The one-sentence summary

Treat information with great suspicion until you know the real story.

WHAT THE BOOK SAYS

• Seeing a pattern of stripes in the leaves, we would run from what looks like a tiger. There are illusions in numbers too, often just as intimidating. The book reveals what the numbers really show, and exposes the tiger that isn’t.
• Life comes in numbers: public spending, health risks, who is rich and poor, the best and worst schools. The trick to seeing through them is to apply the lessons of your own experience, and investigate them more thoroughly.

WHAT’S GOOD ABOUT IT

The book works through most of the manners in which numbers will be presented, and shows how to make sense of them, using lots of examples from everyday news stories. Specifically relevant to business are:

• Counting: counting things is very difficult, and the results often wrong
• Chance: frequently things are truly random, but we still look for patterns
• Up and down: numbers go one way or the other, regardless of what you do
• Averages: disguise huge variation and squeeze everything into a mass
• Targets: what they do not measure is as important as what they do
• Risk: all that matters is what it means to you
• Sampling: if the sample is flawed, so is the conclusion
• Data: they are often plain wrong, so be careful drawing conclusions
• Shock figures: are more likely wrong or misinterpreted than shocking
• Comparison: mind the gap – they might not be comparable
• Correlation: is not the same as causation – there may be no link

Everyone should read this book as a sanity check on the numbers we have thrown at us or bandy around ourselves – particularly politicians and journalists.

WHAT YOU HAVE TO WATCH

• Not much. We all have to deal with numbers, but if you don’t understand them then don’t misrepresent them.

The one-sentence summary

Concentrate on what you are going to do and don’t become obsessed with the competition.

WHAT THE BOOK SAYS

• The ancient wisdom of this 2,500 year-old text is invaluable commentary on such topics as leadership, strategy, organisation, competition and cooperation.
• The ten principles for competitive success are:

1. Learn to fight (against the competition)
2. Show the way (leadership determines success)
3. Do it right (all competitive advantage is based on effective execution)
4. Know the facts (to achieve success, you must manage information)
5. Expect the worst (do not assume the competition will not attack)
6. Seize the day (the most important success factor is speed)
7. Burn the bridges (position yourself where there is a danger of failing)
8. Do it better (combine expected and unexpected tactics)
9. Pull together (organisation, training and communication are the foundations of success)
10. Keep them guessing (the best competitive strategies have no form)

WHAT’S GOOD ABOUT IT

• It is interesting to apply the teachings of an ancient war expert to business, and in a modern context.
• The interpretations are clear and easily transferable to business matters
• There are clear sections on planning, competitive strategy, conflict, control, positioning, flexibility and reputation.
• The overall message is: “Do not engage the enemy unless it is absolutely necessary.” In other words, this is as much a book about the avoidance of war.

WHAT YOU HAVE TO WATCH

• If taken the wrong way, the whole business of comparing war with business could lead to overly macho approaches. This is not really what the book is all about.
• There is a lot on using spies for information – this is clearly illegal.
• The book is obsessed with the competition (“the enemy”), whereas many would argue that it is more profitable to concentrate on what you are going to do, not the opposition.

WHAT THE BOOK SAYS

Seeing a pattern of stripes in the leaves, we would run from what looks like a tiger. There are illusions in numbers too, often just as intimidating. The book reveals what the numbers really show, and exposes the tiger that isn't.

Life comes in numbers: public spending, health risks, who is rich and poor, the best and worst schools. The trick to seeing through them is to apply the lessons of your own experience, and investigate them more thoroughly.

WHAT'S GOOD ABOUT IT

The book works through most of the manners in which numbers will be presented, and shows how to make sense of them, using lots of examples from everyday news stories. Specifically relevant to business are:

Counting: counting things is very difficult, and the results often wrong

Chance: frequently things are truly random, but we still look for patterns

Up and down: numbers go one way or the other, regardless of what you do

Averages: disguise huge variation and squeeze everything into a mass

Targets: what they do not measure is as important as what they do

Risk: all that matters is what it means to you

Sampling: if the sample is flawed, so is the conclusion

Data: they are often plain wrong, so be careful drawing conclusions

Shock figures: are more likely wrong or misinterpreted than shocking

Comparison: mind the gap – they might not be comparable

Correlation: is not the same as causation – there may be no link

Everyone should read this book as a sanity check on the numbers we have thrown at us or bandy around ourselves – particularly politicians and journalists.

WHAT YOU HAVE TO WATCH

Not much. We all have to deal with numbers, but if you don't understand them then don't misrepresent them.

The one-sentence summary

Ignore what you have done before, decide on something distinctive to do, and do that one thing with full commitment.

WHAT THE BOOK SAYS

• Most marketing books are written about brand leaders, but most marketing people don’t work on brand leaders
• These challenger brands need to behave differently if they are to compete with brand leaders – effectively doing more with less
• There are eight credos:

1. Break with your immediate past (forget everything you know and think again)

2. Build a lighthouse identity (state what you are – don’t reflect consumers)

3. Assume thought leadership of category (the one everyone talks about)

4. Create symbols of re-evaluation (do the unexpected)

5. Sacrifice (work out what you are not going to do)

6. Overcommitment (Karate experts aim two feet below the brick to break it)

7. Use advertising/publicity to enter popular culture

8. Become ideas-centred, not consumer-centred (constantly re-invent)

WHAT’S GOOD ABOUT IT

• It concentrates on practical things that most brands can do
• It tells you how to run a workshop and apply the thinking with a client
• Most of the credos can be used to overcome client inertia
• It can help small, under-resourced marketing teams to mobilise big ideas
• Brand leaders can benefit from thinking like a challenger to stay number one

WHAT YOU HAVE TO WATCH

• It is easy to go round talking about “creating a lighthouse identity” (and other phrases) without actually saying anything
• Some of the ideas are easier said than done
• Credo number 7 is easy to criticise because you would expect a communications expert to recommend activity – it might help if you point this out first and raise the idea of discounting it before the client