Rating: 
Summary: An incredibly informative and entertaining consulting book
Review: What exactly is consulting? And how does one consult successfully? This informative book attempts to answer these questions in a humorous, easy-to-read style. Throughout this book, Weinberg introduces and explains dozens of consulting laws, rules, and principles - and right from the start, with his laws of consulting laid out, you will be captivated by Weinberg's philosophy:The First Law of Consulting: In spite of what your client may tell you, there's always a problem.
The Second Law of Consulting: No matter how it looks at first, it's always a people problem.
The Third Law of Consulting: Never forget they're paying you by the hour, not by the solution.
The Fourth Law of Consulting: If they didn't hire you, don't solve they're problem. Some of my many favorite laws, rules, and principles: The Bolden Rule: If you can't fix it, feature it.
The Lone Ranger Fantasy: When the clients don't show their appreciation, pretend that they're stunned by your performance - but never forget that it's your fantasy, not theirs.
Marvin's Second Great Secret: Repeatedly curing a system that can cure itself will eventually create a system that can't. Have you seen the new poster that reads "Consulting: If you're not a part of the solution, there's good money to be made in prolonging the problem."? Weinberg would not agree with this statement - his Sixth Law of Pricing says that if they don't like your work, don't take their money. An alternative to these types of posters? Blow up the cartoon illustrations in this book and hang them in your office.
Rating:
Summary: Advice for both sides of the consulting fence
Review: Whether you are an independent, or officially classed as an employee, you are a consultant. No matter what your role in the development process is, what you think, know and do matters in the final outcome. The keys are to know how to express your beliefs as well as how to receive the beliefs of others. Much of the advice given in this book can be applied across all areas of the spectrum, both in job classification and function.
However, the main focus is on the unattached person who wishes to earn a living giving advice to those who may not want to receive it, much less pay a living wage for it. That is a hard task, but fortunately, Weinberg knows this arena very well. He dispenses invaluable advice in the form of simple, folkish sayings that you should post on the wall and repeat several times a day. For example, "The Hard Law: If you can't accept failure, you'll never succeed as a consultant" and "The Law of Raspberry Jam: The wider you spread it, the thinner it gets." The best advice often has a homespun flavor, and these consulting aids, sometimes complex only in their simplicity, will help you plot a path to a successful business as a consultant.
However, it is only advice and not a bible, so the hard part is up to you. If you want to know what makes a consultant work, either because you want to use one or be one, then this is the book you must read. By seeing the view from both sides of the fence, you can plot a successful strategy, independent of whether you are the giver or receiver of the advice.
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