The Little Big Things: 163 Ways to Pursue EXCELLENCE
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- ISBN13: 9780061894084
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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#131 The Case of the Two-Cent Candy
Years ago, I wrote about a retail store in the Palo Alto environs—a excellent one, which had a box of two-cent candies at the checkout. I subsequently remember that “small” parting gesture of the two-cent candy as a symbol of all that is Brilliant at that store. Dozens of people who have attended seminars of mine—from retailers to bankers to plumbing-supply-house owners—have come up to remind me, sometimes 15 or 20 years later, of “the two-cent candy tale,” and to tell me how it had a sizable impact on how they did business, metaphorically and in fact.
Well, the Two-Cent Candy Phenomenon has struck again—with oomph and in the most unlikely of places.
For years Singapore’s “brand” has more or less been Southeast Asia’s “place that works.” Its legendary operational efficiency in all it does has attracted businesses of all sorts to set up shop there. But as “the rest” in the geographic neighborhood clogged the efficiency gap, and China nonstop to rise-race-soar, Singapore chose a couple of years ago to “rebrand” itself as not only a place that works but also as an exciting, “with it” city. (I was a participant in an early rebranding talks that also featured the likes of the late Anita Roddick, Deepak Chopra, and Infosys founder and superman N. R. Narayana Murthy.)
Singapore’s fabled operating efficiency starts, as indeed it should, at ports of entry—the airport being a prime example. From immigration to baggage aver to transportation downtown, the services are unmatched anywhere in the world for speed and efficiency.
Saga . . .
Immigration services in Thailand, three days before a trip to Singapore, were a pain. (“Memorable.”) And entering Russia some months ago was hardly a walk in the park, either. To be sure, and especially after 9/11, entry to the United States has not been a process you’d mistake for arriving at Disneyland, nor marked by an attitude that shouted “Welcome, honored guest.”
Singapore immigration services, on the additional hand:
The entry form was a marvel of simplicity.
The lines were fleeting, very fleeting, with more than adequate staffing.
The process was simple and unobtrusive.
And:
The immigration officer could have easily gotten work at Starbucks; she was all smiles and courtesy.
And:
Yes!
Yes!
And . . . yes!
There was a small candy jar at each Immigration portal!
The “candy jar message” in a dozen ways:
“Welcome to Singapore, Tom!! We are absolutely beside ourselves with delight that you have chose to come here!”
Wow!
Wow!
Wow!
Question yourself . . . now:
What is my (personal, department, project, restaurant, law firm) “Two-Cent Candy”?
Does every part of the process of effective with us/me include two-cent candies?
Do we, as a group, “reflect two-cent candies”?
Operationalizing: Make “two-centing it” part and bundle of “the way we do business around here.” Don’t go light on the so-called substance—but do remember that . . . perception is reality . . . and perception is shaped by two-cent candies as much as by that so-called hard substance.
Start: Have your staff collect “two-cent candy tales” for the next two weeks in their routine “life” transactions. Share persons tales. Translate into “our world.” And apply.
Repeat regularly.
Forever.
(Recession or no recession—you can afford two cents.)
(In fact, it is a particularly Brilliant Thought for a recession—you doubtless don’t maximize Two-Cent Opportunities. And what opportunities they are.)
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There may be some excellent thoughts in here, but I can’t spend enough time reading the book to find them. It’s a mess of exclamation inscription; bolded, italicized, and various sizes of font; and inconsistent formatting. To me, it is completely unreadable.
Reader’s Rating: 1 / 5
Peters suggests putting this book in the bathroom and reading it in snatches. Fantastic thought: It’s the only book you’ll need for weeks to come. It’s jammed with wisdom from Peters’s 40 years of helping people reach excellence in work. Part school-of-hard knocks lessons, part engaging personal musings, The Small BIG Things reminds us that humanity comes first, analysis second. Humanity is the fount of organizational effectiveness.
I see in additional reviews that some people don’t like Peters’s exuberant use of boldface and giant type. But that’s a reflection of the leader – and it’s Peters’s signature exuberance and passion throughout the book that inspire. I had to just keep reading. If you want multiple blasts of freshly expressed gems of management thought, buy a copy for every bathroom.
Reader’s Rating: 5 / 5
I admit it… I am an unrepentant Tom Peters fanatic and have been for 20+ years. But even with that said, there have been a few (very few) of Tom’s books that I felt were…uh… “Less-than-brilliant.”(tiny “e”) So it was with a bit of trepidation that I sat down to read his newest book: “The Small BIG Things – 163 Ways to Pursue EXCELLENCE.” At 507 pages of main text, it is a significant commitment for many readers to undertake the study of this book weighty tome… and I promise you it is worth every single page of it! I read it take in-to-take in (twice) in the span of two days of flying to meet with clients. I simply could NOT place it down, as I was greedy to get to the next page of TP wisdom and wisecracking. If you are a Tom Peters devote’ you will admit much (nearly all) of what this book contains… and that is just fine. It is filled with a relentless parade of “TP’s Greatest Hits” that keep slapping you in the face and pushing you to reflect, adjust, change and take action. If you are a business leader of ANY kind – you MUST read this book. I absolutely GUARANTEE you will find not one… not two… but 20 or 30 game-changing thoughts that could truly take your business and your career to a completely new level. As a name who has read a MINIMUM of 100 – 120 business books a year, every year since 1989, (and it all ongoing with In Search Of Excellence!) I will tell you with NO indecision that “The Small BIG Things” is now in my top 5 all-time favorites. YES – it is that excellent! Mr. Peters… this one is a perfect homerun!!!!!!!!!
Reader’s Rating: 5 / 5
I judge most people know the importance of treating employees in a compassionate and engaging manner; by building them a part of a collaboration; by listening to their needs and concerns; by welcoming their thoughts to foster the right environment for creativity and innovation. For many organizations, but, accomplishing this type of management “nirvana” is regularly bogged down by a narrow minded bureaucratic hierarchy more concerned with fleeting term profitability than long term excellence.
In fleeting, they really need to read this book written by one of the all-time fantastic business gurus, Tom Peters. After digesting the “163 ways to pursue excellence”, maybe they’ll get a clue. Maybe they’ll stop treating employees like consumable cogs in their corporate machinery, and start treating them with respect and dignity; most importantly, as if they were valued members of a team, constantly collaborating on better ways to run the enterprise.
Peters’ latest effort, which is a compilation of some of his previous blogs over the past several years, is profound in its simplicity, and highly relevent for the challenges facing most organizations today. From doing such “small things” as going out of your way to thank people for their efforts, to dilligently listening to what they have to say, Peters has done a wonderful job of conveying the essence of what successful management entails; chances are, if you heed his words of wisdom, you’ll be on the right track to achieving long-term “excellence” in any endeavor.
Reader’s Rating: 5 / 5
I’ve never seen so many font sizes, exclamation points and redundancy in one book. There is nothing new here, and what IS here is so mercilessly pounded on that you would have to be severely ADHD to get anything out of it. A predictable paragraph: “Communicate. Communicate. Communicate. Communicate. Communicate. Communicate. Communicate. Communicate.” (I wish I was exaggerating).
I made it to page 85 before swearing I would never read another Tom Peters book as long as I live. The thought of trying to make it through the remaining 453 pages made me want to pull my eyeballs out. The Small Huge Things becomes the fourth book I’ve ever ordered from Amazon that I am returning, and the second this week. Must be a terrible week for business books.
You’re better off buying a used copy of The Search for Excellence, even though many of the companies featured in that book have been out of business so long that under-40 readers won’t have ever heard of them.
Reader’s Rating: 1 / 5