Book Description
In this phenomenal
New York Times bestseller, Neil Cavuto shares the inspirational stories of an array of personal heroes, many of whom motivated him to continue his career as he battled cancer and multiple sclerosis.
Joining the nascent Fox News Channel in 1996, Neil was set to establish himself as one of business journalism's most important players. Ten years after being diagnosed with cancer, however, Cavuto was dealt another body blow: He was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. As friends and strangers alike gathered to offer their support, he became attuned to the stories of others in the business world who also triumphed over serious setbacks of their own. More Than Money shares with us their personal stories, among them:
- Evelyn Lauder, the cosmetics executive who pioneered the pink ribbon campaign after her own battle with breast cancer
- Richard Branson, who overcame dyslexia and used his creativity and entrepreneurial spirit to build the Virgin empire
- Michael Wilson, a senior executive at the Royal Bank of Canada, who launched a public campaign to raise awareness of and money for treating depression after his son committed suicide
- Jon Huntsman, who survived two bouts with cancer to build one of the largest petrochemical companies in the world and found one of the most prominent cancer research centers
Moving, sincere, and wise, More Than Money profiles individuals whose stories are a testament to courage, compassion, and dignity in the face of adversity.
Customer Reviews:
surprisingly uninspirational.......2006-02-04
Stories of the rich and famous (mostly the rich) who were hit during their richness with a disease, usually a serious disease.
Cavuto speaks lovingly of them, hard to say whether it was because they were rich and successful or because they didn't go into a tailspin when bad news hit. No great insight, however, comes from his reviews, or interviews, or analysis. The possibilities were there but the book fell short. Sadly, so many people do good things AFTER they are hit by MS or their child is hit by a drunk. Not to minimize their good deeds, but motivation is easier than it would be for Joe Schmoe who simply feels the need to aid the Lepers or feed the hungry or get rapists off the street. While these people took action, it took personal loss to get them off their seats, and as I said, admirable, but motivated by self. Some of what I read between Cavuto's lines is the shock that this could happen to rich people- duh- it happens to all of us and most of us don't have the means to do things about it.
Excellent Book - What Really Matters .......2005-10-21
It is very nice to see someone talk about business in a way that is touching and human. After all the huge scandals of rich business people screwing the little guy, reading about these heros is quite refreshing. It gives you hope that maybe there are still a lot of GOOD people left in this world.
The stories are very personal, touching, and uplifting. I highly reccomend this book to everyone.
I just think Neil is cool........2005-10-18
I watch this dude every time I get a chance. He's cool. His show is intelligent and balanced. It's relaxed but not lazy. He's firm but not overbearing.
For some reason, one of my books is always listed on his amazon page and this one is listed on mine "The Wisdom of Shepherds." (I also wrote The Greatest White Trash Love Story Ever Told,where my email address is displayed). I am honored that my book is connected to Neil's. I would like nothing more than to be on his show-- heck I might even offer up my controversial social-policy opinions or something like that.
Anyway, Neil is the man. Watch him. Buy this book. Seriously, buy this book.
Inspirational.......2005-10-16
This is an inspiring collection that relates the stories of numerous people who have overcome.
The people included have overcome serious diseases, paralysis, family deaths, business failures, and more. It included stories of well known people such as NY Yankees Manager Joe Torre and former Congresswoman Geraldine Ferraro.
Cavuto himself has struggled through cancer and Multiple Sclerosis. He doesn't spend a lot of time on his own story, but definitely illustrates that he knows how to overcome. His attitude about his own troubles is really amazing. He talks about how his illnesses have helped him to become more of a human being. Speaking of that, he said: "It's one of the reasons I tell people I'm lucky to have come down with cancer and now MS."
He makes the point that we all struggle and suffer with various issues throughout life. It is the way that we deal with them that makes all the difference.
The only part of it that I didn't appreciate was a section where he was discussing a Congressman who is a quadriplegic. This person has accomplished a lot, which is great. The bad part is that Mr. Cavuto goes into an anti gun diatribe while discussing it. I think that the book would have come across a lot better without that unnecessary rant.
Nevertheless, this is pretty good and has lots of inspiration for those struggling with something. It is a worthwhile read.
A Truly Inspiring Book!.......2005-04-25
Mr. Cavuto has done an excellent job of profiling well-known people who have responded to their devastating ordeals with unselfish courage and personal integrity--people who became stronger, better people in the process. Their ordeals brought out the best in them and they, in turn, brought out the best in others. This is a book about the indomitability of the human spirit and, as a cancer survivor myself, I found myself identifying with many of these people. Suffering is universal but how we respond to our suffering makes all the difference, and the people profiled in this book are great role models for all of us. Highly Recommended!
Amazon.com
Updated Edition: Thomas L. Friedman is not so much a futurist, which he is sometimes called, as a presentist. His aim in The World Is Flat, as in his earlier, influential Lexus and the Olive Tree, is not to give you a speculative preview of the wonders that are sure to come in your lifetime, but rather to get you caught up on the wonders that are already here. The world isn't going to be flat, it is flat, which gives Friedman's breathless narrative much of its urgency, and which also saves it from the Epcot-style polyester sheen that futurists--the optimistic ones at least--are inevitably prey to.
What Friedman means by "flat" is "connected": the lowering of trade and political barriers and the exponential technical advances of the digital revolution that have made it possible to do business, or almost anything else, instantaneously with billions of other people across the planet. This in itself should not be news to anyone. But the news that Friedman has to deliver is that just when we stopped paying attention to these developments--when the dot-com bust turned interest away from the business and technology pages and when 9/11 and the Iraq War turned all eyes toward the Middle East--is when they actually began to accelerate. Globalization 3.0, as he calls it, is driven not by major corporations or giant trade organizations like the World Bank, but by individuals: desktop freelancers and innovative startups all over the world (but especially in India and China) who can compete--and win--not just for low-wage manufacturing and information labor but, increasingly, for the highest-end research and design work as well. (He doesn't forget the "mutant supply chains" like Al-Qaeda that let the small act big in more destructive ways.)
Friedman has embraced this flat world in his own work, continuing to report on his story after his book's release and releasing an unprecedented hardcover update of the book a year later with 100 pages of revised and expanded material. What's changed in a year? Some of the sections that opened eyes in the first edition--on China and India, for example, and the global supply chain--are largely unaltered. Instead, Friedman has more to say about what he now calls "uploading," the direct-from-the-bottom creation of culture, knowledge, and innovation through blogging, podcasts, and open-source software. And in response to the pleas of many of his readers about how to survive the new flat world, he makes specific recommendations about the technical and creative training he thinks will be required to compete in the "New Middle" class. As before, Friedman tells his story with the catchy slogans and globe-hopping anecdotes that readers of his earlier books and his New York Times columns know well, and he holds to a stern sort of optimism. He wants to tell you how exciting this new world is, but he also wants you to know you're going to be trampled if you don't keep up with it. A year later, one can sense his rising impatience that our popular culture, and our political leaders, are not helping us keep pace. --Tom Nissley
Where Were You When the World Went Flat?
Thomas L. Friedman's reporter's curiosity and his ability to recognize the patterns behind the most complex global developments have made him one of the most entertaining and authoritative sources for information about the wider world we live in, both as the foreign affairs columnist for the New York Times and as the author of landmark books like From Beirut to Jerusalem and The Lexus and the Olive Tree. They also make him an endlessly fascinating conversation partner, and we've now had the chance to talk to him about The World Is Flat twice. Read our original interview with him following the publication of the first edition of The World Is Flat to learn why there's almost no one from Washington, D.C., listed in the index of a book about the global economy, and what his one-plank platform for president would be. (Hint: his bumper stickers would say, "Can You Hear Me Now?")
And now you can listen to our second interview, in which he talks about the updates he's made in "The World Is Flat 2.0," including his response to parents who said to him, "Great, Mr. Friedman, I'm glad you told us the world is flat. Now what do I tell my kids?"
The Essential Tom Friedman
From Beirut to Jerusalem |
The Lexus and the Olive Tree |
Longitudes and Attitudes |
More on Globalization and Development
China, Inc. by Ted Fishman |
Three Billion New Capitalists by Clyde Prestowitz |
The End of Poverty by Jeffrey Sachs |
Globalization and Its Discontents by Joseph Stiglitz |
The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy by Pietra Rivoli |
The Mystery of Capital by Hernando de Soto |
Book Description
The World Is Flat is Thomas L. Friedman’s account of the great changes taking place in our time, as lightning-swift advances in technology and communications put people all over the globe in touch as never before—creating an explosion of wealth in India and China, and challenging the rest of us to run even faster just to stay in place. This updated and expanded edition features more than a hundred pages of fresh reporting and commentary, drawn from Friedman’s travels around the world and across the American heartland—from anyplace where the flattening of the world is being felt.
In The World Is Flat, Friedman at once shows “how and why globalization has now shifted into warp drive” (Robert Wright, Slate) and brilliantly demystifies the new flat world for readers, allowing them to make sense of the often bewildering scene unfolding before their eyes. With his inimitable ability to translate complex foreign policy and economic issues, he explains how the flattening of the world happened at the dawn of the twenty-first century; what it means to countries, companies, communities, and individuals; how governments and societies can, and must, adapt; and why terrorists want to stand in the way. More than ever, The World Is Flat is an essential update on globalization, its successes and discontents, powerfully illuminated by one of our most respected journalists.
Download Description
The Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times columnist gives a bold, timely, and surprising picture of the state of globalization in the twenty-first century
Customer Reviews:
...and so is this book.......2007-10-10
Though it has become an immensely popular book, Friedman's work is fairly shallow and simplistic. It is important to remember that this is a world analysis written by a journalist, not by a political economist or any type of economist or political scientist. His views are oversimplified and his support relies heavily on anecdote, making his 600-pager about 400 pages too long. We read it for a poli sci class and proceeded to tear it apart intellectually.
Ranks up there with Common Sense, Uncle Toms Cabin, The Femine Mystique.......2007-10-10
One of the greatest books ever written. Everyone in America should read this book. Every teacher in America should read and teach Frieman's lessons. Every parent should read and help prepare their children for the world that is coming. Every student should read and begin to prepare for the world they are going to face. This is the most important book of our times, bar none.
Embracing Business Globalization's Irreversibility.......2007-10-10
This is easily the most relevant book written on the new realities of business globalization, its irreversibility, and the practical consequences to our future. Friedman does an excellent job describing the numerous factors that led up to our current global economy including the ongoing fall of communism, the advent of the personal computer, and the ubiquity of the Internet. His historical review and assessment is fascinating and it sets up the reader to understand the context for his theories and practical applications. Friedman delves into numerous industries, businesses, personalities, case studies, technologies, psychological factors, and sociological factors. Although he covers numerous business, technological, and economic concepts, his writing style is very engaging and entertaining, using many personal examples and narratives, thereby holding the reader's interest. Rather than bemoaning some of the common perceived negative consequences of a global economy (such as US auto workers losing jobs to overseas cheaper labor) Friedman helps the reader to understand business globalization's irreversibility. In so doing, he describes many personal, practical, and business strategies for thriving in this new environment. Friedman is realistic and compassionate concerning the changes and the challenges. He states, "the great challenge for our time will be to absorb these changes in ways that do not overwhelm people but also do not leave them behind. None of this will be easy. But this is our task. It is inevitable and unavoidable" (pp. 46-47). As Friedman unfolds his strategies, he gives the reader a broader, global perspective that is filled with hope and excitement. Whether as a CEO, a business student, or a brand new professional embarking upon a career, this book is insightful, practical, and essential reading.
What a good boy am I.......2007-10-06
Reading this book is like watching someone else's kids open their Christmas presents from relatives they don't really know. I'm not sure how the author can possibly be so fascinated by technology and yet know absolutely nothing about it at the same time, but his endless diatribes about the miracles of PayPal and Microsoft Word are beyond laughable, and I was pretty much in shock when he started citing howstuffworks-dot-com as a technical reference on fiber optics and SOAP. What editor told him that this was OK?
So enamored with his own cleverness is he that Mr. Friedman dedicates several pages to explaining the book's title, even though a single sentence would have sufficed. Unfortunately, this doesn't stop after the first chapter; rather than make a point and move on, he has to point out the fact that he just made a point and tell you what a wonderful point it was just in case you missed the point. It's like hanging out with that one friend who sits around smiling and pointing to his hindquarters after he rips one off at the dinner table.
If you want to learn about globalization and are not old enough to remember the first light bulb, go read "No Logo" instead. This is horrible, irrelevant geriatric babbling.
My opinion is flat.......2007-10-03
When a book has had over a thousand reviews, what can I possibly say that hasn't already been said? So I will keep it short and not so sweet.
No one will read this book, or any of the updates, for "fun." Do you NEED to read it? Yes, it contains some important economic concepts and realities, but it's a bit overlong. I'd say it could be cut in half, so skim through some of the numerous "interviews," repetition of central points, and endless advice and encouragement. The global pie is getting bigger and better, but the competition for piecies of that pie is heating up. Smart, ambitious, creative people will thrive; slow, lazy, dull people will languish, and everything inbetween. For too long many Americans have been sitting on their laurels and the day of reckoning is near. Heed this warning: Put down your TV remotes, game controllers, and iPods, and start working like your life (or lifestyle) depended on it. Get your rear into some serious gear, and don't balk at the notion that you should be an "expert" in at least three different, unrelated fields. Does this scare or excite you?
In so many interviews with foreign entrepreneurs, we are told (or reassured) that no matter how much of the "mundane" work is performed by countries other than the U.S., America's creative and innovative spark is still unsurpassed: All the world looks to America to lead the way into the future. I'm not sure. A lot of that "mundane" work was high level and highly paid, and why should we expect that America will continue to dominate in creativity and innovation? The truth is, we're in for a flattening of living standards, and from the perspective of the relatively high American standard of living, it will seem like a drop in standards until we reach another equilibrium (who knows how long that will take?). In any case, the reassurances about the talents and abilities of Americans seem at odds with other parts of the book, such as Bill Gates feeling "terrified at the American work force of tomorrow."
If you're already working hard at becoming an expert in three fields, then you probably don't need to read this book. Indeed, you probably don't have time to read it, or to read and write Amazon reviews, for that matter.
Book Description
The Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times columnist and best-selling author of The Lexus and the Olive Tree gives a bold, timely, and surprising picture of the state of globalization in the twenty-first century.
In this brilliant #1 bestseller, "the most important columnist in America today" (Walter Russell Mead, The New York Times) demystifies the brave new world for readers, allowing them to make sense of the often bewildering global scene unfolding before their eyes. With his inimitable ability to translate complex foreign policy and economic issues, Thomas L. Friedman explains how the flattening of the world happened at the dawn of the twenty-first century; what it means to countries, companies, communities, and individuals; and how governments and societies can, and must, adapt. The World Is Flat is the timely and essential update on globalization, its successes and discontents, powerfully illuminated by one of our most respected journalists.
Customer Reviews:
A guide for the Globalized world.......2007-10-13
The World is Flat does a great job at describing the trend of globalization.
On one hand, globalization is raising the standard of living of many people around the world. Productivity and ingenuity are rapidly increasing as many new people and nations participate in the global market.
On the other hand, many people and nations are being left behind. Also, the modernization of countries is straining Earth's resources.
There are very recent statistics and anecdotal stories in the book. He gives a fascinating tour of the business processes of several worldwide businesses such as Walmart, Dell, Wipro, and UPS.
The US is indeed in trouble. Its educational system is falling in proportion to other countries. We are distracted by wars and wasteful political games when we need to focus on empowering our people.
While he has considerable interactions with business, he also has personal stories of India's untouchables striving to have a better life. There are also examples of how people use flattening technologies on the internet, to express themselves.
We are approaching the world where individuals are on a level playing field with large media organizations. Of course this is good and bad. While one person can blog about corruption and inequities in his government, another can use it to spread seeds of hate and prejudice.
These groups that spread hate prey on inequity, lack of voice, and opportunity to participate in global progress that its members feel.
Michael Friedman lays a challenge that we must work smarter, collaborate more, and constantly improve our country and world. I hope that you read this book and, even if you don't agree with his views, strive to make the world a better place.
Friedman missed the key point.......2007-10-01
Friedman relies on personal anecdotes to generalize about a complex topic. His anecdotes are heavily biased, since he hangs around with captains of industry, who are big beneficiaries of laissez-faire globalization. He even justifies his approach with this quote: "One example is worth a thousand theories." Well, this topic is much too complex for such an approach. He is an entertaining (if very repetitive and self-absorbed) raconteur, but he misses the forest by spending over 600 pages congratulating himself for climbing a few low-hanging branches in the most obvious trees.
It is a mark of Friedman's approach and personality that he dates the beginning of "Flat World" phenomena to a few years ago, when he discovered them. He seems blissfully unaware of the long history of globalization. A few examples: 200 years ago, before refrigeration, North American entrepreneurs destroyed the English trade in domestic ice by building insulated ships and shipping New England ice to London (and even Calcutta); cheap water power and cotton in the US destroyed the British weaving trades 50 years later; 500 years ago, the takeover of Peruvian silver mines by Spanish entrepreneurs bankrupted silver production in Spain; there are countless examples of the effects of globalization from the Roman Empire's rise and fall as well (well-managed during the rise, disastrously so during the fall). Friedman's "born yesterday" myopia on this topic, and on the lessons of history, is puzzling.
Friedman glances by what is, in my mind, the central issue (e.g. the one that has the biggest impact on people): the different ways governments act and respond. He admits no expertise in economics, yet declares himself to be a Ricardian (without reflecting on the irony of a self-styled futurist relying on 200-year-old economic theory), and moves on. The rest of us, however, can learn a lot by looking at the differences and subtleties (or lack thereof) of governmental policies, a topic which is completely absent from Friedman's book. Asian countries, and to a lesser extent Western European countries, have created a regulatory environment that promotes a productive response in their own countries. Some examples:
If GM wants to sell cars in China or Europe, it is obligated to build a factory there, and transfer some of its technology to local partners. Intel has just announced that its next processor fab will be built in China; the economics of IC manufacturing is something I know quite a lot about, and labor costs are a negligible factor. Intel was forced to do this by Chinese economic policy, not by cheap Chinese labor. Ditto putting a previous Intel chip plant in Ireland when Intel started selling in volume in Europe. On the other hand, our own government has been a willing partner in the evisceration of American industrial and high-tech production. The governments of Asian and European countries shake their heads at our short-sightedness and short-term consumption greed.
I credit Friedman with making more people aware of this important topic. That earns him one star!
An enthralling read, realistic and optimistic at the same time.......2007-09-28
The world is a complex place, so we need guides.
And Thomas L. Friedman is an excellent guide!
Flat world is an enthralling read. Sure, we still
dont know how the twenty-first century will unfold,
but here we get some glimpses of the mega trends that might end up
being the essence of twenty-first century!
Among many good insights I enjoyed: CQ + PQ > IQ.
Curiousity and passion is more important than Intelligence, even though we obviously also need intelligence in 21st century, obviously!
So, Kids with curiousity and passion will do better than the kids who are merely intelligent - given that they have a certain base level of intelligence and skills. I could buy into that line of thinking!
So off we go to the 21st century - with realism and optimism. Not a small achievement for a book!
-Simon
a classic reader.......2007-09-28
I believe this book has received enought compliments I have no inention to add anymore.
Yet I strongly recomment it to be taken as a classic, a must, reader for those who stopped halfway of learning English, and scared away by their dull text books, or in want of a friendly language enviroment.
I have convinced my son and doughter that when, even before, they finished reading this book they will be thinking and writing English like an mother tongue.
And they took my word. They are now enjoying and reading faster and faster everyday.
The World Is Flat.......2007-09-25
Outstanding book! We are reading it for our bookclub and it has really stimulated lots of thought. I highly recommend it to every adult, especially those who are computer literate or are curious about the development of the computer industry. Wake up USA!
Product Description
Thomas L. Friedman tells us a fact that the world is flat and he shows us his reasoning throughout the book. He also describes the relationship of a flat world with America, developing countries, and companies. The author shares a surprising fact that the world became flat while we were sleeping meaning that globalization has conquered the world we are living in today. In this book, he shows us the ten forces that flattened the world, the triple convergence and the great sorting out. He also shows us how the flat world concept impacted America, developing countries, and companies.
Product Description
Limited edition, signed by the author
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Leadership, published by Thomson Gale on March 1, 2006. The length of the article is 726 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Books worth reading: Class and Schools; The World is Flat.(The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century)(Book review)
Author: George Manthey
Publication:
Leadership (Magazine/Journal)
Date: March 1, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 35
Issue: 4
Page: 15(1)
Article Type: Book review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Books:
- National Geographic Almanac of American History (National Geographic)
- National Geographic Atlas Of World History (Atlas)
- Notes from the Hyena's Belly: An Ethiopian Boyhood
- On The Black Liberation Army
- Open Me Carefully: Emily Dickinson's Intimate Letters to Susan Huntington Dickinson
- Plutarch: Lives of Noble Grecians and Romans (Modern Library Series, Vol. 1)
- Posthistoire: Has History Come to an End?
- Raging Bull: My Story
- Requiem for Battleship Yamato (Bluejacket Books)
- Shadow Divers: The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II
Books Index
Books Home
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