Rain: What a Paperboy Learned about Business

by Jeffrey J. Fox

RAIN is the first business parable written by bestselling business book author Jeffrey J. Fox. The parable follows a young New England paperboy, named Rain, as he learns the business of being in business and quickly becomes the best paperboy in town.

Through a series of humorous poignant vignettes, Jeff illustrates forty "rainmaker" business lessons that can be applied to not only paperboys, but anyone in business and sales. Rain's time as a paperboy proves to be just as valuable as getting an MBA.

As with Jossey-Bass' popular Lencioni business fables, the format for Rain includes an actionable business model at the end of the book with instant takeaways and practical advice.

Genres: Business, Nonfiction

Audible Audio

First published February 4, 2009

Reviews

[Narinder Bhatia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful, refreshing, simple book about a topic as complex as business. What stands apart about this book is the clarity that's manifestation of a passionate author. Jeffrey J. Fox has articulated the fundamentals of business in a really interesting manner. The "rainmaking principles" and the exercises in the second part of the book are very well-crafted and are quite meaningful.

A thorough review at my blog post Book Mantras

This book could very well standout as a primer on business fundamentals.

[MsSmartiePants ...like the candy... · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cleverly written and entertaining, this is the nostalgic look at a young paperboy discovering the entrepreneurial world and the lessons within it. I thought "how can such a simple story be an effective allegory for the business process?" Well, it is!
Truth is simple, not easy. Any business does well to remain as close to the simple truth of their goals and the means toward attaining them. People are constantly trying to "reinvent the wheel" in business rather than acquiring the knowledge PLUS the wisdom learned the hard way from those who have gone before us. Perhaps it is because we are a bit arrogant, believing too much in our own uniqueness. This book helped me to review the effectiveness of traditional good business practices and the timeless benefits therein.

[Obeida Takriti · Rating 5 out of 5]

أسلوب الكتاب لطيف ومميز فهو يعرض قصة تطور وتعلم الفتى الذي يوزع الجرائد عن عالم الأعمال..
مع القصص في كل فصل بسيطة إلا أنها مليئة الدروس العميقة..
ولأن القصص تكفي لم أستمتع أبداً بالفصلين الأخيرين حيث يحاول الكاتب شرح تطبيقات القصص في مجال الأعمال..
كتاب لطيف وصغير يوسع آفاق أي شخص عن عالم الأعمال..

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written...I was once a paperboy...can definitely relate to this

[Kwang Wei Long · Rating 4 out of 5]

A easy to read story about business and creating values.
It follows a step by step of reckoning in his business and a mentor figure in it to advise Rain along his journey.
It is easy to digest but to transplant the idea into your own business could be challenging.
The book offered some resources at the end which might be of help in your own business.
An easy read but might lack practicality.

[Brian Hayes · Rating 5 out of 5]

A neat little book about business and entrepreneurship through the eyes of a paperboy. Excellent if not somewhat dated advice, but enjoyable all the same.

[Wiguno · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a nice storytelling. Basic business lessons are wrapped into one interesting story about a paperboy.

[Indra · Rating 5 out of 5]

quick simple read and amazing lessons from a paperboy's life. A good read for aspiring entrepreneurs. Meaningful, thought-provoking questions for entraprenuers.

[Gabriel Navassi Diaz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story and an easy way to understand businesses.

[Clearview Library District · Rating 3 out of 5]

The subtitle should be "How to Succeed in Business by Working your Butt off."
A patron returned this book to the bookmobile, and after scanning the first couple of pages, I decided to read it. It is really a book of two parts. The first part is the story of Rain, a young boy of 13 who through the use of sound business principles built his paper route into a successful and profitable endeavor. It follows him through the progression from his first day on a paper route at age 13 to his graduation with an MBA from a prestigious business school. The second part of the book is a set of exercises and evaluations to test the readers business acumen and provide thoughts for successful endeavors. It is inspirational even though I knew the first part was obviously contrived, but in regards to the many marketing and management books I have read over the years, this gets straight to the core of the matter.

Bruce

[Ben Love · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn’t sure if I’d like this when I first picked it out. I’m usually not enamored with parable style writing on business topics, but this little book did strike a good chord with me. Still not too sure if it was the simplicity of the information it conveyed or the extreme ease in which it threaded it through the story without being tacky, overly obvious or child-like.

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable, a really unusual business book that is, literally, fun for the whole family. My ten-year-old and nine-year-old enjoyed the audio book as much as Mom and I did. It's very short, though, almost too short, and even at that the ending is rather repetitive. But the first half of the story is priceless.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can see myself giving a child this book if he expressed an interest in a lemonade stand. Or any other kid friendly business for that matter. Very simple and has a good story/hook for a younger demographic as well.

[Jim Serger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book on customer service and the importance of giving customers more than they expect. I listened to the audio version, and the author who was the narrator was just as passionate reading it as he was I know writing it.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Begins with the fictional story of a successful paperboy, then Fox tells how to work for success in any business.

[Sean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very engaging from start till end.

[Sandeep Reddy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every chapter is taken to see different aspects of business. Nice to read. The last page questions will help you to reconstruct yourself.

[Art · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid fundamentals of business, especially small business. It resonated with me, but maybe that's because I used to be a paperboy, or paperman to be more specific.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

I listened to this on audiobook.

[Javier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read. Clever book. A story about what a paperboy learned about business and customer service. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the book.

[John Gurney · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short, but cute, tale about Rain, a paper boy, and how he learns business and personal maturity delivering newspapers, leading to later success.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess it might be interesting for a kid who could empathize with the protagonist of the story, otherwise it's too simplistic

[Johann Fourie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must read for any working person

[Kresta · Rating 3 out of 5]

This had a good idea, but it didn't teach much about each business principle.