Friday, April 10, 2009

I'll Make You an Offer You Can't Refuse: Insider Business Tips from a Former Mob Boss by Michael Franzese

About the Author:
Michael Franzese was one of the mob's biggest earners since Al Capone, and the youngest individual at age 24 on Fortune magazine's "Fifty Biggest Mafia Bosses." Then, after dodging the law for years, Franzese pled guilty, accepted a ten-year prison sentence, and quit the mob.

What secrets can a former mob boss share about how to do legit business? Let's have a sit-down and find out.

 As one of the rare people who quit the mob and lived to tell about it, Franzese has a unique perspective on how business is done. And one thing he noticed was that the way he made millions per week in business inside the mob can be applied to doing business outside the mob (minus the illegal part):

· Mob Rule # 4; Be an Early Riser & Avoid Getting Killed in Your Pajamas

· Mob Rule # 5: Ya Gotta Have a Crew

· Mob Rule # 7: Cook the Pasta, Not the Books

"Anyone who sells the mob short when it comes to its ingenuity, its ability to connect with people from all walks of life, and its substantial profit margins is simply kidding themselves." This book promises a mob's eye view of business that will change the way you see business forever.


My Review:
I thoroughly enjoyed this easy-to-read, up-to-date, nonfiction book, which is chock full of good business advice offered with anecdotes and quotes from Machiavelli, Solomon, as well as mobsters. Humorous Italian references ring true; mafia background information is fascinating to read.

The author compares the Machiavellian philosophy of "the end justifying the means" with Solomon's advice from Proverbs, which he clearly favors. This is no ordinary self-help business book. For instance, Chapter six, "Master the Art of the Sit-Down" gives good business advice about incorporating the mob's art of conducting a sit-down while using Solomon's advice. Any one in business would do well to master this chapter.

At the end of each chapter, the author sums up his major points with a "Get The Message" list.

Innovative idea
This is a NelsonFree book. Once the book is purchased, the owner can download an audio MP3 file and several types of e-book files, including EPub, MobiPocket, and PDF. For more information, click here. I tried it out. I downloaded one chapter at a time. It was quite simple and took less than two minutes. I can see that someone might download a chapter to "read" while driving to work, or download the entire book to "read" while traveling. With this innovative method, readers can read wherever they choose.

If you would like to buy a copy, click below.



3 comments:

deepsouthrunner said...

Wow, that's really interesting, sounds like something my husband might want. I like the idea of the getting those extras with the book, especially the mp3.

Alyce said...

This sounds like it would be a great gift for my husband.

Caspette said...

What a curious concept. I could just see me implementing mob style meetings at work HA maybe then they wont take 2 hours!

Good review.