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Friday, May 31, 2013

Book Blurb: From Smart to Wise

We have been sent From Smart to Wise to review and it looks like a useful tome for corporate types, deep into the mire of corporate philosophy which we recently quit.

The book is authored by Prasad Kaipa and Navi Radjou and the theme behind it is that we may be smart in our own deathly air-conditioned cubicles but aren't wise enough. Which we realised once we gave up the cubicle life. Yeah, guys, all those hours behind the glass is not worth it; so get up, walk around, catch the sun in the afternoon, and don't put off that vacation for long. If you need to be wise, you have to unwind. Which is what the authors seem to be saying.

The book states that it is not lack of intelligence that matters in things corporate but lapses in judgement. Take for example Bob Diamond, Barclays Bank's former CEO implicated in the LIBOR scandal, and Rajat Gupta, McKinsey & Company's former managing director convicted of insider trading, they wouldn't have committed excesses if they were wise enough. We agree.

Smartness, as in all things in life, needs wisdom. We agree to that also. The book is recommended reading for the tie-wearing types who think they are very smart. (We used to do that once upon a time before we gave up.)

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