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Paperback
142 pages
ISBN 9781591841210 Published March 2006
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Posted April 7, 2008 4:44 a.m. by kate
In Misc. - 800 CEO Read Blog
Paul Arden, famous for his 14 years of creativity at Saatchi & Saatchi, passed away last week.
He shared his passion and made his impression on the book world with two titles:
A telling profile of the bestselling author from Creativity-Online:
"Paul Arden was one of the most exceptional creative directors I've known, with an individualism and passion for perfection that resulted in some of the best advertising of the 80s and 90s," said Anthony Simonds Gooding, chairman of U.K. awards show D&AD, in a statement. "His idiosyncrasies made him unforgettable and his generosity and encouragement to students and young creatives is an example to all."Mr. Arden was such a perfectionist that he was often maddeningly over budget, insisting that the smallest details be perfect, such as searching for a certain pair of wildly expensive spectacles to achieve just the right look on a face that would be seen briefly in passing in a TV spot.
His public appearances were talked about for years. In one industry talk, he stood silently next to a woman playing the cello. Another time he gave a speech with a naked man on stage, demonstrating that a person is a blank canvas. And he once hired an actor to babble onstage while Mr. Arden displayed meaningless charts. His point was that although no one in the audience knew what was going on, they would never forget it.
Whatever You Think Review by Rob Marsh
Posted May 31, 2006 4:30 a.m. by kate
In Book Reviews - 800 CEO Read Blog
By Paul Arden, Penguin, April 2006
Paul Ardens latest book, Whatever You Think, Think The Opposite, is the kind of book I want to like. Its written by a former Creative Director at Saatchi & Saatchi. It features lots of pictures and short bursts of thought. Its even got a great cover. Flipping through the pages, it looks like a lot of fun to read.
I want to like it, but I dont. This book is lousy.
Okay, thats pretty harsh. But stick with me. Ardens book claims to share no-nonsense career advice that can be applied to almost every field. Here are a few examples of what youll find in the book. One spread titled, Half Nelson Full Nelson, features two photographs of a statue of Lord Nelson, one on a tall pedestal, the other on a much smaller pedestal. The no non-sense career advice reads: If Nelson had been placed on a small pedestal, would he be only half the man he is today? Another page features a prominent red arrow pointing to the bottom of the page and says, Turn this book up side down. Doing this makes it easier to read the caption under the arrow, Things are looking up already. Another page simply says, Bread. You know it makes sandwiches.
These are the radical insights of a global business guru?
Actually, the advice gets worse. Dont go to university. And Being bottom or near the bottom has merit. And a contrived comparison between reckless Erica who bulldozes her way through several organizations, getting fired three times and steady Eddie who happily moves up the corporate ladder only to miss out on the final promotion that would make his career.
I get what Arden is trying to do here. Hes saying take chances. Be creative. Think differently. The problem is, he doesnt say it very well.
Fortunately there are books that deliver on Ardens promise, including Sally Hogsheads Radical Careering (a well-designed, well-thought-out book of career advice) and Orbiting the Giant Hairball by Gordon MacKenzie (in my opinion the best book on creativity ever written). Or if youre looking for interesting ideas from the world of advertising, try Ogilvy on Advertising by David Ogilvy, Hey Whipple, Squeeze This by Luke Sullivan, or Creative Company by Andy Law. All good books full of interesting ideas. And unlike Whatever You Think, Think the Opposite, these books are worth the money.
One thing about Ardens book is correct. If youre thinking of buying it, think the opposite.
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Reviewed by Rob Marsh
Whatever You Think Review by John Brothers
Posted May 31, 2006 4:17 a.m. by kate
In Book Reviews - 800 CEO Read Blog
By Paul Arden, Penguin, April 2006
In some ways, this book is remarkably inspiring. In other ways, it is quite frustrating.
For me, the principle behind the book, which isn't really apparent from the title is: Break the "rules" and do things your way. This echoes many of the current business books - Purple Cow, for instance, which emphasizes that never taking a risk is in many ways the riskiest decision of all. In all honesty, I probably wouldn't have picked this book off of the shelf on my own. Which is a pity, because it is a wonderful blend of striking images and words that manages to deliver a lot of philosophy in a little over a hundred pages, many of which have almost no text at all.
I found this book inspirational, because it helped me feel better about some of the risky things I am doing with my life right now. For example, I'm writing a trilogy of novels in my spare time, while I work at a startup business, and run a set of blogs and a couple "microbusinesses" on the side. There are days when I have thought 'You are in way over your head'. Yesterday, for instance. But reading this book, gave me a new perspective on what I am doing, and whether it really is reckless and foolish, or just a new way to approach my business life. Also, normally I would have simply mentioned 'projects', without saying what they were, but another message from the book is to be proud of what you are doing and trying to accomplish. Already, this book is changing my life :)
I also found this book to be frustrating, primarily because the people who need to read it, who desperately need to be shaken out of their 40 year carerer-slumber will find it frightening, simplistic and lacking in relevance. Some will even say 'I believe in the premise, but how does this apply to my life?' . They have spent so long following other people's recipes that they no longer know how to write their own.
So - if you are comfortable with risk, if you are excited at the prospect of a 'leap of faith', if you refuse to live a "dignified" life, I bet you will find this book inspirational, challenging and fun, and it may just inspire you to take that next chance that you were hesitating on. But if you are looking for a book that will give you a roadmap of which risks to take, and which ones to avoid for your specific career goals, this book won't help you, and it will seem like useless fluff.
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Reviewed by John Brothers
The book reviews continue...
Posted May 31, 2006 4:05 a.m. by kate
In Book Reviews - 800 CEO Read Blog
Several people have been reviewing various business books. Today I'll be posting two reviews on the book Whatever You Think, Think the Opposite. The reviewers, John Brothers and Rob Marsh will give you two different perspectives of the book.
Here's John's review.
Here's Rob's.
"More Shirt-Sleeve Than Pin-Stripe"
Posted March 24, 2006 8:00 a.m. by kate
In Big Ideas - 800 CEO Read Blog
I love pin-stripes. They're classy and clean. But even with my love for them, I have to admit that I'm glad we're not a pin-stripe suit environment. While formality can be great for certain occasions, sometimes it can detract from the openness of an environment.
Why am I mentioning my love of pin-stripes? This book plopped on my desk today along with about 10 other books. It caught my attention. I randomly flipped to a page spread of a guy with a pin-stripe suit being rolled up over his elbows on the right and the following quote on the left:
MORE SHIRT-SLEEVE THAN PIN-STRIPE.In a meeting you don't have to worry about how you are coming across to collagues, because they are busy worrying about how they are coming across to you.
Meetings are for those with not enough to do.
A meeting is a performance, an act to convince people of their own importance.
The real players don't need to act out the meeting game.
They roll up their sleeves and get on with the job.
From the book Whatever You Think, Think the Opposite
It's the first paragraph that struck me. How often in business do we put on our pin-stripes and forget to roll up our sleeves and get the job done?
