Product Description

Meet Johnny Bunko. He's probably a lot like you. He did what everybody - parents, teachers, careers advisors - told him to do. But now, stuck in a dead-end job, he's begun to suspect that what he thought he knew is just plain wrong. One bizarre night, Johnny meets Diana, the unlikeliest career advisor he's ever seen. She reveals to Johnny the six essential lessons for thriving in the world of work. Packed with smart, counter-intuitive and potentially life-changing advice, it's the first and last career guide you'll ever need.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #15268 in Books
• Published on: 2008-09-04
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 160 pages

About the Author
Daniel H. Pink is the New York Times bestselling author of A WHOLE NEW MIND and FREE AGENT NATION. He lectures to corporations, associations and universities around the world on economic transformation and the changing world of work. In 2007, he won a Japan Society Media Fellowship that took him to Toyko to study the manga industry. Daniel H. Pink lives in Washington, D.C., with his wife and their three children.

Customer Reviews

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Really great read! In so few words, you can learn so much more about finding your real authentic YOU and setting your direction. Ideally one should read this book at important points of professional life - choosing a collage, choosing a profession or future employer...

A real cracking "improve yourself" book in a manga style!!
I read a report on this book in USA Today whilst in the States and the review was that good I decided to get the book that day. I am pleased i did. It purports to be the first Manga business book and I have never seen another one. It is a cracking read - though it only took me 30 minutes to read so maybe it lacks a bit of depth, but the story line, though fantasy, has its moments in its humour and the 6 messages it gives you. Unlike the other reviewer, I won't give you the 6 main points of the books.

I love the idea of a manga business book but the downside is that possibly this limits its potential market. I can't see many CEO's reading this small comic book small paperback on the tube - though thats their lose.

All in all a good read and well recommended and I hope this is the first of many in this style.

Get Beyond the Bad Advice that Family and Friends Give
Young people mostly get their career advice from friends (who usually don't have any more experience or knowledge than they do) and family (who base their ideas on what worked three decades ago). Either way, you get off track pretty easily.

There's plenty of good career advice in books and articles, but most young people wouldn't sit still long enough to read those sources. A Whole New Mind author, Dan Pink, comes up with a great solution: Create a career advice book in the form of manga.

Most career writers when they want to simplify a message use a fable, with a few illustrations that show the key perspectives. The fable is clearly secondary to the details.

In The Adventures of Johnny Bunko, the story is more interesting than the advice. Having read a lot of Mr. Pink's writing, I thought I knew what he would probably advise. But I didn't realize that he would make the story so interesting, and that the manga format would add so much power to the story telling. Nice work!

What's the advice? Let me rephrase to make it clearer to you:

1. Don't be rigid about planning out each step well in advance . . . it's not possible to do.

2. Build on what you're good at (Peter Drucker originated that one) and avoid relying on what you aren't good at.

3. Focus on what you can do for others (start with the boss) rather than what's in it for you (you can read more about this in How to Be a Star at Work).

4. Keep at it. Practice makes perfect.

5. Take on big challenges and learn from them.

6. Make a difference.

I like this advice. I hope my youngsters will read this book and apply it. I know they probably wouldn't if it came from dear old Dad.

If I could add one piece of advice, it would be to:

Set some written goals about how you want to spend your life. Those goals will help you keep focused.

Well done, Dan Pink and Rob Ten Pas!