Have you ever wanted to read all of the self-help books you've seen on airport bookstore shelves, but lacked the time? Then this series of books may be just the thing for you. It's the "Coles Notes" of the self-help and motivational literature.
I've just been reading 3 titles in a series of books written by Jim Randel and his associates. The books are part of his "the skinny on" series.
As explained in the books and on their Web site, Jim is a best selling author, investor, attorney and entrepreneur. Inspired by the Japanese literary form, Manga, Jim created a series of illustrated books on popular topics that are meant to be read in an hour. Yes, these are short books populated with stick figures named Billy and Beth (with guest appearances by stick-figure Jim too!).
It may sound a little strange, but it works. They are quick to read, entertaining in their own quirky way, and they certainly get to the point. After an hour of reading, you'll have encountered ideas on the topic offered up by the modern-day gurus of the motivational and self-help genre, including people like Tony Robbins, Stephen Covey, Norman Vincent Peale, and many many others. Jim even quotes William James and current psychologists like Roy Baumeister.
Given the brevity of each book, Jim is necessarily "light-fingered" in his selection of quotes and sources, but he does a good job of presenting the main ideas from many of these writers. Certainly it's a quick read, and that's one of Jim's main goals. For a generation of people now over-reliant on snippets of information presented in the media, online or even on their cell phones, Jim manages to achieve his goal of entertaining and informing as quickly as possible.
Of course, as a scholar accustomed to laboring through peer-reviewed journal articles, doctoral theses and book-length treatises on topics, I often felt that topics were dealt with in less depth than I might desire. However, that is the cost of short. In addition, there were topics on which I think the brevity compromised the accuracy of coverage. For example, on the topic of procrastination (a topic I know best), the information presented falls far short of addressing key issues. Perhaps future editions will address this.
If you've been interested in getting a quick summary of some of those books you only know by the covers at the airport bookstores, this may be just the thing for you. In addition to the three titles I noted already (i.e., Time Management, Willpower, Success), he covers topics like credit cards, real estate investing, the housing crisis and direct sales. There are new titles being released all the time. They're short, so the turn-around time is quick and timely.
So, that's the skinny on "the skinny on." You can learn more at theskinnyon.com and make up your own mind if this is where you might invest a few dollars and an hour or two.
Blogger's note: In the spirit of full disclosure, I want to note that the publisher sent these books to me for review. I'm writing to make PT blog readers aware of this series. I'm not endorsing the books, but you can find many strong endorsements for these books on their Web site.
