It seems like all modern business books, those released in the last few years, are nothing but a vomit of name drops of famous people and companies and how they do things. I’m sick of hearing about them. I know their stories.
New York Times Best Seller Business Book
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Re: New York Times Best Seller Business Book
#12It's worth noting that the NYT's 'best seller' list is hand-curated, and is not an objective list of books that have sold the most.
What makes you think that? I just skimmed their methodology [1] and didn't see any indication that it's anything other than a list of books that have sold the most (omitting some categories like textbooks).
Re: New York Times Best Seller Business Book
#13It's worth noting that the NYT's 'best seller' list is hand-curated, and is not an objective list of books that have sold the most.
Wait whaaat
Well, I (am parent^) looked it up. And as a lot of things, that was half right half wrong. Here is a quote from wikipedia
"The list is based on a proprietary method that uses sales figures, other data and internal guidelines that are unpublished—how the Times compiles the list is a trade secret.[3] In 1983 (as part of a legal argument) the Times stated that the list is not mathematically objective but rather editorial content. In 2017, a Times representative said that the goal is that the lists reflect authentic best sellers.[4] The list has been the source of controversy over the years."
Re: New York Times Best Seller Business Book
#14I'd recommend reading summaries of business books instead of reading them wholly. It's usually a few decent observations and a bunch of filler and repetition so they can be sold as books. The quality of summaries varies widely, though.
Re: New York Times Best Seller Business Book
#15> "But I have noticed that some authors have an idea and without fleshing it out and properly researching it they decide to write a book about it."
My rub isn't the lack of research, it's the lack of a balanced argument. For instance, Gladwell. Study after referenced study to support his theory, but rarely if ever a counter point.
Confirmation bias gone wild. Which in this day and age is understandable. It's the norm. What's disheartening is how this approach gets passed off - and generally accepted - as expertise.
Re: New York Times Best Seller Business Book
#16It's worth noting that the NYT's 'best seller' list is hand-curated, and is not an objective list of books that have sold the most.
What makes you think that? I just skimmed their methodology [1] and didn't see any indication that it's anything other than a list of books that have sold the most (omitting some categories like textbooks). [1] https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/methodology/
The interesting thing about the methodology page is that it consistently uses strongly-worded and reassuring terms, but at no point do they mention any numbers or statistics whatsoever. It's made to appear as if they're transparent, but it doesn't actually offer you anything of the sort. Additionally, we can read it and find lines like the following:
>if and when they are included, are at the discretion of The New York Times Best-Seller List Desk editors based on standards for inclusion that encompass proprietary vetting and audit protocols, corroborative reporting
This seems to fit with another quote that a commenter here found for us:
>In 1983 (as part of a legal argument) the Times stated that the list is not mathematically objective but rather editorial content.
On top of this, there's likely to be biases in the information they receive: It's obvious that every large book store in the country (including all digital platforms) doesn't report directly to the NYT, and it would be very unlikely for there to be no bias in which stores decide to work with the NYT or not.
Re: New York Times Best Seller Business Book
#17I wish there were a market for pamphlets (as there was in ye olde days). Hear me out. So many categories of books (business, psychology) could more effectively communicate their core thesis to a lay audience via 40-90 pages[0]. A long article. But the economics basically require the author to format as a 200-400 page book, resulting in the kinds of filler this post suggests.
I realize I could read a summary online, but that takes the interpreted benefit without directly rewarding the actual author. I am paying for the ideas, not the length, and would love to reward the most efficient way to deliver that.
[0] Obviously I realize there are many great exceptions to this tongue-in-cheek take on the market.
Re: New York Times Best Seller Business Book
#18The survivor / confirmation bias is my biggest issue with a lot of these books.
I listen to a lot of "How I Built This" and have noted that the vast, vast majority of the founders on that program will answer the "what percent is luck vs skill" question with 90 (or above) for luck.
This rarely seems addressed, specifically in the entrepreneurship segment of these books. Which is understandable as "get lucky" is not a pitch that is going to sell a lot of books. But it's unfortunate when some of these folks use blanket advice like quit school or quit your stable day job because it worked for me.
Re: New York Times Best Seller Business Book
#19I'd recommend reading summaries of business books instead of reading them wholly. It's usually a few decent observations and a bunch of filler and repetition so they can be sold as books. The quality of summaries varies widely, though.
Do you have any recommendations on where to find these summaries?
Re: New York Times Best Seller Business Book
#20I'd recommend reading summaries of business books instead of reading them wholly. It's usually a few decent observations and a bunch of filler and repetition so they can be sold as books. The quality of summaries varies widely, though.
Do you have any recommendations on where to find these summaries?
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mind+map+book+s...
I would also suggest mind maps channels on youtube. I was attempting to read more, but the condensed versions firstly allow me to understand if I want to read the book, secondly prep my brain with a basic understanding of the book ( I am a horrible reader with little retention ). Thirdly, it gives me a lot of the core concepts of the books.
It also free up my time which also allows me to spend time on things I actually need to read rather than just reading the current hype.