Book Review : “Losing IT” by Bill Lane

Most of the times we try to observe/read about other’s success; but during the journey of attaining success that person would have encountered many more difficulties or even failures. It is these failure(s) that makes a person mature & also enables him/her to make less mistakes. Remember the famous quote of Albert Einstein – Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new [detailed meaning here]. In this article, we review an advance copy of the book – “Losing It” by Bill Lane.

About the Author

Bill Lane is a Management expert, Communications coach, Writer & Business school lecturer. He has consulted for firms ranging from Hughes Electronics to E & Y. He was head speech-writer for GE’s legendary CEO Jack Welch for more than 15 years. You can find his previous books here

Detailed Review

• As stated earlier in the article, it is very important to learn from failures & this the main theme of “Losing It”. The book starts off with this theme where Bill Lane describes his own experience where he got an inner-instinct that he might loose his job in GE. He stresses on the need for adoption & change whenever needed – The ultimate sustainable advantage in your career is the ability to learn : Grab it, Lean it & Run with it.
• Unlike his previous book which focussed on GE & Jack Welch, this time around Bill Lane not only cites his own experiences but also has experiences shared from companies like Enron where he stresses on Integrity –  The integrity standards of an organization come from the top.
•  There are interesting tips for managers where he cites the need for a 360 degree feedback & the need for constant learning and improvement. He shares a nice tip from Kip Condron of AXA-Equitable – CEO’s who spend too much time doing charitable stuff, raising funds for charities & giving graduation day speeches when they should be ON the job; at the helm – in this ice field we are all steaming through. He stresses the need for Micro-Management at incredibly deep levels within the company when necessary to actually add value. It becomes a necessity [and not an option] when an organizational survival issue is involved.
• Rest of the book revolves around Guidelines for succeeding in corporate careers. There is effective use of Storytelling to convey these tips which makes this book an interesting read. The most impressive advice from this book is below [excerpts directly taken from the book]:

  The best advice that can be given to anyone in Management, Organizations, Politics or life in general is to FIGHT & STRIVE endlessly; to expand your responsibilities & never stop, never coast, never get comfortable no matter how many people tell you how great you are & how well you are doing. Keep impressing yourself & others. “SHOW OFF” with actions, never words.

Bill Lane’s Success Mantras

Be Paranoid about keeping current

You can never appear to coast your knowledge. Stay potently curious. Act like a benevolent nut & fanatic. Sign up for jobs you don’t fully understand & surmount the learning curves masterfully. Stay on the edge, even if to you it seems forced & phony. The ultimate sustainable advantage in your career is the ability to learn.

Banish yes – people

False validation will sink you. Surround yourself with smart truth tellers & listen to them. Your goal should not be to feel good; it should be to know what’s happening in the business. Without suffering the blabbering of fools, hear out anyone who has a worthwhile observation. Reward your reports for their candor.

Make micromanaging look good

Learn the business right to it’s roots so you understand how everything works. Otherwise you could be the victim of a snow-job because you don’t know the difference between truth & fancy. Once you have enough information to be sure you have good people handling things, you can back off a little. But don’t preside like a doodling tycoon. Manage.

Hold a moral ethical compass

Some failings are beyond your control; integrity is not. Avoid even the grey zone. Avoid even slight discomfort. Imagine yourself on the other side. If you would not agree with it, do not do it. Some spin & BullShit is ok, but never tell a lie. And never break the law, even if it doesn’t seem morally or ethically wrong to do so. Don’t get steeped in the sleaze culture. Integrity isn’t necessarily instinctual. You have to practice it.

Pay attention to the subtext of jokes

If there’s anything people are uncomfortable telling you, there’s a good chance they are going to let it slip in their humor. If your colleagues stop busting your chops good-naturedly or your boss starts taunting you about how you can go back to sleep, take note. Something has shifted. You’re going to need to figure out what’s changed & up your game considerably.

Work to do sustainably good work, not just get promoted

Look for the long-term, sustainable advantage, not how to make his year’s quarter or “number”. Being a one-hit wonder will only keep you on the charts, so to speak, for a short while.

Stay humble

Arrogance is at the root of every flame-out. Arrogant people tend to make Tonya Hardings out of their reports by treating them badly. Add to that they often don’t ask for advice or seek out answers to their questions for fear of appearing fallible. If we learned anything from greek drama, it’s that hubris will ruin you.

De-Jargonize

Your communications should provoke something. Jargon & buzzwords have been overused to the point of meaninglessness. They are career retarders. Smart people will turn off & everyone will resent you for wasting minutes or hours of their lives.

Embrace Management changes

What’s done is alone. A gloom & doom attitude won’t make people “come to their senses” about hiring decisions you dis-agree with. Be optimistic. Be constructive. Lead by example. But don’t doubt the general direction of the company. If you think it’s not good & can’t fake it, you have to leave.

Attack good news

Don’t be complacent about it. Give credit loudly & publicly where credit is due, but make sure what you’re hearing adds up & that the good news keeps getting better.

Closing Remarks

No matter if you are an Engineer, Manager, Marketer, Entrepreneur etc. Bill Lane’s book Losing It has lot of tips on offer & definitely worth the time. It is short read that provides learnings in just 157 pages !!!