Book Summaries and Project Management
Tag: Chapter Summary
This is one of my longest book summaries ever. No Excuses has some of the best advice on almost every major topic in business, personal development, and even family life. This is the type of book that I would want to read every couple of years to motivate me. It really challenges you to improve and strive for excellence in every aspect of life.
Nobu is my favorite restaurant, their customer service, and food quality is incredible. When I saw that Chef Nobu had published a memoir I was excited to read it. I did not plan on writing a summary before listening to the book. While listening I discovered so many insights and pearls of wisdom that I had to make a summary.
In writing this memoir, Obama said that his first and foremost goal for the book is "...to provide an honest rendering of my time in office. To offer readers a glimpse at what it's like to be the president of the United States." I think he did a good job of giving a glimpse at what it was like to be the president. He included a variety of details small and big, from how his clothes were neatly pressed and folded every night by the staff, to the processes behind making strategic decisions about the economy, troop deployments, and many other critical areas.
This is Gordon Ramsay's autobiography. The audio version is narrated by Gordon himself, which makes the book even more insightful and personal. What stood out to me the most was this. There were so many times that he left a good position at, or near, the top spot in a restaurant to go somewhere else to learn and develop his skills as a chef. He kept giving up his title, comfort, and pay in order to start at the bottom working under a new chef. He constantly pursued opportunities to work with the best chefs and at the best restaurants in the world.
You may know Joe Bastianich from watching him on television as a judge on Masterchef or as an investor on Restaurant Startup. His biography is both entertaining and interesting. If you like watching cooking shows, eating at fine dining restaurants, or have an interest in wine, I think you will enjoy this book.
Managing Oneself is succinct and packed with useful advice. My favorite insight is from chapter 4 which illustrates the differences between readers and listeners. Knowing whether you are a reader or a listener is a key to performing at your best. It also helps you interact with others by identifying if they are readers or listeners. It can be read in under an hour and I encourage you to buy a copy and read it for yourself.
My favorite part of the book is the Van Halen "no brown M&Ms" contract clause discussed in chapter 4. If you don't read anything else on the summary, I suggest reading my notes on chapter 4.
"If you’re ok with looking like everyone else, then the essence of this book will be lost on you." - Paul Akers
In 2019 I listened to Getting Things Done and it helped improve my productivity so much that I read it again in 2020. David Allen says "The implicit purpose of this book is urging you to operate from a higher level. To assist you in making your total life expression more fulfilling and better aligned with the big picture."
Greenlights is the biography of the first 50 years of Matthew McConaughey's life. He is a great storyteller and narrates the audio version himself, which makes it even better. Listening to the book feels like sitting in his home while he tells you his life story. There are many pearls of wisdom in his stories.