We Got Fired! : . . . And It's the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Us

Rating:
Summary: It's More Than a Must-Read!
Review: Don't read this book -- Study It! It contains decades and decades worth of Harvey MacKay's accumulated wisdom from his life of learning and experience. You'll learn many valuable gems for success. I wouldn't want to have missed this book for anything - in terms of my career and attitude, it is indispensable.

Rating:
Summary: We Got Spammed!
Review: Good gracious, what an atrocious book.
Cobbled together interviews that provide no value.
Eek, what a stinker.

Rating:
Summary: Shallow and superficial -- don't waste your money!
Review: I can't believe there aren't better books on this subject out there. The chapter on each person is so short and superficial that it really doesn't tell you anything. Some of these people WEREN'T EVEN FIRED, so they don't even belong in the book. Others were fired, but the author doesn't tell you why. The section on Bernadine Healy of the Red Cross is particularly sloppy and confusing. She resigned one month after 9/11 and there is no explanation at all of WHY she did. And another thing that annoyed me -- purely stylistic -- is the fact that all the interviewees keep repeating the author's name again and again ("You know, Harvey..." "You're right, Harvey..."). At least, "Harvey" quotes them as having said that.

Rating:
Summary: Apparently, someone forgot to read the title...
Review: I must say that my curiosity was peaked when I read the first review of this book posted on Amazon.com, by "pasquino" in Minnesota. My interest in this book began when I received an email from Jim Rohn (renowned motivational speaker) yesterday, letting me know Mr.Mackay was coming out with a new book. Initially I blew it off, but then when I checked Amazon today, and saw the above mentioned review, something didn't fit, and instead of waiting for my copy to arrive, I canceled my order, and went down and picked up a copy (sorry Amazon, but don't worry I promise to order an extra book this week to make up for it), and have spent the last several hours reading the book. First of all let me say that I have not read any of Mr. MacKay's previous works, and was initially struck by his style of writing, straight forward and easy to ready, yet witty and intelligent. Secondly, anyone who is able to get such figures as those interviewed in this book, to open up about their weaknesses and failures is to be commended. There is a wealth of knowledge and wisdom to be gleaned from these pages. What most people fail to realize, is that when you sit at a table of truly successful people, the bragging rights do not come from the successes, but actually from the failures. From the refusal to stay down, when you have been beaten down. And from the ability to see life as a series of opportunities as opposed to a series of oppositions. I believe the gentleman who wrote the previously mentioned review was incredibly off base, are there people who are fired and do not recover, of course there are, and that is a very unfortunate fact in this life and economy that we live in. What most people fail to see and realize is the ever present 80/20 rule is alive and well. 80% of people who are fired will be devastated, will waste time nursing their wounds, and so on. 20% will take the same hit, and it will motivate them to a higher plane, they will have the same wounds, but will have learned how to stand in the face of opposition. This book is not for the 80%,unless you are looking to take a step over to the 20% side of life, and if that is the case welcome aboard, the seas are rough, but the ride is well worth the effort. If you should find your self on the wrong side of a pink slip, or just wish to know how some of the more successful people in our society face opposition, then I recommend you read this book, and just remember that "Attitude is everything, and everything counts"!

Rating:
Summary: IT DOES NOT APPLY TO YOU
Review: If you think this book will apply to you, don't waste your money. It is about millionaires getting fired. If you are not one, you will have nothing in common with the people in this book. One person got 10 million severance pay. Another got 30 million. These people did not let it get them down. Can you relate to them. There is way too much about people in professional sports. If you are in professional sports, thie book might help you. If you are not, don't waste your money.

Rating:
Summary: And When One Door Closes, Another Opens...Simple But True
Review: It's not as if author Harvey Mackay has written anything all that earth-shattering in this book, as any effective outplacement consultant will give you the same advice he provides here. But what he does exceptionally well is highlight a problem over which people have the ridiculous notion that there is shame in being fired from a job. Even as unemployment statistics stabilize, there are many who have dropped off the surveys since they are not receiving unemployment compensation. In other words, there is a far greater audience for this book than those who were recently fired. Having been laid off myself from a large company for whom I worked devotedly for twelve years, I know the dark feelings that can overtake you when you are unilaterally eliminated. It can make you delusional about your economic worth and cause havoc with your self-esteem.

Mackay's angle is a good one - take a group of successful celebrities who have been fired at some point in their careers and have them talk about how they were able to turn things around and produce even better, more lucrative livelihoods. While much of the wisdom imparted by the likes of Donald Trump, Michael Bloomberg and Muhammad Ali is sound, their stories really provide a framework for Mackey's broader motivational treatise. I have to admit I do tire of people who tell me getting fired is the best thing that ever happened to them, as I always feel they are patronizing me to conceal their own conceit and insecurity. But Mackay does not make the mistake of relying on his cheerleading capabilities. I particularly appreciated his "cold truths" about being fired, two of which had particular sting - "The nicest, most loyal, and most submissive employees are often the easiest people to fire.", which of course runs counter to the values by which a lot of us were raised, and an even more resonant truism, "The time to start worrying about what you'll do when you're fired is the day you get hired." Perhaps these are not motivational statements in themselves, but they are honest assessments of how one needs to look at oneself in the workplace. Ultimately one has to be true to oneself, but the Bush economy has dramatically altered our perspectives on what we need to do to survive and remain gainfully employed. The best and most constructive sections of the book have to do with how to deal with being fired. Frankly, the survival tactics he espouses should be taught at new employee orientations, so people do not asphyxiate themselves in glass bubbles believing their employers will provide them lifelong security. Whether you have been fired, are worried about being fired, or just received the best performance evaluation of your career, be smart and pick this book up. Mackay puts your employment status in realistic context.

Rating:
Summary: Another Celebrity Worship Book
Review: This book is dull, dull, dull. If you like reading about celebrities, you might, might enjoy reading this. Otherwise, you will wonder why this book ever got published. I don't think it comes even close to accomplishing what the author may have intended, namely that if well-known people can get fired and rebound, then so can the reader. In fact, those portrayed in the book have had such presumably astounding success since they were fired that it almost makes you HOPE you get fired, the sooner the better, so you can get on the fast track to wealth and fame.

If you get fired, this book won't help you get hired again. It really doesn't matter what these people in the book did with their lives after they were dissed by someone along the way. If you find yourself getting fired, you still have to do what you have to do to get on with your life. You can't live someone else's. And you definitely don't need a book to tell you that.

Rating:
Summary: Timeless Empowering Message Contained Within
Review: This book is not about handling the stress and limiting the embarrassment of getting fired. This book is much bigger than that. It's about overcoming FEAR and persevering in face of MASSIVE REJECTION.

In order to grow and become a SUPER SUCCESS you need to go out of your comfort zone and do things you have never done. Sometime you will get scratched, hurt and/or even severely burned. However what hurts instructs. You can learn from your rejection and go even grow from your rejection with the right attitude. That what makes this book so special--it provides you with role models who have that "right attitude". That's why I love this book so much. It shows you the hurting times of these greats-and how they went through the struggles to become a super successful. You too can become a super success when you overcome your fears that are holding you back. I urge you to read this book and take to heart the empowering message contained within it.

Zev Saftlas, Author of Motivation That Works and Founder of www.EmpoweringMessages.com


Rating:
Summary: underrated book
Review: This is not Harvey's best book, but it does a great job of applying the princlples that he teaches in other books.

He used his rolodex to gather some stories of big names, and used their crediblity to help market the book. We can learn a lot from him on this one.

Rating:
Summary: Harvey Mackay delivers again!
Review: What do Donald Trump, Lou Holtz, Larry King, Lesley Visser, and Robert Redford have in common? They've all been fired.

In addition, they're all prominently featured in interviews in WE GOT FIRED!-the latest book from Harvey Mackay . . . he is the author of one of my favorite business books of all time, SWIM WITH THE SHARKS . . . this one is every bit as good!

Mackay shows you that you are not alone if you've been fired . . . and even if you haven't been, you will be . . . as he notes:

Your present company is likely to go out of business. And it doesn't much matter which company. In fact, it will be the exception if your company doesn't go out of business. Of the 500 companies on the prestigious Standard & Poor's list in 1957, only seventy-four were still on the list in 1998. Fast-forward to the year 2020, and do you know what will happen? According to Richard Foster and Sarah Kaplan in their book Creative Destruction, more than 375 of the S&P 500 companies will be firms we don't know today. Today's young people will ride a merry-go-round for their meal ticket. "But I work with the esteemed so-and-so," you might protest. Just remember that the so-and-so's of the last twenty years include Enron, Sinclair Oil, Montgomery Ward, Dean Witter,
and Swissair. By the year 2030, the only folks with ten years' seniority will be at CBS on the staff of 60 Minutes. When you're on that merry-go-round pony, watch out! Instead of grabbing the brass ring, you're most likely to be nailed by a brass knuckle.

But rather than leave readers with feeling depressed, Mackay has many positive thoughts--each one called a Mackay's Moral--to both leave you with a smile and make you think . . . among my favorites:

If you want to get to the top, getting it right can be a lot more important than just getting it done.

He who burns bridges better be a darn good swimmer.

If life has a knack for raining on your parade, it's not a bad idea to be in the umbrella business.

He who has the gold not only makes the rules, he can break the rules.

Unless you work in demolition, don't burn bridges.

Methinks if you're looking for an ideal holiday gift to get somebody (especially if he or she is unemployed), you won't go wrong with WE GOT FIRED! . . . also, it would be perfect for anybody you know about to enter the work force.