Reviews
The bottom line with The Go-Giver is that the core of its message is important to a society that some say is descending further and further into crass materialism and crippling selfishness. How one receives this message may vary, but learning and understanding it is essential…
The world always needs a fresh approach to its most important messages. For this purpose The Go-Giver is a great way to continue to spread a positive and enriching message….
— Soundview Executive Book Summaries Read Full Review
Explanations of these concepts and how to employ them are clear and to the point, and as with all successfully written business books, it will provoke thought and probably questions as well….
— Booklist, December 2007 Read Full Review
This modern-day business parable, a quick read in the spirit of The Greatest Salesman in the World and The One Minute Manager, should do well with eager corporate-ladder climbers…
— Publishers Weekly Read Full Review
The Go-Giver is one of those rare books that entertains with a great storyline while simultaneously delivering an uplifting, life-affirming message that we can apply immediately….
— Darren Richardson, Science of Mind Read Full Review
Bob Burg, who travels the world sharing the principles of The Go-Giver, and John David Mann…collaborate on this uplifting, quick-read of a book that will appeal to customers who want to bring more heart and a holistic sense of mission to their livelihoods.
— New Age Retailer, BEA issue, June 2008 Read Full Review
This book takes you out of yourself, lets you observe, and then return to self-awareness. At first, I thought, “Hey, pretty simple stuff,” but, parts of it keep coming back for rethinking and reevaluating. I think you’ll like the storytelling aspect, too. This book makes a good first impression, and an even better second; the latter impression comes when you realize that the parable is deepr than you first thought….
— Richard Hoe, Life Insurance Selling Read Full Review
In business, it is typical to focus on what we are going to get and how we are going to get it. The Go-Giver reminds us to focus on the important point of what we are going to give to people. As shown throughout the book, this focus turns business from a 50/50 proposition to a 100% success….
— Jack Covert, "Covert Selects," 800-CEO-READ,
President and CEO, 8CR Read Full Review
The Go-Giver taps into a universal truth. Giving and receiving aren’t mutually exclusive ideals; you can do both at the same time, and you don’t have to keep score. You can’t script out exactly how it will work, but when you’re open and you give the best of what you’ve got in every situation, it always circles back to you. And it almost never hurts….
— Online Daily News, March 25, 2008 Read Full Review
Deftly written and thoroughly ‘reader friendly’, The Go-Giver is enthusiastically recommended for anyone seeking success in the competitive marketplace of products, services, and ideas, as being informed and informative, as well as inspired and inspiring.
— Midwest Book Review Read Full Review
The key to effective giving is to stay open to receiving. It’s not better to give than to receive. Both go together. Receiving is the natural result of giving. The fable is well constructed, tight and clear with some emotionally touching spots….
— Harvey Schachter, Globe and Mail Read Full Review
The Go-Giver is an excellent book if you like parables and learn well through story telling. Many of the values in the book are basic servant-leadership principles. You will find this short book easy to read in one or two hours. In our hardened business environment The Go-Giver will remind you that the world has hidden natural laws that reward those who are generous and caring toward others….
— WeLead Book Review, leadingtoday.org, Read Full Review
“10 Business Books to Get You Back on Track Again”
You can read this entire book in one flight from Philadelphia to Miami. Most people think about how they can manipulate a person or situation to benefit them. The real key to success, according to the authors, which I entirely agree with, is helping others. A similar book to Tuesday’s with Morrie, by Mitch Albom, which provides wisdom and insight on how to be more successful….
— Marc Kramer, thestreet.com, Dec 9, 2008
In The Go-Giver, Mann and Burg effectively illustrate why the give-to-get model doesn’t work in the long run, and also why the one-way give-to-give-to-give-to-give approach limits our own and others’ success. The book—which has created such a buzz CEOs are buying it in bulk for their entire organizations—taps into a universal truth: Giving and receiving aren’t mutually exclusive ideals; you can do both at the same time, and you don’t have to keep score. You can’t script out exactly how it will work, but when you’re open and you give the best of what you’ve got in every situation, it always circles back to you….
— Lisa Earle McLeod, The Huffington Post Read Full Review
First and foremost a good story to enjoy, The Go-Giver also invites the reader to let go of old beliefs and plant a few new ones. Through the art of story-telling, Bob Burg and John David Mann empower us to move from a Newtonian perspective of separation, competition and linear thought to a quantum reality of oneness, cooperation and intentionality….
— Josephine Gross, PhD, Networking Times Read Full Review
Burg and Mann contend the real way to success is the relationships we build with other people and that by adding value to other people’s lives is not only nice, but fulfilling. “That’s sort of counter-intuitive when we live in a world where we think the nice guy or nice girl finishes last and that the people who make money are evil,” Burg says. “Go to the movies – that’s the script. We think most people are giving people and they like to think they can succeed by being nice. You don’t have to live by the movie script….”
— Michael Kinsman, Copley News Service Read Full Review
Have you always meant to pick up one of those business parables — you know, the kind of story in which a stalled executive learns valuable lessons and breaks through to the next level — but couldn’t bring yourself to do it? Perhaps it’s just me — after all, The Go-Giver has turned out to be a big bestseller, one that even those embarrassed to be seen with a copy of Who Moved My Cheese? can carry around without shame….
— The Conference Board Review® Read Full Review
[The Go-Giver is] a great story, but for many, it posed questions. (“It’s a fine story, but does it really work in the reality of day-to-day business?”) To answer the questions, Burg and Mann just released Go-Givers Sell More, which is not a parable or story but a straight-up guide about the values of giving. This seems to prove these guys aren’t just good story-tellers (they are that, too) but actually have clear details on how to apply these principles to your business…
— The Daily Blog, 800-CEO-Read , March 16, 2010 Read Full Review
As the nation’s economy continues to recover, business owners want to know why some of their competitors grow at a faster pace. What makes the difference between their sales and the other guy’s? When I am asked that question, I simply state that we have trained our “go-getters” how to become “go-givers”….
— Ted Owen, Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce, April 26, 2010 Read Full Review
I don’t care for the parable style of business book, simply because it typically rings a little hollow and sometimes permits the teaching to stay at a superficial level, never getting the specifics. Both The Go-Giver and The Referral of a Lifetime avoid these problems….
— Julie A. Fleming, May 12, 2010 Read Full Review
Listen up: Receiving is a good thing. Not only does it feel good, but it’s our one and only way to be able to give back to the world in all kinds of meaningful ways. In fact, when someone gives you a gift or does something nice for you … the best thing you can do is to simply receive it gracefully and graciously — which is actually like giving a gift right back to them!
— Michelle Joy Stimpson, FollowingYourJoy.com, August 16, 2010 Read Full Review
The Go-Giver, by Bob Burg and John David Mann, is written from a business perspective but has considerable wisdom about how we should embrace the other parts of our life, too. For me, the book provided more insights about how to face my personal issues than my business ones.
— Alex Blackwell, TheBridgeMaker.com, August 26, 2010 Read Full Review