Not long ago, I decided to get rid of some of the books in my private business library, they are taking up a lot of space. Many of them are old and I doubt I have any need to keep them around. So, I have been going thru them over the last few months and re-reading parts of them and considering their value to my over all business knowledge.

Likewise, I am giving them one last chance before I give them away or before I donate them to a worthy charity, or maybe trade them in at a used bookstore. Below are the books that I went through in the last few days, with a brief explanation of the book, and why these books were important:

"The Success Factor" by Dr. Robert Sharpe and David Lewis - 1977 - "failure is a habit. So is success. This proven step-by-step method will teach you how to pick your goal and achieve it - literally change your life for the better - in exactly 14-days." The book starts by asking some very good questions like; Why do some people behave as they do? How to start the change, review in 8-days, how the fourteen-day program works, what to do with they new you and what areas in life this will help you in.

The sub-title on the cover sounds like something Vince Lombardi said and it is probably an attempt to mimic his passion. Can you re-make yourself in two-weeks? Do you want to? Those two have to be mutual as you know or all bets are off. This book is simple and straight forward, not much different from today's self-help success books, just more basic, and to the point. If you are looking for success the book is worthy, once you achieve success you will just think all of its content is obvious.

"On Becoming a Leader" by Warren Bennis - 1989. What is leadership? This book suggests you might have some misperceptions, but first you must take stock of yourself and your surroundings and the world for that matter. Deploying yourself, trying new things, using instinct, surviving chaos, finding allies and the realities of organization, both good and bad. How to use this knowledge for the future.

Not sure I agree with all of Warren's comments about becoming a leader, but overall, much of his advice is worthy, he does cover many of the bases that other leadership do not cover and that makes this book worth reading. Indeed, one needs to be in a leadership position to fully comprehend what he is saying in the book.

"Zig Ziglar's - Secrets to Closing the Sale" by Zig Ziglar - 1982. The psychology of closing, the heart of your sales career, and the sales professional are amongst the major topics of the first sections of this books 400 pages. Next the book takes us into visual imagery and the imagination selling, and the basics, the actual nuts and bolts. The last section is the art of closing that sale.

If you are in sales then you ought to read at least a couple of Zig Zigglar's books, why? Well, because everyone else does and even if you do not do everything the way Zig shows you, at least you will understand how everyone else does sales.

"The Time Trap" by Alec Mackenzie - 1990 - "the new version of the classic book on time management." Alec describes the problem with time consumptions in management and describes in chapter two over 20 time wasters that every manager must worry about. Next, it describes in the last section how to live and work better and create an action plan.

So much of our day involves interruptions, distractions, meaningless dribble, so it is important to dump these things and get busy. Don't get caught in a time trap or you will never catch up and stress will grow.

"Live by the clock, die by the clock as they say, this is why I took my wrist watch and thru it away!" - Lance - 07'

"The Charismatic Leader - Behind the Mystique of Exceptional Leadership" by Jay A. Conger - 1989. The book explains the reality or two faces behind the charismatic leader, and what makes them different. How they must communicate their vision so that it inspires and motivates. How to empower others to attain the goals and achieve the dream. Confronting the dark side of the Charismatic Leader and over coming the obstacles, while developing exceptional leadership talents are just some of the topics that are deeply discussed.

If you have ever wondered about politicians and how they do things, perhaps you ought to read this book, it is a great look into the reality. Some of the Machiavellian concepts in this book are not for the weak, but the reality is set forth in a fair assessment and the rest is quite worthy of mention. I enjoyed browsing through this book before putting it in the book box to take to the Goodwill, you might like it too, you will find it there next week for $.50 or so.

"The Iacocca Management Technique - A Profile of the Chrysler Chairman's Unique Key to Business Success" by Maynard M. Gordon - 1985. The title page lists such topics as Shaping Up the Troops, from Crest to Crisis, Trail Blazers, who needs accountants, drafting the Ford guys, Iacocca bites the bullet, leader gets the bailout, from K-day to Heyday, A tough act to follow.

Having personally never been a very big fan of government bail-outs of free market enterprises and knowing what I know about the K-Cars and what really happened before Chrysler was sold out to the Germans, well, I have a few things to say about the whole ordeal, now do not get me wrong, I enjoyed the stories in the book, but, you know where this one goes, into the out-going book box.

"Executive Etiquette - How to Make Your Way to the Top with Grace and Style" by Marjabelle Young Stewart and Marian Faux - 1979. This book starts by considering how to create goodwill in the office, sexual misconduct in the office, how to handle your boss, how to communicate and how one should go about talking their way to the top, if indeed that is their goal. What about business lunches, entertaining moguls and the etiquette of eating and drinking - yes, all discussed in this work, as well as how to dress, how to travel and get that job in the first place. Lastly, how to move up the ladder with style and grace.

Well, basically, I am from California and I really do not believe in dressing for success, I stand on my abilities to get things done, not behind a suit, nor do I let someone's attire influence me. Actually, it detracts me and raises red flags. This is an older book and would be much more well received by those on the East Coast, than those in California, but if etiquette is what you are looking for look no further, go pick up a copy at the Goodwill for $.75 or less.

"Elements of Business Writing - A Guide to Writing clear, concise letters, memos, reports, proposals, and other business documents" by Gary Blake and Robert W. Bly - 1991. Principles of composition, organization, wording and how to set the tone. Then how to write persuading business letters, with proper punctuation and grammar in the right format for the right purpose.

As a hobby writer or an accidental author, I enjoyed brushing up on my grammar and thought to myself, how important it is to use proper business writing skills in emails, since no one writes letters anymore. Perhaps everyone needs to read this book as a quick refresher course, so I guess I will see you all down at the Goodwill this week. Sincerely, Lance.

L. Winslow is an Economic, Political and Technology Advisor to the Online Think Tank, a Futurist and retired entrepreneur http://www.worldthinktank.net [1] . Currently Mr. Winslow is planning a bicycle ride from Canada to Mexico and in Spring across the US from San Diego to Virginia Beach to raise money for charity. Previously he was a track star athlete, private pilot, involved in politics, community volunteerism and a Franchising Founder. Mr. Winslow has choosen 100 titles of Books he wishes to write and has completed ten thus far. The subjects include; Community Planning, Future Tech, Franchising, Small Business, and Third World Issues.