I first visited Manhattan in 1994. A little late to the party I know, but it was my first chance to get there. I was in love the moment we turned onto 5th Avenue. I am always ready to plan a trip to New York. By the time the plane is over Philadelphia, I am patting my foot impatiently on the floor wanting to know how soon we will be landing. Flying over the city and seeing the skyline from LaGuardia just makes me smile. So how do I feed my need when I am not there?

I will watch anything program about New York. I will read any book about New York. I take The New Yorker magazine on my Kindle. From time-to-time I take the The New York Times on my Kindle. Several years ago on Sunday Morning one of their reporters did a piece on Manhattan Unfurled by Matteo Pericoli. It was close to Christmas and it was the only thing I requested.

I visit this book frequently so I can remember exactly what the skyline looks like.

Last Sunday morning Charles Osgood did a piece on Mattio’s newest book, The City Out My Window.

I ordered it that day. It arrived just a few days later. I have read and re-read several of the entries with each window over the past three evenings. Such great insight into what people see out their windows and what the views mean to them. I am sure I will visit this book as often as I visit other materials on New York. And yes, I have these books in hard cover. That is how they are meant to be consumed. All books are not meant to be in electronic form. A Love Affair must be fed.

What place in the world fires your imagination? What books, publications or other resources provide you with insight to this place?

Technorati Tags:
Manhatten, New York City, The City Out My Window, Manhattan Unfurled, Matteo Pericoli

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap… and Others Don’t

I first read Good to Great several years ago. When I was an employee of IBTX Risk Services the entire staff was required to read the book. The agency’s culture was based on many of the principles of this book. I return to this book as reference material often.

The portions of the book that I continue to use with my clients are:

1. Good is the enemy of great.

2. Have the right people in the right seat on the bus.

3. Disciplined People, Disciplined Thought & Disciplined Action create “A Culture of Discipline.”

This is another book that I often request that the management of an agency read when they are my client. It contains many valuable lessons. If you have read Good to Great would you please share what you believe are the top lessons of this book. I am always looking for other’s points-of-view.

Technorati Tags:
Good to Great, Jim Collins, insurance agency culture, book review, insurance agency values

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap… and Others Don’t

I first read Good to Great several years ago. When I was an employee of IBTX Risk Services the entire staff was required to read the book. The agency’s culture was based on many of the principles of this book. I return to this book as reference material often.

The portions of the book that I continue to use with my clients are:

1. Good is the enemy of great.

2. Have the right people in the right seat on the bus.

3. Disciplined People, Disciplined Thought & Disciplined Action create “A Culture of Discipline.”

This is another book that I often request that the management of an agency read when they are my client. It contains many valuable lessons. If you have read Good to Great would you please share what you believe are the top lessons of this book. I am always looking for other’s points-of-view.

Technorati Tags:
Good to Great, Jim Collins, insurance agency culture, book review, insurance agency values

Simple Ideas on Presentation Design and Delivery

More and more agencies are using presentations to convey information to their clients and staff. I highly recommend this book as a resource for ideas for successful presentations. The book discusses how people process information and ways to present so that they get the most from the presentation. Practical examples are given.

I have learned a great deal from this book. I have been incorporating more and more of its ideas into my presentations.

Technorati Tags:
Presentation Zen, Garr Reynolds, agency culture

I met Larry Linne several years ago at a Sitkins 100 meeting now known as Sitkins International.  He was a speaker and his subject was on sales management.  Who knew he was writing this wonderful book?  I so wish I had known all that is in this book when I owned a managing general agency.  Oh did I lose sleep and it was very noisy.  It would have also been helpful for those positions where I was second-in-command.

My review of this book is really redundant.  A forward by Ken Blanchard should say it all.  However, I have insights to share.  On page 48, Larry quotes Jim as saying “I have owned this business for sixteen years, and I can’t tell you how many times I’ve watched employees walk out the door at five o’clock on the dot, leaving a huge problem behind for me to solve.”  Jim also said earlier in the book that he was disappointed to learn that his employees didn’t care as much about the business as he did.

I had these thoughts almost everyday I owned my own company.  I had these thoughts many days as the second-in-command.  I still have these thoughts sometimes when I am consulting with an agency.  I hear these thoughts in one form or another from every business owner I work with or know.  Another thing these business owners express as a frustration is not only the problems you know you need to solve but there are always problems hiding that no one has told you about yet.

My words to every business owner, no matter what your business, get this book and read it as fast as you can.  If you don’t have a second-in-command get the right one, then do everything this book says.  If you have a second-in-command, you get the picture.

Larry, thank you for this new resource that I have added to my arsenal for working with my clients.

Are you in a dead end job that drains the life out of you each day?  When you arrive home at the end of the day you have no energy to be present for your family?  Almost everyone has been in this position at one time or another.  “Find Your Strongest Life” should be read by every woman of every age so that you know what action to take to propel yourself from this situation.

I wish this book had been written when I was 20 instead of 62.  I was hooked by the middle of the Ten Myths About The Lives of Women at the beginning of the book.  Some of these I knew, some applied to me and some didn’t, but I see them everyday in the lives of the women I know and meet.  Marcus makes it so clear for you to find your strongest life by using the the online “The Strong Life Test for Women”.  Each woman should take the test immediately upon ordering the book.  You will have some idea of what your focus should be as you read the book.

In a phone conversation with a colleague a few weeks ago, I said I was at a time in my life when I was trying to decide what to do when I grow up.  He laughed and thought I should really be thinking about retirement.  The timing of this book is so appropriate.  I like what I do, but I am assessing how I move to doing what I love to do.

I really like the “What to Take Away” at the end of each chapter.  A great way to focus on the points of the chapter.  Marcus has provided the tools for me to reassess where I am, where I am going.  I rarely write in a book or mark important information.  That is not the case here.  There are notes, earmarked pages, and post it notes.  I intend to use this book as a reference for planning my future.

Every young woman in my family will be receiving a copy of this book shortly.

Thank you Marcus.

Author: Jan Hargreaves

I saw Jan capture her audience for an hour and a half at the Independent Insurance Agents of Texas annual meeting in Austin, TX, in June 2007.  It seemed like we were there just minutes and everyone wanted more.  She is a fabulous communicator.  If you ever have the chance to see her don’t miss it.  In the meantime you should read this book.

After reading this book I wrote “The Power of the Positive Audit” for The Anderson Agency Report.  The “The Power of the Positive Audit” takes the premise of this book and applies it to insurance agencies specifically.  This book shows us that Patrick Lencioni, renowned business consultant and bestselling author of The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, is on a critical mission to create widespread job satisfaction in a world full of workplace misery.

This is another must read for every owner, partner, manager and supervisor of any type of firm.  My two part article on “The Power of the Positive Audit” are available here:

The Power of the Positive Audit – Part I

The Power of the Positive Audit – Part II

This was my first Patrick Lencioni book.  Reading it opened my eyes to what I believe are often core issues that my clients face in operating their businesses.  I was fortunate to be able to attend Patrick’s Building Winning Teams Workshop in November 2007.  It was an awesome workshop.  I recommend this book to every agency I work with and I highly recommend Patrick’s workshop.