Product Description

Chris Matthews is like no other TV interviewer. Life’s a Campaign is like no other book on success.

Famous for demanding the truth from his Hardball guests, Chris Matthews now reveals what the people running this country rarely confess: the secrets of how they got to the top. Here is the first book on power with insight snatched from those who wield it. Life’s a Campaign exposes the tactics, tricks, and truths that help people get ahead–and can help you, too, whatever your field of ambition.

Written in the assertive, good-natured style that is Matthews’s trademark, Life’s a Campaign is the most useful kind of investigative reporting. You’ll benefit from his insider’s scrutiny of the Congress, the White House, and the national news media. Here are the methods, showcased in fascinating anecdotes and case histories, that presidents, senators, and other powerful people use to persuade others and win–and the life lessons they provide for the rest of us.

You’ll learn about Bill Clinton’s laser-focused ability to listen to those he wants to seduce–and how he’s been teaching that craft to his wife, Hillary; how Ronald Reagan employed his basic optimism to win history to his side; the simple steps in human diplomacy that the first President Bush exploited to assemble a worldwide posse to attack Saddam Hussein and gain global approval in a way his son has failed to do; how Nancy Pelosi became the first woman Speaker of the House by practicing the most fundamental of human qualities: hardnosed loyalty. You’ll also find out, for the first time, about Matthews’s own wild ride through the turbulent, converging rapids of politics and journalism.

The big payoff in Life’s a Campaign is what you’ll learn about human nature:

• People would rather be listened to than listen.
• People don’t mind being used; what they mind is being discarded.
• People are more loyal to the people they’ve helped than the people they’ve helped are loyal to them.
• Not everyone’s going to like you.
• No matter what anybody says, nobody wants a level playing field.

Knowing such truths is the successful person’s number one advantage in life. As you’ll learn in Life’s a Campaign, mastering–and employing–these truths separates the leaders from the followers.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #469760 in Books
• Published on: 2007-10-02
• Released on: 2007-10-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 224 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781400065288
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Publishers Weekly
During his decades in Washington, MSNBC newsmagazine host Matthews has collected plenty of insight into the "fine art" of "getting people to do what you want them to." While fondly recounting his climb from Capitol Hill police officer to presidential speechwriter for Jimmy Carter to Washington bureau chief for the San Francisco Examiner and beyond, Matthews presents a ladder-climbing narrative meant to inform and inspire. Admonishing readers that no one wants to hear your ideas unless you force them to, Matthews shows readers how to get into the game (any game) and face the risks involved: "The more failure you can accept, the greater your chance of success." Examining political figures from Bill Clinton ("the best politician I've ever seen) to Zell Miller (who famously challenged Matthews to a duel on national television), Matthews reveals how "the ability to deal with people" is paramount. Divided (without explanation) into the sections indicated in his subtitle, Matthews provides anecdotes and analysis, as well as a useful (if not exactly surprising) "Bottom Line" at the end of each chapter ("To win the contest, you first have to be a contestant," "rivalry is as normal as friendship," etc.). Fans will find Matthews's honest approach and hard-nosed rhetoric intact, and those turned off by the Hardball host's loudmouth on-air style may find his print incarnation an insightful, erudite alternative.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
“Insightful and entertaining.”—Jack Welch, author of Winning

“Written as a kind of ‘Hardball Unplugged,’ [this book] is full of clever anecdotes, pithy analysis, and folk wisdom.”—Douglas Brinkley, editor of The Reagan Diaries

“Insightful, erudite . . . Fans will find Matthews’s honest approach and hard-nosed rhetoric intact.”—Publishers Weekly

“A great book, and a fun read. People think that leaders ‘tell people what to do.’ More frequently, leadership in business is about selling teams on a vision, and leveraging friendship and trust to get things done. Chris does a great job of bridging his experience in politics with commonsense rules.”—Jeffrey Immelt, chairman and CEO, General Electric

“Matthews loves and understands as well as anyone I know the rituals, rules, and place of politics in our lives. And now everyone reading this book has the opportunity to share his passion and insights.”—Tom Brokaw, author of Boom! and The Greatest Generation

About the Author
Chris Matthews is the star of MSNBC’s Hardball and NBC’s The Chris Matthews Show. He contributes frequently to NBC’s Today and is a familiar guest on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. He was a longtime Washington bureau chief for the San Francisco Examiner and later a national columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle. He holds the David Brinkley Award for Excellence in Communications, eighteen honorary doctorates from American colleges and universities, and was a visiting fellow at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. He lives with his wife, Kathleen, an executive vice president with Marriott International, in Chevy Chase, Maryland.

Customer Reviews

You Can't Win Unless You're In The Game
I am of two minds about 'Life's A Campaign' and the man who wrote it Chris Matthews. This is the same man who is known for non-stop, very loud talking. Yet, here he is giving advice on how to succeed in life. His advice he gleaned from the politicians he has met. Does Chris Matthews take his own advice? Well, he says he does.

He says " To get ahead in life you can learn a lot from those who get along for a living. The people who make the biggest impression on me and who've really taught me the tricks of getting ahead in life are the politicians. I know that goes against the grain, but so does the shrewdest advice I've grabbed."

The book is well written and the personal stories that Chris Matthews shares are some of the best I have heard. We can gain wisdom from these people as we see how they operate on a daily basis. Some of this wisdom is sound. At the end of each chapter, Chris Matthews summarizes the chapter with the 'Bottom Line'. On chapter 3 he says in the Bottom Line " Loyalty, Friendship, Investment, Reward. Never underestimate these factors." All good and sound. Yet, do we want to live our lives like politicians?

Jon Stewart skewered Chris Matthews on his show. Jon Stewart has the view that no politician has the values he wants to follow. That is legitimate, but what about the politicians SOME may admire, Teddy Roosevelt, John F Kennedy, Franklin D Roosevelt or Harry Truman. What is it the qualities that are admired? Is Chris Matthew pushing his point of view on us? Yes, of course, he is. He has one point of view, and we can learn from it as well as take it with a grain of salt. Politicians are real people much as we hate to admit it with foibles and assets.

Chris Matthew was interviewed on NPR's 'Talk of the Nation'. It was one of the best interviews I have heard. In fact Chris Matthew came across so well I bought his book. He was charming, full of stories and ideas, information that was helpful, funny and poignant. As I started reading his book I realized, as he had stated, that what he had to say was a lot of common sense. "People would rather be listened to than listen. Not every one's going to like you, accept it and move on. Optimism beats the alternative. Grin When You Fight. Keep Good Company" and on and on. A fast read and entertaining. Each chapter begins with a quote from someone, one of my favorites:

"They say you can't do it, but remember they aren't always right" Casey Stengel.

Chris Matthews tells us about his first job, the people he met,the people he helped, the losses he felt, how he responded and what he has learned. I have a different view of Chris Matthews than the one that appears nightly on MSNBC. He has a family he loves, his boss Tip O'Neill made the biggest impression upon him, and from Tip he learned how the political world should work. He observed the relationships that mattered and the ones that worked well. He gives us insight into Hillary Clinton, lots of political savvy but she does not inspire. Ronald Regan, Obama, George W Bush and his father the first President Bush. All in all a book that has a lot to say. The critique I would give is that all of this advice is given in a cavalier manner. This could be and in a sense it is, an important political book. It may be that the format of the book takes away from the serious side. I enjoyed the message and met the messenger, up close and personal, as they say.

Recommended. prisrob 10-18-07

Hardball : How Politics Is Played Told By One Who Knows The Game

Deja Vu
Having read Carnegie's "How to Win Friends and Influence People" a few years back, I felt Matthews' book does nothing more than rehash the same exact points. The advantage of the current book is that it uses some up-to-date examples as opposed to some of the quaint, dated examples from Carnegie, but if you've read one of these books, you've read them both.

Practical Advice For Everyone
This book is a quick read, but does have some practical advice for anyone who interacts with people which would include most of us. Chris Matthews passes on wisdom that others have passed on to him which can be of benefit to young people trying to get started in a career. Matthews quotes Winston Churchill, Bill Clinton, and others who have provided wisdom in dealing with other people. Clinton on the importance of being a good listener. Most people can't wait until the other person finishes speaking so they can spout their own thoughts. Each chapter begins with catchy lines that teach a lesson such as Harvey Mackay stating, "Dig your well before you're thirsty." Each chapter is summed up to reiterate what Matthews wants to emphasize to you. Reading biographies, Matthews asserts, are beneficial to show us how others got where they wanted to go, and to study the routes others have taken. Of special importance, I feel, is the chapter on counting to ten, one hundred if you are really angry, before spouting a snappy or clever response at someone because all your hard work can be undone in a nanosecond. I rate the book three stars which isn't bad, and I'm sure Chris Matthews doesn't expect it to be rated five stars on the same level as some classic works, but the book does provide pracical advice for people. My copy is going to our local high school where I hope students will benefit from the wisdom Chris Matthews has provided.