A must read book. Review on Count Your Chickens Before They Hatch - Arindam Chaudhuri

I?m no great fan of management books. This is the first management book I?m reading. I picked it up because of it?s title which is contrary to the proverb which says ? Don?t count your chickens before they hatch?. The first chapter is regarding the making of the book.

Arindam talks about how he thought of writing the book, how the title was proposed, how hard he worked on the book, his desire for the book to be a hit like the movie ?Sholay? and thanks all the people who helped him. The first chapter itself shows that he has a great sense of humor and that reading the book will be atleast fun, if not worthwile.

The next chapter talks about success. He says that success is a matter of attitude. It is a matter of futuristic thinking and planning. He talks of the importance of reading and how his grandmother inculcated the habit in him. According to him, there are 3 dimensions to success. They are Attitude, Skill and Success. He backs up his argument with excellent examples, that of Abraham Lincoln, Henry Ford, Kennedy, Swami Vivekananda. He says ?If you think you can, you are right. But think passionately.? He says lack of passion is a big problem in the Indian corporate sector. He talks of the Passion Quotient. Every statement of his is backed up with strong examples of famous personalities from Dhirubhai Ambani to Che Guevara. He says that success comes to those people who are passionate about their work.

The next chapter is about motivation. He talks about Dale Carnegie?s book ? How to win friends and Influence People?. He talks about 3 very close friend of his. According to him, to win friend one should smile. He talks about Rajiv Gandhi?s charismatic smile. The next important thing he says is to listen. Then he says that if one wants to make friends one should learn to shower honest praise. He also says that one should never make the other person feel like a loser. Arinadam talks about the various motivation theories. He tals of the example, Hari whose motivation is different at different stages of his life. He says that every individual has 3 levels of hunger(status, structure and stroke). He gives excellent explanation and examples. The next chapter is about communication. He says the first principle for effective communication is not to forget the LAW( Looks, actions, words). The second principle is to be audience-friendly.

The third principle is to be polite and polished. The last principle is to bring in the humorous touch. Each of these principles is explained beautifully. He talks of his Consumer Behaviour Preferences Mapping which is based on two dimensions, persuasiveness and expressiveness.

The next chapter ?Pegging Cultural Holes? talks abut the difference in American and Japanese cultures and their different management styles. He talks of how Japan refused to copy the American management style and developed their own style, which is world popular today. He explains why Japan is successful today. He argues that Russians were far better technologically than the Americans. He talks of the success of China and their forced culture. He proposes his Theory ?i? Management for the Indian corporate sector. He says Indian companies should follow a management style suited to Indian culture. He goes on to say that successful American companies write about the way they are managed.

However successful Indian companies like Sahara, Tatas do not do so. Hence there is nothing to follow. He argues that Indian workers need friendly management practices with moderate job security.

Arindham states the principles of his Theory ?I? Management which are based on research. He states that India?s biggest problem is complacency and compares India to the cow that sits on Indian roads unfazed by traffic around. The last chapter is titled ? Sleepy Cows to Galloping Horses?. Arindam?s Theory ?I? Management prescribes solutions at two levels: The Macro & The Micro. At the macro level one needs to increase the purchasing power of Indians and increase the patriotic and moral values of the people.

Arindam says that the reason behind today?s moral bankruptcy is lack of trust on the judicial system. At the micro level, according to him leaders need to increase the human touch in their organizations. He explains the Performance Sand Dune and the Leadership Success Multiplier models. He talks of Lord Krishna and of different types of leadership i.e. Leadership by direction, seduction, delegation and association which terrific examples. He also speaks of Mahatma Gandhi. He relates the leadership styles with the Bhagvad Gita. Arindam Chaudhari not only puts forth points but also backs them up with solid examples to strengthen them.

In addition he adds humor at places. Besides the book is rich in quotations. All in all, an excellent book.