Amazon.com's Best of 2001
With the better part of our lives spent at work, it's a wonder there aren't more books devoted to practical living in the workplace. Franz Metcalf, a Buddhist scholar and author of What Would Buddha Do? has teamed up with management consultant BJ Gallagher Hateley to apply the Buddha's insights to life on the job. What would Buddha do at work? Of course, he'd quit and go find a comfortable spot in the forest to meditate. But those of us for whom early retirement is not an option can still profit from the Buddha's wisdom. Buddha's advice is not always obvious but certainly always helpful. What would Buddha do to get promoted? To influence others? To maintain job security? The answer to the first two questions is that he would simply do his job well. You would think that would also be the answer to the third question. But for the third, our authors teach us the Buddhist notion of impermanence--that in a world that is always changing, job security is an illusion. So although the Buddha himself was focused on liberation, he also offered guidance for the workaday world that, with elaboration from Metcalf add Gallagher Hateley, can itself prove liberating. --Brian Bruya
From Publishers Weekly
Metcalf, the author of What Would Buddha Do?, joins with business consultant Hateley to dispense spiritual advice from the water cooler. What would Buddha do to become a terrific boss? What would Buddha teach about customer service? How would Buddha go about getting a promotion? The answers are sometimes surprising ("Buddha did not work for promotions and neither should you"), making this a refreshingly countercultural alternative to the typical spirituality-at-work manuals. Metcalf and Hateley provide relevant sacred texts at the top of each page, drawing from sutras, the Dhammapada and more modern guides such as Philip Toshio Sudo's Zen Computer. This is a successful example of the application of ancient wisdom to modern business situations.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
