By | Sridhar Ramanathan
This is an unusual book. It has 52 pieces of advice for people who think they are talented but don’t know the right kind of people. You are not sure of yourself.
“We all have our insecurities. And I think successful people are successful because of them. Not in spite of them.”
“Your problem is letting your inadequacies get to you.”
“This book is less concerned about strategy than tactics. It is not about the ‘what’. It is about the ‘how’ and the ‘who’.”
Here are is a partial list of the 52 Chapters in the book. (Short readable chapters full of interesting tips)
- First, a little story
- Should you keep reading this book
- How to be interviewed
- Classic interview rules, plus one more
- How to talk to a recruiter
- How to enter a room
- How to have a first day on the job
- Ways in which you must screw up early on: A handy checklist
- What to say when someone asks for your take (on something you know nothing about)
- The importance of sucking at a new job for a year or two
- How to smile
- How to shut up
- Things that you should never say in a professional setting
16. How to make small talk
18. How to have short but meaningful conversation in an elevator
19. How to pitch something
31. How to give a speech when you are terrified of giving a speech
34. How to talk to “important people”
43. Why strident postures in Social Media Are Probably A Bad idea – especially when you are looking for a job
48. How to work with someone who clearly resents you
52. Why you should always be an outsider
Appendix 1: A reading list: Self-Help books that are nor “self-help” books
Here are few random quotes that caught my eye (in no particular order):
“Don’t think of the bar as a buffet of alcohol”
