Book Review: The Panic of 1907

Given the jitters in the market I thought it would be interesting to review prior financial panics and see if there are similarities and opportunities.  I am a firm believer in learning from prior mistakes, and as the saying goes – better to learn from someone else’s mistakes than your own.  So, with that in mind I picked up this book to continue my education on the financial markets and the events that lead up to, contribute, and the aftermath of panics.  I read the book last night – a VERY fast read.  The authors really focus on J. Morgan’s activities during the event and a focus on NYC.  Obviously this limits the breadth of the topic, while still allowing the reader to understand the events as they unfolded.  They discuss seven points of panics that I feel are logical.

Bottom Line:  I did not walk away with a plan for proceeding in the near future, but I do have an awareness of the pressures on the financial markets today.  I would recommend buying the book if you need a cursory understanding of the market, but it is not nearly detailed enough on the financial underpinnings to provide guidance in your own life.

Best,

James DeLuccia

Book Review: 36-Hour Six Sigma

I have worked with many individuals who are Black belts and Master Black belts, but I have yet to lead such projects.  Out of curiosity I grabbed this book while I was at the book store to give myself a better grounding on the subject.  The layout of the book was good and I enjoyed the end of chapter exams that reinforced what was discussed in each chapter.  Broadly I can say that the value of six sigma is its structure, as I now more firmly believe that it is equal in value to other management improvement frameworks.  The book had several editing errors and typos throughout, and the authors chose to end the book discussing GSM (a product of their consulting company).

Bottom line – there may be better books that are worth your time, but if this one catches your eye: read briskly, ignore the edit errors, if you feel like “didn’t I just read that”… you did, and skip the last 15 pages at the end.

James

Book Review: Starbucked

I received this book as a gift both as a joke and on a serious note.  As any entrepreneur and technologist can relate, I spend an abnormal amount of time away from home and tend to find myself in a Starbucks.  I generally enjoy their drinks, though I enjoyed them more when they had real espresso machines and not the mechanical ones, and love their atmosphere.  To the contrary of some people’s perceptions, I do not only go to Starbucks.  I will enjoy any coffee shop I find, and will certainly seek out authentic / regionally original coffee houses above starbucks any day.  So, I am both practical in that I enjoy Starbucks where ever they may be, but I am also biased towards “other” coffee houses that have real baristas that can pull great shots of espresso and make perfect foam.

So, how does the book fair?  It is a fun read.  Actually the first half is fun and inspiring as an entrepreneur.  The second half is more globalization the fall of culture.  I enjoyed the deep perspective on how they started the business, and how  coffee has become a success.  I would definitely recommend giving this book a read to those looking to fund startups – actually I would advise reading this book over “Founders at Work“.  That book was chock full of people gloating and not giving the meat of the deals and emotions.

For some deeper insight into the book check out – Brand Autopsy’s article.

In the end, if you have a long flight get the book and enjoy.  Otherwise drink that half-calf decaf fat free with whip beverage in eternal bliss.
James