TOP DRAWER BOOK REVIEW
by
HL Carpenter

 

The One Thing You Need to Know
by Marcus Buckingham
ISBN 0-7432-6165-8
289 pages; hardcover; $29.95
Free Press, New York, 2005

The one thing you need to know is this: There are actually three things you need to know. That’s if you want to manage, lead or have career success. If you want a happy marriage, you need to know another thing, which is also helpfully included in The One Thing You Need to Know.

You’ll need to know how to set aside preconceived notions, too, since the book abounds with counter-intuitive suggestions. But Mr. Buckingham, an author and consultant, backs up his conclusions with personal anecdotes, interviews, profiles and research studies. For instance, you can ignore advice about achieving ‘balance’. Mr. Buckingham says you’ll do better if you focus. Why? Because staying on course leads to success, which makes you feel good about yourself, which leads to more success.

In addition, forget about focusing on your weaknesses. That’s draining, not energizing, as well as counterproductive. Instead, focus on your achievements and eliminate whatever distracts you from repeating them.

By the time you reach the end of The One Thing You Need to Know, you’ll have realized most of what you need to know is based on an understanding of human nature. To manage, you need to understand people, to lead you need to understand people, and to achieve success you need to understand people (in this case, yourself). And yes, for a happy marriage, you need to understand people, too – or at least one other besides yourself.

So it turns out there are many things you need to know. Fortunately, though the title may be misleading, The One Thing You Need to Know can help you get started.

 

Review originally published August 2005.