At nineteen, Michael Dell started his company as a freshman at the University of Texas with $1,000 and has since built an industry powerhouse. As Dell journeys through his childhood adventures, ups and downs, and mistakes made along the way, he reflects on invaluable lessons learned.
Michael Dell's revolutionary insight has allowed him to persevere against all odds, and Direct from Dell contains valuable information for any business leader. His strategies will show you effective ways to grow your business and will help you save time on costly mistakes by following his direct model for success.
In Everything Is Possible, Dan Abraham, the legendary founder of Slim-Fast, recounts the story of his personal and business life, starting from his childhood and army years and his purchase of Thompson Medical for $5,000 when he was in his early twenties, and culminating in the sale of Slim-Fast for $2.3 billion in 2000. At the heart of Everything Is Possible are 16 life lessons that Abraham has picked up in sixty years of a hard-working business career. Among them:
But this memoir, a brilliant guide for anyone starting and growing a business, is about far more than business. Abraham tells the heartwarming story of growing up in a modest home in Long Beach, New York, and the lessons he learned from his mother, father, and one high school teacher that have guided him ever since. And there is more, much more: a discussion of his beliefs about the pleasure of giving; what he has learned from Judaism about ethics and the Golden Rule; and what he learned from his experiences with the FDA about the importance of compromise and about the necessity to fight hard when you believe you're right.
At a time, when newspapers are filled with reports of business fraud and deceptions, and when so many people believe that to have spectacular success in business you have to be ruthless and dishonest, this is an account of a business life that has been lived honorably, passionately, and successfully, and with fun. Everything Is Possible is a book to be savored and shared with young and old alike.
It’s business school, the Branson way. Whether you’re interested in starting your own business, improving your leadership skills, or simply looking for inspiration from one of the greatest entrepreneurs of our time, Richard Branson has the answers. Like a Virgin brings together some of his best advice, distilling the experiences and insights that have made him one of the world’s most recognized and respected business leaders. In his trademark thoughtful and encouraging voice, Branson shares his knowledge like a close friend. He’ll teach you how to be more innovative, how to lead by listening, how to enjoy your work, and much more. In hindsight, Branson is thankful he never went to business school. Had he conformed to the conventional dos and don’ts of starting a business, would there have been a Virgin Records? A Virgin Atlantic? So many of Branson’s achievements are due to his unyielding determination to break the rules and rewrite them himself. Here’s how he does it.
Twenty-five years ago, Herb Kelleher reinvented air travel when he founded Southwest Airlines, where the planes are painted like killer whales, a typical company maxim is "Hire people with a sense of humor," and in-flight meals are never served—just sixty million bags of peanuts a year. By sidestepping "reengineering," "total quality management," and other management philosophies and employing its own brand of business success, Kelleher's airline has turned a profit for twenty-four consecutive years and seen its stock soar 300 percent since 1990.
Today, Southwest is the safest airline in the world and ranks number one in the industry for service, on-time performance, and lowest employee turnover rate; and Fortune magazine has twice ranked Southwest one of the ten best companies to work for in America. How do they do it?
With unlimited access to the people and inside documents of Southwest Airlines, authors Kevin and Jackie Freiberg share the secrets behind the greatest success story in commercial aviation. Read it and discover how to transfer the Southwest inspiration to your own business and personal life.
Truett Cathy s commitment reaches far beyond the people who work and eat in his restaurants. Through WinShape Centre Foundation, funded by Chick-fil-A, he operates foster homes for more than 1,600 children and has provided scholarships for more than 16,500 students.
In Eat Mor Chikin: Inspire More People, Cathy challenges readers to focus on people and principles. The principles he outlines in this book have brought success to his business, and he insists that anyone who follows them will surely enjoy similar results.
An Enterprising Life is Jay Van Andel's account of the adventures, hardships, faith, and determination that built the industry giant that embodies the true spirit of free enterprise. Here, for the first time, Mr. Van Andel sheds light on his private struggles, public battles, and personal triumphs, providing Amway employees and distributors, businesspeople, and entrepreneurs with the real story of a leader whose vision created a company that goes beyond the commercial by helping people help themselves.
In this moving autobiography, Mr. Van Andel pays tribute to the people who helped him along the way. He describes his early business ventures with his lifelong friend, most loyal supporter, and Amway cofounder, Rich DeVos. Providing inspiring and often humorous accounts, he recalls their early business ventures (including an air-servicebusiness with planes that tended to run out of gas!), their youthful adventures (such as their ill-fated voyage to the Caribbean on the leaky schooner, Elizabeth), and their hard-won success with the Amway Corporation. With heartfelt tenderness, he shares the story of his steadfast love for his wife, Betty, a partner and friend to him formore than forty-five years, and his pride in their four children. Throughout, he continually attests to the strength he has derived from his unwavering faith in God - imparting to readers how this crucial influence has kept him going through good times and bad.
With pointed honesty, Mr. Van Andel also confronts the painful controversies that have occasionally plagued Amway during its rise to industry leader. He uncovers some of the hostility of the U.S. government toward truly "free" enterprise and its attempts to extinguish Amway despite its inarguable contributions to America and its economy. Describing the various roles he has played within that government administration, he relates an insider's knowledge of public policy and how it has failed America's corporations. Moreover, he reveals the bias of some members of the press-and how they've fought him every step of the way by distorting the truth and placing sensationalism above justice. Ultimately, though, Mr. Van Andel offers a message of hope, because, despite these seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Amway has not only survived, but prospered-in the true fashion of the American Way.
Now, having built a seven-billion-dollar corporation and made invaluable contributions to medicine, education, and millions of individual lives, Jay Van Andel shares his wisdom and insights into life, faith, and the meaning of integrity. As he himself says, "This is more than the history of a corporation, it is a story about the potential of every human who is fortunate enough to live in freedom, who is willing to work hard, and who is not afraid of failure. It is the story of true success."
Next book list: Books by Legendary BasketBall Coach John Wooden >>