Religion, in god is not great, is violent, irrational, intolerant, allied to. Nothing really new in this book, nothing that hasnt been discussed before, but the presentation and arguments are well worth a read. It is widely regarded as one of the most important business books ever written. In an ironic twist, i now see good to great not as a sequel to built to last, but more of a prequel. Level 5 leadership this is going to be the first in a series of blog posts where im going to go over various chapters from jim collins excellent book good to great. Finding case studies to answer this question is no easy task and the research team set about it by finding companies that performed at the industry average for 15 years, then outperformed. Good to great is about how to turn a good organization into one that produces sustained great results. Some books become great because the public embraces them en masse. Christopher hitchens is an oldfashioned and very entertaining village atheist, trying to pick arguments with the good citizens on their way to. The slippery question of what makes a great book brain. Good to great by jim collins, first edition abebooks. Therere not striving to be the best in the industry. Collins that describes how companies transition from being good companies to great companies, and how most companies fail to make the transition. Hitchenss latest book, god is not great, attacks the authority of every religious figure from the lubavicher.
Author christopher hitchens discusses his book god is not great. Like built to last, good to great is one of those books that managers and ceos will be reading and rereading for years to come. Conduct may be founded on the hard rock or the wet marshes but after a certain point. Paused youre listening to a sample of the audible audio edition. This is easily the most impressive of the present crop of atheistic and antitheistic books. First published in great britain in hardback in 2007 by atlantic books, an imprint of. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 307 pages and is available in hardcover format. On average, it took four years for the goodtogreat companies to crystallize their hedgehog concepts. Built to last is about how you take a company with great results and turn it into an enduring great company of iconic stature. During my first year on the stanford faculty in 1988, i sought out professor john gardner for guidance on how i might become a better teacher. This book is a must read before implementing the next big change or improvement program in your business, or hiring the next keyperson. Buy good to great book online at low prices in india.
Please be aware that this discussion guide may contain spoilers. The following are short excerpts from the monograph good to great and the social sectors. Good to great is an excellent book, filled with fascinating insights for the business leader, or anyone striving to make their organization great. This is a reading list for people who dont have time for. In a series of acute readings of the major religious texts, christopher hitchens demonstrates the ways in which religion is manmade, dangerously sexually repressive and distorts the very origins of the cosmos. After the leap, the goodtogreat companies generated cumulative stock returns that beat the general stock market by an average of seven times in fifteen years, better than twice the results delivered by a composite index of the worlds greatest companies, including cocacola, intel, general electric, and merck. God is not great by christopher hitchens twelve books. Enjoy a great reading experience when you buy the kindle edition of this book. The transition from good to great had to be company specific, not an industrywide event. The search a six month long financial analysis looking for companies that showed the following basic pattern. The company had to be an established and ongoing enterprisenot a startup. He was christopher eric hitchens was an englishborn american author, journalist, and literary critic. A monograph to accompany good to great why business thinking is not the answer. But a serious, noncircular opposition case has been made, if not against reading, then against the idea that the western canon is morally improving or good for the soul.
It was originally published in the united kingdom by atlantic books as god is not great. Some of the key concepts discerned in the study, comments jim collins, fly in the face of our modern business culture and will, quite frankly, upset some people. The primary selection process consisted of baselining the good to great companies at three times the market for fifteen years including 15 years of good performance 1. Hitchens frames the argument for a more secular life based on science and reason, in which hell is replaced by the hubble telescopes awesome view of the universe, and moses and the burning bush give way to the beauty and symmetry of the double helix. It was an inherently iterative processconsisting of piercing. Jim collins books good to great and the social sectors. Good to great by jim collins is a book that has been sitting on my bookshelf for awhile now. However, this one is not used to identify what a great and enduring company is but how to become a great company if youre only a good one now. God is not great, how religion poisons everything by christopher. Find all the books, read about the author, and more.
Its really a step by step recipe or handbook that a company or team or association or foundation can progress through to become great. Jun 03, 2018 the transformation from good to great does not happen with a pioneering technology but by realising the right technology and becoming a pioneer in the application of that technology. Facing the brutal facts the original good to great goes on quite a bit about the importance of facing the brutal facts and that this is the only way that one can make the first step towards achieving greatness. And, after boasting this way of my tolerance, i come to the admission that it has a limit. Its the first sentence of an international bestselling business book, the title of another. From a literary perspective, great expectations is good from the start. Why reading isnt always good for you the new republic. I heard the audio book of god is not great read by the author. Mar 28, 2014 but a serious, noncircular opposition case has been made, if not against reading, then against the idea that the western canon is morally improving or good for the soul. My current book club group is much more casual, but perhaps too much so. The great gatsby would indeed create an aftermath of wonder in ways that its initial audience could not have imagined. In the journey from good to great, defining your hedgehog concept is an essential element. When we meet gatsby, we see his luxurious, ostentatious veneer. Good to great has to rate in the top five of the many business books i have read and digested in my career.
You do not need to have read the book or even seen a film adaptation to feel a thrill at the word gatsby. Sep 24, 2018 this is what a great book does to your brain the neuroscience of deep reading will make you want to curl up with a great book. Why some companies make the leap and others dont jim collins the thesis of the book is that greatness is largely a matter of choice. Feb 21, 2012 this is not a post on how great organizations back slide into mere goodness although that would make a good future topic. Many people and companies settle for good because its easier. Peppered with dozens of stories and examples from the great and not so great, the book offers a wellreasoned road map to excellence that any organization would do well to consider.
The main characters of this non fiction, religion story are albert einstein. More than a novel, a film or a character, gatsby is an aspiration. It takes the game to a different dimension if not level. The english pen staff compiled a list of the best works not written in the english language. Dec 14, 2017 in one of my past book clubs, we literally only read books that included discussion questions at the end of the book because we wanted to be certain wed have a meaningful discussion. Dec 12, 2014 either way, a great book does not have to be a good read to be a great book. The discussion is not so much about gods but rather about religions or churches and how through crass stupidity and self interest, they are destructively hypocritical and get away with it. Not only is it a great read, but there is data to back up all the research and help the reader draw comparisons between what is a good business and what is a great business. With a close and erudite reading of the major religious texts, he documents the ways in which religion is a manmade wish, a cause of dangerous sexual repression, and a distortion of our origins in the cosmos. To kick things off im going to go over the chapter titled level 5 leadership in which jim collins introduces a hierarchy of leadership with level 5 being the. The public sector innovation journal, volume 1, 2008, article 12. The transformation from good to great does not happen with a pioneering technology but by realising the right technology and becoming a pioneer in the application of that technology.
God is not great christopher hitchens audio book p1 duration. Hitchens was also a political observer, whose bestselling books the most famous being god is not great made him a staple of talk shows and lecture circuits. Atheism, scepticism, rambles, doubt, secularism, and archive robertxlester moved to. Why some companies make the leap and others dont by jim collins and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. He also wrote the international bestsellers god is not great. The pretext of this book is how do you take a good company and make it great. Christopher hitchens apchad rachman god is not great. Great insights from mr hitchens confirming what we all know to be true. God is not great sometimes stylized as god is not great is a 2007 book by angloamerican author and journalist christopher hitchens, in which he makes a case against organized religion. Good to great by jim collins is as clear an example as any. This book is good for every human who wants to explore the great. Jay gatsby is so great, so compelling because hes one of the 20th centurys best tragic figures. This seems like a good place to summarize my objections.
The slippery question of what makes a great book brain pickings. Two book editors for the present their list of the 16 greatest books of all time, with a list of runnerups as well. God is not great by christopher hitchens books the. As for his own meta book, he offers this disarming disclaimer. Jan 06, 2014 god is not great christopher hitchens audio book p2 duration. The publishers will be pleased to make good any omissions or rectify any. Christopher hitchens is not a liar a new book says the famed atheist thinkers writing on religion is intellectually sloppy. Christopher hitchens was a contributing editor to vanity fair, slate, and the atlantic, and the author of numerous books, including works on thomas jefferson, thomas paine, and george orwell. That the imaginary friend of religious people is the enemy of the rest of humanity. Good is the enemy of great theme of the book discovering what made good companies great.
Rather, it is to make the point that the best business books are often written backwards. As for his own metabook, he offers this disarming disclaimer. Dickens employs many standard literary techniques in his unique dickensian manner which is. Jul, 2010 good to great is an excellent book, filled with fascinating insights for the business leader, or anyone striving to make their organization great. The amount of research and analysis that has gone into this book is mindboggling. The real surprise of good to great is not so much what good companies do to propel themselves to greatness it is why more companies have not done the same things more often. Almost 90 years later, gatsby is regularly named one of the greatest. To get started, choose your favorite category under the best book summaries section to get some great book summaries without feeling overwhelmed by all the options. In the tradition of bertrand russells why i am not a christian and sam harriss recent bestseller, the end of faith, christopher hitchens makes the ultimate case against religion. The page is a reading list sharing the best books to read in various categories based on many hours of reading and research. Good is the enemy of great is one of the most popular selfimprovement expressions there is. The first edition of the novel was published in 2007, and was written by christopher hitchens.
Best books ever 51864 books meet your next favorite book. Christopher hitchens is an oldfashioned and very entertaining village atheist, trying to pick arguments with the good citizens on their way to church. A good nights sleep is essential for keeping our minds and bodies strong. Good to great by jim collins cliff notes max hodgen chapter 1. The author was a great thinker and probably a great presenter in person. Experts that consist of writers, sociologists, psychologists, and others with a special sense for the. Synopsis god is not great is the ultimate case against religion. If not a bingeworshipper, he was a serial congregant, grazing on a buffet of faiths.
A good book is a treasure trove of humanity so that no matter how often you open a page and start reading, there is still something new to be discovered. Business books this is what a great book does to your brain the neuroscience of deep reading will make you want to curl up with a great book. God is not great christopher hitchens audio book p1. The case against religion and in the united states by twelve as god. The author and his team of researchers established these good to great benchmarks. How religion poisons everything kindle edition by hitchens. This guide contains key points from the book along with discussion questions. Buy good to great book online at low prices in india good. The findings of the good to great study will surprise many readers and shed light on virtually every area of management study and practice. Each great on kindle book offers a great reading experience, at a better value than print to keep your wallet happy. Atheism, scepticism, rambles, doubt, secularism, and archive robertxlester moved to robertwlester 561,690 views. The book contained many breathtaking, jaw dropping insights.
From business to leadership, philosophy to psychology, selfhelp to writing, youll find more than 100 good book summaries, organized by category. Good to great by jim collins cliff notes max hodgen. God is not great christopher hitchens audio book p2 duration. Either way, a great book does not have to be a good read to be a great book. The book was a bestseller, selling four million copies and going far beyond the traditional audience. Atheism, scepticism, rambles, doubt, secularism, and archive robertxlester moved to robertwlester 197,9 views. Youll find more than 100 good books to read, organized by category. God is not great 9780446509459 christopher hitchens. Christophers perspective comes as a great relief that my own thinking is not unreasonable. But insight and understanding dont happen overnightor after one offsite.
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