Well, it’s officially the holiday shopping season, so, instead of the usual Friday Freebies, here is my list of my favorite business books (and a few non-business ones too) of 2008. Maybe you’ll find something here for your holiday wish list. I’ve included some reviews and personal notes as well.
Whether you drink Starbucks coffee or not, whether you agree with their business model or not, you have to admit that they’ve really nailed the art of communicating ideas and values using very simple presentation styles and dynamic, text-based messages (Garr Reynolds calls it Kinetic Typography). Very similar in style to the Girl Effect presentation I discussed earlier this month, these two presentations not only communicate a good message, they move people to action. And that’s the key to good presentations: moving people to action. Plus, I love the theming in both of these. Simple, clear, effective: “What if?“. So, enjoy these two “What if?” themed videos below and if you’re moved to action, do something about it. The first is for (STARBUCKS) RED: Starting today, November 27, every time you buy a special (STARBUCKS) RED product, a contribution will be made to the Global Fund, to help save lives in Africa. It’s all part of Starbucks commitment to give back to the communities where Starbucks does business, which is a key component of Starbucks Shared Planet. The second video was from Election Day and moves us to care about voting as much on November 5th (and all the time) as we did on November 4th. Enjoy and be inspired!
Go to any wine shop this week and you are bound to find them announcing “Le Beaujolais Nouveau est arrivé” (”the Beaujolais Nouveau has arrived”). Step inside and you’ll find countless cases of colorfully labeled bottles of Beaujolais Nouveau displayed prominently. Yes, it’s that time of year again! On the third Thursday of November, the official release date chosen by the French government, wine stores around the world celebrate the arrival of Beaujolais Nouveau. And, it’s a marketing blitz like no other in the wine world. American and Japanese wine enthusiasts in particular look forward to this day with anticipation and are often waiting in line to get the first bottles of the latest Nouveau vintage.
A bit about Beaujolais Nouveau. The wine is made from grapes that were still on the vine just three short months ago (hence the “nouveau” or “new” label). It’s fruity, it’s light, and it goes really well with holiday meals, especially turkey. It’s made from 100% gamay grapes from the Burgundy region in France. It’s a relatively inexpensive wine, usually selling for about $10.00 U.S. per bottle. But, truth be told, Beaujolais Nouveau is actually the lowest wine in the Beaujolais hierarchy. I’m not a wine snob, that’s just the truth. It was historically a low volume wine and was not highly regarded by most wine experts. So how did this lowly wine become so popular and inspire such a frenzy on the third Thursday of November?
When you think about startup companies what comes to mind? Vision, focused vision. Energy, lots of energy. Small teams. No rules. The Beginner’s Mind. The Art of the Possible. Now, think about the huge, established, multinationals. What images do they conjure up? Bureaucracy. Heavy process. Big teams. Tried and true. Conservative. Dull. Perhaps you came up with other descriptors, but that’s what I think of when I think about startups versus big established companies.
I believe that the qualities that I described above for startups are what make many of them successful. And almost more importantly, I think it’s what makes them fun and exciting to work at. So many startups have charismatic leaders who have a really clear and focused vision for the company. They need to; they can’t afford to waste time working on things that don’t get them to their goal quickly. And energy. There is is so much energy at a startup because everyone is really committed to making this thing work. They wouldn’t be there otherwise. Many talented people who work at startups could easily work at a big corporation making better salaries. But there is a certain energy at startups that really bright people seem to thrive on. Maybe it’s the thrill of survival?
Go to any wine shop this week and you are bound to find them announcing “
