Something read in 90 minutes sounds very good. Who wouldn’t want to learn about a great person in 90 minutes. Of course, this book can only serve as an introduction due to its limited space and the Domino-Pizza promise.

Surprised to know that Aristotle tutored Alexander the Great, who did not pay much respect to his teacher. Aristotle is famous for his founding of “logic” and he first used the Arabic numbers, which helped to advance the math science.

Born rich in 384 B.C., Aristotle was a student of Plato and a graduate of the Academy. Disappointed by not being nominated to head up the Academy and his eventual branch off from Plato’s philosophy, he later found several of his own schools including Lyceum, MIT of the era. Where Plato’s approach to the world was essentially religious, Aristotle’s tended toward the scientific. He has a profound understanding of politics, this led him to adopt a pragmatic approach to politics, basically of moderation virtues or middle of the extremes.

The ironic thing is that his ideas were widely adopted by Islamic world, while the Western world sank into the Dark Ages. The Islamic world absorbed almost all of Aristotle’s teachings which became Islamic philosophy. He was wrong about the earth being the center of the universe and the world was made of 4 primary elements: earth, air, fire and water. But the bottom line is that there is no one true way to viewing the world, either scientifically or philosophically.

Aristotle later escaped to a small island after the death of Alexander to avoid the wrath of the mob. He died in Chalkis 30 miles north of Athen at the age of 62.

This is a decent “cheat sheet” on Aristotle. I enjoyed the ease-to-understand stories of Aristotle and it actually took me just about 90 minutes, give or take.

This is a 4-CD seminar audio recording. I must have picked this up from OverDrive. I thought the title was humorous. It never crossed my mind that humor was a business in itself – a profitable for the talented. Somehow, I perceived this is something you sort of being born with. But there are tricks and methods to this art.

The first couple of CD’s were live audio recording of Seinfeld co-producer, Peter Mehlman, on the inside story of the script making for Seinfeld episodes. My key take-aways:

Seinfeld Motto: no hugging and no learning – this is what entertaining is all about.
The main themes in the Seinfeld plot: Lies, schemes, Tragedies – disguised as comedy, philosophical discussion, and other miscellaneous one-liners.

Peter’s talk is very interesting. This has motivated me to watch all the Seinfeld episodes. Writing for George was easy, but hardest for Kramer and Elaine. Seinfeld has lots of scenes, compared to others; the pace was much faster than people would feel. There are roughly 3~4 plots in a 22-minute episode and it’s very difficult to tie them together. Most of ideas came from individual experiences from real people.

The other 2 CD’s were the lectures of Professor Mel Helitzer. He actually taught humor writing in universities. My key take-aways:
3 R’s of why humor?
1. Respect & attention – call attention to you ( not talented in sports, pretty, middle child, physical defficiency, mother to reach, sit in back in class)
2. Remember – people remember.
3. ? (not mentioned)

Why do we laugh? (I never thought I would laugh for the below reasons but it’s true.)
1. Surprise (shock-value joke, never saw it coming)
2. Superiority & incongruent (makes the listeners feel superior than the people got picked on, e.g. Candid Camera victims).

3 elements of humor writing: MAP
Material
Audience: will people understand and feel “superior.”
Performer: written for (can’t use Rodney Dangerfield’s material for Mel Brooks, e.g.)

Recipes of Humor Writing: THREES
Target: People you pick on. This one is less obvious to me.
Hostility: aggression.
Realism: some truth to what you say.
Exaggeration: makes it funny.
Emotion: the performer’s act.
Surprise: like “reverse.”

These 4 CD’s really put people behind the scenes of humor writing and comedy in general. The examples given were little dated as the audio was taped/published in 2004 and the Humor class was probably tapes in the 80’s, as many of Gary Hart jokes were cited. Otherwise, this has been a great lesson in humor for me. Enjoyed every minute of it.

Michael Oher (Williams) was an black teenager that was almost abandoned by his alcoholic mother and absentee father. If it were not for his special physical build perfectly fit for a left-tackle (quarterback’s blind side, thus the book title) and his unique athletic talent, he would probably go through life unnoticed by everyone as in his early life. Thanks to Big Tony, his family friend, who brought him to Briarcrest High School and managed to got him enrolled in the school, despite his near-zero scholastic aptitude. But without the love from his adopted white family: Sean & Leigh Anne Tuohy and their 2 kids, Collins & Sean Jr., as shown in the movie trailer, A Diamond in the Rough.

There were many sub-stories that built up the main story, including how the left tackle became the second highest paid position in football because the newer passing game trumpeted by Bill Walsh who made the quarterback a critical position. The history of football game was briefly described to establish the critical nature of the left-tackle, quarterback’s blind-side line of defense. How Michael managed to eked out high enough grade with BYU’s on-line course to pass the stringent NCAA college admission requirement was described in great details. The story then detours to describe how Steve Wallace became the most valuable left tackle for 49ers and won 3 Super Bowls. The story of Steve Wallace’s transformation came alive with Lewis’ magical narration.

I was hooked on Michael Lewis’ work after reading his Money Ball. This one is no exception. What a wonderful story of rags-to-riches! I particularly like that way the author got the readers interested with a “hook” and flash back to tell the story, instead of the usual chronological order. However, the story got a little long toward the end. The discussion about all the potential black athletes who never got a chance because they never made it to graduate from high school seems to leave room for future work. It also went to reinforce how lucky Michael Oher was, even with his talent.

I’m not much a comics fan but I’m always attracted to the cleverness and satire of political cartoons, probably because it’s usually smart and sometimes throws a serious punch to social issues, pokes fun at political figures and others. “A picture is worth a thousand words” cannot be more true with this kind of cartoons.

I came across this book in the new-book section of the library and was immediately attracted to the pictures. I don’t believe I know or recognize Herbert Block and his work but based on what I read of his work from 1920’s to 2000, he impressed me as an insightful liberal with a keen eye toward social justice and the plight of the people. Due to the longevity of his career, you can see the history of the entire 20th century being played out through Herbert Block’s lens: The depression, World War II, civil unrest, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush, Clinton, and finally Bush 2. What a great span of work! Besides, his drawings are always full of subtlety and meaning – inspiring to someone who wanted to become a cartoonist. The DVD that comes with the book includes almost all of his work in his entire life: 2.4GB worth. Not a bad deal.

The authors did a great job keeping the readers interested throughout the book telling lots of good stories to explain all the irrational behaviors of people, who include the regular people to the brightest. In a way, this book is a lot like the Freakinomics, but they are not like micro-economic problems which often have to do with irrational behavior of consumers.

The reasons are as follows:
Loss Aversion (with commitment): We often ignore logic when we are committed to a course, like what the exemplary pilot of KLM Flight #4805, Jacob van Zanten, who took off the 747 plane without the clearance from the tower, resulted in the deaths of over 583 people. This was all because he needed to keep his on-schedule reputation. Other examples include: asymmetry of supply-demand curve of eggs sale, flat monthly fee for mobile phones, loss damage waiver in car rental, traditional football game “war of attrition” strategy, Professor Bazerman’s $20 bidding contest, Lyndon Johnson’s (LBJ’s) Vietnam war strategy, George W. Bush’s Iraq strategy,

Value Attribution: Our tendency to imbue someone or something with certain qualities based on perceived value, rather than on objective data. Dr. Dubois’s, an anthropologist, discovered Homo Erectus on the islands of Java Sea. He was dismissed in the beginning due to a previously held belief that he was a virtual no-name . Other examples: Joshua Bell’s subway performance in NY, Nathan Handwerker’s hot dog stand with recruited doctors customers, Charles Dawson’s Piltdown Man scandal, experiment with people with full-price season pass enjoyed more than discounted season pass.

Diagnosis bias: We use diagnostic labels to organize and simplify. Once you get a label in mind, you don’t notice things don’t fit within the categories that do not make a difference. For examples, NBA’s draft order, MIT experiment of a “warm” and “cold” label of a substitute professor, job interviews. 3 mistakes we make: 1. dismissal of facts (like interview questions), 2. focus on irrelevant factors (ads with a smiling woman), 3. Chameleon effect (when we brand or label people, they take on the characteristics ascribed to them).

Belief in fairness and its process (procedural justice) and the need to be heard: Examples, French’s “Who wants to be a Millionaire” audience, money splitter experiment, car purchase (how the customers are treated), criminals’ perception of how they’re being treated in the justice system, how the venture capitalists are being treated by the CEO’s.

Pleasure vs. Altruistic: We have two “engines” running in our brains that can’t operate simultaneously. “We can approach a task either altruistically or from a self-interested perspective. The two different engines run on different fuels and also need different amounts of those fuels to fire up.” For example, Community High School teachers reactions to bonus incentive for increasing attendance.

To reduce/avoid the Sway:
1. Dissenting votes: Sway of group conformity is incredibly strong but the existence of dissenting votes help to balance its power. For example, the dissenting vote in the Supreme Court, France’s UN vote against Iraq invasion. Airlines’ use of CRM (Crew Resource Management) help group members to be effective blockers.
2. Take a long view to avoid succumbing to short-term commitment and let go of the past, like in traffic woe, and investment strategy.
3. Employ “Personal Construct Theory”: To remain flexible and examine things from different perspectives. Have a “waiting period” before making a diagnostic judgment.
4. To avoid fairness sway, weigh things objectively and not succumb to emotional maneuvers or moral judgment. Ask yourself, “Would I rather achieve my goals or teach the other person a lesson?”
5. Keeping others appraised of the decision making process help make the process perceived to be fair.

This is an excellent book with lots of good concrete stories/experiments explaining why we human commit irrational behaviors. They are what make us humans and what make us err as humans. The pitfalls could hurt our pocket books and even kill us. Good to know what they are.

Persuasion vs. manipulation: the differences reside on the intentions. Manipulation usually works in the short term and in inwardly focused on the outcome for the person doing the manipulation. 4 most important elements of manipulation: 1. seeking a solution, 2. time sensitivity, 3. potential for loss, and benevolent authority. Persuasion is externally focused on developing a win-win outcome where everyone’s needs are met.

Persona gives you persuasiveness structure and support. 3 elements of persona: 1. appearance, 2. voice and communication skills (ref. Speak to Influence by Susan Berkeley) (speak from your facial mask to project as in humming, smile, vary your voice), 3 positioning: manners and mannerism. The power behind developing your persona is in guiding your audience to the conclusions you want them to draw and in getting them to trust you, respect you, and value you before you say a word.

Transferring power and credibility: can be active or implied, if from a respected or trusted person to you enhance your ability persuade, can happen in person or through testimonials. Give to receive.

Storytelling: Steps to persuasive story:
1. Know your story.
2. Lay out your story: a. grab me by the ears, b. lay the foundation, c. engage my emotions, d. layer on the proof, e. answer my questions, f. give me enough information that I can draw your conclusion, g. get my feedback.
3. Tell your story. Have an interesting hook like a question. Tells them in chunks.
When you put your story together be sure to answer the questions of what, why, when, where, and who. Successful stories shift the criteria of the person you are persuading.

Gurudom: Being relevant is the single most important key to being a well recognized guru. Become an expert in 30 days:
1. Determine your area of expertise.
2. Thoroughly study your subject matter. Practice for 1000 hours.
3. Begin to develop opinions.
4. Share you opinions and original ideas.
5. Write a book, an article, or a white paper, create an audio book.
6. Get your own radio program.
7. Write a blog.
8. Promote yourself.

Desire to believe:

• Understanding what the beliefs are of the people you are trying to persuade allows you to focus on building on their current beliefs than trying to change them or create a new belief.
• People are most likely to change their beliefs when they are searching for a solution to a problem that has caused them stress, concern, or confusion. Emotional release allows themt o create new beliefs quickly.
• You must present new ideas with conviction and credibility to create an environment where the new ideas can be accepted.
• Everyone wants to believe in something and it is the job of the persuader to position the idea that the people being persuaded can believe in and make their own.

Familiarity:
1. We tend to like and trust people who are like us.
2. Familiarity breeds trust.
3. Always get to know something about every person you hope to persuade.
4. Try to move all of your persuasive conversations from a shared commonality to a new shared experience that you’ll create together.

Exclusivity and availability:
1. The more exclusive you can make someone feel, the more likely that they are to be persuaded.
2. Exclusive groups are easier to persuade than generic groups.
3. Exclusivity is one of the keys to building a cult, whether a cult of customers or of brands.
4. Exclusivity is closely tied to identity. Reinforce the tie between people’s identities and the exclusivity and you move them much more quickly and easily to your point of view.

Curiosity:
1. Create curiosity wherever you can; curiosity is the oil that greases the wheels of change.
2. To create curiosity ask good questions; directly question assumptions and beliefs.
3. Remember that when people are curious change is possible.
4. The purpose of curiosity is for you to direct the discovery of new information that will help others make the only logical decision they can. .. and one you want them to make.

Relevancy: If you are relevant to me it is because you know something about me and the more you know about me the more familiar you feel.

Permission Granting: Giving permission encourages people to take the actions you want them to take. Permission gives absolution.

The quick persuaders: 1. Social matching (others are doing the same). 2. Concurrence (agreement in opinion). 3. Empathy, 4. Inconsequence (getting to accept little ideas so that the big idea is whittled down to an acceptable size). 5. Likeability. 6. Giving to receive. 7. Accountability.

The Persuasion Equation: Position + Presentation x influence = Persuasion.

Persuasive Selling:
I – Identify qualified prospects
S – Start your story
E – Educate, answer, and encourage.
L – Lead them to their best decision.
L – Let them buy.

Six tenets of persuasion:
1. Outcome based.
2. Best-interest focused.
3. Truthful
4. Goal and time oriented.
5. Personal
6. Ethical.

This book is a gold mine. I’ve learned quite a few things. I particularly like the positioning and the story telling. The author was persuasive with his story of growing up in a cult.Very useful and persuasive!

This is a very short (69-page), easy read book.

Lots of life lessons from Michael J. Fox, one of my favorite actors, who offer answers to this question: “What constitutes an education?”

• The metaphor of the rock (big things in life), sand (minutiae), and beer (joy with your friends.)
• Life 101 is an education with plenty of tests and pain that never ends. The education degree may appear to grant you book smart but may or may not have a bearing on one’s success.
• Absolute rules were not appealing to Michael but it’s something like Parkingson Disease he would have to live with.
• Learning on the job may be more important than learning from school, especially in economics for a starving actor like Fox in the early years. His love of reading and constant book reading to compare books to their script adaptation made him a great actor.
• Physics lesson: Fox’s role in the Back to the Future gave him excuses to talk about physics, hoverboard and inertia. But the ultimate experience is his own Parkinson Disease.
• On political science: Fox talked about his involvement in Obama’s campaign to lift restrictions on stem-cell research imposed during the Bush Era. His strong call for political involvement by all is admirable.
• On Geography: “Wherever you are, there it is” – wherever you travel, you have to adapt to your new surroundings. Take the time to seek out the excitement of the strange and not the comfort of the familiar. Enjoy yourself, wherever you are.
• Mentors: Fox talked about his high-school drama teacher, Ross Jones, whose “why not?” phrase awaken in Fox a knack for questioning and an acceptance of possibilities. His grandma’s high hope and regard for him gave him a boost. Of course, his big break came from Gary David Goldberg, who mentored him from the beginning of his successful career. It is a very amiable mentor/mentee relationship
• Fox characterized his battle with Parkinson Disease as the “graduate school” for the soul. PD is the “perfect metaphor for lack of control” for an actor at the peak of his career surrendering control to it.
• I particularly like this advice: “Don’t spend a lot of time imagining the worst-case scenario. It rarely goes down as you imagine you will. And if by some fluke it does, you have lived it twice.”
• Seize the present. “There is never a better time to celebrate the present. The present belongs to you. No need to fumble with the camera. Let’s others take the pictures. Just smile.
• Curiosity vs. Ambition: Fox benefited more from curiosity. “For the curious, new clues will await at every turn and may keep pointing toward the chosen destination… Curiosity may have killed that cat, but it saved my ass.”
• Final word: “Pay attention to what’s happening around you… Remember, though you, alone are responsible for your own happiness, it’s still okay to feel responsible for someone else’s. Live to learn.”

This is a good short book of lessons on life from a person who has gone through so much in his. Michael J. Fox speaks from his heart and authority on living a good life.