Getting Everything You Can Out of All You’ve Got – By Jay Abraham -- Truman Talley Books, St. Martin’s Press, NY – February 2000, 362 pages Reviewed by – G.A. “Andy” Marken, president, Marken Communications Inc, andy@markencom.com
We’ve never been much of a fan of “get rich quick” books having determined that the only person who gets rich from such books is the author. Fortunately this isn’t a get rich quick book but instead what seems to be an abridged self-help book for managers.
Mr. Abraham doesn’t make the task easy though because his examples and recommendations make the reader spend considerable time in reading and interpreting each chapter. Maybe this was his goal but the style also makes “Getting Everything” an easy book to put down.
Not to take away from Mr. Abraham’s messages but we’ve found Harvey Mackay’s books – “Swim With the Sharks,” “Pushing the Envelope,” Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty,” and “Beware the Naked Man Who Offers You His Shirt” -- deliver similar messages in a far less exhausting and entertaining fashion.
We aren’t saying that many of the concepts and recommendations Mr. Abraham makes in the book are not valuable to companies and individuals. To the contrary, the methods he recommends and the mind-set he tries to help readers achieve are excellent.
However, his rapid fire presentation of promises and sure-fire winning ways make us feel like we’re listening to a telephone solicitor or boiler room brokerage salesperson.
Mr. Abraham is undoubtedly superb in 1-1, small group or seminar situations. But the Gattling gun barrage of ideas, approaches and recommendations on how to improve yourself and your situation doesn’t come across well on the written page. While he is undoubtedly fervent in his beliefs, statements such as “…I guarantee that when you apply them with diligence and persistence you will enjoy success beyond anything you can imagine” tend to weaken his credibility with the reader.
As you read “Getting Everything” you quickly come to believe that here is a person who deeply believes in and enjoys what he is doing. He writes with the fervence of a Southern Baptist minister who honestly believes he can help any man or woman achieve his or her maximum. All he wants people to do is focus on getting down to basics and understand not only themselves but also the people they interact and work with.
People like myself who simply pass by the get rich quick-and-easy at the book store, we advise you to ignore the book’s subtitle “21 ways you can out-think, out-perform and out-earn the competition.” Granted there a lot of good techniques and strategies that companies and individuals can use to gain a competitive edge. But there are a number of very excellent underlying messages that are even more valuable. Mr. Abraham wraps a very strong dose of advice and counsel on how people can become more satisfied with themselves in a blanket of moneymaking guidance.
While Mr. Abraham promotes the book as 21 ways to improve your business, he hits you with shovels full of thoughts and ideas that you can apply without a huge financial investment. Public relations professionals can reshape many of the recommendations to help them become more successful in the field. In addition, it will help them become more effective management counselors by looking at clients’ businesses and situations in refreshing new ways.
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Our recommendation is to pick up Mr. Abraham’s book for the selfish money-making ideas but read it with the understanding that you’ll come away with a better idea of what’s important…to you.
Getting Everything You Can Out of All You’ve Got - To learn more about this author, visit Andy Marken's Website.
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