So it was with some trepidation that I picked up the just-released, TOUGH LOVE: Scripting the Drive, Drama and Decline of Galaxy Coffee by John Moore.  Moore is a veteran of the marketing departments of both Starbucks and Whole Foods, a well-known blogger and the author of an earlier book about Starbucks, Tribal Knowledge. He is also a friend of mine, one who often departs from the beaten path and who chose to release his new book in a most unconventional fashion.

Tough Love is an e-book, written as a screenplay, and is the first book to be published by 800-CEO- READ, a Milwaukee-based online bookseller known for its informed reviews, interviews and business book manifestos.  When asked about why they decided to launch a joint venture with Moore, Jon Mueller of 800-CEO-READ said, “We’re big fans of John, and when I saw that he was working on a business screenplay, I thought it would be the ideal format to launch through ChangeThis.  The site is about creating positive change, and not only do John’s ideas do that, the book itself suggests a different route for presenting business thought.”

I am pleased to report that Tough Love is a gem of a book that delivers on all fronts. Reading it is a bit like watching a subtitled film.  Within a dozen pages, the dialogue format all but disappears, and I found myself caught up in the strong storytelling which sets the book apart and makes the business lessons memorable. That what happens to the fictional Galaxy Coffee so closely mimics much of what is happening to its real-life counterpart, Starbucks, further establishes Moore as a top notch marketing brain and makes him seem prescient all at once.

I sat down with John at our offices this week to talk about his latest project.  Here’s a quick take on five questions I had upon reading his book.

Q:   Tough Love is not only an e-book, it is in a format unfamiliar to business readers and it is the first title to be published by 800-CEO-READ.  Why did you choose such an unconventional path?
I totally respect 800-CEO-READ. Not only are they THE experts in selling business books, they are tastemakers of business books. Having the support and the endorsement from them means a lot to me, especially given the non-conventional format of Tough Love.

Q:   I’ve heard you say you’re not a fan of fables.  If so, then why did you choose a fictional format for this book of business wisdom?
With all the drama that has been going on with Starbucks in the past few years, it seemed natural to write a story about it. However, I didn’t want to limit myself to writing a fable, because the story I wanted to tell was too complicated to fit the fable format. Generally, business fables have one, maybe two, key ideas. That’s it.  My Tough Love story covers a lot of territory from company culture, to leadership skills, to marketing strategies, to navigating a global brand during a bad economy. There were far too many insights I wanted to share that wouldn’t fit the mold of a fable business book.
I went the screenplay route, because it allowed me to tell this complicated story from a few different angles. Also, I wanted to challenge myself to write in a format and style that’s different from anything I’ve ever done (or perhaps will do again).

Q:  What’s your goal with Tough Love?  Are you challenging the traditional publishing world or merely stretching your own mental muscles to bring business ideas to life in new ways?
I’m not out to challenge the traditional publishing world. Instead, I want to share interesting business ideas in interesting ways. The e-book format has a lot of flexibility now with the iPad and all the other smart devices out there. People I’ve talked with who’ve read Tough Love on their iPad tell me it reads great.

Q:  I understand there is a print version of the book in the works.  Tell me more.
In August, we will offer Tough Love as a printed book. Readers will have the option to get the screenplay as a PDF or as a bound book. It’s a matter of making Tough Love more convenient to readers.

Q:  If readers walk away from your book with just one thing, what would you hope that would be?
Simply put… do something different.  All the main characters in Tough Love eventually do something different.  Vivian Kane, a long-time Galaxy Coffee marketer, makes a major career shift at the end of the story. David Pearl, the fictitious CEO of Galaxy Coffee, has massive change forced upon him. While he initially rejects the change, David eventually embraces the change and does something different in his professional life. This change brings about a renewed entrepreneurial sprit within David and that inspires him to bring out the entrepreneurial spirit in others. The ending will surprise a lot of people and hopefully inspire readers to do something different.

Tough Love is the perfect addition to your summer business reading list.  I give it two thumbs up and predict you’ll be surprised at how much you’ll learn and how much fun you’ll have getting to know Moore’s compelling cast of characters.

Visit John Moore online and buy the book at 800 CEO READ.

http://tiny.cc/0fu80

John Hagel and John Seely Brown were at the Times Center in New York Monday night launching their just-released book, THE POWER OF PULL (Basic, hardcover.) In a lively discussion led by New York Magazine’s John Heileman, they discussed how their new book moves beyond the mere technological changes in our world, to the serious, fundamental and game-changing implications they bring to the business world and beyond. What does happen when people who formerly bought products offered (or pushed) at them and instead buy by pulling what they need, from wherever it is available, whenever they want it? Obvious examples include reloading your iPod with movies and songs, finding the perfect flight to Fiji without leaving your desk, or reading the most recent headlines without a stroll to the newstand or even the front porch.

The world of push is here and JSB, Hagel and coauthor Lang Davison peel back the layers and the symptoms of our wired world to undercover the profound shift that is driving change in the way we live and the way we work.

I still vividly recall my father taking me to get my first library card and sign the paper that let me check out out titles BEYOND the picture books.

Fast forward what seems like a lifetime, and this weekend, while stuck with a rainy day on our vacation, my 16 year old borrowed my Kindle and was instantly hooked.

I love that even technology can’t dim the power of books to bring us together.

We didn’t have to look far for our first contributor as Dennis Welch here on our staff wrote his first book late last year. A candid memoir of his mother Patsy’s life, it is a book about tragedy and triumph, friendship and faith. I am a big fan.

Here’s one of his first missives from the “life as an author” file.

So, let me just begin by saying that there are all kinds of PR. I’ll explain later.

It all began with a breakfast meeting a month or so ago with my pastor, Will Davis Jr. He’s a great guy and I’m delighted that he’s my pastor and my friend. I met him at Waterloo here in Austin one morning at around 7:30. We had a delightful visit, I signed a copy of my new book Rich People Shop Here to he and his sweet wife Susie, and all was well.

Then, a couple of weeks ago I found out that someone was selling a copy of Rich People on Amazon for a premium because it was a “collector’s item, signed by the author”. I went right over to the item to see who in the world would be selling their copy of the book already, especially ONE I HAD SIGNED SPECIFICALLY TO THEM…

And there, plain as day was the inscription: “To Will and Susie.”.

What!!!! I jumped to EVERY conclusion and I have to say my first reaction did not give him the benefit of the doubt. SELL MY BOOK THAT I SIGNED TO YOU???? HOW DARE YOU???? It’s a work of art, for God’s sake!!!!

I waited a couple of days and sent Will a note to let him know that I had found it on line and I was very clinical in what I sent. Unemotional, even.

His reply was priceless: “Thank God you found it! We’ve been looking all over for it! We thought we’d lost it!” It turns out that Will and Susie had recently moved his parents out of their house and his house was FILLED with STUFF. Susie suggested that he take some of their stuff to Goodwill, so Will just started taking things down there to clear some space.

Unfortunately, my book was in the Goodwill stuff. When he found out it was for sale as a collector’s item he was appalled and embarrassed.

So, what did he do? He logged on to Amazon and bought his OWN BOOK back at a premium, a book that was signed to him!

This past Saturday and Sunday he preached about having too much stuff. That enough is what we need and that most of us have more than enough. We have so much that we lose our friend’s book and have to buy it back. He held the book up in every service and….

Well, I’ve already said it. There are all kinds of PR.

My lesson? Give people the benefit of the doubt. Don’t jump to conclusions.

All the things I write about in my book….

Here’s a link to my post: http://www.churchofthecustomer.com/

Within an hour of this posting, emails started dropping into my box from authors interested in our services.

Seems the mantra of social media can easily be summed up in a single word — participate.

BookPeople in Austin hosted the authors this week for an event where everyone learned how to drop pounds and get healthy without gimmicks, packaged foods, or strange supplements. Dr. Sherard, Ray, Amy Hanus (who is busy creating recipes for the full plate dieters) and Dr. Fleming were all on hand. Everyone who showed up to hear the authors talk were shocked to learn they could eat MORE and weigh LESS.

So, as I sit here on the eve of the holidays receiving emails about our holiday gift – a card featuring us all playing scrabble with a portable scrabble game – I feel compelled to give the credit for this clever idea where it is due. To be honest, trying to come up with a holiday card or gift that somehow relates to the publishing industry gets tough. Once you have exhausted the obvious bookmarks, book bags, or even bookends, the idea well gets a little dry.

So this year, when the holiday card time rolled around I was a little stumped. Then, someone on staff reminded me of some shots we had from a standard company shoot. We had never used them as most featured us standing around trying to look like we’re not being photographed. Then, Dennis’s wife, Susie, reached over at the end of the photo session which we were more than ready to end, dumped a scrabble game on the floor and urged us all to sit down and put the company’s name on the board. These candid shots were the only good ones taken that day. And playing with words did seem a good idea for a company that promotes book.

Then, as I sat mulling one night what we could send to accompany the card, my middle child, 14 year old Corey, look a glance and said, “Oh, you should put in those scrabble games that you can take in the car.” Of course, this was FAR better than anything at all I could think of. A scrabble dictionary I had wondered? Corey mulled. “Well, that’s okay, I guess, but what good is the dictionary for Scrabble if you don’t have the game?”

There you have it – anyone who got the game from us and loved it, we’re thrilled. But the clever idea was alas, not really ours. Kudos to Susie Welch and Corey Henricks. We’re mulling whether they would consider sharing the title of Chief Creative Officers of the company.

Personal Development WINNER! – Power of 2 by Rodd Wagner & Gale Muller (Gallup Press)

Leadership nominee – Strengths Based Leadership by Barrie Conchie & Tom Rath (Gallup Press)

Marketing & Advertising nominee – “I Love You More Than My Dog” by Jeanne Bliss (Portfolio)

Entrepreneurship & Small Business nominee – Duck and (Re)Cover by Steven S. Little (Wiley)

Biographies & Narratives nominee – How to Castrate a Bull by Dave Hitz with Pat Walsh (Jossey-Bass)

Innovation & Creativity nominee – In Pursuit of Elegance by Matthew B. May (Broadway Business)

Congratulations to all of the winners and nominees!

But while we watch our industry undergoing what is clearly a game-changing shift pushed by technological and digital innovation, watching an old fashioned book, the kind that lives between two covers, remains a big thrill.

This week, Jeanne Bliss has enjoyed a double victory with her book “I Love You More Than My Dog” Five Decisions that Drive Extreme Customer Loyalty in Good Times and bad. (Portfolio, hardcover, October, 2009)

It has become a BusinessWeek bestseller http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/09_49/b4158068815587.htm?campaign_id=rss_null

And Inc magazine has named it a notable book of 2009. http://www.inc.com/ss/best-books-business-owners-2009#14

Our hats off to Jeanne!

And for the record, the seismic shift and the rise of the digital book are both trends that I feel bring with them tremendous opportunity. More on that here later. After we’ve popped the champagne corks to celebrate with Jeanne.