books on decisions and change

 

“We are Roman and Mikael.   We write books and we draw on topmodels guys tedchalkboards.” – authors of The Decision Book and The Change Book

 

 “The essential model grab bag for thinking.” – McTague review of these two books

 

So.

These are two small <very small> business books:

 

– The Decision Book: 50 Models  for Strategic Thinking.

– The Change Book: 50 models to explain how things happen.

 

Yup.

And I am recommending these 2 incredibly short insightful concise books.

 

Now.

Please note that I do not often recommend business books <I can probably count on one hand the number of business books I consider worth reading>.

 

But these two books basically take every conceivable meaningful strategic model you have ever heard of … and almost every question you have ever asked <and some you haven’t thought of asking> and explain it … in one diagram and in one page.

They are great easy smart reads … and I am tempted to suggest “essential reads.”

 

The little black books offer surprisingly simple explanations of some fairly complicated models of thinking and will likely radically challenge some preconceptions you have <they did for me>.

 

They will explain all the complicated thinking stuff … in a very understandable way … and make you think.

 

Each model is nicely presented in a diagram.

The models are not fixed either.

In fact the authors encourage you to use them and then to develop them further according to your needs to get the maximum benefit for your situation. And they even provide advice on how the models can be adapted to different situations … personal lives and relationships as well as professional ones.

 

Good stuff.

Each book explains all the shit all the really smart people seem to talk about … and make it simple for folk like us.

 

 

 

Bottom line.

These two guys, Mikael Krogerus and Roman Tschäppeler, explain shit using diagrams to visualize complex theories in order to make them practical for our everyday life.

 

Mikael Krogerus is from Finland and was a staff writer with NZZ FOLIO for five years. His articles regularly appear in Neue Zürcher Zeitung, GDI Impuls and Das Magazin. Roman Tschäppeler, from Switzerland , is a creative producer based in Biel, Switzerland. He has been consulting and producing various projects ranging from documentary movies, ad campaigns, pop music to cook books.

Mikael and Roman are both graduates of the Kaospilot School in Denmark, considered one of the world´s most creative business school.

 

Here is an example of how they explain their stuff <and if you ever wanted them to speak their contact information is above>:

 

http://rtmk.ch/stage/showreel/

 

They offer a nice humorously insightful sparse look at how to think about everything … and I mean pretty much everything. For example:

 

–          The black swan model

–          The swiss cheese model <how mistakes happen>

–          The rubber band model <how to deal with dilemma>

–          How do you make your way in a world that is changing at an unprecedented rate?

–          Why do we have less and less time?

–          The pareto principle

–          The long tail model

–          how to work more efficiently

–          dealing with other people’s compliments and criticisms

–          how to resolve a conflict elegantly

–          how to recognise whether you should change your job

–          why everybody has an iPod

–          why the printer always breaks down just before a deadline

–          how much to spend on gifts

–          the prisoner dilemma <when to trust someone>

–          Why are some people unfaithful?

–          The Hersey-Blanchard model <situational leadership>

–          How can our government act against threats before they happen?

 

There are lots of interesting thoughtful stuff crammed into each page <but not a lot of words>.

They use both classic and modern theories and strategies taken from some of the world’s greatest theorists, leaders, businessmen, organizations and free-thinkers and share them in some thought provoking ways.

While the books share models … they actually act as catalysts to think more and think differently.

 

I love their blog <http://50topmodels.wordpress.com> and I was fairly sure when I ordered their books I would love them too <I did>.

 

Oddly … I found a review of the book from someone who had not even read the book:

topmodels decision book

–          The Indecisive Decision Book

Posted by Peregrin Wood under Reviews on July 29th, 2013

 

Looking around in an airport bookstore after a flight delay for something to occupy my time, I was having trouble making up my mind. So, I could have regarded it as a piece of good fortune that I came across The Decision Book by Mikael Krogerus and Roman Tschäppeler.

 

It was the subtitle of this book that gave me second thoughts, though: It promised Fifty Models for Strategic Thinking.

 

Fifty models? Who needs fifty models?  Using fifty models for strategic thinking is a terrible strategy, likely to lead to a thoroughly muddled approach.

 

One of the most important tools in effective strategic thinking is focus, which includes the ability to distinguish between relevant and irrelevant options, reducing them down to a few choices that are most likely to lead to the desired outcome. Using this skill is essential for decisive action, but Krogerus and Tschäppeler don’t seem to have mastered it.

 

I might have bought The Decision Book if its authors had themselves demonstrated the ability to be decisive. As it is, they might well have written The Grab Bag Guide To Organization.

 

Well.

I included that not only because I thought it was humorous … but also deadly wrong.

The authors of the book are all about focus. And what I would call ‘adaptable focus.’ But mostly they are about thinking.

They share an array of solid core-like ideas <which can be used in a variety of ways and places> as a menu for you to select from … all to make you think.

Is it ultimately a ‘grab bag’ of models for thinking about shit? Sure.

But maybe the jerk who wrote the review should have called it the ‘essential grab bag for thinking.’

 

That’s certainly my review for these two books.

 

“The essential model grab bag for thinking.”

 

The two books are worth every penny you will pay for them.

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Written by Bruce