The Daily Drucker : 366 Days of Insight and Motivation for Getting the Right Things Done

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Summary: Brilliant Drucker Quotes in Disorganized Style
Review: Any book that is mostly filled with Peter Drucker's quotes has to have enormous value. This volume of Drucker attempts to parse the major learnings from what Professor Drucker has had to say on every subject into bite-sized bits along with suggestions for turning those observations into daily learning. That value shines through in the Drucker material, but is seriously diluted in the editor's selection of material, organization of that material and guides for action.

Knowing well that Professor Drucker favors using a disciplined method to guide his year and time, I expected that this volume would do the same. Instead, I was shocked to discover that the material is randomly distributed with lots of repetition over the year rather than being placed in logical order. For instance, the first day of the year might have begun with Professor Drucker's famous dictum to read intensively about a new subject every year or to slough off what is no longer relevant. Instead the book begins with a section on Executive Integrity. This is the first of many sections on that important subject. One would have expected that these materials would all be in one place rather than strung out. Other subjects are similarly strung out in disconnected fashion for part of the book.

The selection of sections also leaves a lot to be desired. There's material in here on the proper role of government, drawing on Professor Drucker's early writing. Much of the material about freedom versus totalitarianism is not terribly relevant to someone who wants to run a business better. It's as though the editor thought that he had to include everything that Professor Drucker had ever thought about rather than just what a leader needs to know.

The book's injunctions to actions are often quite weak. There must be five sections for taking action for planning the new government for Iraq. Now, I don't really see how that helps me be a more effective leader.

In addition, each selection is just a page. Some of the writing would have been more powerful if combined with an example which might have meant being a little longer.

My suggestion is that you skip this book and read The Essential Drucker instead. You will gain much more coherence in your new knowledge from that book than from this one.

Professor Drucker deserves an editor who can combine his work in a way that reflects Professor Drucker's own philosophies. I hope Professor Drucker finds one soon.

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Summary: Follow it....
Review: Good motivational book. Hard to resist of reading all of it in one weekend.

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Summary: A lifetime of Drucker's writing in a wonderful format
Review: I admit upfront to having been prejudiced in favor of "The Daily Drucker" even before I got this book. Peter Drucker is, to me, the American Business Philosopher--a guru and teacher who writes about the business of business in a fundamental and memorable way. I've been reading his writings for years and I have to say they have shaped my own ideas on business in a profound way.

This hardbound book looks rather like a smallish Bible and even has a ribbon to mark your page. It's a book that can fit on anyone's desk (or nightstand) for a quick refreshing read. Best of all, the content is not just random quotes and rehashing of previously published articles. Drucker adds an Action Point to the bottom of each day's reading and italicized points of importance.

Here's an example from September 12-- Managing Oneself: Identify Strengths. Drucker advises you to use feedback analysis to really understand your strengths and bolster your weak areas. You write down key decisions and key actions. Nine months later, review the results. After a couple of years of this discipline, you will have a deeper understanding of yourself and how you behave. If you decisions that led to less than optimal results, instead of rationalizing or blaming others, you can adjust your own behavior to improve your outcome. And if you have a particular area in which you shine, you will know it and can take full advantage of your new-found strength. Just reading this makes you wonder; where will you be in three years and how will you have grown if you take up his suggestion of feedback analysis?

This type of exercise, and much more in Drucker's book make this a useful book for students of nearly any discipline, for business associates, friends, you name it. Frankly, I like this book as much for its utility as a terrific gift as much I like it sitting on my own desk. I can't imagine who wouldn't benefit from reading it. And it only confirmed my enthusiasm for Dr. Drucker's writing. My recommendation; buy a copy for yourself and a bunch for your friends. It's great.



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Summary: One Student's Guide to "Getting the Right Things Done"
Review: In the Foreword, Jim Collins recalls a day spent with Peter Drucker in December, 1994. It is important to keep in mind that when he met with Drucker, Collins was only 36 years of age and "with no significant reputation." Nonetheless, Drucker treated him with kindness as well as respect. "His generosity of spirit [then and now] explains much of Drucker's immense influence." Collins reflected on Drucker's admonition to replace the quest for success with the quest for contribution. "The critical question is not `How can I achieve?' but `What can I contribute?'" Before parting, in fact, Drucker told Collins, "I have learned much from our conversation today" and he obviously meant it. Although widely referred to as a "guru," Drucker has always viewed himself as a student. His intellectual curiosity is apparently insatiable. Also his desire to continue to be of service, to add to his contributions as the leading founder of the field of management, as the most influential management thinker in the second half of the twentieth century, and as the founding father of the Peter F. Drucker Graduate School of Management.

What we have here is anthology of 366 brief excerpts from Drucker's 35 books and countless articles. In the Preface, Drucker explains that "the most important part of this book is the blank spaces at the bottom of its pages. They are what the readers will contribute, their actions, decisions and the results of these decisions. [Drucker then adds the following assertion, italicized to indicate the importance he attaches to it.] For this is an action book." He then acknowledges a debt of gratitude to his longtime friend and colleague, professor Joseph A. Maciariello, who assisted with the selection and organization of the material. For example, the items assembled in the January section range from "Integrity in Leadership" to "A Functioning Society." Each of the 31 selections begins with an appropriate quotation, followed by an excerpt and then an ACTION POINT. The same format is employed for each of the other 335 selections throughout the book.

Here is a more enlightening example, provided for April 21. Quotation: "If we didn't spend four hours on placing a man and placing him right, we'd spend four hundred hours on cleaning up after our mistake." (Alfred Sloan). The excerpt which follows is taken from Drucker's autobiography, Adventures of a Bystander, and creates a context for Sloan's observation. In this instance, Drucker was astonished by the fact that the senior executives at General Motors spent what he considered "a disproportionate amount of time" discussing the work and assignment of a position "way down the line." As for the ACTION POINT, "Make decisions on people -- selection, placement, and evaluation -- your top priority." The reader is also provided with an extensively annotated Bibliography and a comprehensive list of "Readings by Topic." Re the latter, for example, the subject "New Realities" is discussed in excerpts assigned to February 1,2,5,7; March 25-27; May 1-9, 12-19, and 28; and August 28. A total of 72 "Topics" are indexed for the reader.

Years ago, after a substantial tuition increase at Harvard, then president Derek Bok responded to irate parents with the suggestion that "If you think education is expensive, try ignorance." I think it is highly significant that Peter F. Drucker still refers to himself as a student, expressing gratitude each day for what he learns from others. Those who read this book will be grateful for what they learn from him but such gratitude means nothing if readers do not apply what they have learned. Indeed, [in italics] "...this is an action book."

For whom will this book be most valuable? I presume to suggest two categories: those who are committed to "getting the right things done," and, those who think they already know how...but, in fact, probably don't.


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Summary: Strongly Recommended
Review: One step at a time... a great way to organize yourself, your life, and your work and see your projects through to accomplishment. A combination of folk wisdom, common sense, and practical advice. Drucker has done it again.

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Summary: Sparkling insight & ideas. Easy, pleasant, inspiring to read
Review: REVIEW SUMMARY: Peter Drucker is one of the most brilliant, productive, and useful management thinkers, ever. How can you tap into his knowledge? The answer is The Daily Drucker - a distillation of his most useful ideas, insights, and motivation for getting the right things done in any organization. It is an easy, pleasant, and inspiring read. Who should read it? Anyone involved in an organized activity to achieve some goal (i.e. people in businesses, churches, schools, government, the military, etc.). Why read it? Knowledge is lost and skills decay over time unless renewed. The Daily Drucker will help you renew your knowledge and gain insights completely new to you. Get it!

REVIEW: Since Peter Drucker published his first book in 1939 (The End of Economic Man), there have been what seems to be a thousand management gurus and practitioners whose shooting stars have briefly illuminated the evening sky. Very, very few have stood the test of time with regards to the real-world usefulness of their ideas. In fact, it is virtually only Drucker and his ideas (perhaps better described as his observations) that are left standing after the others have been tried and discarded. He is not perfect, but he is correct far more often than he is wrong.

The question is - how can you tap into his knowledge to inspire you and help you lead/manage your organization and self better?

The answer is The Daily Drucker. It is a distillation of his most useful ideas, insights, and motivation for getting the right things done in any organization.

The Daily Drucker has one page for each day of the year that contains two or three paragraphs that crisply describe a topic (for example "Managing Oneself" or "Integrity in Leadership"), a Drucker Proverb ("Knowledge workers must take responsibility for managing themselves" and "The spirit of an organization is created from the top"), and an Action Point. The Action Point is a suggestion for putting Drucker's insight into action.

It is an easy, pleasant, and inspiring read. I read one page when I get into the office each morning. Sometimes it is just a reminder for me of a concept I already knew (but forgotten), sometimes I change my approach to my work based on the new perspective I gain. It is never boring.

Who should read it? Anyone involved in an organized activity to achieve some goal. That is, people in businesses, churches, schools, government, the military, etc.

Why read it? Knowledge is lost and skills decay over time unless renewed. The Daily Drucker will help you renew your knowledge and gain insights completely new to you. Reading the Daily Drucker is like opening the window in a stuffy office and letting a fresh breeze blow in. You think more clearly, feel better, and you are more effective.

No need to wait until the beginning of the year to get this book. Just open it to whatever date you first open the book and start there. You can read the insights that appear on January 1st when you get through December 31st!


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Summary: Daily Readings Harvested From Drucker's Lifetime Of Work
Review: Who should read this excellent book? This book will benefit a large number of persons including persons working in business, government, churches, schools, universities and the military. This book will help you renew your current knowledge and teach you brand new concepts. Your existing organizational skills will be refreshed and new organizational skills will be learned.

This book helps one get better organized one step at a time. These organizational skills can be applied to organize your daily schedule, your life and see your projects through to completion. I see Mr. Drucker as the American Business Professor. He has written many books over the years. I also suggest "The Essential Drucker."

"The Daily Drucker" has one page for each day of the year. This page contains two or three paragraphs that describe a topic, a Drucker Proverb and an Action Point. The Action Point is a mechanism for putting Drucker's insight into action.