Funk Rating: 8 out of 10
I think a very good friend in Seattle recommended I read this. I enjoyed the heck out of it and found so much of it to be absolutely, hysterically, over-the-top funny that I have to give this a very solid 8. At the same time, there were shades of Catch-22 here, where it became SO over the top and repetitive that it was a bit whacked and dull.
The best part about the book was the section where a character was reflecting upon how you become like the people you work with. I have long held the belief that life is way too short to work with anyone you don't admire and respect. There is a slippery slope that you fall into whereby you believe that you can/should learn from those around you (who are deemed successful in the eyes of the world), and with 10-12 hours a day at work, there is no way NOT to become like those you work with. So pick your organizations, your work peers, and your bosses with care. For there is no way to not adopt some of their habits...
As a quick aside, I'm the luckiest guy in the world with my latest gig, EIP. If I can pick up some of Vandy and Dave's bad habits and characteristics, I will be better for it. And if I get lucky enough to pick up their good habits/values, I will owe them a debt of gratitude...
This book re-affirmed (if I ever needed it) that when I turned down the Goldman Sachs and Salomon Brothers offers in 1988 that I made the most important, life-impacting decision of my life. Bar none. If you love the world of finance, find humor in the seriousness with which bankers and salesman take themselves, enjoyed "Bonfire of the Vanities", and don't take yourself or your reading too seriously, pick up this classic from the early-to-mid '90s... It's a fun read.
Now you've got *me* wanting to re-read, despite several shelf-feet of new books that are waiting for me!
Posted by: a very good friend in Seattle | May 29, 2006 at 06:48 PM