Guy Kawasaki – Enchantment

Cover of EnchantmentDo you know those rare books – you read the last page, close the cover and think: YES!

Enchantment by Guy Kawasaki is not a book, its more like a manual, an action plan, a reminder to humanity and a guiding light for Web X.0.

In short, its about Win – Win. Which is work, wisdom and love. If you love what you do, your work, your product, if wisdom drives your car, negotiations and thoughts – enchantment is near.

In a network-economy the key for economic and personal success lies in creating win-win-situations and positive feed-backs. Guy Kawasaki´s “Enchantment” offers an inspiring road-map for successful navigation in our evolving digital society. This book is not only a must read, it´s a must share!
Prof. Dr. Stefan Stoll, author of the book “IT-Management”

Set your default to Yes, be a Mensch, create like a god, Just do it the ZEN style and be the pilot of your (business) life! Enchantment is also about telling compelling stories, intelligent interaction with people and understanding that a long journey starts with the first tiny step.

Nature (and Guy Kawasaki) teaches us, that Give and Take has to be in balance to build a healthy ecosystem. Digital natives grow up with facebook, twitter and YouTube but at the end, its a human handshake which is still unique and not downloadable.

Your blog, brain, business, heart and character – content is still king. Guy provides detailed and clear workflows to master push and pull web technologies. If you ever wondered what makes twitter so different to facebook, Enchantment is your friend!

Bring more Kanso into your life, celebrate Seijaku and your life gets Shizen. Read Enchantment and reduce stress. Enchant your employees, your boss and even your wife or husband!

You may think you see the “big picture,” but you don’t see her big picture. This advice alone justifies buying Enchantment. Guy Kawasaki

Update: this review is now officially listed on Guy Kawasaki’s website:
http://www.guykawasaki.com/enchantment/reviews/

Buddhism meets Star Wars

One of the key scenes of Star Wars is Luke Skywalker flying through the tunnel of the Death Star. Approaching his target, thoughts and fears cloud his vision, doubts expand in his mind like marshmallows in a microwave. Shortly before he collapses, he hears the voice of his master in his head: “Use the Force, Luke!”

Professor Dr. Gerhard Marcel Martin wrote a fine book about old sayings of the wandering monks of medieval Japan – the Hijiri. The collection is dated between 1287 and 1333. The inherent force of these sayings is enlightening even today:

#4 Disturbances don’t have priority.

Luke was surrounded by disturbances; fire towers, TIE fighters – Darth Vader. How did he reach his goal? Disturbances had no priority for him. Sure, there are as always exceptions to the rule. Next time you feel like Luke, use the Hijiri (or Jedi) force!

#22 Actions where you have to weigh up whether you should do it or not, you’d better leave undone.

A pair of proton torpedos fired by Mr Skywalker destroyed the Death Star – a pair of sonic words can exterminate a relationship. MYÅŒZEN (1184 – 1225) suggests us here to have a look at the tiny gap between our thoughts and actions. A word, once said, you cannot take back. Sure you can try to apologize, but out is out. Like the proton torpedos. Allow yourself this microsecond of time – it might make the difference between Death and Star.

Amazon.de (in German only so far) Buddhismus krass: Botschaften der japanischen Hijiri-Mönche

Feedback (in German) from Professor Dr. Gerhard Marcel Martin:

Lieber Herr Remspecher!
Endlich sage ich Dank für Ihre e-mail. Hat mich erfreut. Und ich fühle mich / mein Buch garnicht mißverstanden!
Ich war kurz in Nordkalifornien (darum die verspätete Antwort) und werde in Kürze nach Japan und Korea reisen.
Freundliche Grüße
Ihr
Gerhard Marcel Martin

Deutsche Ãœbersetzung
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Forest bathing

A walk through a forest is a multimedia spectacle. Air to breathe, an ocean of colors, a concert of fragrances, surround sounds everywhere – from your steps on the trail to the tops of the trees. Forest bathing is healthy and even free!

Recently the NY Times wrote about the therapeutic effects of forest bathing. Stress reduction, benefits for your immune system, lower pulse rate, less cortisol, lower blood pressure and much more. Somehow it’s no surprise to me, that the popular practice is called “Shinrin-yoku” in Japan. When did you do your last forest bathing? Mine was today.

In case you should not be able to take a walk or a forest bathing in “real life”, perhaps you might like to try at least a virtual forest bathing in Chakryn forest, which is a wonderful place in the virtual world of Second Life. Sure, it will not have the same impact like a real life forest but it might reduce some stress. You will find me in Second Life under my user name ZEN7MEN Mannonen. Happy bathing!

Deutsche Ãœbersetzung
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mono no aware

JAPAN Die Harmonie der StilleSandrine Bailly created a wonderful book “Japan: Season by Season”. The combination and composition of visual and lyrical arts offers a fine and ethereal path for the readers eyes and spirit. You can even hear the sounds of dancing brushes share their liquid color with the waiting paper. Traveling through the seasons of the book is like a journey into life and time. The physical weight and format of this book helps you to center and come back to earth (again).
Mono no aware.
Amazon.com Japan: Season by Season

Deutsche Ãœbersetzung:
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