When I received this book from Mr. Birnbaum, I was immediately excited, intrigued, and impatient to get to the reading. For several years now, I’ve been working with Bill on various projects for the Association of Professional Consultants and I’ve had the pleasure of reading his bi-monthly Newsletter. So I was familiar with his writing and speaking style, which is why I was so interested in getting to his new book.
I wasn’t disappointed. This book is written in Bill’s warm, down-to-earth style, giving the reader the impression that they are spending quality one-on-one time with a senior consultant and coach. Birnbaum’s unconventional wisdom comes through in this most readable book on Business Strategy. How often do you hear someone say that it’s “okay to be mediocre?” Well, Bill let’s you know that as long as you are excelling at those few important strategic goals, it’s okay to be mediocre at everything else. Refreshing, isn’t it? Honest, straightforward thought.
Bill continues in the same vein to give us practical advice on process and procedures. Not only does he share with us what we might consider doing, he goes about explaining how we might do it. Most of us in the consulting business are willing to share what we believe you should do, it’s when we get to the “how” that we start issuing NDAs, proposals, and contracts! But throughout this book, Bill shares with us the how as well as the what and the why!
Besides reinforcing some of the things we know, such as “focus on doing the right things more than on doing things right,” we are treated to lively and real life examples and stories exemplifying the strategies Bill lays out. As you would expect, the book is broken into four sections, one for each of the major puzzle pieces – focus, process, people, markets. There is a very useful index as well, and some of the best information in the book can be found in the Appendix, so don’t skip them! He keeps our interest up and he delivers on his promise to – “steepen your growth curve, brighten your profit picture, and help you to lead your management team.” I highly recommend you put this book on your must read list!
Click to see it at Amazon.