What Would Machiavelli Do?

Unabridged
Author: Stanley Bing
Narrator: Philip Bosco
Genres: Business, Self-help, Comedy, Motivation, Management & Leadership
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Date: March 2002
Length: 3 hours
Ratings:
Formats:
  • CD
  • WMA

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Overview

What Would Machiavelli Do?

He would feast on other people's discord
He wouldn't exactly seek the company of ass-kissers and bimbos, but he wouldn't reject them out of hand, either
He would realize that loving yourself means never having to say you're sorry
He would kill people, but only if he could feel good about himself afterward
He would establish and maintain a psychotic level of control
He would use other people's opinions to sell his book!

Selected Reviews

Not for me

by Anonymous
  • Book Rating: 2/5

Laughed out loud

by Anonymous
  • Book Rating: 4/5

More...

Read All 20

Reviews (20)

Not for me

Written by Anonymous on May 2nd, 2008

  • Book Rating: 2/5

This one is weird. It's what I tell people not to be. If you apply this to everyday life...nobody would like you! If your a narcissistic person...then this book is for you! It was funny though!

Laughed out loud

Written by Anonymous from Kingman, KS on April 18th, 2008

  • Book Rating: 4/5

Enjoyed the listen. Made the trip go by quicker. I am going to get more in touch with my inner Machavelli. It will be real fun to see how others react.

Brutally Entertaining

Written by Anonymous on November 14th, 2007

  • Book Rating: 3/5

This book was a little different than I was expecting. I was thinking it would be more of a history lesson. Instead it is a practical guide to using the Machiavelli philosophy to real world situations. This is of course a little too brutal unless one views it as humor as I did. In which case it is entertaining but still not for everyone.

an easy "read"

Written by Anonymous on October 15th, 2007

  • Book Rating: 3/5

I am new to audiobooks but this was a quick, mostly enjoyable "read." I like the narrator's voice. I liked the amusing anecdotes. It was maybe a tad repetitive, I was glad when it was brought to an end.

Very Funny

Written by Karen on June 22nd, 2007

  • Book Rating: 4/5

I think saying that the book contains "dry humor" is doing it a great disservice. It is, above all else, a satire. And a funny one at that. It's not dry humor, it's ACTUAL humor. No book that drops the F Bomb as liberally could be considered dry. I laughed out loud several times, as will anyone else who has ever worked in the corporate world.

What Would Machiavelli Do

Written by Anonymous from Kansas City, MO on December 8th, 2006

  • Book Rating: 3/5

Rather dry and sort of funny, but not the funniest story I've heard.

THIS BOOK SAVED MY MIND

Written by Carol Fiul on July 11th, 2006

  • Book Rating: 5/5

We listened to this book on a 450 mile road trip, and laughed so hard we had to make several extra pit stops, least we not ruin the seat covers. If you liked the BBC's "Prime Minister" series you will adore this. Very dry humor, hysterical and helpful in placing the current administration and political views in the US in perspective. I've read and listened to many satirical books in my lifetime, but this was the best so far. I have now purchased all of Stanley Bing's books in the hope that they will save my mind from the destructive forces around me as well. A definite read/hear for those in need of laughter.

Stanley Bing continues to impress

Written by Anonymous from Woodstock, GA on April 3rd, 2006

  • Book Rating: 4/5

Stanley Bing is an hysterical business writer, and this book is in keeping with the tone of his weekly AdWeek columns. My only fear is that some self-improvement junkie will listen and not realize how firmly Bing has his tongue planted in his cheek.

Not bad but not great

Written by John Harvey on October 10th, 2005

  • Book Rating: 2/5

This was funny in places but didn't really knock me over. The book riffs on Machiavelli with specific regard to how managers, CEOs, etc., should be mercenary jerks to get ahead. It doesn't really go too much further than that. I honestly found it to be a bit tedious after a while.

What Would Machiavelli Do?

Written by Anonymous from Waterville, OH on September 30th, 2005

  • Book Rating: 5/5

This audio book is a sheer delight! I enjoyed every minute of this and have listened to it three times. It is about leadership and the "tongue-in-cheek" writing style and the excellent reader is miles of enjoyment--I drive a lot. It starts out making some good points and continues to make good points about leadership and management by "reverse psychology" and making one think...both of which are worth considering. A must rent!!

Selected Reviews

Not for me

by Anonymous
  • Book Rating: 2/5

Laughed out loud

by Anonymous
  • Book Rating: 4/5

More...

Read All 20

Author Details

Author Details

Bing, Stanley

"Stanley Bing first made his appearance in Esquire magazine in 1984, writing scurrilous things about his employers and friends and giving strategic advice to those even more befuddled than he. Rather than risk expulsion from his crabby corporate environment, he created the Bing pseudonym in order to observe and criticize the executive class while at the same time aspiring to its lifestyle. This strategy has for all intents and purposes paid off big-time. Since 1995, Bing has been sniping at the hand that feeds him in the pages of Fortune magazine while functioning as an ultra-haute executive at a huge multinational corporation whose identity is one of the worst-kept secrets in business.

Bing is also the author of the national bestsellers Throwing the Elephant: Zen and the Art of Managing Up and What Would Machiavelli Do? The Ends Justify the Meanness, and of the novels Lloyd: What Happened and You Look Nice Today. "