Rating: 
Summary: If it proves to be true, most people don't get it!
Review: Live Rich : Everything You Need to Know to Be Your Own Boss, Whomever You Work for
by Stephen M. Pollan, Mark Levine I read most of the other reviews of this book, and as is typical of reviews I disagree with, they just don't get it! Reading this book reminded me of the days when I was a Human Resources Manager for a particular company and even though an employee deserved and earned a decent pay raise, the General Manager on his own value system alone, regardless of company growth and increased business would expect me to negotiate .05 and .10, that's five and ten cent annual increases to many of the employees, especially minorities (No I am not a minority, yes I am a Republican). This book simply brings to the front the fact that you may be told from early childhood that working hard and doing all of the right things makes you a value and asset to the company, but in reality your an expense on the bottom line. Sure there are a few companies out there that value their employees, but where are they? I could provide dozens of case studies that prove this book to be right on the money. What this book does for you: It forces you to consider the reality of your role in a company, and presses home the fact that employment is a trade-off of your time and skills for a paycheck, not a lifestyle, ego trip, second family as our parents were led to believe. I could go on and on about this book, but I recommend you buy it, and evaluate your views of a job (just over broke), and how it fits into your reality, is it really 50% of your entire lifes value? It is if your like most people, which is sad since there is only 1 company remaining of the original Dow Jones 12...nobody remembers the other 11 companies or any of their employees, or their deeds, but wow did they spend thousands of lifetimes being loyal and proud to be a team player...for what...buy the book and find out!
Rating: 
Summary: Rich is more than just money! How about a conscious?
Review: Making money and achieving goals are wonderful aims, however, this book might as well be telling you to rob, steal and murder to get what you want. To be one person at work, and your human self afterwards. While not everyone can do what they love for work, I think a persons character is most important, nomatter what you're doing. This book seemed to have no ethics at all.
I couldn't stand it anymore, and trashed it. There are plenty of good books about being wealthy- spriritually and materially at the same time- that's what I want to fill my life with.
Rating:
Summary: Not Worth Your Money Or Time
Review: Save your money on this one!!! Only the first 80 or so pages are useful. If you read the synopsis you will learn all you need to know. Don't expect the book to go into any more debth. I wasted my money on this one.
Rating: 
Summary: Why don't we learn this before it's seemingly too late?
Review: The first chapter is worth the price of the book. The rules of life have been permanently changed by technology, but we're all living like the old rules apply. Businesses today CANNOT be loyal to their work forces, unless the workers keep up with the changes. By knowing that we work for ourselves, we can remain competitive in our careers and/or in our own businesses. I also recommend Robert Kiyosaki's books. These authors are trying to get us to, as Kiyosaki says, "...mind our own businesses." If we truly are looking out for ourselves, we will provide the best value for others.
Rating: 
Summary: A great start in the first chapters, but downhill from there
Review: The first couple chapters had some really exciting ideas about work and it's role in ones life. I was really looking forward to reading the rest of the book. But soon after the book degenerated mightily. He started bashing the Industrial Revolution, then the last two thirds of the book is just a compendium of mundane advice on topics in alphabetical order (the first couple chapters of the second part are Accountants, Advertising, Age Discrimination).
Rating: 
Summary: Some Interesting Insight in Part I, Part II Disappointing
Review: The first part of the book provides some interesting insight about the nature of work in contemporary America. Unfortunately, the second half of the book consists of a long list of the author's opinions on various topics (such as hygiene, dress, work hours). I thought the second half of the book was a cop-out. The information presented in this book is not sufficiently detailed for someone looking to become an entepeneur.
Rating:
Summary: Rehashing "Looking Out for Number 1"
Review: This book can be summed up as follows : Get as much for yourself as you possibly can while giving back as little as you possibly can. An unfortunate rework of the 80's ethic of justifiable selfishness in the name of "accepting the new realities" of the present. A few useful ideas (some lifted from other sources without attribution) combined with a lot of tips you could pick up from any number of less expensive and self-righteous books. The "this is how we do it in the Big City (i.e.New York)" tone is all too obvious throughout. Read his first book Die Broke instead. It's much more useful and considerably less obnoxious. The separation of ethics into two separate areas -business and personal - reminds me of the mentality of the old clipper ship captains that felt it was OK to pillage and rape while they were in the South Pacific; as long as they attended church and were good to their families when they were home. The guy is a lawyer. It shows.
Rating:
Summary: Contradictory....
Review: This book contradicted itself in several places. For example, if you're an employer, pay as little as you can, offer no benefits, especially continuing education, hire indie contractors instead of employees, etc. If you are an employee, no loyalty, ask for as much money as you can get, demand paid continuing education, change jobs every three years happy or not, etc. His advice works only if you are in businesses that are like his, lawyer or othere white collar professional, or jobs where machines can do most of your work. SOMEBODY has to do physical work of some sort, so that others can do what Pollan espouses. Someone has to clean houses, make food at restaurants, take care of the elderly in nursing homes. Are you prepared to either work all your life to pay $$$$ an hour for this, or at some point are you going to do some of this stuff yourself to save money and/or make money off of others? He seems to feel that any sort of actual "labor" is something to be avoided. Well, who is going to weed his garden, or make the computers or any other machines he needs in his business? I actually found part 2 of the book more useful.
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Summary: "Do it for Money and the Love Will Follow"
Review: This book in a sense is the opposite of that book called "Do What You Love and the Money Will Follow" which was published several years ago. I really liked that book, and I like this one too. So many different ideas, and yet we can pick and choose what we want from them and use them for our benefit. Make no mistake about it, this book is about money. That's perfectly okay. If money doesn't interest you, don't read it. Above all else, this book is about putting what you do for a living in its proper perspective. As a society we've come to the point where our jobs are an extension of our family. When we introduce ourselves we state what we do for a living. We're not people, we're schoolteachers, police officers, lawyers, mechanics, etc. This is what sets this book apart and makes it worth reading. If you want to live a rich and satisfying life, your work is for money. If you're looking for love, get it from your family. Here is my favorite passage from the book: "My clients have been taught that their value as human beings has nothing to do with their salaries. And yet if they're offered less than they expected as a salary or in payment for their services they take it as a personal affront to their worth as a human being. They say they think it's what's inside that counts and yet they - and everyone else - respond, positively or negatively, to how people look. Someone who's dressed in expensive clothes, driving an expensive car, gets treated better than someone who isn't. Perhaps most damaging of all, my clients have been taught they should pay more attention to the emotional and psychological elements of work than to the money. They money, they were told, would take care of itself. They'd automatically be rewarded for their hard work. They thought that if they did what they loved, the money would follow. Their pay would magically match their education, their emotional gratification, and their perception of their own worth. They were told to ignore money. In this case ignorance clearly was not bliss." In one sense this book is an all out "look out for number one." We're told that there is no job security and that money is the sole focus of work. I agree, sort of. It's not about selfishness and obsession with money as much as it is putting perspective in our lives. Human beings have a real hangup with money. A person will move across the country for a better paying job, yet we claim "the money really isn't that important." It's the "job satisfaction" "the benefits" "the positive work environment." The author asserts that work is for money. He further claims there's nothing wrong with thinking like that. If work isn't for earning a living, then what is it for? Good question. Should you buy this book? Well that depends. If you like your work because of the great people there and the company softball team, this book will certainly open your eyes. I found this book to be more eye opening and thought provoking than anything else. It claims to be a "how to" book of sorts, and there is a lot of "how to" in here. I would have to say that this book is to employees what "The E-Myth Revisited" by Michael Gerber is to business owners. We're too tied up in what we do for a living to separate that from our personal identities. We define ourselves by what we do for a living. I'm giving this book 4 stars. I think it's an important book and a good sequel to the author's previous book "Die Broke." The format of the book is the same as "Die Broke" in that part II is an alphabetical glossary of various subjects. I found this book's part II to be a big improvement over the part II in "Die Broke." I don't know, maybe I paid more attention this time. It's a good book, one that definitely puts things in their proper perspective. If you find yourself "overworked and underpaid" then perhaps you should read this book. There's some great advice in here.
Rating:
Summary: Worth a read!
Review: This book is controversial, but it is actually pretty good. If you can get beyond some of the surface-level disagreements you might have with Mr. Pollan, you will find his work insightful and that you agree with him more than you disagree with him.
I enjoyed the read. I liked the "theory" part of the book better than the "pratical" part. I wish he had made the "theory" part a bit longer.
I don't agree with everything that the author says, but I can't discount the value of the book. It is worth a read and will give you some real good advice without sentimental fluff.
Of course, this book is a career-oriented book, so if you are looking how to "live rich" religiously, philosophically, metaphysically, or whatever, look elsewhere. Most criticisms of Mr. Pollan's viewpoint on money is because the people criticizing his work are coming from a metaphysical or spiritual angle, while this book merely instructs on how to live richly in sense of a career. And he does that make it clear throughout the book (in telling people to use their career to get money and their other aspects of life to get other things).
I guess someone may accuse Mr. Pollan of advocating overly strict compartmentalisation of life. I can understand that point of view. Even if you are against Mr. Pollan's ideas in this sense, I suggest you still read this book. It will challenge you and is especially good for entreprenuers, who often get too involved in making their business big and "successful" without remembering about the bottom line--for them. This book is worthwhile on that account alone!
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