Retire? For some it's not a viable option. For others, it's a possibility, but their financial well-being is the prime determinant of the timing. Two new books examine retirement from the perspective of the critical issue of investing self-directed retirement funds and the option of pursuing a different path that would offer an alternative to total withdrawal from the workforce.
BUSINESS BOOKS
Branding has become an increasingly important part of marketing -- or has it? As a way to convey meaning and value, the practice of creating a unique name is a no-brainer, yet the promise that this act carries is both explicit and implicit.
BUSINESS BOOKS
I used to love reading biographies and autobiographies when I was younger, but maybe I'm a little jaded now. Everyone seems to have an ax to grind, an angle to play, a story to spin and a point to make. Understand, though I still find it instructive to read of other's lives and gain insight from their tales, and reading with a slightly jaundiced eye may actually be a bit of an advantage, like having a built-in bovine excrement detector. Here are several new books that recently met my skeptical gaze...
BUSINESS BOOKS
I love science fiction, but I'm also a proud member of the reality-based community. Though I may prefer things to progress logically, the whimsical intrusion of random or unrelated events makes things interesting. Let's face it, if drama or comedy unfolded in an entirely reasonable manner, snoozes would ensue. Surprise is the most important element in comedy as conflict is the key to drama.
Here's your chance to read the latest business books and review them in The Miami Herald. How it works Business books columnist Richard Pachter selects a new book for the club every month. On a first-come, first-served basis, a limited number of members can get a free copy by e-mailing rap@WordsOnWords.com with the member's name, address and phone number. Readers who do not get a free book in the mail are invited to buy their own copies and send their reviews to the same e-mail address.
BUSINESS BOOKS
Just Enough Anxiety. Robert H. Rosen. Portfolio. 224 pages. Intel founder Andy Grove's autobiography was titled Only the Paranoid Survive, which makes a lot of sense, since he had to contend with Nazis, communists and the computer-chip business, among other things.
BUSINESS BOOKS
Right of the Dial: The Rise of Clear Channel and the Fall of Commercial Radio. Alec Foege. Faber and Faber. 320 pages. The name ''Clear Channel'' became shorthand for everything wrong with terrestrial (nonsatellite) radio: Lack of diversity, repetitious music, boring programming, too many commercials, censorship, jingoism, ad nauseam.
BUSINESS BOOKS
Powerhouse Principles: The Billionaire Blueprint for Real Estate Success. Jorge Perez. Celebra. 288 pages. If Jorge Perez were not a successful Miami-based developer, I'd probably never open this book. No knock on him, but most tomes professing ''this is how I did it; this is how you can do it'' are boring and loaded with self-righteous pontification, glad-handing, name-dropping and other effluvia.
BUSINESS BOOKS
Communicating to persuade or motivate is a challenge for many businesspeople. Being literate and intelligent is not enough. Creativity is involved, but it requires the suggestion of images, emotions and other connections in order to achieve the desired effect. Even when the message is solely composed of text, images and other sensual cues are evoked to stimulate and create interest. Here are three recent books that look at ways to arouse emotion and connect the feeling to the action.
BUSINESS BOOKS
For most people, career paths are unclear at best. Maybe some athletes or artists have a defined course to follow, but even then, things change. For the rest of us, change happens despite our best intentions or hopes for the contrary.
BUSINESS BOOKS
There's a palpable sense of dread in the air. Is it just me? I don't think so. A friend recently mentioned that it's like watching a swaying house of cards. The U.S. economy, propped up by consumer spending, bad debt and inflated real estate prices, is starting to tumble. He added that things are probably even worse than they appear, since the current administration's self-serving approach to reality and the rule of law is surely concealing a veritable library of cooked books. Whoever takes over...
