't _that_ good; it's merely well-presented. How it works will depend on who follows it; as the old Chinese proverb has it, when the wrong person does the right thing, it's the wrong thing.

And that's why I have to deduct some stars from the book. For it seems to be designed to appeal precisely to the "wrong people."

Despite some sound advice, this book is aimed not at those who (like Socrates) share the power of reason with the gods, but at those who (like Ulysses) share it with the foxes. It seeks not to make you reasonable but to make you canny and cunning. And as a result, even when it advises you to do things that really do work out best for all concerned, it promotes an unhealthy sense that your best interests are at odds with nearly everyone else's. (And that the only reason for being helpful to other people is that it will advance your own cloak-and-dagger "career.")

No matter how helpful some of the advice may be, it's hard to get around the book's rather pompous conceit that the reader is learning the perennial secrets of crafty courtiers everywhere. Even if only by its tone, this volume will tend to turn the reader into a lean and hungry Cassius rather than a confident and competent Caesar.

In general the book does have some useful things to say about power and how to acquire and wield it. Unfortunately its approach will probably render the advice useless to the people who need it most. Readers who come to it for guidance will come away from it pretentiously self-absorbed if not downright narcissistic; the readers who can see through its Machiavellian posturing and recognize it for what it is will be the very readers who didn't need it in the first place.

Recommended only to readers who _aren't_ unhealthily fascinated by Sun-Tzu, Balthasar Gracian, and Michael Korda.
442283
Read this book. Twice.

If you're facing a big decision. If you've just suffered a setback. If you're worried about the future and what's in the news these days, read this book. The Spy's Guide to Strategy is your ticket better decisions. It's your ticket to making sense of the crazy world we live in. It's the best book on strategy I've ever read.

I study strategy. And persuasion. Professionally.

I am a loyalty marketing strategist. I work on some of the best loyalty marketing programs in the world. For brands whose programs dominate their industries. You probably have one of my cards in your wallet. Those companies pay for strategy. Strategy that works.

So I study strategy. I've read the books by Dixit and Nalebuff mentioned in A Spy's Guide to Strategy. I take online courses on strategy, game theory, and decision science. John Braddock is revealing so many of my favorite secrets. And teaching me a lot of stuff I never knew. Stuff that would have made me better. I wish I'd read this book a decade ago.

Like any strategist, I've made mistakes. I've failed to convince clients who needed to be convinced. I've struggled to find a method to apply strategic thinking consistently to any situation.

But A Spy's Guide to Strategy makes me better. So much better now than before. Braddock provides you with simple, plain-language methods to make better decisions. He prepares you to think better. To think about the other side's end game. To think about the other players in the game. To break out of the bad habit of thinking only about YOUR things.

I am going to give a copy of this book to every one of my clients. That's risky for me. What if they decide they don't need me?

I don't care. It's a risk I have to take. A strategist, it's my job to make my clients successful. And this book will give my clients an unfair advantage in the business world.

Read it before you run up against me. Or my clients. Or you'll lose.
2073073
Read and struggle with this book. Then go deeper - Wilbur is a challenge.

I have long been a student of human evolution, science, and spirituality. Finally, I discovered Ken Wilbur and began reading with one of his latest books, A Theory of Everything (T.O.E.). I was amazed at how this all rang true for me, and how it applies to our personal as well as professional lives.

This is not an easy read. I found myself having to go back over material already read and rethink it for myself. But the exercise is well worth it. Wilbur starts with the statement that "We live in an extraordinary time: all of the world's cultures, past and present, are to some degree available to us, either in historical records or as living entities." From there, he develops his theory of everything, which by his own definition "any truly integral vision or T.O.E. will have to reconcile, one way or another, the relation of science and religion." By the end of this book, Wilbur has made a fairly solid argument for having accomplished just that.

I have to admit that my fairly structured mind had to be jarred out of its normal mode of world view, but once I got by my own mental hurdles, T.O.E. made a great deal of sense to me. Beginning with Don Beck's Spiral of Development, Wilbur extends that work to eventually become an all inclusive model for second-tier consciousness - and beyond. Besides my own limitations, one of the more difficult issues in reading this text was the extensive use of endnotes, requiring much flipping back and forth between the appendix and the text.

There are several ideas I find disheartening though. ". . . there will always be a large population of humanity at the magic and mythic waves, which are usually associated with traditional religion. Thus, traditional religious beliefs will never completely go away because everybody is born at square one." And a second disheartening statement is that "Those who had hoped that we were rid of all that silly religious stuff are probably in for a rocky ride." While I understand his point, I still find it deeply disturbing that we will always be starting at "square one." I hope this proves not to be true in a practical sense, even if it is technically the case. I hope we can somehow short circuit the normally long educational process to get to second-tier consciousness. We are able to do that with many other of our "new world views," and so hope springs eternal.

A second disturbing realization for me is that I must rethink my world view of the "interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part." The consequences of Wilbur's T.O.E. is the requirement that I now recognize that "it is NOT true that human minds (the noosphere) are part of nature (or the biosphere), but rather the reverse."

Live and learn. If you wish to challenge your own world view, this book is a great place to start. You can also learn more at Ken Wilbur's Personal Web Site.
3336528
If you, or someone you know, has a serious drinking or drug problem, you could do a lot worse than to read this book. For it reveals some startling and unfashionable truths: that alcoholics drink because they love drinking, and that they can stop if they choose to. Moreover, you quit by...wait for it...just quitting. You do not need to know why you drank, or attend recovery groups, in order to quit. You do not have a disease. You are not deserving of any special consideration. If you hate what drink does to you, yet carry on drinking, there is no mystery that needs special wisdom to uncover - the fact is that the 'Beast' within you simply loves to drink, come what may.

Trimpey would be the first to admit that it should not take a book this length to explain this. But his enemy is the American 'treatment industry', which only compounds the problems it purports to treat. AA, the chief culprit, wants you trap you into its strange world of rituals and odd teachings, and tends to keep you in an addictive mentality. The real solution is simpler - to learn to recognise the 'Addictive Voice', and to separate it from 'you'. AA says you are 'in denial' if you think you can plan to abstain for good, without their 'help', but Trimpey says that many people do just that, and succeed. The reader may find some of this overstated and oversimplified, and overly 'political'. My own experience with AA in the UK is not quite as Trimpey says it is in the US. But this book is a breath of fresh air, and you may wonder why its claims were not obvious to you all along.
2476158
Its like hearing leadership lesson from a person who has faced the challenges rather than people who just preach it. Truly there is a huge difference between practical and theoretical. So guys, if you are looking for some self help book, go for it.
1076406
First and foremost, I think this is an extremely important book which should be required reading of political and military leaders.  The book is not easy for me to review.  First, I'm no expert on this subject and second, its a tough subject and a somewhat difficult read.  My gut feeling is author Dave Grossman gets close to the truth in some areas and not so close in a few others.  Like a number of other books I've read, he seems to cherry-pick resources that conform to his ideas.  A number of knowledgable reviewers have pointed out that several of his main sources are disputed.  The author is also very repetitive making portions of the book somewhat tedious.  My final con is Grossman's broad pontifications.  He simplifies some extremely complicated societal ills (media violence, breakdown of nuclear family,  etc.)
Having expressed my reservations, I recommend this book.  Dave Grossman has tackled one of the most difficult and important topics we have as a species.  If you (as I) learn anything, its a positive.  If he does nothing more than start or extend the conversation about man's propensity to take a life, he has performed a huge service to us all.
679005
Don't get this book!!  Having said that, this book has helped me to understand more things about myself than any other book I've bought.  Nothing like the mamby-pamby books that tell you to get in touch with your *inner child*, Dr. Phil comes straight out and tells you if you don't like your life CHANGE IT. He gives you the tools to look at yourself, and if you really DO look at yourself, and are HONEST with yourself, you can work on the parts of you and your life that bug you.
As to the reviewer who commented that Dr. Phil says 'everyone is accountable' and what about rape victims, etc., are you going to tell them they are at fault....NO! You missed the point! On page 65-66, Dr. Phil wrote: (about child victims) "What about things that happened to me as a child? ~~ I realize that certain realities, some of them horribly sick realities, are visited upon us when we are children.  I am not suggesting that, as children, we choose all of the events and circumstances in our lives...we are neither RESPONSIBLE (capitals are not Dr. Phils, but mine) or ACCOUNTABLE for being raped, abused, or molested. This is not what I'm saying.  What I AM saying to you is that while you may not have had the knowledge or power, as a child, to make certain choices and are therefore not accountable for those events, as an ADULT you DO have the ability to choose your reaction to those childhood events and circumstances...the past is over and the future hasn't happened yet."
Dr. Phil continues: "Is it fair that it happened to you?  No. Is it fair that you have to deal with that? No. It is fair that you have to live with it and manage it for the rest of your life?  No.  Are you nevertheless accountable for how you live with it and manage it?  ABSOLUTELY.  I suppose that your accountability is both good news and bad news.  The bad news is that the burden is on you. The good news is that the choice is yours."
I would think that the same advice applies to adult victims of violence. Dr. Phil's point is whatever you want to change, get it out in the open and deal with it.
As I said, this is a very good book; it's helped me and I will continue to use it. I'm also buying a copy for a family member.
2871004
I absolutely loved this book, even as I struggle with the underlying subtext that Grit is teachable. Anyone who doubts the role that Grit plays in success, professional and personal, just isn't paying attention. Look around you and see what separates those who are successful from those who somehow never quite realize that potential. I would have called the difference drive and resilience; but Ill happily substitute Grit and believe we are talking about the same thing. Where I disagree with the author is her premise that Grit can be learned or taught. Theres no question that gritty people can build on their intrinsic fire (or Drive, as Daniel Pink discussed in his book of the same name) to accomplish great and good goals. I am also a fan of Dwecks Mindset but I confess that believing a growth mindset can provide Grit, where it may not exist, is about as believable as having a growth-mindset can enable a short person to get taller. If Grit is not there (for something), I would argue that it will not likely arrive, no matter how badly one wishes it so. In my own experience, I have found that drive/resilience are huge difference-makers but that it is impossible to insist, cajole or implant them when they do not exist. If the mark of a great book is that it leads to engaged debate, discussion and a desire to learn more, Angela Duckworth must be commended for a great addition to the welcome and expanding library of books from the social psychology community. The conversation between Ericsson and Csikzentmihalyi on the 10,000 hours v Flow was worth the price of admission alone. Congratulations, Ms. Duckworth on a wonderful book.

Peter Smith, Author, Sell Something, Principles and Perspectives of Engaged Retail Salespeople
291786
Tidying or "decluttering" is not difficult and you don't need a book to teach you how to do it -- here's how:

Step 1 - Go through every room in your house with bags or boxes and put as much "stuff" in them as possible.
Step 2 - Throw away (or donate) the boxes and bags.

That's it.

Most of the negative reviews likely purchased this book thinking that maybe there were some other steps involved or "magic" in the title meant there was a way to tidy up like Harry Potter -- there's not.

The truth about this book is that it's easy to dismiss as being too whimsical and the concepts may even seem "insane" to the cursory reader, but if you are open-minded, it may be the most profound thing you have read in years.

One negative reviewer wrote that he went into his kitchen, looked around, and immediately said "nothing in here brings me joy".  That would be sad *if* it were true.  However, taking a more intentional approach and thoughtfully considering each item one-by-one might lead to a different reaction.  Have you ever enjoyed cooking something in your kitchen?  If so, the knives and cookware have brought you joy.  Have you ever shared a meal with loved ones that was prepared in your kitchen?  If so, the serving dishes, plates, and silverware have brought you joy.  Imagine cooking without utensils or eating without plates -- inconceivable, right?

For some, gratitude is a more natural state than others.  Do you need to TALK to your stuff?  Probably not.  Do you need to carefully consider each of the things that you own and why you own it?  Absolutely. Should you be thankful to each of your possessions for the benefit it brings or has brought to your life? Well, that's the polarizing concept that will either resonate with you and change you -- or come across as nonsense.

If you approach this book with the right mindset, it has the potential to go way beyond a few straightening techniques and completely alter your view of the things you own now and in the future.  If you read the book and find it completely silly and a waste of time, then it's probably better for you to have a garage sale, sell the book for $0.50, and buy more stuff that doesn't bring you any joy.
4571399
This is an amazing book for MANY reasons but 2 big reasons come to mind as I finished it...

1. Richelle is already a successful entrepreneur (many times actually) and she speaks from real world experience, not theory. This alone separates the book from most 'how to' books. And, not only has she been successful, she's done it as a minority in highly competitive niches.

2. The book is SUPER detailed in exactly what you need to do to become successful in business.
Specifically I got a lot out of her customer reactivation ideas and I love how she openly shares without holding the good stuff "behind the curtain".

If you're a small business owner aspiring to get to a million dollars or you want to start up your own company, you would be hard-pressed to find a better place to spend your time than reading and absorbing what she reveals in this valuable guide.

Henry Evans
Author, "The Hour A Day Entrepreneur"