I've been waiting for this kind of post, Rita. But I still believe in books--the good ones, anyway. The well-crafted books that have something remarkable to share. The books with the power to change us in some way, however big or small. The books that make us laugh, and question the status quo. (Yes, business books can still do this.) These books are still being written, but they're in the minority more so than before. Bottom line, the fundamentals remain for authors with something to say: Write an outstanding book. Then, without chasing the bestseller lists, market your book in a ground-breaking way over the course of its first year (or two) so your audience can find you--and share you with others. That's the winning formula, as always. -Carolyn
I agree with you - good books are worth writing and reading! But far too many are just vehicles to promote the author in some way without getting at anything really original. Nice to hear from you!
Great points. Add to this the idea that there are more books published than ever, but the total of reader-hours is likely shrinking. We write more books for fewer readers. I've thinking about how the customer experience is changing and how to adapt as an author: make my books more fun to give as a present to others, prettier to show off on a coffee table, easier to skim through with optimized formatting, etc.
They might become more like collectors items. Thing people want to have but don't actually read. Especially since print runs are shrinking and many books are printed on demand these days. Volume per book goes down so scarcity goes up.
“BusinessWeek ran an article about Fast Company's article. As related by BusinessWeek, the article was actually written by Fast Company founding editor Alan M. Webber, based on a six-hour interview with Peters. Peters reviewed and approved the article prior to publication, but the actual phrase "we faked the data" was Webber's, and Peters had not actually used these words during the interview. BusinessWeek quoted Peters as saying, "Get off my case. We didn't fake the data." According to BusinessWeek, Peters says he was "pissed" when he first saw the cover. "It was his [Webber's] damn word," he says. "I'm not going to take the heat for it."[14]
I remember the impact In Search of Excellence had when it came out. The initial shortlist came from expert opinion before performance metrics were applied. (It wasn’t a case of just applying numbers to companies they liked which is what i expected to find in following the link).
It’s incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to isolate causal drivers from retrospective case studies—and Peters himself acknowledged that. What the book did well was highlight the importance of culture, values, and people at a time when management thinking was focused on structure and strategy. It may not have offered perfect foresight, but it shifted the conversation.
I've been waiting for this kind of post, Rita. But I still believe in books--the good ones, anyway. The well-crafted books that have something remarkable to share. The books with the power to change us in some way, however big or small. The books that make us laugh, and question the status quo. (Yes, business books can still do this.) These books are still being written, but they're in the minority more so than before. Bottom line, the fundamentals remain for authors with something to say: Write an outstanding book. Then, without chasing the bestseller lists, market your book in a ground-breaking way over the course of its first year (or two) so your audience can find you--and share you with others. That's the winning formula, as always. -Carolyn
I agree with you - good books are worth writing and reading! But far too many are just vehicles to promote the author in some way without getting at anything really original. Nice to hear from you!
So many vehicles. And so many publishing options, which has lowered the bar... Sigh.
Great points. Add to this the idea that there are more books published than ever, but the total of reader-hours is likely shrinking. We write more books for fewer readers. I've thinking about how the customer experience is changing and how to adapt as an author: make my books more fun to give as a present to others, prettier to show off on a coffee table, easier to skim through with optimized formatting, etc.
I agree- reader time is probably splintering between all the things that demand our attention. So what could a book be?
They might become more like collectors items. Thing people want to have but don't actually read. Especially since print runs are shrinking and many books are printed on demand these days. Volume per book goes down so scarcity goes up.
“BusinessWeek ran an article about Fast Company's article. As related by BusinessWeek, the article was actually written by Fast Company founding editor Alan M. Webber, based on a six-hour interview with Peters. Peters reviewed and approved the article prior to publication, but the actual phrase "we faked the data" was Webber's, and Peters had not actually used these words during the interview. BusinessWeek quoted Peters as saying, "Get off my case. We didn't fake the data." According to BusinessWeek, Peters says he was "pissed" when he first saw the cover. "It was his [Webber's] damn word," he says. "I'm not going to take the heat for it."[14]
I was not aware of the back story! That's a great plot twist indeed. Thank you for the update!
I remember the impact In Search of Excellence had when it came out. The initial shortlist came from expert opinion before performance metrics were applied. (It wasn’t a case of just applying numbers to companies they liked which is what i expected to find in following the link).
It’s incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to isolate causal drivers from retrospective case studies—and Peters himself acknowledged that. What the book did well was highlight the importance of culture, values, and people at a time when management thinking was focused on structure and strategy. It may not have offered perfect foresight, but it shifted the conversation.
Excellent and candid. Well done.