“The Art of Doing: How Superachievers Do What They Do and How They Do It So Well” by Camille Sweeney and Josh Gosfield (Plume, $16).
What really separates the best from the rest? Thirty-six extraordinary people from various walks of life talk about what makes them tick. Their common threads: Continuous learning, passion, commitment, energy, working smart — and an appreciation for “It’s not just about them.”
Here are two of my favorites:
• Tony Hsieh (pronounced Shay) — From owning a pizza shop while in college to making Zappos a $1 billion online shoe store, Hsieh learned that aligning the values of employees and customers created success. Relative to organizational values, Zappos’ employees participated in creating them by responding to a “What Should Zappos values be?” email. Over the course of a year, 35 core values were identified and defined. Participation created buy-in and ongoing commitment at all levels. Relative to management, he sees managers as obstacle removers who push decisions to the lowest level.
• Erin Gruwell taught at-risk students. She asked them to write a journal of their lives. Students shared stories of hunger, abuse, gang violence, etc., and bonded. From their stories, Gruwell learned how to connect with them, and connect them to the world of opportunity. Her teaching emphasized education as the way to help them shape the outcomes of their yet-to-be-written stories. She encouraged them to find positive role models. Her story became a movie; check out “Freedom Writers”.
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“The Young Professional’s Guide to the Working World: Savvy Strategies to Get in, Get Ahead and Rise to the Top” by Aaron McDaniel (Career Press, $14.99).
McDaniel, a Millennial who rose in his 20’s to become a regional VP of AT&T and then embarked on an entrepreneurial career, knows that school does not teach you how to be successful at work. His STAR (Savvy, Tenacious, Adaptive, Resourceful) template provides the base for building a career from new hire to valued employee. STARs set goals, use mentors, attack opportunity, take calculated risks and believe in lifelong learning.
One of the key takeaways is check your ego at the door. Your GPA and what you did in school does not entitle you to plum assignments and positions of influence. Gone are the days when you get an award for just showing up. You have to learn how the company does business and understand that recognition and rewards are earned through contribution. There are two types of customers in every business — internal and external. Both are subject to the same rules of customer service: Figure out what’s important to your customers. Don’t promise more than you can deliver. Anticipate customer needs. Help your customers achieve their goals.
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“The Pirate Organization: Lessons from the Fringes of Capitalism” by Rodolphe Durand and Jean-Philippe Vergne (Harvard Business School Press, $22).
Capitalistic pirates take advantage of space where there are no laws. In the 1960’s, pirate radio stations existed on ships anchored in international waters. They could broadcast content the state didn’t want its constituents to hear. The idea had its roots in state radio (propaganda?) that dated to WWII when Tokyo Rose and the U.S. Armed Forces Network beamed their signals.
Now we have the invisible geography of Internet and the Cloud — which sprang from state roots. The unregulated commercialization of the Web changed the way we communicate, socialize, read, entertain ourselves and shop. It also spawned Cyberpirates; hackers, spammers, scammers, video- and music-sharing sites and pornographers found ways to profit from the system. Cyberpiracy came to state attention and regulations followed.
Science, too, has found invisible geography. Genetic engineering (i.e. cloning, DNA alteration, stem cells) and nanotechnology have become industries. There are no norms for such research and its products. At least not yet.
The authors’ points: There will always be gaps in the system because the system evolves faster than the state’s regulation of it. There will always be entrepreneurs who find the gaps and build businesses within them.
Jim Pawlak is a nationally syndicated book reviewer.
