Rating: 
Summary: Pseudo-sophisticated psychologist babbles on management
Review: Follow the author's advice in the last chapter: "My advice: don't take my advice." If he had put this first, I would have saved myself the time I spent reading it.Farson's hypothesis is simply that everything is exactly the opposite of what it purports to be. Obvious is invisible, gain is loss, progress is regression, success is failure. While I consider myself a somewhat "out-of-the-box" thinker, challending the "we've alway's done it that way," mentality, I have also learned that many things today are the way they are for good reasons almost as often as for bad reasons. There's a big difference between asking probing questions to evoke an intellectual response and making blanket challenges to every idea that someone else happened to think of. Furthermore, I understand that for many people is reality, and there is little to be gained by challenging opinions that people are intellectually married to--your're better off trying to convince a dog that he's a cat. The not-so-subtle liberal, PC-leanings of the author only made reading more laborious, but should not have come as a surprise, given that conservative (read: traditional) ideas are the target of the whole book. Why is it that every idea that is more than 40 years old (before the supposedly progressive decade fo the 1960's) is so wrong and oppressive to this current generation of self-appointed experts? Farson must think I'm a very smart person for doing something as stupid as reading his book.
Rating: 
Summary: What an eye opening perspective! A must-read!
Review: How or why I picked this book from the shelf, I don't know. Perhaps the word "Absurd" was so provocative that I was drawn to the book. At any rate, this is certainly a must-read for anyone in business who struggles to be a leader - which Farson defines using Bennis' definition - one who does the right thing rather than one who does a thing right. Too much time is spent in business doing the wrong thing right. We try to change organizations by changing the individuals most in need of change. Wrong, says Farson. Focus change on those who need to change least, because they are capable of changing most. Farson comments on technology, individuals, organizations, relationships, and much more. If you feel you cover lots of ground only to end up back where you where, I advise you to create a new perspective on your efforts by reading this book.
Rating:
Summary: Leadership is a paradox, not a formula
Review: I enjoyed this book so much I made it required reading in the leadership course that I teach. (Although it is not the ONLY book that I require...linearity has its' place.) Interesting that some of the other reviewers treat the book harshly, if I may paraphrase, because Farson does not provide any "formulas" for leadership. The entire central thesis of the book is that leadership is not about "formulas," it is about finding balance between extremes. It is about paradox. An excellent book to stimulate reflection and introspection; a foolish one if you are bound too heavily by linear thought.
Rating:
Summary: Insights into business paradoxes
Review: I'm not a manager, and have never been a manager, but this book has been critical to my development as a worker bee. I bought it going through a lot of turmoil in the workplace and it really gave me insights to see how the dynamics between people operate. The book shows the logic of such paradox's such as "The opposite of a profound truth is also true" and "Big changes are easier to make the small ones". Each paradox is described in bite sized chapters of 2-5 pages long. I often pull this out of my bookcase, read two of three random chapters to relax from various stresses. The best thing about this book is that it is not prescriptive. In fact, it tends to show the fallacy of common business prescriptions. By sharing his insights, Farson allows the reader to better understand various business, and for the matter, personal dynamics and respond constructively to them.
Rating:
Summary: Insights into business paradoxes
Review: I'm not a manager, and have never been a manager, but this book has been critical to my development as a worker bee. I bought it going through a lot of turmoil in the workplace and it really gave me insights to see how the dynamics between people operate. The book shows the logic of such paradox's such as "The opposite of a profound truth is also true" and "Big changes are easier to make the small ones". Each paradox is described in bite sized chapters of 2-5 pages long. I often pull this out of my bookcase, read two of three random chapters to relax from various stresses. The best thing about this book is that it is not prescriptive. In fact, it tends to show the fallacy of common business prescriptions. By sharing his insights, Farson allows the reader to better understand various business, and for the matter, personal dynamics and respond constructively to them.
Rating:
Summary: Of the best business books ever
Review: It's amazing this book isn't handed out to every literate adult in America. In so few pages, it completely challenges linear thinking about everything from running a meeting to raising kids, and you'll find yourself constantly finding real-world examples of what he's talking about after you read it. Though much of what he writes may not be new, as he frequently cites the predecessors he learns from, the ingenuity is how he coherently and concisely pulls it all together.
Rating: 
Summary: Absurd? I'll Give You Absurd!
Review: Management is a series of two to three page essays organized into eight sections. Each section deals with a different issue faced by organizations including communication, change, politics, technology, and leadership. While Management can easily be read from cover to cover, each essay is self-contained. Farson has designed the book so that the manager in need can turn to an essay and hopefully glean new insight into his particular problem. But if you're looking for enlightenment, save your money. Management is wholly unsatisfying, filled with platitudes. Farson talks about problems in management that most readers will easily be able to understand. In fact, most of the time, you'll find yourself wondering why Farson is stating the obvious. The most absurd thing about this book is the time you'll spend reading it.
Rating:
Summary: Is this book a paradox? Useful but Un-useful?
Review: Management of the Absurd by Richard Farson is a very easy to read book. It offers a fresh way of looking at management styles and management training. Farson beleives that the management techniques taught in most management schools are erroneous and that good managers can not rely on the so called tricks of the trade to be successful. The problem with Farson's book is that it is strictly for entertainment and although it may start one thinking about his or her management style it really can not be applied in the real business world. Farson uses anecdotes to explain and substantiate most of his points. The problem with the use of anecdotes instead of scientific facts is that usually the same anecdote can be used to disprove a theory, and that is the case in this book. Also, Farson fails to take into the account the employee view on his ideas. For instance, he claims that praise should not be used to motivate others. He fails to outline the ramifications on an employee that has come to expect praise as a motivator because he or she has experienced it since birth. Farson does have some interesting points in the book. He states that it is more important for the manager to like the employee than for the employee to like the manager. He also devotes a useful chapter to gut feelings and the importance of the use of intuition by successful managers. The book definitely gave me some things to think about, I just don't know if I can actually use any of it.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting yet not very helpful
Review: Overall I got a few points from the book yet it could be better I appreciate Farson look at the leadership/management/business practice from different perspectives, and there're some interesting lessons. For instance, 'in communication, form is more important than content', it reminds me to aware of unspoken language and hidden agenda. However, most of the other topics just contained many drawbacks/backfires of common practices, they didn't give me a clear clue - 'so what?' As we all know everything has pros and cons, or 'Yin' and 'Yang' in Chinese words, it's good to know the both sides, but by knowing more negative side didn't help you know where to go (unless you also know positive as well and know how to make hard calls). This book makes me think of 'The Dilbert Principle'. 'Dilbert' also makes fun of many business practices. It does make you laugh and think a little, but then you might still ask 'so?' or 'so what now?'. For instance, by knowing more side-effects and drawbacks of computer technology doesn't help me a lot. I'm still using computer now. We all know every thing and decision has side-effects and drawbacks. Still we need to decide and be responsible for the result. We review it and then make the next move. Maybe the intent of the author is only to stimulate readers to think on their own without giving a clear direction, just as the last chapter title - 'My advice is don't take my advice'. In some way it does sound right; however, for me, I think the author just played safe but indecisive to say that. Net, I wish the author can directly tell us what he think 'we can do', instead of 'what's bad about this'. Recommend 'not to buy' for business managers who prefer to be more decisive.
Rating:
Summary: Reading this is like taking a competence pill
Review: Reviewer: Mark Lamendola, MBA,.... Two thumbs up! Farson hits the nail on the head, time after time. Usually when I review a management-related book, I don't post the review because I can't come up with a positive one! Most books on this topic oversimplify and make recommendations that have me wondering just how stupid the author thinks people are. The fact I will post a review of this management book is a ringing endorsement. I listened to this book on tape--the author is a very good narrator. But now I am convinced I need a hard copy to refer to every so often. One reason this book succeeds is the author guides the reader into a different way of looking at common management problems. Common solutions (those most often prescribed by the typical management books) merely exacerbate problems. In reality, management problems defy resolution via simple formulas. Understanding why things are as they are is the first step to successfully coping with them. Things are not always as they seem. What does this mean to a manager who must solve problems like employee dissatisfaction? That is a question Farson answers extremely well. The answer is not "be a robot and do this." Instead, Farson shows you how to best use the talents, knowledge, and intelligence you already have. Farson shows you how to identify the real issues and where to look for achievable resolution. Personally, I like a book that doesn't assume I am a programmable robot but instead helps me grow in my own area of expertise. That is why I decided to post a review of Management of the Absurd.
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