Reasonable people come up with all the reasons something new and
different can't be done, because, after all, no one else has done it
that way. Eli Broad, the founder of two Fortune 500 companies in
completely different industries and one of the country’s most generous
philanthropists, has turned reason and convention on its head as he
accomplishes the impossible in business and philanthropy.
In his new book, The Art of Being Unreasonable: Lessons in
Unconventional Thinking, (Wiley; May 2012; Hardcover & ebook;
$24.95; 978-1-1181-7321-3), with a foreword by Mayor of New
York City, Michael Bloomberg, Broad reveals the secrets behind the
unreasonable principles that have made him a success. From understanding
the “value of being second” to embracing the thrill of taking a risk,
from his insights into investing to his tips on effective negotiation,
Broad shares the insights and practices that have propelled him to the
top.
The Art of Being Unreasonable not only describes how Broad has
done it, but also the lessons anyone can take from his business,
philanthropic and civic accomplishments and apply them in their own
lives to accomplish more than they ever thought possible.. Broad
explains how to ask unreasonable questions, pursue the untried,
relentlessly revise expectations upward, be restless, and most
important, seek out the best in everything—the best values, the best
investments, the best people—and the best in yourself. He also discusses
valuable advice for approaching “unreasonable” decisions and ventures,
including how to:
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Do your homework, no matter how much time it takes
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Study a first mover’s failures for clues to success
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Stay unemotional and disciplined
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Motivate employees with money and higher expectations, not just praise
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Be a philanthropist, regardless of how much money you have
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Spread the wealth and leverage good works
There's one common theme in all of Broad’s activities: he runs away from
conventional wisdom at every opportunity as he has worked to make life
better for people. His approach helped him build two Fortune 500
companies, KB Home and SunAmerica, and amass $6 billion he is now using
to create some of the greatest contemporary art museums, scientific
research centers, and K-12 education initiatives. Of course along the
way, he’s been celebrated and criticized, but he insists, “You've got to
be ready for that if you're going to do anything big.”
The book also shares how his unreasonable thinking led to many of his
civic and philanthropic successes, such as:
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Raising the funds to build the Frank Gehry-designed Walt Disney
Concert Hall, founding the Museum of Contemporary Art, funding the
Broad Contemporary Art Museum at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art,
and creating The Broad, a new museum being built in downtown Los
Angeles—all as he works to make Los Angeles a cultural capital.
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The funding and creation of leading-edge scientific and medical
research centers that have quickly become innovative leaders in
genomic medicine and stem cell research, most notably the Broad
Institute of Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
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The creation of a full-time M.B.A. program at Broad’s alma mater,
Michigan State University, where he and his wife also funded a new
contemporary art museum on campus to serve the campus and Central
Michigan.
“Too often, age and experience become an excuse for accepting the status
quo without questions. Instead of asking ‘Why not?’ you become
overwhelmed with all the reasons something can’t be done. ‘Of course
not’ becomes you automatic response. You grow fearful of making
mistakes. You rely on conventional wisdom because that’s what everyone
else does, and there’s safety in consensus,” writes Broad. “All of my
careers have required me to be quite unreasonable—to have outsized
ambition, discipline, energy, and focus to have the confidence to ignore
people who said I couldn't do it. If this book does nothing else, I hope
it helps you silence the voice of unconventional wisdom that too often
keeps people from even attempting to achieve their goals.”
Click on the the Audio/Video tab to see Broad's interview with
BusinessWeek about the housing marketing, his concerns about the economy
and his new book.
http://www.businessweek.com/videos/2012-05-01/eli-broad-says-u-dot-s-dot-housing-market-has-hit-bottom
Melissa Torra
Publicist
mtorra@wiley.com
201-748-6834