What You See Is What You Get: My Autobiography

by Alan Sugar

'Lord Sugar is a self-made man and one of Britain's finest business brains. His story so far is inspirational to the end' The Sun'Sugar is unusual among celebrity memoirists in that he's a clever man who has done a lot with his life, and the tale of his rise from nothing, and nowhere is genuinely revealing' Private EyeFrom a Hackney council estate to the House of Lords, this is the extraordinary story of one of our greatest entrepreneurs.Alan Sugar was born in 1947 and brought up on a council estate in Clapton, in Hackney. As a kid he watched his dad struggle to support the family, never knowing from one week to the next if he'd have a job. It had a huge impact on him, fuelling a drive to succeed that was to earn him a sizeable personal fortune. Now he describes his amazing journey, from schoolboy enterprises like making and selling his own ginger beer to setting up his own company at nineteen; from Amstrad's groundbreaking ventures in hi-fi and computers, which made him the darling of the stock exchange, to the dark days when he nearly lost it all; from his pioneering deal with Rupert Murdoch to his boardroom battles at Tottenham Hotspur FC.In this compelling autobiography, he takes us into the world of The Apprentice, and describes his appointment as advisor to the government and elevation to the peerage. Like the man himself, What You See Is What You Get is forthright, funny and sometimes controversial.'I'm addicted to autobiographies and What You See Is What You Get is one of the best I've read. Love him or loathe him, Baron Sugar of Clapton is the walking, snarling embodiment of all the values he espouses on The Apprentice' Piers Morgan

Genres: Biography, Autobiography, Nonfiction, Business, Entrepreneurship, Unfinished, Memoir

657 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 30, 2010

Reviews

[Christopher Lewis Kozoriz · Rating 4 out of 5]

"...'Look around the room and you'll see my family - they are my greatest wealth. The material things youngsters seem to target are meaningless. The biggest achievements in my life, together with Ann (His wife), was ensuring our children grew up to be the decent human beings they are. And I'm thankful that we can already see the same culture coming through in our grandchildren.'" (Alan Sugar, What You See Is What You Get, Page 557, parenthesis mine)

Currently, this is my 137th book that I have read that was put together by a billionaire. I can unequivocally say that it is the funniest one I have read so far, and probably the most enjoyable from a reading perspective (for me). Alan Sugar's innate humour shines through in many of its' pages. I had a hard time putting it down at times because of his straight-talking way of putting things. He weaves humourous stories from his life throughout. It does have some serious stuff in it about life crises that happen to most of us, such as, financial difficulties, opposition, conflict, personality clashes, business hiccups, false accusations (i.e. bad press), family deaths...

Some things that intrigued me most about Alan Sugar is that he is Jewish, English, got involved in the computer industry early, got into some early technological advances, became a media personality (The Apprentice), became Knighted by the Queen (Sir Alan), Received a couple Honorary Doctorates from prestigious universities... Then in his 60's became a Lord...Lord Sugar of Clapton.

I won't go into too much detail here, but he had a early knack for business at a young age, selling tar blocks, ginger beer...then got into manufacturing and selling radio tower systems, then computers, and other products. There is some business litigation mentioned in detail at times. The story of how he became very wealthy when his company Amstrad went public is also articulated in much detail...there was so much in this book (at almost 600 pages, you could choke a moose with it!), and his life is still not over yet.

A fun read with business lessons weaved throughout. I don't think I agree with some of his political views, and he has a bit of an ego, but what person doesn't? His money only magnified what he was already as a person...as it would magnify anyone of us...

Good read!

[Richard Tubb · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a lengthy book, but one that pulls few punches and is hard to put down once you start reading it.

Whilst Lord Sugar undoubtedly deserves his huge success through hard work and perseverance, he's far from modest within the book - rarely crediting others for their help, and often making out other (equally highly successful) individuals to be dummies who are silly for not following his advice. It can be a little grating, and I found myself researching some of the stories Lord Sugar recounts on-line, to find out the alternative point of view.

I most enjoyed the stories of his rise at Amstrad in the 1980's - where he was clearly his element. The first half of the book was packed was such tales, which make enjoyable reading.

His time spent as Chairman of Tottenham Hotspurs, which is covered in the latter half of the book, makes for disturbing reading - with continuous litigation and court course after another. Whilst I'm sure there are two sides to the story, I did feel some sympathy for the way he was treated by the British Press.

The end of the book closes with his time at The Apprentice and his appointment as advisor to the Government.

I'd recommend this book, but also taking some time to read alternative accounts of the history he covers in his stories - to get the full picture.

[Themistocles · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really don't get it how the average rating for this waste of trees is so high.

Let me explain: Sugar simply doesn't know how to write. When it comes to the business side of his life, not much new of importance comes out of its pages. There's very little insight or philosophy and the writing is very, very dry.

When it comes to his personal life... well, I guess not everyone has to have an interesting personal life, and Sugar's has been quite normal, but the way he writes about it is very forced, almost as he's ashamed to uncover it. What little he does give us is int he form of 'by the way' passages, again very dry and with very little interest.

And a special interest: I bought this book because I love the Amstrad series of computers. the CPC and PCW series were what made him, actually, yet he devotes a very short space to them -especially the CPC, where IIRC he only mentions the 464 model within a handful of pages. Oh, and did I mention that nothing new comes out of it?

Such a shame. Better go with David Thomas' book. Much much older, unfortunately, but he manages to give much more insight to Sugar's life and business.

[Suzanne · Rating 1 out of 5]

I like seeing Lord Alan Sugar on The Apprentice. His oneliners are great! That's why I expected a funny book. And yes, here and there there were some okay passages. But over all, I thought it was boring. How much can you tell about amplifiers and all that electrical stuff? Well, a lot, according to this book. So I cheated, I worked myself throught the first few chapters and then I only read the one about him being in The Apprentice. Then I closed it, but I will stick to enjoying Lord Alan Sugar on television...

[Alison · Rating 1 out of 5]

I ploughed my way through 80 pages of this and decided enough was enough! There's a point at which being honest simply becomes being rude and Alan is definitely on the rude side. I don't like the way he described the people he dealt with - he came across as totally lacking in respect. Also, there is just too much detail about exactly how much he bought and sold things for. There are too many good books waiting to be read to waste any more time on this.

[✿Claire✿ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Despite struggling to get past the first chapter the first time I picked this book up, I really enjoyed it when I picked it up 2 years later. Having become a firm fan of The Apprentice in the last few years, it was great to read Lord Sugar's story and how he grew from a young lad borrowing sugar and ginger off neighbours to the person he is today. Refreshingly, he says what he thinks and isn't afraid to admit to the mistakes he's made, along with the triumphs.

Definitely a recommended read.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great book. Some of the computer techno stuff went over my head, but nonetheless the book was good. He comes across as a tough, hard, ruthless business man but has had to be to get where he is and stop people walking all over him. He appears to be a true friend to many and a supportive boss. A great father too. Well worth the read.

[Lynsay Tervit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honest, self effacing and very very good!! It's very much Lord Sugars voice that shines through, and he's not afraid to speak the truth with total, sometimes brutal, honesty. Highly recommended.

[Maureen · Rating 3 out of 5]

On occasion this reads like Father Ted accepting the Golden Cleric award: "And now we move on to liars..."

Highly enjoyable, obviously.

[Gareth Bird · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is so much more to Lord Sugar than we see in the few minutes a week he enters our living rooms on The Apprentice. One thing is for certain, he has worked extremely hard for his millions. They were not won easily. Growing a multi-million pound business empire from selling car radio aerials from the back of an unreliable van may seem like a romanticized business-bildungsroman, but there have been numerous challenges along the way. And falling outs. And legal proceedings. And betrayals. And bereavements. Nearly 600 pages so.

Yet, despite the challenges he has faced, Lord Sugar has never lost his entrepreneurial spirit. After reading about all his various exploits (some more successful than others), I see him as a true entrepreneur. He doesn't have a business degree. He hasn't been on any entrepreneurial training sources. He certainly hasn't read Harvard Business Manual. Instead, he has the uncanny ability to challenge the status quo concerning the manufacturing, price point or capabilities of existing products, and then introduce a revolution to the market. In both his and my eyes, that's something that can't be taught. It's a gift.

I did struggle in the middle section of the book. I didn't realise that Lord Sugar's involvement in football - he bought Tottenham Hotspur F.C. - took up so much of his life. Whilst it was interesting to learn about the sheer barbarism of football politics, I found this section slow going. My overall impression of these years is that whatever he did, the fans and sports journalists would hated him. I felt real sympathy for him. I think it's a shame it took him so long to get out of football.

What You See's biggest strength is its honesty. I think there must have been quite a few PR consultants ringing their hands and cradling their heads when Lord Sugar decided to publish this. He never holds back on stating exactly how he feels about people, policies and businesses. Whilst I agree with a lot of what he writes, at times I feel he comes across as naive (I think his flippant criticisms of psychological research show he doesn't understand its value) and argumentative. However, this makes the book refreshing. It makes its a true autobiography which lives up to its title. A few years ago I read Barack Obama's Dreams from My Father and, whilst it was an enjoyable read, it was overly noninflammatory, politically-correct and sterile. Sugar's book is the complete opposite. Loud, brash and honest. Whilst the PR consultants weep, the rest of us rejoice because reading this book is the closest we'll get to having an audience with the man himself.

P.S. As a close follower of the current battle between the Conservative Government and NHS junior doctors, I was delighted to read the section about Jeremy Hunt's dramatic reaction to Lord Sugar's non-ministerial, non-political and non-influential appointment to The House of Lords.

[Ethan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad. Bit old school / dated in his thinking. Interesting life though

[Jules · Rating 4 out of 5]

At last – I’ve finished this book!
This is a real weighty tome to read – packed full of home truths and 626 pages of (first hand) business advice. It’s the ‘War and Peace’ of business autobiographies in other words! I’ve always been quite inspired by Alan Sugar and, until now, didn’t know much about the man behind the persona. Now after reading, I still hold Sugar in great esteem. He explains his business philosophy in extreme detail through the book leaving no stone unturned on his long history of business involvements from a young man starting out on the business ladder, setting up Amstrad in the electronics industry, his football chairman stint at Spurs and finally ending with his governmental pursuits in the House of Lords as business advisor Lord Sugar.
The wealth of depth that this book goes into would probably make it unsuitable as a read to someone uninterested in business. Sugar talks figures, facts, human resources and distribution chains on nearly every page making it an essential read to the would-be entrepreneur. Although Sugar does talk about family life and relationships, I feel he does seem more guarded in this area, instead he seems to prefer to talk honestly about the many characters he has met in life from the business side of the fence - warts and all and true to form in many cases!
As a reader, I felt very inspired by this autobiography but I felt the length and extended business content makes it a bit of a plodder hence me giving a ‘four star’ instead of a five. It has taken up a lot of my reading time and has left a lot of other books waiting! What is great about the book though is the realisation that business can be instinctive discipline. As Sugar hints at in the book, sometimes the Harvard Business School manual can be thrown away and gradual business acumen and common sense can prevail.
An inspiring book to the entrepreneur of any age, class and gender. I would absolutely recommend as long as you are prepared for the length of read in order to devote yourself to the business journey that is uniquely Sugar-style.

[Tony Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tragic for Britain that because he's a Labour peer he isn't continuing to advise government on start ups, micro biz and small biz policy.Worth reading because all is practical, proven, timeless, 'own biz' sense.

I was so lucky to have for a few months Amstrad, him but mainly his late friend and finance director, Jim Rice, as clients. He won't remember me and his distaste for consultants is well known, but I greatly benefited from the experience.

Since then I have read most of what he has written and have learned from this. He has all the same traits as my father who was also an entrepreneur. He admits his mistakes but confirms in every chapter my view that entrepreneurs can be made. He was made by his environment which gave him tremendous willpower, controlled risk taking, a great grasp of money matters, and brilliant deal making skill.

Many will feel from his TV appearances that he is dreadful to work for and with. All I can say is that I have only seen tremendous loyalty from the people that have worked with him. He name checks and explains the qualities of those that have helped him to success.

A friend of mine is Tim Campbell MBE and he was the first 'The Apprentice' winner in the UK. He worked with Lord Sugar for 2 years and confirms all the values and skills and humour that the reader can gain gain from this book. It's one of the best auto biographies around.

He's just been ranked 3 in our British, last sixty years, most influential entrepreneurs. Someone who wouldn't ask anyone to do what he wouldn't do himself.

[Paolo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good autobiography and I have to say I really enjoyed it from start to finish.

Granted I have a huge interest in engineering, innovation, football, television and politics - everything Lord Sugar of Clapton was involved in throughout his life, but either way his life is so interesting and influential that it is hard not to find his story amusing.

You begin to realise what a significant player Alan Sugar was in the UK over the past 40-50years. He bridged the gap between the classes by making once expensive, high-end products (such as HI-FIs and TVs) affordable to the common man. He linked business between Europe and Asia. His dealings with Rupert Murdoch and the Premier League saw Sky taking over television rights and becoming such a huge company (something I really dislike). He has inspired many young people by speaking around England and through TV show The Apprentice. And he's even been involved in the civil service to get England's SME's back on check following the world banking crisis.

I'm left wondering what the UK might be like without his influence? Either way I have to say his intentions always seem sound and he comes across as a much more likeable character that from what I'd seen of him on television.

If he ever writes another book on his twilight years, I will definitely read that too.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was as good an insight into the thinking behind Alan Sugars business decisions as any reader is likely to find. It is also a comprehensive account of his rise to become one of the most revered businessmen in the UK today, from his childhood in the East End of London, to his award of a peerage in 2010.

It suffers slightly from being very long. Also, certain events and stages in Sugar's life obviously affected him emotionally to a degree whereby he feels he has to dedicate large sections of the book to them. Specifically, I would refer to his long and arduous fight against Spurs to highlight this point. I personally felt that the length of time spent describing his ordeal was too long, although he clearly wants to get a number of points across in doing this.

I got the distinct impression that the events at Spurs traumatised Sugar to a degree, as following this, he seems to lose a great deal of his enthusiasm for doing business, which I felt was a great shame.

A good read all round.

[Gabriela · Rating 5 out of 5]

A serial and relentless entrepreneur, Alan Sugar tells of his inspiring odyssey from a place of complete lack to becoming one of Britain's most successful self-made millionaires. In What You See Is What You Get, he describes his business ventures in technology, football and the stock market. He gives a vivid description of the challenges, the encounters with influential people in business and government, and how he managed to stay on top of his empire.

This is a great read offering worthwhile insights into the personal and business life of a much-admired entrepreneur. I like that he tells the narrative of his life in his usual humorous yet serious way. He does delve a lot into some of his major life events in business but just before it gets too tiring to read, he goes to a brand new story.

This is a necessary read for any businessperson as it offers valuable insights on entrepreneurship and leadership.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't sure about reading this book, I didn't think I would find it that interesting. It started off well with his childhood story, and then into his business life. I honestly didn't know that he owned Amstrad and that the AMS was his initials! I felt I lost interest slightly through the Tottenham era, as football really isn't my thing, but when describing this book to my husband I was able to give good accounts of what had happened, so must have taken it all in more than I thought! It was a good story about an honest decent hardworking man working his way up from nothing to a multi millionaire through different schemes and plans and shrewd business moves. I was going to give it 3 1/2 stars but my husband said that I must have enjoyed it more than that because I kept telling his bits out of the book as I was reading it. Thank you for your story Lord Sugar :-)

[Nicci · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant read! I found this book a very detaiiled account of Alan Sugar's life. It inspired me and has increased my interest in business! I knew nothing of business (apart from a GCSE in Business Studies), and this book was so interesting. I love his honesty and I have a lot of respect for him. I love the Apprentice and his one liners which is why I wanted to read his book. Easy to read even if you don't know anything about business. I understood most of the things he spoke about, he explained it all so well. Funny in moments and he describes characters that were in and out of his life with such energy I could hear his tone of voice describing them which made it humorous! Def recommend!!!

[Antonis Stefaniotis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe you yourself are not the entrepreneur type and you'd like to take a peak inside the mind of a man who pretty much defines the term. If so then straight talking, non-apologetic but seemingly honest in his reflections Lord Sugar may be the right fellow for you. And fellow is the right word for a man who accentuates his common man shrewdness as he takes you through pretty much all his decision making in business and to some extent his family life.
I for one read through it quite fast marveling at his achievements, drive, plain speaking and the few outstanding clear messages on which he himself seemingly based his career.

[Phillip · Rating 4 out of 5]

A breeze block of a book, as Lord Sugar takes us through the joys and tribulations of his life so far, and he has been through a lot as the thickness of this book will testify. It's a good read but if I have one criticism it is that it is too long and in the end you get tired of hearing about how well or disappointing Amstrad etc are doing. The chapters on his ownership of Tottenham are very informative and entertaining and there are a lot of amusing anecdotes on his dealings with people both professionally and socially.

[James Long · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed reading how Sir Alan (now Lord Sugar) got to where he is today. Some genuinely interesting and quite motivating stories. You will have to enjoy his style of talking as it is VERY much written as if he's sat telling a story (which I believe is how it was done with him dictating the story). Whilst this is fine in short stints, it does make things a bit tedious in longer sittings. There are only so many rants you can read in one go! Good thing a lot of the rants are justified and quite funny. 4 out of 5 for me.

[Summreen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read about 150 pages of this book, until he got to do business in Japan and i found thereafter, it became very repetitive, too much info about products and not enough about how he did things and how he balanced it around his family life. But, it's different for men, or it was back then, men these days might look for more of a family / work balance. Anyway, up until i abandonned the book, i thought it was really good and loved the way he wrote it, just too business orientated, which i understand some people might read it for.

[Žiga P. Škraba · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title of this book is spot on. What you see is what you get. It's an amazing rags to riches story which tends to drag a bit too much at certain points. You might be a bit disappointed when you realize that the writing doesn't really inspire as much as you'd expect from such an amazing life journey. But that's simply Alan Sugar, not always popular, but a truly admireable, unique and simple person who is brutaly honest and straightforward. And that is exactly what you get out of this book. Really liked it.

[Thomas Conté · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a fan of Amstrad's line of micro-computers from the 80's, I was looking forward to some insight as to how they were designed, but Mr. Sugar spends much more time writing about his early consumer electronics years, and when we get to the CPC era, it sounds like he had lost interest a bit. It was fun reading about the Sinclair purchase as well, but here again, details are lacking. As a non-fan of football, I also skipped much of the Tottenham part. Despite these shortcomings, I found Sugar's bio an awesome rags-to-riches story, I never realized the incredible trajectory he lived through.

[Gareth Pengelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never used to think much to Alan Sugar whilst watching The Apprentice. But this book gave me great insight into his background. It's easy to think of millionaires as not knowing our struggles, but you gain a whole new respect for them when you hear of their struggles and the hard graft they put in to get where they are now. A good, honest, warts-and-all account of his life. And well worth a read.

[MR IAN SIMKINS · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite good

Bit technically long winded but a very honest appraisal of Alan's business dealings as well as an accurate and personnel portrayal of his family and friends interrelations. Disappointed his manufacturing wealth was not created from UK manufacture. That would have been an even better rags to riches story.

[Yassemin]

Tried several times to read this but I always get to the same point before leaving it aside and virtually forgetting about it.

I like the guy and admire him greatly but I think the book is just too techy for me.

[Stuart Mclaughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this as a present and wasn't really sure what to expect but I actually really enjoyed it. Not a business book by any means, but you get a good insight into how Sugar's mind works and he's very honest about the ups and downs of his business life.

[Lisa Bennett · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would have given this 5/5 but he doesn't half like talking about football. Not being a huge fan of the sport, these many chapters on the subject ruined the book for me. Other than that, it was a really interesting read, he's a fascinating man. He does like to toot his own horn though lol.

[Shona · Rating 4 out of 5]

what a remarkable man and a remarkable life he's led so far. Felt it got a bit bogged down in parts with the electrical side of the business but all in all a great read and very enjoyable. Definitely recommend it.