Harry Potter is a wiz in business
Print Edition
A book about marketing or managing employees may be the last thing a business owner would want to read on vacation. Yet some have discovered valuable insights from doing just that. And surprisingly, easy reading books such as the Harry Potter series, Fight Club or The Handmaid’s Tale, have provided that wisdom.
Recommended by: Christine King, owner of YourBestFit
Company profile: YourBestFit, founded in 1996, based in Boynton Beach, Florida, provides health, wellness and fitness services to individuals, organizations and companies.
What the book is about: Published in 1946, “Man’s Search for Meaning” is about Frankl’s experiences in the Auschwitz death camp during World War II and his belief that life has meaning even in the worst circumstances.
Why recommend it to business owners: “Frankl’s message is incredible for overcoming any obstacle, whether personal or in business.”
How it has helped him in business: “One low I had was losing a big account. That could have been a litigious situation,” King says. “Frankl says, ‘OK, envision the future and what you want it to be.’ I could go to court and the lawyers would make money, or I could just go ahead and (run my business) and make more money.”
Recommended by: Serafina Palandech, co-owner of Hip Chicks Farms
Company profile: Hip Chicks Farms, founded in 2011, based in Sebastopol, California, manufactures organic poultry products.
What the book is about: “The Handmaid’s Tale,” published in 1985, is set in a society where women are subjugated. The main character is in a class of Handmaids, forced to bear children for infertile couples.
Why recommend it to business owners: “The fact it is set in a dystopian world where women are trophy wives, servants, or breeders provides a powerful feminist message. I think this message is particularly important to women entrepreneurs and business owners with daughters.”
How it has helped her in business: “It helps me to recognize that my experience and my voice are relevant and important. I might not be saying things the way business folks in my industry are saying them, but that can still be a real asset.”
Recommended by: Paul Finch and Rayan Jawad, owners of Growth Studio
Company profile: Growth Studio, founded in 2016 and based in London, analyzes companies’ data to help them develop new marketing, sales and other strategies.
What the book is about: The first book was published in 1997, follow the adventures of trainee wizard Harry Potter and his friends as they battle evil and make their way through childhood and adolescence.
Why recommend it to business owners: “The three friends have to overcome several obstacles in life but because they work together. And when you work together with other people there’s a lot more strength and more success,” Finch says.
How it has helped them in business: “When Harry first meets Sirius Black he’s scared of him. But Harry realizes he’s innocent,” Jawad says. “He reminded us of a client who used to be horrific, but it dawned on us, he always had out best interest at heart.”
Recommended by: Vernon Tirey, CEO of LeaseQ
Company profile: LeaseQ, founded 2011, based in Burlington, Massachusetts, is an equipment leasing and financing company.
What the book is about: “The Martian,” published in 2011, is about Mark Watney, an astronaut stranded on Mars, and the mental and physical processes he goes through to survive.
Why recommend it to business owners: “It makes you think about who you’ve got in your corner, who you can depend on when things get tight — if there are changes in your industry, who’s going to sit down, not get panicky and get things done.”
How it has helped him in business: “Our company was stuck in no man’s land where we had to hang on long enough to show investors that we have a powerful business model with significant potential. In ‘The Martian,’ Watney took help wherever he could find it. So I thought, ‘what the heck’ and followed suit by inviting employees, angel investors and partners to help.”
Recommended by: Bryan Mattimore, co-owner of The Growth Engine
Company profile: The Growth Engine, founded in 1999, based in Norwalk, Connecticut, is a consulting business helping companies become more innovative and creative.
What the book is about: “Masters of the Air,” published in 2006, is a history of the US Eighth Air Force that bombed Nazi Germany during World War II.
Why recommend it to business owners: “For the small business person dealing with the sometimes-depressing uncertainties and challenges of building a successful business, this book certainly has a way of putting things in perspective.”
How it has helped him in business: “We had done a bunch of proposals, always competing against other companies large and small, and came in second in all of them,” Mattimore says. “Listening to that book (on audiobooks), I realized, these are such small challenges relative to what these guys were going through.”
Recommended by: Zach Holmquist, co-owner of Teem
Company profile: Teem, founded in 2013 and based in Salt Lake City, creates software to help companies handle administrative tasks.
What the book is about: “Fight Club,” published in 1996, is about dysfunctional men who form a club where members fight. The club evolves into an organization that plans to bring down modern civilization through violence including bombings.
Why recommend it to business owners: “‘Fight Club’ makes you think about the words you choose — are they empowering or subtly disempowering? That’s a huge part of the book as I read it.”
How it has helped him in business: “It shows the power of an idea, the impact that one individual can have and when you get more people on board,” Holmquist says. “I have to be careful of the words I choose and the ideas. They can be toxic and can destroy a whole company, or they can be profound, magical and meaning.”
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
