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Fish: A Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results

A few years back I had the opportunity to visit Seattle. One of the first items on my list of “must-sees” was Pike Place Market. The highlight was the fish market. I had heard a lot about it, and had read the book “Fish” many years before. It was every bit as amazing as I thought it would be. Why is that? Being a fishmonger doesn’t seem like a fun job, however this fish market draws thousands of people every year to see them throw fish around. Watching it leaves you mesmerized.

In this kitschy parable, you meet Mary Jane Ramirez who has landed a position with a firm she wanted to work for. However, she landed in a department known as a “toxic energy dump”. She is tasked with turning the team around or face the prospect of massive layoffs. While on her daily lunch escape she meets the mystical Lonnie, a local fishmonger who teaches her how to turn her team around. He uses the principles that made the Pikes Market fishmongers a tourist destination and local favorite to teach her a better way.

In typical parable style, everything turns out great for Mary Jane. The toxic energy dump is no more, the sun comes out in rainy Seattle, and it is all rainbows and unicorns. The fishmongers go for the big finish and sing and dance their ways into everyone’s hearts and minds. Well, not really, but you get the point. Thankfully, it is a quick read, and a pretty silly one at that. This book has been around since 2000, and it was a big hit in the pre-tech bubble days. I read it the first time several years ago, and was underwhelmed. I recently dusted it off again, and was underwhelmed again. This is definitely one to leave in the used book bin.

Author:

Stephen C. Lundin, Harry Paul, and John Christensen

Publisher:

Hyperion; 1st Edition

Published:

2000

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