Books about Outstanding from Amazon.com

Every general manager today—all the way up to the CEO—is expected by his or her stakeholders to achieve new breakthroughs in performance—and fast. Those who don't make visible progress toward that goal within the first year or two will likely find themselves looking for another job. It is precisely because of this growing breakthrough imperative that managers today, whether in corporations or nonprofits, need to get off to a fast start. They don't have time for mistakes or for going back and redoing what they should have done right in the first place.

But, despite the intensity of these pressures, despite the high expectations and short time frames, a number of CEOs and general managers turn in truly exceptional results. How do they meet and exceed the breakthrough imperative? To answer this question, consultants and former managers Mark Gottfredson and Steve Schaubert interviewed more than forty CEOs from both industry and the nonprofit sector, conducted an intensive study of what successful managers do right—and what some do wrong—and drew on their own combined fifty-plus years of experience at Bain & Company, where their insights have consistently been found in the pages of the Harvard Business Review. Together they came up with the four straightforward principles—deceptively simple yet remarkably powerful—that everyone must follow to succeed at achieving breakthrough results:

1. Costs and prices always decline
2. Competitive position determines options
3. Customers and profit pools don't stand still
4. Simplicity gets results

Although seemingly simplistic, mastering these four laws means mastering the basics of great management—a foundation on which to build the rest of one's management strategy. Whether you're managing a small work group or a multinational corporation, a single division or an entire nonprofit, The Breakthrough Imperative presents these core laws of business to help you determine where you are, just how far you can go, and how to get there with stellar results.

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Price: $11.45 [Notify me when price goes down.]

At the finale of his critically acclaimed first memoir, In Search of Captain Zero, Allan Weisbecker has found his paradise at the end of the road in outback Central America (Pavones, Costa Rica), and is working of the screen adaptation of the book, commissioned by Sean Penn and a major Hollywood studio. Can t You Get Along With Anyone? is the story of Weisbecker s paradise, its underbelly, his fall from grace with the powers that be in Hollywood and the publishing business, plus the near loss of his life due to the writing of the book; he exposes a double murderer and, more dangerously, the love of his life as a sociopath. Interwoven through the various catastrophes that test him on every level, are Weisbecker s reflections on the process of writing the book itself and the nature of nonfiction. Weathering his after-writing throes, writer s queasy gut, and hemorrhaging forehead (from staring at the blank page), Weisbecker maintains his sanity and perspective through his wry, sometimes wildly funny take on his own fears and flaws, and through retreat into the purity of the simple act of riding a wave..
Price: $18.57 [Notify me when price goes down.]

In order to run projects successfully, project managers need to master more than the requisite technical knowledge The more complex the project, the more significant their interpersonal skills become to achieving a successful outcome. Without the people skills necessary to lead effectively, even the most carefully orchestrated project can quickly fall apart.
Emotional Intelligence for Project Managers introduces readers to the basic concepts of emotional intelligence and shows how to apply them to their project goals. Readers will learn how to:
* set the tone and direction for the project
* communicate more effectively
* improve listening skills
* create a positive work environment
* motivate, coach, and mentor team members
* productively handle stress, criticism, and blame
* and more.
Complete with hands-on exercises, checklists and self-assessments, this handy guide enables project managers to apply these important skills to their projects right away..
Price: $11.84 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Here is a rare perspective on a story we only thought we knew. For Apollo 11, the first moon landing, is a story that belongs to many, not just the few and famous. It belongs to the seamstress who put together twenty-two layers of fabric for each space suit. To the engineers who created a special heat shield to protect the capsule during its fiery reentry. It belongs to the flight directors, camera designers, software experts, suit testers, telescope
crew, aerospace technicians, photo developers, engineers, and navigators.

Gathering direct quotes from some of these folks who worked behind the scenes, Catherine Thimmesh reveals their very human worries and concerns. Culling NASA transcripts, national archives, and stunning NASA photos from Apollo 11, she captures not only the sheer magnitude of this feat but also the dedication, ingenuity, and perseverance of the greatest team ever—the team that worked to first put man on that great gray rock in the sky..
Price: $10.89 [Notify me when price goes down.]

    The compelling aroma of fresh, buttery croissants, the delicacy of Savarin au Chantilly, the bliss of the chocolate-mousse Le Pleyel, these are just a few of the specialties that make Parisian boulangeries and pâtisseries the best in the world. Now, in the sequel to her acclaimed Paris Bistro Cooking, Linda Dannenberg presents the gourmet breads and pastries from thirteen of Paris's unsurpassed bakeries and pastry shops.
     PARIS BOULANGERIE-PÂTISSERIE offers more than 70 tempting recipes, including Bombes Amandés (Lemon-Almond Cakes) and Mousse au Caramel et aux Poires (Caramel-Pear Mousse Cake) from Paris's oldest pâtisserie, Stohrer; the signature Délice cake (Chodolate-Cream-and-Chocolate-Macaroon Cake) and lace Florentins from the world-renowned chocolatier Maison du Chocolat; and Pain de Campagne (Hearty Country Loaf) and the classic Gougerés (Giant Gruyére Cheese Puffs) from the archetypal neighborhood bakery Haupois. Linda Dannenberg gathered these one-of-a-kind recipes from the great bakers themselves, and presents them in clear, easy-to-understand recipes specially designed for the American home kitchen.
     More than 150 spectacular photographs and evocative descriptions of the bakeries and the people behind them bring the essence of Paris to your kitchen. PARIS BOULANGERIE-PÂTISSERIE is rounded out with a comprehensive guide to authentic French utensils (although most recipes can be prepared using equipment found in ordinary kitchens), and a directory that includes sources for everything from crystallized violets to baking stones.
     PARIS BOULANGERIE-PÂTISSERIE is the quintessential cookbook featuring the peerless baked goods from the most romantic city in the world..
Price: $8.01 [Notify me when price goes down.]

In his classic bestseller Venture Capital Handbook, leading venture capitalist David Gladstone showed thousands of companies how to get funding and work with early stage investors. Now, in his revision of the classic, Venture Capital Investing, he looks at venture capital through the eyes of the investor. Gladstone shows all of you VC investors and angels exactly how to weed through scores of business proposals and find the gem that will deliver outstanding returns, especially in these soft economic times. You will learn what to look for in a business proposition; how to assess entrepreneurs and their management teams; how to evaluate financial statements, market niches, competitive environments, and product innovations; how to investigate a business that's already operating; and how to build effective partnerships with existing portfolio companies.

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Price: $26.00 [Notify me when price goes down.]

John James Audubon was a boy who loved the out-of-doors more than the in. He was a boy who believed in studying birds in nature, not just from books. And, in the fall of 1804, he was a boy determined to learn if the small birds nesting near his Pennsylvania home really would return the following spring. This book reveals how the youthful Audubon pioneered a technique essential to our understanding of birds. Capturing the early passion of America's greatest painter of birds, this story will leave young readers listening intently for the call of birds large and small near their own homes..
Price: $9.55 [Notify me when price goes down.]