Past Book Review (November 13, 2003): "The Secrets of Consulting"

Past book review (i.e. posted prior to starting this blog) for The Secrets of Consulting: A Guide to Giving and Getting Advice Successfully, by Gerald M. Weinberg, Dorset House Publishing, 1986, reposted here:

What exactly is consulting? And how does one consult successfully? This informative book attempts to answer these questions in a humorous, easy-to-read style. Throughout this book, Weinberg introduces and explains dozens of consulting laws, rules, and principles – and right from the start, with his laws of consulting laid out, you will be captivated by Weinberg's philosophy:

• The First Law of Consulting: In spite of what your client may tell you, there's always a problem.

• The Second Law of Consulting: No matter how it looks at first, it's always a people problem.

• The Third Law of Consulting: Never forget they're paying you by the hour, not by the solution.

• The Fourth Law of Consulting: If they didn't hire you, don't solve their problem.

Some of my many favorite laws, rules, and principles:

• The Bolden Rule: If you can't fix it, feature it.

• The Lone Ranger Fantasy: When the clients don't show their appreciation, pretend that they're stunned by your performance – but never forget that it's your fantasy, not theirs.

• Marvin's Second Great Secret: Repeatedly curing a system that can cure itself will eventually create a system that can't.

Have you seen the new poster that reads "Consulting: If you're not a part of the solution, there's good money to be made in prolonging the problem."? Weinberg would not agree with this statement – his Sixth Law of Pricing says that if they don't like your work, don't take their money. An alternative to these types of posters? Blow up the cartoon illustrations in this book and hang them in your office.