What do you think?
Rate this book
Fish! for Life
The internationally acclaimed business bestseller FISH! and follow ups FISH! TALES and FISH! STICKS have been a massive global success - with over a million copies sold in the States and over 400,000 copies in the UK. Now, for the first time, we're shown how to put the unique FISH! Philosophy into action in all areas of our lives, ranging from losing weight to improving our personal finances. Using the same easy-to-read parable format used in the original FISH! title, this is a both a true follow-up to that book (featuring two of the original characters) and a stand-alone work that can be read on its own. Through its unfolding story, we witness the many challenges encountered by a newly created family as they start building a life together - working parents, growing family, school tension, economic stress, and weight gain - and just how they are overcome. From this appealing metaphor we can obtain accessible wisdom and applicable insights which can be applied for achieving happiness and wellbeing in our own lives.
Paperback
Published January 1, 2004
31 people are currently reading
337 people want to read
About the author
Stephen C. Lundin
42 books60 followersStephen Lundin is a writer, entrepreneur and filmmaker with a rich history as a graduate level business school professor and dean. Steve has written a number of books including the multimillion copy best selling FISH! and the simply bestselling FISH! Tales, FISH! Sticks and FISH! for Life.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
June 24, 2016
Full disclosure: I read this book trying to win a prize. Our library, THE Goshen Public Library has a Summer Reading Program for adults this year. (...Maybe every year...) I've always wanted there to be a summer reading program for adults. Dreams can come true.
My wife reads more than anybody I know, and she entered last week, and won one of the drawings - $15 to one of our favorite restaurants. Nothing makes a prize seem as attainable as somebody you know winning it.
There are 3 drawings every week: one for fiction, one for non-fiction, and one for the Dewey Decimal System. I read this for the Dewey Decimal System drawing, thinking it's probably going to be the least entered.
I should also tell you that I've already bought in to the Fish! Philosophy. We watched the documentary in school a few years ago, and worked on incorporating it into our teaching, classroom management, etc... It takes some ideas from how Seattle's Pike Place Fish is run and applies them to other areas of life.
Like Tom Sawyer white-washing fences, they claim that if you incorporate fun into activities, it makes the unbearable bearable. Or that instead of scrolling through your phone and nodding your head when _______________ is talking to you, you should "be there" and actively listen.
It's a whole thing.
So, walking through the library, I was going through all these gardening books, and "How To" fix-it type books. How to work with leather and what not. It was somewhere around there that I stopped "choosing my attitude" or more appropriately, I started choosing a bad attitude and thought there was no way I was entering the Dewey Decimal Drawing this week.
*Side note* I NEARLY picked Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus, having heard about it my whole life, but never having read it. But, I thought that if I won with that book, I may have some explaining to do. (I don't actually know what the book's about, so maybe that wouldn't have been the case.)*
And then boom: the books parted, and a single beam of 90 watt florescent light shone on this spot of the book shelf, and I knew. It was the perfect book to read. I already approved of the Fish! Philosophy - though from the introduction alone, I was getting tired of reading Fish! with the capital letter and exclamation point every time. The book wasn't too long, so I could get it finished before Friday. AND my current boss was the one who brought the Fish! Philosophy to our school, so if nothing else, I could maybe get some brownie points for reading it over the summer. (And no doubt sand kicked in my face from the tough-guy teachers whose idea of the "make their day" component of the Fish! Philosophy for students is, "make their day bad.")
So, it seemed like a plan. But then I couldn't stand the book. I still love the philosophy, and I thought the documentary was solid. But this book came across as an attempt to milk every last drop of fish oil gold from a business fad that was cool in the early 2000s.
And when I found out the last 2 (3?) books were fictionalized accounts of businesses that had used the Fish! Philosophy to much success, I wondered how much of this was fictionalized. -I actually wondered this throughout, because it was mostly dialogue in quotes. And the way the people were talking was weird. It was just weird. They addressed each other by name nearly every sentence:
"OK, Brad. Let's not overdo it. I think you understand that it has to be genuine also."
"No, it's true, Mom. I brag about Sarah all the time. Just never when she's around."
"What you just said, Brad, is a great example of making someone's day."
It doesn't have the full effect when it's just a small portion, but I found it very bothersome.
The whole premise of the book - bring the Fish! Philosophy into your home - seemed forced. I imagine anybody who's read the first book, or watched the documentary would have seen the benefits of incorporating this into all areas of life.
But hey, they put out a new book, and they got people to read it. I might not be the type of reader they were looking for, but sometimes when you go fishing, you can end up catching even the ones you don't mean to catch. I imagine if the authors ever read this review, they'd wish they could throw it back.
My wife reads more than anybody I know, and she entered last week, and won one of the drawings - $15 to one of our favorite restaurants. Nothing makes a prize seem as attainable as somebody you know winning it.
There are 3 drawings every week: one for fiction, one for non-fiction, and one for the Dewey Decimal System. I read this for the Dewey Decimal System drawing, thinking it's probably going to be the least entered.
I should also tell you that I've already bought in to the Fish! Philosophy. We watched the documentary in school a few years ago, and worked on incorporating it into our teaching, classroom management, etc... It takes some ideas from how Seattle's Pike Place Fish is run and applies them to other areas of life.
Like Tom Sawyer white-washing fences, they claim that if you incorporate fun into activities, it makes the unbearable bearable. Or that instead of scrolling through your phone and nodding your head when _______________ is talking to you, you should "be there" and actively listen.
It's a whole thing.
So, walking through the library, I was going through all these gardening books, and "How To" fix-it type books. How to work with leather and what not. It was somewhere around there that I stopped "choosing my attitude" or more appropriately, I started choosing a bad attitude and thought there was no way I was entering the Dewey Decimal Drawing this week.
*Side note* I NEARLY picked Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus, having heard about it my whole life, but never having read it. But, I thought that if I won with that book, I may have some explaining to do. (I don't actually know what the book's about, so maybe that wouldn't have been the case.)*
And then boom: the books parted, and a single beam of 90 watt florescent light shone on this spot of the book shelf, and I knew. It was the perfect book to read. I already approved of the Fish! Philosophy - though from the introduction alone, I was getting tired of reading Fish! with the capital letter and exclamation point every time. The book wasn't too long, so I could get it finished before Friday. AND my current boss was the one who brought the Fish! Philosophy to our school, so if nothing else, I could maybe get some brownie points for reading it over the summer. (And no doubt sand kicked in my face from the tough-guy teachers whose idea of the "make their day" component of the Fish! Philosophy for students is, "make their day bad.")
So, it seemed like a plan. But then I couldn't stand the book. I still love the philosophy, and I thought the documentary was solid. But this book came across as an attempt to milk every last drop of fish oil gold from a business fad that was cool in the early 2000s.
And when I found out the last 2 (3?) books were fictionalized accounts of businesses that had used the Fish! Philosophy to much success, I wondered how much of this was fictionalized. -I actually wondered this throughout, because it was mostly dialogue in quotes. And the way the people were talking was weird. It was just weird. They addressed each other by name nearly every sentence:
"OK, Brad. Let's not overdo it. I think you understand that it has to be genuine also."
"No, it's true, Mom. I brag about Sarah all the time. Just never when she's around."
"What you just said, Brad, is a great example of making someone's day."
It doesn't have the full effect when it's just a small portion, but I found it very bothersome.
The whole premise of the book - bring the Fish! Philosophy into your home - seemed forced. I imagine anybody who's read the first book, or watched the documentary would have seen the benefits of incorporating this into all areas of life.
But hey, they put out a new book, and they got people to read it. I might not be the type of reader they were looking for, but sometimes when you go fishing, you can end up catching even the ones you don't mean to catch. I imagine if the authors ever read this review, they'd wish they could throw it back.
September 19, 2011
This book was sort of the same old, same old just packaged in a different book cover. It was a "motivational" book on how to live your life and get the most of your relationships, etc.....but I just wasn't digging it. Too cliche! It was a pretty short read but I don't think I will be shouting a review of this from the rooftops any time soon.
June 11, 2011
I read this for work. It was pretty unrealistic and far-fetched.
April 5, 2013
These guys have done it again. Built on the simple Fish! philosophy of achieving goals and applied it to life in general. Easy to read over and over again.
September 22, 2014
I liked the philosophies and some of the story. However, the story turned extremely cheesy and implausible at points.
October 13, 2020
It's not the principles of this philosophy that I have a problem with, it's the style of writing which I did not enjoy.
September 16, 2024
It's a catchy name for a philosophy. Intriguing, really.
But, the inside wasn't so. The set up was long and clunky, and the person centered came off obtuse just for the sake of being obtuse. The principles of be present, be kind and gamify are not new- so, a lot of effort went into making them sound fresh, exciting- like it's THE secret to life.
Well, I suppose in the business of life, we all sometimes need to make time to have the obvious spelled out. In that way, this very short book is not so bad.
But, the inside wasn't so. The set up was long and clunky, and the person centered came off obtuse just for the sake of being obtuse. The principles of be present, be kind and gamify are not new- so, a lot of effort went into making them sound fresh, exciting- like it's THE secret to life.
Well, I suppose in the business of life, we all sometimes need to make time to have the obvious spelled out. In that way, this very short book is not so bad.
February 18, 2025
This book is instrumental for helping change attitudes at work. I read this book years ago and loved it! This time, I did the audio and I didn’t like the computerized voice that read it. But the content is good!
December 30, 2016
Convertir un vertedero de energía tóxica en el idílico lugar de
trabajo es posible con los secretos del famosísimo Pike Place Fish
Market de Seattle,CA.
Mary Jane, una ejecutiva con ganas de cambiar la imagen de su departamento, tachada de poco eficiente, aburrida e incluso deprimente, la cual es burla del resto de trabajadores, llega por casualidad al famoso mercado de pescado. Lonnie un pescadero del mercado enseña a Mary Jane el sitio, donde el pescado vuela, los clientes se divierten y se monta un tremendo espectáculo minuto a minuto. Con la ayuda de Lonnie, empieza a analizar las claves del éxito de la pescadería y prueba de incorporarlas en su departamento para solucionar su problema.
Los Secretos de Pike Place Fish Market:
“1. ESCOGE TU ACTITUD
Los pescaderos tienen muy claro que eligen su actitud cada día. Uno de ellos dijo ‘Cuando haces una cosa, ¿Cómo te
sientes? ¿Estás impaciente o aburrido, o te sientes famoso en el mundo? Actuarás de manera diferente si eres famoso en el mundo’. ¿Cómo queremos sentirnos mientras trabajamos?
2. JUGAR
Los pescaderos se divierten en su trabajo, y pasarlo bien aumenta la energía. ¿Cómo podemos pasarlo bien y crear más energía?
3. ALEGRALES EL DÍA
Los pescaderos pasan un buen rato e incluyen en él a los clientes.
Estimulan a los clientes en maneras que fomentan la energía y la buena voluntad. ¿Quiénes son nuestros clientes y de qué manera podemos estimularlos para arreglarles el día? ¿Cómo podemos hacer lo mismo entre nosotros?

4. ESTAR PRESENTE
Los pescaderos están totalmente presentes en el trabajo. ¿Qué nos pueden enseñar sobre cómo estar presentes con los compañeros y con los clientes?”
Después de que Mary Jane presentara las claves del éxito de la pescadería a su equipo, estos se involucraron en el proceso de cambio y se ingresaron por ayudar e investigar más, tanto visitando el mercado en varias ocasiones como observando a su alrededor para poder mejorar su manera de ver la vida.
Los compañeros de Mary Jane no solo estuvieron agradecidos con ella por haber sido capaz de encontrar una solución al “vertedero de energía tóxica” sino que también los había ayudado a darse cuenta de que muchas veces les pasaba lo mismo en su vida personal. Gracias a los cambios realizados, Mary Jane recibió un premio otorgado por la presidenta de la empresa, y los demás compañeros empezaron a querer trabajar más con ellos e incluso algunos pidieron el traslado al departamento.
trabajo es posible con los secretos del famosísimo Pike Place Fish
Market de Seattle,CA.
Mary Jane, una ejecutiva con ganas de cambiar la imagen de su departamento, tachada de poco eficiente, aburrida e incluso deprimente, la cual es burla del resto de trabajadores, llega por casualidad al famoso mercado de pescado. Lonnie un pescadero del mercado enseña a Mary Jane el sitio, donde el pescado vuela, los clientes se divierten y se monta un tremendo espectáculo minuto a minuto. Con la ayuda de Lonnie, empieza a analizar las claves del éxito de la pescadería y prueba de incorporarlas en su departamento para solucionar su problema.
Los Secretos de Pike Place Fish Market:
“1. ESCOGE TU ACTITUD
Los pescaderos tienen muy claro que eligen su actitud cada día. Uno de ellos dijo ‘Cuando haces una cosa, ¿Cómo te
sientes? ¿Estás impaciente o aburrido, o te sientes famoso en el mundo? Actuarás de manera diferente si eres famoso en el mundo’. ¿Cómo queremos sentirnos mientras trabajamos?
2. JUGAR
Los pescaderos se divierten en su trabajo, y pasarlo bien aumenta la energía. ¿Cómo podemos pasarlo bien y crear más energía?
3. ALEGRALES EL DÍA
Los pescaderos pasan un buen rato e incluyen en él a los clientes.
Estimulan a los clientes en maneras que fomentan la energía y la buena voluntad. ¿Quiénes son nuestros clientes y de qué manera podemos estimularlos para arreglarles el día? ¿Cómo podemos hacer lo mismo entre nosotros?

4. ESTAR PRESENTE
Los pescaderos están totalmente presentes en el trabajo. ¿Qué nos pueden enseñar sobre cómo estar presentes con los compañeros y con los clientes?”
Después de que Mary Jane presentara las claves del éxito de la pescadería a su equipo, estos se involucraron en el proceso de cambio y se ingresaron por ayudar e investigar más, tanto visitando el mercado en varias ocasiones como observando a su alrededor para poder mejorar su manera de ver la vida.
Los compañeros de Mary Jane no solo estuvieron agradecidos con ella por haber sido capaz de encontrar una solución al “vertedero de energía tóxica” sino que también los había ayudado a darse cuenta de que muchas veces les pasaba lo mismo en su vida personal. Gracias a los cambios realizados, Mary Jane recibió un premio otorgado por la presidenta de la empresa, y los demás compañeros empezaron a querer trabajar más con ellos e incluso algunos pidieron el traslado al departamento.
Read
February 20, 2021With the increasing rate of suicide globally, I think this book does dish out some valuable nuggets of wisdom:
1. Play: Be light-hearted
~ How to be an channel of lightheartedness?
~ Do I have a smile in my heart that is heard in my voice?
~ Explore ways to bring fun to mundane tasks
~ Choose to be playful
2. Make Their Day
Sometimes we can make someone's day simply by the way we engage them
~ Whose day will I make today?
~ How may I inspire others today?
~ How to feel good by helping others?
~ Be open to others making my day
3. Be There
~ Be a good listener
~ Learn to deal with interruptions
4. Choose Your Attitude
An attitude is the way you are on the outside
A feeling is the way you are on the inside
~ Review our attitudes
~ See if any can be changed for a better one
~ What attitudes do I want in my life more often?
~ What attitudes do I want to avoid?
~ Feelings can't be controlled but attitudes can be chosen
~ The choice of an attitude can influence how I feel in the future
1. Play: Be light-hearted
~ How to be an channel of lightheartedness?
~ Do I have a smile in my heart that is heard in my voice?
~ Explore ways to bring fun to mundane tasks
~ Choose to be playful
2. Make Their Day
Sometimes we can make someone's day simply by the way we engage them
~ Whose day will I make today?
~ How may I inspire others today?
~ How to feel good by helping others?
~ Be open to others making my day
3. Be There
~ Be a good listener
~ Learn to deal with interruptions
4. Choose Your Attitude
An attitude is the way you are on the outside
A feeling is the way you are on the inside
~ Review our attitudes
~ See if any can be changed for a better one
~ What attitudes do I want in my life more often?
~ What attitudes do I want to avoid?
~ Feelings can't be controlled but attitudes can be chosen
~ The choice of an attitude can influence how I feel in the future
February 24, 2012
All books on real life stories are narrated in a manner that gives you a chance to look at some aspect of your own life.
And so every time you read a new book, you get a chance to explore new things, and with that added learning from the book the next book you read becomes the best book you have ever read and same happens with the next book and so on....
Fish! For Life ‐ Really a good book!! This book taught us to have 4 things in life... :‐)
1. Play
2. Make their day
3. Be there
4. Choose UR Attitude
Really great to be applied anywhere!! Read it..
And so every time you read a new book, you get a chance to explore new things, and with that added learning from the book the next book you read becomes the best book you have ever read and same happens with the next book and so on....
Fish! For Life ‐ Really a good book!! This book taught us to have 4 things in life... :‐)
1. Play
2. Make their day
3. Be there
4. Choose UR Attitude
Really great to be applied anywhere!! Read it..
February 19, 2015
I enjoy the books that help us understand life philosophies through storytelling.
This is a quick read with sme good lessons.
The Fish! philosophy is based on four main ingrediants that can be boiled down to add fun to your life, spend more time in the present moment, pay attention and choose how you respond to life.
Simple enough to understand, more difficult to practice on a continuing basis.
I like the family situations used. There were a variety of examples.
The book did make it sound easier than I can see it being in real life, but
why not shoot for the stars?
This is a quick read with sme good lessons.
The Fish! philosophy is based on four main ingrediants that can be boiled down to add fun to your life, spend more time in the present moment, pay attention and choose how you respond to life.
Simple enough to understand, more difficult to practice on a continuing basis.
I like the family situations used. There were a variety of examples.
The book did make it sound easier than I can see it being in real life, but
why not shoot for the stars?
December 31, 2008
This was a quick read, and had some good points to remember that cross over different areas of life:
1) Play
2) Make someone's day
3) Be there
4) Choose your attitude
One section of this book dealt with health and diet, and I could espeically relate to using these principles in that arena. It was a good vacation read.
1) Play
2) Make someone's day
3) Be there
4) Choose your attitude
One section of this book dealt with health and diet, and I could espeically relate to using these principles in that arena. It was a good vacation read.
July 17, 2012
GO FISH out this book and read. Unlike the other self-help/self-improvement books this is a small book which preaches 4 simple rules to make you and your workplace a fun. The principles are very basic in nature and are the ones that you can connect to.
If you do not like the work that you do, then this book is for you. As stated in the book, you have the choice about the attitude you bring in.
If you do not like the work that you do, then this book is for you. As stated in the book, you have the choice about the attitude you bring in.
December 7, 2014
I thought the concept of this book was great, but the ways that they expressed it in the pages were poorly thought out. The book had a lot of stalling and unimportant details that could've been left out. The ending of the book was very cliche as well and I feel as if it didn't tie in with the story at all.
Read
February 8, 2017If you want to inject fun into your work-life, this is the book for you. Inside the pages, you will learn how to have fun at the workplace, just like the "World famous Pike Place Fish market".
The gems are on:
1. Choose your attitude
2. Play
3. To your customers, make their day
4. Be present: Being fully present at work.
The gems are on:
1. Choose your attitude
2. Play
3. To your customers, make their day
4. Be present: Being fully present at work.
August 14, 2017
I like the philosophy that can be applied to personal life and at work.
1) Play (fun and lightheartedness)
2) Make thier day (a focus on engaging others in ways that lift their spirits)
3) Be there (living in the present moment and giving others full attention)
4) Choose your attitude (understanding that whether attitude you are carrying with you right now, it is the one you are choosing)
1) Play (fun and lightheartedness)
2) Make thier day (a focus on engaging others in ways that lift their spirits)
3) Be there (living in the present moment and giving others full attention)
4) Choose your attitude (understanding that whether attitude you are carrying with you right now, it is the one you are choosing)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 15, 2008
Lighten up and have some fun
Choose your attitude
Engage the customer in your presence
Be present with your customer
A fast and fabulous read for giving our attitude a facelift and our perspective, a sense of humour.
Choose your attitude
Engage the customer in your presence
Be present with your customer
A fast and fabulous read for giving our attitude a facelift and our perspective, a sense of humour.
June 24, 2009
I really wanted to love this book, because I had heard so many great things about the FISH! philosophy. The delivery is a little cheesy, but I think Lundin intended it to be really, really, really, really clear and easy for people to understand.
October 20, 2011
Really a good book!! Taught us to have 4 things in life... :-)
1. Play
2. Make their day
3. Be there
4. Choose ur attitude
Really great to b applied anywhere!! Read it..
Thank u to the author also.. :-D
1. Play
2. Make their day
3. Be there
4. Choose ur attitude
Really great to b applied anywhere!! Read it..
Thank u to the author also.. :-D
October 23, 2017
The book is really amazing you fly through the pages quickly it is an easy read with a lot of morals and lessons learned , I recommend it to every one it makes you understand that it is your attitude that determines the circumstances in the situations you go through in a very lighthearted way
September 11, 2018
Absolutely Loved This! The simple Fish! Philosophy has worked when it comes to organizations, but this book shows you how you can bring it to the family. wonderful and quick read with a deep message that has the potential to change your life.
April 20, 2019
Very enjoyable reading
I liked this book better than fish sticks; continuing with the idea of the original book making it easier to associate and understand the philosophy and also easier to apply in your personal life. I do strongly recommend the book.
I liked this book better than fish sticks; continuing with the idea of the original book making it easier to associate and understand the philosophy and also easier to apply in your personal life. I do strongly recommend the book.
November 23, 2021
I loved the original fish book and the philosophy- this book brings it home which like several of f the characters in the book also said and experienced is a bit of an aha and how did I miss that!
Inspires me to grab the other fish book ms to see what aha moments I’ve also missed!
Inspires me to grab the other fish book ms to see what aha moments I’ve also missed!
March 10, 2008
The FISH books are a quick read that makes logical sense...a good reminder of how we can often make the simple complex.
June 15, 2008
Cheesy but does contain great life reminders about how to employ attitude positively and other tips on living happily.
July 27, 2008
Inspired us to want to visit Pike's Place. Haven't yet, but it's on our list of places to see.
October 30, 2008
A great way to boost moral improve results. To achieve dreams and goals at work and personal life.
August 25, 2010
Add energy to your workplace using four principles:
- Play
- Be there
- Make their day
- Choose your attitude
I liked it. It is strongly recommended.
- Play
- Be there
- Make their day
- Choose your attitude
I liked it. It is strongly recommended.
October 23, 2010
A quick read on how to make your homelife better.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews