It's Not Luck

It's Not Luck is a sequel to Eli's first book "The Goal", and follows the same basic strategy, following the career of the protagonist, Rogu, teaching us along the way the thinking and business principals that Eli sees as key. I really enjoyed the book. Teaching through parables and stories is a great technique, and well followed in this book. The big idea being communicated was a process for thinking carefully and deeply about problems. In looking through this, we see it being applied primarily in a business context, and additionally in the personal life of Rogu. The different scenarios presented help us to see how general an approach it is, and that it is something that we can apply to al areas of our lives. In looking at the business applications we also see some of the principles of how Eli would run a company. In particular I found the following summary of business goals very helpful: Make Money now as well as in the future, Provide a secure and satisfying environment for employees now as well as in the future, and Provide satisfaction to the market now as well as in the future. These three goals give a business that thrives both now and is sustainable. The goals ensure that the company is profitable, that employees are happy, and that customers are being served. All of which are required to ensure that the company works well now and it is being done in a sustainable way. While I found this succinct description of goals for a company helpful, the key of the book is the thinking process presented within. I highly recommend you go and read "It's Not Luck", you'll learn and have fun while doing so.

Goldratt write in a thoroughly well-planned and concise style that is highly readable, yet the major characters do have dimensions that add to the plot and the learning he wishes to deliver. I work as a teacher in a public school and know very little about business management. Yet as the story developed I could draw many direct connections between the story and working with students parents, and faculty. The theory of constraints, the underlying theme of the books, has many levels of use: personal, social and professional. The book is brief. The thinking it inspires can last and last, and that is my favorite kind of book.

It's a nice book about management and negotiations, and it tries to show you how to tackle issues from different points of view, how to negotiate difficult problems and how achieve the results you want in your organization. The only con is that the methodology used in the negotiations is not very well explained. I mean that the author during the book uses 2 to 3 methodologies in different problems but only one of these methodologies is well explained.

I have used the lessons here in my work life and use the saying all the time as I have moved locations and still been able to replicate success in different work divisions and various geographic locations with different work teams. IT WORKS! I cannot recommend this enough. IT also is a great way to learn, through stories. Very relatable. Best business series I have read.

I have seen several of the reviews that slammed Its Not Luck, and I am surprised. I've read most of Dr. Goldratt's books and I cant believe that someone would find the book to have little value. But this book will not spoon feed you. You have to actually think. You will need to follow the steps to create a breakthrough in sales. And it is an unconventional breakthrough to build an operational capability that actually solves a customer's need, especially if the customer does not recognize that someone can actually solve that need. To get sales, if you are saying the same things as your competition (functions, features, service, etc.) then you should expect to compete on price. If you really try to use your brain, this book will help you find a way to differentiate yourself like no competition. But you have to do the work. This book is not a pipe dream, I have seen this book applied in multiple cases. It does work.

This book, in novel form, is a description of the "Thinking Process" of Theory of Constraints. This Thinking Process is really a bookkeeping process to provide rigor in rational thought. The story line is a bit weak, but as others have observed, it makes reading the dry processes fun. Once you have read this book, and are convinced that moving from a current reality [tree] to a future reality [tree] with the clouds removed is going to require the construction of a transition plan [tree], but you need some help, read "Thinking for a Change", by Lisa J. Scheinkopf - ISBN: 1574441019

I highly recommend this book. In fact, I am impressed on how unpopular it is. This book is the core thinking process of Eliyahu Goldratt and it is overlooked dramatically. It is his thinking processes that one that allowed him to write The Goal and we still overlook it. Caveat: This is a more complicated book than The Goal by far. It is fool of paradoxes, examples, knowledge and tools. However, none of the tools are easy to implement and require intuition, perseverance, listening skills and PRACTICE; therefore, I think i know why it is not as popular as the more prescriptive book The Goal.

It's Not Luck is the follow-up of "The Goal" which, probably by far, Goldratt's best known work in which he introduces the concept the Theory of Constraints. In "It's Not Luck" he introduces "The Thinking Processes" as a way to analyze a system and trying to find a way to break the constraint in the system. The book is written as a business novel and I found it a very easy read, yet... I didn't find it as insightful as "The Goal". The story follows Alex, who is a senior manager at a firm responsible for 3 divisions. In the past, he has had enormous success in turning businesses around. Now he is heading three large departments that are outside the core business of the company. The CEO will be leaving and he wants to re-structure the group and therefore the three departments Alex is in charge of will either need to be suddenly enormously successful or else they'll get sold. Alex is obviously not happy with that and will need to do *something* that will turn these 3 companies around. Alex uses "The Thinking Process" as a way of analyzing the current situation and speculating potential future situations. From these future situations, he then works back to find the constraints and tries to break these. This technique is the main technique that is promoted in this book. He first uses it one one of the companies and it turns out to be incredibly successful. They find a new business model and that way turn the company unexpectedly around. The same will need to happen for the other companies if Alex has any chance of success. Will he be able to do that? I'll leave it here and you can read the rest yourself. "It's Not Luck" was very easy to read. It was well written and kept me engaged and I read it fairly quickly. It was interesting to follow Alex and see how he would resolve the problems in his companies using "The Thinking Process." However, the book never gave me the insights that "The Goal" gave me. I found it hard to imagine how and when I would to use "The Thinking Process" in real life. I guess this book would just be a start and further study would be needed. I've been doubting whether it ought to be 3 or 4 stars. 4 stars because it was well written and an easy read. Three stars because I had hoped for more insight and was a bit disappointed (due my high expectations). I decided to stay with 3 stars.