Reality Check: The Irreverent Guide to Outsmarting, Outmanaging, and Outmarketing Your Competition | 
| Author: Guy Kawasaki
Publisher: Portfolio Hardcover
Category: Book
List Price: $29.95
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Avg. Customer Rating:  25 reviews
Sales Rank: 984
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 496
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.6
ISBN: 1591842239
Dewey Decimal Number: 658
EAN: 9781591842231
Publication Date: October 30, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
More uncommon common sense from the bestselling author of The Art of the Start.
In Silicon Valley slang, a bozo explosion is what causes a lean, mean, fighting machine of a company to slide into mediocrity. As Guy Kawasaki puts it, If the two most popular words in your company are partner and strategic, and partner has become a verb, and strategic is used to describe decisions and activities that dont make sense . . . its time for a reality check.
For nearly three decades, Kawasaki has earned a stellar reputation as an entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and irreverent pundit. His 2004 bestseller, The Art of the Start, has become the most acclaimed bible for small business. And his blog is consistently one of the fifty most popular in the world.
Now, Kawasaki has compiled his best wit, wisdom, and contrarian opinions in handy book form. From competition to customer service, innovation to marketing, he shows readers how to ignore fads and foolishness while sticking to commonsense practices. He explains, for instance:
How to get a standing ovation
The art of schmoozing
How to create a community
The top ten lies of entrepreneurs
Everything you wanted to know about getting a job in Silicon Valley but didnt know who to ask
Provocative, useful, and very funny, this no bull shiitake book will show you why readers around the world love Guy Kawasaki.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 20 more reviews...
Great Book for Marketers As Well December 1, 2008
Even though this book is aimed at those who are "starting and operating great organizations," it's also full of great advice for marketers.
The thing I liked best about the book was Guy's "voice." He tells it like it is, whether you want to hear it or not. But he does it with a sense of humor and a sense of humility (which is often sorely missing in today's business books.)
In one chapter, he cops to leaving out one of his guest authors in the index. While Guy could have blamed that on someone else, he said it was his responsibility to check it. It was an unusual move - to publicly cop to a mistake that almost no-one would have noticed, but because he included it, it made me like him that much more.
Plus, If you're willing to share your mistakes, I'm more likely to believe your success stories.
So, read it for the raw honesty, read it for the terrific advice, and read it for the laughs (there are plenty of them).
The Reality of Communicating is a must read section for speakers. Chapter 35 - Frame or Be Framed is a must for anyone in branding. And The Reality of Beguiling section is a must read for everyone. Chapter 58 - The Art of Sucking Down is worth the whole price of the book.
Kawasaki provides "hardcore information" for "hardcore people who want to kick ass." November 26, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Having read all and then reviewed most of Guy Kawasaki's eight previously published books, I was especially eager to read this one because it was rumored to provide everything he wishes he had known (but most of which he didn't) when he embarked on his career in business (counting diamonds a fine-jewelry manufacturer called Nova Stylings) while at work on an MBA degree at UCLA. (He had already earned an undergraduate degree at Stanford.) Kawasaki later went to work for an educational software company called EduWare Services. However, Peachtree Software acquired the company and wanted him to move to Atlanta. "I don't think so. I can't live in a city where people call sushi `bait.' Luckily, my Stanford roommate, Mike Boich, got me a job at Apple. When I saw what a Macintosh could do, the clouds parted and the angels started singing. For four years I evangelized Macintosh to software and hardware developers and led the charge against world-wide domination by IBM." By now, presumably, he was accumulating a wealth of real-world experience in leadership and management and well as knowledge about marketing, sales, finance, strategic planning, problem-solving, resource allocation, and customer relations.
I have just read Reality Check and it exceeded my expectations. The twelve (12) "realities" that Kawasaki rigorously examines, in several chapters devoted to each, include Starting Chapters 1-5), Raising Money Raising Money (Chapters 6-15), Planning and Executing (Chapters 16-24), Innovating (Chapters 25-31), Marketing (Chapters 32-37), Selling and Evangelizing (Chapters 38-43), Communicating (Chapters 44-52), Beguiling (Chapters 53-63), Competing (Chapters 64-67), Hiring and Firing (Chapters 68-78), Working (Chapters 79-89 followed by a "Timeout"), and Doing Good (Chapters 90-94 followed by a "Conclusion." Yes, that is correct: This book has 94 chapters plus a "Timeout" and a "Conclusion" provided within (count `em) 461 pages plus (thankfully) a comprehensive Index. As is also true of Kawasaki's eight other books, the tone is informal, conversational, and at times confrontational; also, the pace is frenetic and the writing style has Snap! Crackle! and Pop! Most important to me, the content is more abundant and of a higher quality than in any other of his previously published books.
Readers will welcome the use of bold face to highlight key points. This device will facilitate, indeed expedite frequent review of those key points later. I especially appreciate the inclusion of several interviews throughout the lively narrative. They include those of Fred Greguras on key legal issues in raising funds (Pages 51-59), Chip and Dan Heath on why only a few innovations "stick" and most don't (Pages 130-138), Kathleen Gasperini on marketing to young people (Pages 168-175), Garr Reynolds on mastering the "Presentation Zen" approach (Pages 209-214), Robert Cialdini on the art and science of effective persuasion (Pages 243-250, Libby Sartain shares her perspectives on the recruiting process (Pages 314-317), Penelope Trunk offers "radically different" advice on career planning and management (Pages 318-325), Philip Zimbardo explains the factors that shape human behavior (e.g. how people adopt and adapt to given roles (Pages 359-365), David Marcum and Steven Smith explain why the ego can be one's greatest asset...or most expensive liability (Pages 393-400), David Bornstein explains what social entrepreneurship is and how it can change the world (Pages 428-435), Richard Stearns provides insights into the transition from the corporate to the non-profit world and shares lessons to be learned from an association that raises billions of dollars every year (Pages 36-441), and Jerry White explains how to overcome a "life crisis" (Pages 442-448). Note the variety of subjects covered during Kawasaki's interviews. They correctly suggest the scope and diversity of his interests.
Opinions will vary as to how to read this book. Some will read it cover-to-cover. Others will select several of the 12 "realities" and then read the chapters in which each is discussed. Still others will check out the Contents (Pages vii-xi) and then read whatever is of greatest interest. What sets this business book apart from almost others I have read in recent years is the extent to which it provides (quoting Kawasaki in the Introduction) "hardcore information to hardcore people who want to kick ass." The focus is almost entirely on how to create and then sustain an organization whose people "make the world a better place because of it." Presumably Kawasaki agrees with Thomas Edison: "Vision without execution is hallucination." If not you, who? If not now, when?
 Welcoming book, though much similarity with Art of the Start November 25, 2008
If you consider "Art of the Start", this book has twice the thickness, and includes (almost) all topics of the fore mentioned book. Reality check is a bit less easy to read and the expectations in Europe have been high, but may not be met this time due to so much similarities.
Still a good read anyway as Guy is highly motivational writer.
Unless you are my competition, read this book! November 25, 2008
In the world of business books there are just a few that stand out as premier resources that should be re-read again and again. Reality Check is the newcomer to that category. I'm currently reading through it for the third time so by now the pages in my copy have been dog-eared, written on and so forth. There are a lot of excellent books out there but most will serve you well by finding them at your local library, read once, and return. Not Reality Check - this one must be owned. I hope it will be as helpful to you as it has been to me.
Initial Review -- 14 Pages Into Guy's "Reality Check" November 23, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I'm just 14 pages into Guy Kawasaki's "Reality Check" and am now as certain as ever about my 28 years "under the hood" and 16 years altruistic fanaticism.
Lovin' it. Fantastic reference (will read it cover to cover).
Very timely.
(full followup-review to come)
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