The Lure of Greatness


Book Description

In 2016 two surprising explosions of popular contempt for the existing order drove Britain into Brexit and paved the way for Trump’s presidency of the United States. On both sides of the Atlantic, proud regimes with global pretensions were levelled by justifiable revolts. But in the name of self-government, Brexit and Trump will intensify the authoritarian traditions of their outdated political systems. The Lure of Greatness is a blistering account of how and why this happened. The shadow of Iraq, the great financial crash, campaigns of poison and intrigue, the filleting of David Cameron with the cold fury of a Remain voter... these are just the start. At the book’s heart is the story of the institutional and constitutional implosion of the United Kingdom, the farce of ‘the sovereignty of parliament’, a passionate account of English nationalism and the absurdity of the ever-increasing and insidious influence of the Daily Mail. What emerges is a compelling summary of an EU in crisis, the fateful absence of a viable left alternative, the normality of immigration – all of which frame the reasons for the triumph of Leave. Anthony Barnett, co-founder of openDemocracy, applies a lifetime of observing, reporting and sedition in this searing analysis of the two great democratic disasters of our time.




Lincoln's Melancholy


Book Description

A nuanced psychological portrait of Abraham Lincoln that finds his legendary political strengths rooted in his most personal struggles. Giving shape to the deep depression that pervaded Lincoln's adult life, Joshua Wolf Shenk’s Lincoln’s Melancholy reveals how this illness influenced both the President’s character and his leadership. Mired in personal suffering as a young man, Lincoln forged a hard path toward mental health. Shenk draws on seven years of research from historical record, interviews with Lincoln scholars, and contemporary research on depression to understand the nature of Lincoln’s unhappiness. In the process, Shenk discovers that the President’s coping strategies—among them, a rich sense of humor and a tendency toward quiet reflection—ultimately helped him to lead the nation through its greatest turmoil. A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice SELECTED AS A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: Washington Post Book World, Atlanta Journal-Constituion, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette As Featured on the History Channel documentary Lincoln “Fresh, fascinating, provocative.”—Sanford D. Horwitt, San Francisco Chronicle “Some extremely beautiful prose and fine political rhetoric and leaves one feeling close to Lincoln, a considerable accomplishment.”—Andrew Solomon, New York Magazine “A profoundly human and psychologically important examination of the melancholy that so pervaded Lincoln's life.”—Kay Redfield Jamison, Ph.D., author of An Unquiet Mind




F.Scott Fitzgerald'S Racial Angles and the Business of Literary Greatness


Book Description

This book charts Fitzgerald's use of racial stereotypes to encode the dual nature of his literary ambition: his desire to be on the one hand a popular American entertainer, and on the other to make his mark in an elite, international literary field.




Twilight of Democracy


Book Description

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • "How did our democracy go wrong? This extraordinary document ... is Applebaum's answer." —Timothy Snyder, author of On Tyranny The Pulitzer Prize–winning historian explains, with electrifying clarity, why elites in democracies around the world are turning toward nationalism and authoritarianism. From the United States and Britain to continental Europe and beyond, liberal democracy is under siege, while authoritarianism is on the rise. In Twilight of Democracy, Anne Applebaum, an award-winning historian of Soviet atrocities who was one of the first American journalists to raise an alarm about antidemocratic trends in the West, explains the lure of nationalism and autocracy. In this captivating essay, she contends that political systems with radically simple beliefs are inherently appealing, especially when they benefit the loyal to the exclusion of everyone else. Elegantly written and urgently argued, Twilight of Democracy is a brilliant dissection of a world-shaking shift and a stirring glimpse of the road back to democratic values.




The 48 Laws of Power


Book Description

Amoral, cunning, ruthless, and instructive, this multi-million-copy New York Times bestseller is the definitive manual for anyone interested in gaining, observing, or defending against ultimate control – from the author of The Laws of Human Nature. In the book that People magazine proclaimed “beguiling” and “fascinating,” Robert Greene and Joost Elffers have distilled three thousand years of the history of power into 48 essential laws by drawing from the philosophies of Machiavelli, Sun Tzu, and Carl Von Clausewitz and also from the lives of figures ranging from Henry Kissinger to P.T. Barnum. Some laws teach the need for prudence (“Law 1: Never Outshine the Master”), others teach the value of confidence (“Law 28: Enter Action with Boldness”), and many recommend absolute self-preservation (“Law 15: Crush Your Enemy Totally”). Every law, though, has one thing in common: an interest in total domination. In a bold and arresting two-color package, The 48 Laws of Power is ideal whether your aim is conquest, self-defense, or simply to understand the rules of the game.




Taking Control!


Book Description

Last call for humanity? Americans can now secure or destroy the world. From Anthony Barnett, the creator and former editor-in-chief of openDemocracy, comes this blazing response to the confrontation between Trumpism and Biden in America, that sets out how the future of humankind is at stake. On 6 January 2021, Donald Trump tried to seize the US presidency by force. His aim: to consolidate his nativist rule. He was, and still is, supported by tens of millions of Americans. In response, Joe Biden's administration promises a massive economic shift while a decisive contest unfolds over voter suppression. This contest is of epochal importance. As the future of humankind passes through the prism of the most powerful country in the world, Barnett reflects on the stark, limited spectrum of possible outcomes. He shows that the frustration of Trumpism is thanks to the decades long resistance to market fundamentalism. But it remains divided and incoherent. It is time for the left to embrace an open, ecological politics or the world will be subordinated to the regimes of the Iron Men and their successors.




Never Cold Call Again


Book Description

"Cold calling is the lowest percentage of sales call success. If you invest the same amount of time in reading this book as you do in cold calling, your success percentage and your income will skyrocket."- Jeffrey Gitomer, Author, Little Red Book of Selling "You can never get enough of a good thing! Read this book and USE its contents!"- Anthony Parinello, Author, Selling to Vito and Stop Cold Calling Forever Salespeople everywhere are learning the hard way that cold calling doesn't work anymore. Yet, millions of salespeople are stuck in the past, using twentieth-century sales techniques to try to lure twenty-first century customers. There has to be an easier way to find prospects - and there is. Today's most successful salespeople are using modern technology to bring prospects to them, rather than fishing for prospects over the phone or knocking on doors. Never Cold Call Again offers practical, step-by-step alternatives to traditional cold calling for salespeople, small business owners, and independent professionals who are actively building a client base. The Information Age presents endless opportunities for finding leads without cold calling. In fact, Frank Rumbauskas’s system brings prospects to the salesperson, rather than the other way around. Readers will find unbeatable sales advice on effective self-promotion, generating endless leads, how to win prospects using e-mail, prospecting on the Web, networking, developing effective proposals, and much more. Frank J. Rumbauskas Jr. (Phoenix, AZ) provides marketing consultation and coaching services to firms who wish to provide qualified leads to their sales force rather than have them spend productive work time cold calling. He is the author of the self-published hit Cold Calling Is a Waste of Time (0-9765163-0-6).




The Lure of the Ring


Book Description

"Rarely does a book come along that offers a highly original and compelling understanding of Tolkien's imaginal world. The Lure of the Ring is such a book. The Lure of the Ring takes us on a fascinating journey through the hearts and minds of some of Tolkien's most colorful characters in The Lord of the Rings, exploring with depth and insight how they respond to the allure of the One Ring. The primary focus is on two contrasting figures, the Dark Lord Sauron and Tom Bombadil - Tolkien's most enigmatic figure. Drawing on the deepest understandings of the psychology of addiction, the seductive allure of power, the stages of psychological development, and nondual spirituality, The Lure of the Ring provides a novel and thought-provoking answer to the most puzzling question in Tolkien lore: "Who is Tom Bombadil?" Offering unprecedented insights into Tolkien's characters, The Lure of the Ring also extends to readers an invaluable opportunity to explore more deeply their own relationship to power, addiction, psychological development and spiritual transformation" --




Empires of the Mind


Book Description

Prize-winning historian Robert Gildea dissects the legacy of empire for the former colonial powers and their subjects.




8 Weeks to Sales Greatness


Book Description

For most people, sales is the most probable path to a six-figure-plus income. It's always in need, companies are always hiring, and it pays very, very well. Yet every day, great people are quitting sales, not making enough money in sales or accepting an idea that they aren't cut out for sales. None of this needs to happen. The 8 Weeks to Sales Greatness is the simple and actionable blueprint to make sure its readers maximize their sales game and maximize their income potential. In an innovative, engaging and easy-to-read approach, this book quickly crushes the idea that sales is only for those "born to sell." It coaches salespeople on the mentalities, habits and skills that will quickly build superstar results. Written by someone who understands how salespeople like to read and be coached, the 8 Weeks to Sales Greatness is daily training that's easy to implement and built to last. As a sales and leadership consultant for the largest direct sales company in North America, Joe Nolan has been growing salespeople for decades. Obsessed with helping more great people be successful, Nolan created an experiment called the 8 Weeks of Greatness. The results were a 30% average increase in commissions earned. More important, the results were consistent every time the 8-week program was run. This book breaks down how anyone in sales can follow what those new and veteran salespeople did during Nolan's 8-week training and also dramatically increase their paychecks.