Success!

by Michael Korda

We have here a hands-on guide to executive success. The author examines all the strategies known to man and weighs them up. In Korda's game plan, style counts for everything. He advises men and women how to walk, sit and dress, how to communicate effectively, how to get a promotion--even how to look successful when you're on the bottom rung!

Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1977

About the author

is an English-born writer and novelist who was editor-in-Chief of Simon & Schuster in New York City.

Reviews

[Alberto Lopez · Rating 5 out of 5]

At the time, Michael Korda became something of a 'power and influence' guru. My father made me read this book with the hope that it would inspire me to climb the Mexican social ladders.

[Michelle Beese · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked the book even as a woman!

[Michael David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Success! is, to me, a better book than Korda’s Power! although its latter part aged poorly. Like Robert Ringer’s Looking Out for No. 1, Korda advises to play for number one. Also like Ringer, he puts focus on responsibility: “responsibility is the keystone to success and self-realization, and the only way to become autonomous.” (p. 20)

A lot of the book is extraneous as regards modern fashion and culture, but a lot of his advice regarding the pursuit of success remains germane even today.

First, success necessitates teleology: “those who have a definite vision of what they want to become are the ones who eventually succeed.” (p. 67)

Second, it pays to be thin: “Fatness is often a sign of self-indulgence. A person who wants to be successful might just as well start by getting into shape – it pays off in money as well as health.” (p. 71)

Third, being successful requires responsibility and self-control. Further, the same principle is recommended by both Ringer and Korda as regards success: “To be a success you must be realistic and see the world as it is.” (p. 113)

Fourth, successful people are prime movers: “Successful people generally have very low expectations of others. A skeptical view of human nature sooner or later pays dividends.” (p.115) Further, “If you want to succeed, never take for granted that people will do what they’ve been told, or even what’s sensible and good for them.” (p. 116)

Finally, think positive: “the more you allow yourself to be thought of by other people as a failure, the more likely you are in the end to regard yourself as one.” (p. 261)

It’s not as holistic as Ringer’s Looking Out for Number One, but it’s a great book, if a bit outdated.