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Make Your Own Luck: 12 Practical Steps top Taking Smarter Risks in Business by Robert Morris

Make Your Own Luck: 12 Practical Steps top Taking Smarter Risks in Business
Eileen C. Shapiro and Howard W. Stevenson
Portfolio/The Penguin Group

Shapiro and Stevenson have much of value to say about the relevance of gambling to business organizations as well as to an individual¹s business career and personal life. They offer a concept which they call ³Predictive Intelligence² (PI): ³the ability to act in the face of uncertainty to bring about desired results.² It involves a process which begins with recognizing whether or not one is in a betting situation. If so, they recommend ³The Gambler¹s Dozen,² steps by which to increase one¹s PI and thereby improve the odds when ³placing² business bets, career bets, and life bets. If all this seems hokey, blame me. It really isn¹t. Shapiro and Stevenson are quite serious when asserting that ³every purposive action is a bet; one acts now on the expectation or hope, but not the certainty, of the results that will be achieved in the future.² I agree. Given that premise, it is highly desirable to increase one¹s PI. Shapiro and Stevenson explain how. Each of the steps which comprise ³The Gambler¹s Dozen² is carefully positioned within the OOPA! process (i.e. Orient, Organize, Predict, and Act!) and for each, the authors create a context with equal care. Step #6, for example, should be initiated only after having completed the previous five Steps. Over a period of time, through repeated use, this checklist of ³practical steps² will become almost second nature to ³players² on Wall Street and in Las Vegas as well as to those making complicated career decisions and to executives who must decide, for example, whether or not to introduce a new product or service. This is a thoughtful, eloquent, and entertaining book. Its recommendations are eminently practical. ³The Gambler¹s Dozen² concept has almost unlimited applications. True, you can place smart bets (i.e. make excellent decisions) in all areas of your life without Shapiro and Stevenson¹s assistance...but why take that chance?