Rating: 
Summary: A must read!
Review: This essential guide to finding a husband describes in a creative and common sense way how to market yourself in today's world. I have read a lot of other dating books, but this one has really new ideas that I think will get results. Putting your best foot forward and networking provide the keys to your dating success and Rachel's ideas made the entire process seem so easy. While a husband is not guaranteed, if you follow "The Program" the odds of finding your ideal mate will definitely increase and your social life will be busier than you ever imagined. I am a 51 year old divorcee and was initially skeptical about putting myself "at risk." This step-by-step program has given me the confidence to proceed. As the book indicates planning is one of the best ways to alleviate anxiety. I have already bought this book for all of my single friends and encourage everyone to do the same. This is a real winner!
Rating:
Summary: Read this only if you're SERIOUS about finding a partner!
Review: Find a Husband After 35, Using What I Learned at Harvard Business School, by Rachel Greenwald, is a book that I've been recommending to my coaching clients ever since it was published in the fall of 2003. That's because it shares not only a perspective, but also a direction, that I've encouraged marriage-oriented singles to take in their search for a life-partner relationship. My secret to recommending this book is to not be mislead by the title! The book really is not just for single women over the age of 35. Women in this demographic is just the "market segment" that Greenwald "targeted" to sell her "simple 15 step action program," which she calls "The Program." I see "the Program" as being useful to any single, regardless of age or gender, who is willing to make finding a life partner their #1 priority. Greenwald takes a business approach to achieving the desired result - she creates an "action plan." This is also a common principle in motivational psychology. The 15 steps of The Program utilizes business principles that are common in marketing and advertising. Singles may ask, "but doesn't that take the magic out of just meeting someone and seeing if it works out?" For many years I've said "no," because singles have to be in the right place both mentally and physically in order to recognize suitable candidates to try and determine if the "magic" will happen. Greenwald supports this view by laying bare the harsh statistics for singles: there are less single men and women over age 35 than there are younger than 35. And singles over 35 have lifestyles that provide less exposure to new people than they did when they were in their 20's. So what you do, and don't do, has to be crafted and deliberate, and always with achieving your ultimate goal in mind. While Greenwald directs her readers to work The Program with "a mentor," I have found it to be an excellent guidebook for working with an experienced relationship coach. An example of the importance of working with a coach is best exemplified in Step #5. This is where Greenwald presents the necessity of creating a "personal brand," an essential marketing principle designed to communicate what makes your product different from all of the others. How many times have singles spoken to matchmakers (well-meaning friends as well as professionals) who said that they tried to describe you to a perspective date, but couldn't find the right words, the best adjectives, to convey your unique and special qualities? Greenwald shows singles how to craft their own brand, and how to then convey it to their designated "target market." Creating an effective personal brand is truly a team effort, as it requires a lot of thoughtful reflection, and feedback from others, to make sure that it accurately and succinctly represents YOU. This is where it's essential to work with a mentor or a coach, who can help guide you to articulate your self-knowledge and your life's direction. A coach will also be a sounding board to give you feedback as to how your brand resonates with others, to be sure that it's specific and unique to you. Other sections of the book are also extremely valuable. I liked how Greenwald cogently and calmly encourages readers to "cast a wider net." This if frequently one of the most frustrating experiences that I've had as a coach - getting singles to start thinking "outside of the box" about who they want as partners. And as singles get older, they stay entrenched in their little boxes, which inevitably limits the number of potential candidates to date. Aaaarrrgghh! But Greenwald gently presents a strategy to help singles s-t-r-e-t-c-h their criteria for what they're looking for, all for the purpose of getting a larger number of prospects. I found that following the steps in this chapter to be preferable to putting my clients on a stretching rack! Overall, Greenwald conveys, in a sensitive and straight-forward manner, a goal-oriented action plan for singles who are truly marriage-oriented. It's not for the faint of heart. And it's especially not for those women who are still wishing that a fairy godmother wave a magic wand and grant them a husband. That's because Prince Charming has already been taken.
Rating: 
Summary: Great conversation starter
Review: I purchased this book after hearing the author give a radio interview discussing the plight of older, intelligent women finding a man. I use this book for comic relief. Despite her intelligence, the author pretends that matters of the heart can follow a prescribed recipe. I doubt that anyone who followed much of the author's advice would have a self-esteem left. But isn't that what it takes to find a relationship that you can be submissive in, give up your intellect and self-respect to HAVE A MAN! Stop the insanity of self-help for relationships.
Rating: 
Summary: Unique Approach to Husband Hunting
Review: I'll give the author credit for a unique approach, anyway. It seems rather cold and ruthless, however, and some of her advice makes me cringe. I've heard this author give advice before. A woman in her fifties said she was young looking, but the only men she seemed to attract were 10 years older than her. She wondered why men her age all wanted to date younger women. This author advised her to take whoever was wanting the product, that is, since it was older men who wanted her, that should be who she dated. In her book about over-forty dating, BABY BOOMER BACHELORETTE, Patsy Stagner says this is bad advice. The author of this book says women over-forty should be dating men 10 years younger than them, not 10 years older! And she shows them how. That's what I think, so I found this book gave better advice, and it's much more light-hearted and funny.
Rating:
Summary: Apply these methods to business building NOT dating
Review: If finding a husband is like a marketing campaign then I suggest for women to apply these tactics to their own business. Not only will you possibility get richer but you might just find some self-love within. Being a full-blooded woman is about personhood. Our society makes way too much about a wedding band and motherhood to keep women in some form of bondage. When I read through this book and analyzed the amount of time spent on "catching" a mate ... it felt like a job. Greenwald's techniques will work to get a guy but keeping him is all up to the woman's own initiative. Landing a husband and sustaining a marriage are two different dynamics.
Now I've been there and felt quite lonely about being single. It can hurt pretty deeply but engaging in this Operation "Find a Husband" is just the other side of a desperation coin. Buy this book and really go 100% with EVERYTHING Greenwald suggests and you will find yourself someone. He may be right for you. he may not. The real issue is - if a woman isn't happy with herself the man won't do it for you.
My two cents: Forget the dating sites, matchmakers, Hurry date events, set-ups, and other businesses created around finding the one. The energy expended is better applied to your career, business, excercise program, fitness goals, and lo and behold ... making your wildest deepest and dearest dreams come true! If you really want a baby, then look for a co-parenting agreement that is fair, adopt, or join a single mothers by choice group and look into reproductive technology. With all the money you'll make using the 15-step action plan to your entrepreneurial venture ... you'll be able to afford it and lavish your kid.
Rating:
Summary: Buy This Book If You Are Serious About Dating and Marrying
Review: What a right-on-target book by Ms. Greenwald. She applies marvelous practical business-world practices to dating with a purpose of finding a husband in 12-18 mths. Now, we are intelligent ladies, and we use these skills in the business world in various arenas, but we forget to apply the same "Job Seeking" skills to DATING! Her writing style is very helpful, warm, direct as-needed, and humorous at times as well. This is a book which I would give to my dearest single friends, even if we feel shy to do every single step religously. Whatever of it you can do, DO! My dating life has absolutely picked and improved since applying these steps! Happy New Year and HAPPY DATING!
Rating: 
Summary: Save your money
Review: Being a guy who read this book, I wanted to add my 2 cents to the debate after having read several of the reviews, including a few five star and one star reviews. My impression, being an MBA grad myself, is that the Greenward believes that you can market yourself (e.g. by creating a superior "brand") the same way Proctor and Gamble markets Crest toothpaste! In my humble opinion, to say that this analogy is utterly RIDICULOUS would be an understatement.
As far as spending money to make yourself look good, there is no doubt that we all would feel better about ourselves and have more self-confidence if we felt that we had done something that made us more physically attractive. Also, I will be the first one to admit that many men (and women) are shallow in that they prefer to date people with good looks rather than a good personality and a warm heart (ideally of course we'd like both but that's quite rare). However, I don't believe that a relationship can last even close to a lifetime if it's based primarily on looks since looks CHANGE with time; let's face it, a woman or a man doesn't look the same at age 40+ as she/he did at age 20. So my advice to anyone considering reading the book is save your money and spend it doing something you enjoy. By the way, don't be impressed and fooled by the "Harvard MBA" label that she peddles; if you ask me, the letter H from HBS (Harvard Business School) should be dropped so that the name is simply BS!
I have to say that she did learn to use the skills that she acquired in B school, since she peddles the book to a target audience who are most likely going to buy the book; people who for whatever reason (may not be their fault at all) haven't yet found the right person, and may be worried that it will never happen (this is the same marketing strategy of the late night infomercials which promise their customers that they'll make millions of $$$ overnight by following the ad's get-rich-quick scheme, and target the people most in need of some extra cash, i.e., the unemployed and elderly).
Rating:
Summary: Best Relationship Book I Have Read in a While
Review: I really liked the practical and no nonsense strategies in this book. I can't wait to put them to practice to see if they work. I was quite disappointed though in the links on her website which were referenced in the book on several occasions.
Rating:
Summary: Some Good Ideas
Review: I agree that there are alot of ideas in this book that sound desperate. The first one being that you have to do the entire "program" for it to work. I think it is entirely possible to take the ideas from this book, and do what works for you.
There are alot of interesting suggestions in this book. And it can help reinforce a persons committment to finding a mate. But trying to do everything suggested could be very overwhelming for someone who works a full time job or is a single mother.
I think people looking for a mate would do good to read this book, and take the suggestions that work for them. There are alot of good ideas in this book that can get you started in the right direction.
Rating:
Summary: Great book and not just for women!
Review: A friend suggested that I read FIND A HUSBAND AFTER 35 USING WHAT I LEARNED AT HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL by Rachel Greenwald, M.B.A . . . also billed as a "simple 15-step action program," I found it fascinating to read from a marketing standpoint . . . Greenwald
takes basic concepts (packaging, branding, etc.) and shows how they can be applied to find not just dates--but dates with what she calls wonderful men.
Her advice, though directed at women, can also be used by men as well as those in homosexual relationships . . . I know I'm going to recommend the book to all my single friends not presently
in relationships.
Some of Greenwald's thoughts were so amazingly simple that I can't believe that others had not thought of them before . . . or at least given them out as useful tips . . . for example, she tells
women not to use the bathroom during intermission . . . the lines are long then and time will be wasted when it could better be spent networking . . . rather, she urges women to use the
bathroom just before intermission (when there are no lines), then use the next 15-20 minutes to mix and mingle.
There were many other memorable passages; among them:
* Value you best customers: Go buy a few boxes of very nice thank-you notecards. Each card might cost about a dollar. You can never have enough of these throughout your Program journey. There are going to be so many people who will help you, support you, and fix you up,
and you must be very conscientious about thanking each and every one. Just as in business, you must treat your best customers well to gain repeat sales. What better way to encourage your "best customers" to fix you up again than by sending them a heartfelt thank-you note?
If you've ever been a matchmaker for some of your friends, I would bet that few of them have gone out of their way to show their appreciation for your efforts, especially if the fix-up didn't work out. This is one area where you can stand apart from other women hoping for matches:
Simply send a warm, lovely thank-you note after someone has been kind enough to make an introduction for you.
* Do you wear a push-up bra? Always wear a push-up bra:
After 35 it can't hurt and can only help.
Don't think you have to be dressed up all the time, but don't wear your sweatpants with the holes in them or your baggy old clothes a you wander about town. As my grandmother used to say, "There are no ugly women, just lazy ones!" You never know where Mr. Right is, so don't be caught looking dumpy when you suddenly meet him standing in line at the post office.
* As a top salesperson will tell you, the rule is "ABC": Always Be Closing. Try to "close a sale" if you have the opportunity. For example, a girlfriend sees you at the hair salon and approaches you to say hello. She hasn't seen you in a few months and asks, "Hi! How are you?" If you are conscious of escaping your rut and turning a casual conversation into an opportunity to find a husband, you might reply:
"I'm great, thanks! Since I saw you last, I have made a big commitment to find someone to share my life with this year. I would love to meet as many new men as possible. Say, do you by any chance know any single men?"
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