The Carpenter: A Story About the Greatest Success Strategies of All (Jon Gordon) Kindle Edition

My Dad was "the carpenter" exactly as described in the book. It didn't help him. Just the opposite. He suffered most of his life and he died very poor and lonely.Also, the Japanese are whole nation of "the carpenters". The repercussions of it are very different than those romanticized in the book.Book emphasizes positivism/optimism, which is closely related to "you just have to believe" according to the author as the exclusive source of much prosperity. Reality is people become successful per the author standards, independent of whether they are "optimists" or "pessimists", because success depends on a very different things and set of mind.The positivism, or "being optimist is enough" is a school of thought from the 60-x that is much less popular our days, because... well, because it doesn't work this way in reality.

The day will come that I will storm into the self-help literature with my invention. It will be a sliding puzzle, with every little piece to have a tiny nugget of cliche written on it, like "be positive," "dream big," "follow your dreams," etc. Then the players randomly slide said pieces around for a while, and after, say, ten moves, the challenge will be to write yet another bestseller with this randomized sequence.Having read "The Energy Bus," I expected much more than this from Jon Gordon. This book is disappointingly formulaic, shallow, predictable, tedious, and uninspiring. The typical struggling hero gets mysteriously injured while out jogging. A Jedi Carpenter (his first name is, in fact, just "J.") happens to take a break from building his next masterpiece of carpentry or stuffing his face with a burrito and finds our hero with his head bleeding. Our hero later awakens in the hospital only to find a business card (guess whose?) by his side. Dutifully he calls the number found on said card and here begins a journey to enlightenment in 135 pages; guided by the able wisdom of the Carpenter, he finds himself, saves his company, saves his family, saves the World, and many years later, he even saves his very own struggler with a bleeding head. While the book saves us the price of a head wound to impart its forgettable message, its cost is not worth missing out on a burrito.

Very inspiring book. My wife had this book recommended to her and after reading it recommended it to me. As I was reading it, I kept thinking that it reminded me of another book I had read called "the Energy Bus."(in a good) Sure enough, it was the same author.This is a great book and an easy read in that it is a great narrative that literally begs you to keep turning pages (digital they may be....Kindle Version.) I love it when I feel good after reading a book, and this book made me feel motivated and driven to not only have success, but do it for the right reasons and in the right way. I can truly say you will not be disappointed with this book. I recommend it for both people in business as well as anyone reading it for personal reasons.Read when you need a lift, and you will become a "builder" or something even better.

Just finished Jon Gordon's "The Carpenter ""The Carpenter" is a parable of putting Christ's teachings and message into our daily walk.It provides a narrative filled with sound advice on leadership, business and living one's purpose. Uplifting and positive - a terrific read for those in any service ministry or industry.Quick, easy to read, and very relatable to my world view. Encourages one to remain grounded, positive, kind and committed. Would highly recommend this book - I've already purchased copies and shared this gift this season.

Of all of the Jon Gordon books that I have read, The Carpenter is by far the best book for someone in a service based business. I was at a point where I had kind of lost focus and lost my direction, this book gave me the shot in the arm that I was in need of. The concept is so simple, yet so complex to put into action every day. I would put this book in my top 5 all time leadership books. I have since ordered copies for all of my leaders. This book even prompted me to change my "one word" mid year to "Heart". Read the book in two days, I couldn't put it down. Thank you Jon for all that you do to help all of us become better leaders every day!

Great book about life and kindness. We all have many opportunities to love, serve and care for each other. Let's do it. Bought 3 books and gave to my sisters and children. Many people near us are hungry for love. Let's generously give love to them, by smiling and serving them.

Honestly, this book was one of a few that my workplace asked employees to read; ordinarily I would not have chosen a book like this. However, I was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was to read and how inspiring the messages were therein. For work we had to jot down 25 things from the book that we found touching or important. There were so many things that made me think, that I had to pare back what I had written to be able to write things from later in the book. It is definitely a good read, and very inspiring for anyone, no matter what faith.

I ended up taking a few pages of personal notes from this book. Great reminder for all of us that life is about serving out of love and keeping our lives full of the good. Speak positively to your self instead of listening to self imposed negative thoughts.

This book really makes you think about how we look at life in general. Also how we treat others and ourselves by having the wrong outlook.

Love it!

I'm in the process of starting my own business and this book could not have been more timely! It is such an enjoyable, easy read that I finished it in a couple of hours. Each short chapter is filled with wisdom, knowledge and encouragement. I can see myself reading this book a few times over again as I look to implement the principles taught.

Very easy to read - about a 2 hour read. I love Jon's ability to write a story - not your typical text book business book - and get his point across concisely. The lesson in this book applies equally to how you behave in business and in your personal life. Excellent read, well worth the money and time.

Christian undertones strongly throughout do not spoil the read.I am finding that a year later I am still pulling on the basic message when leading others and myself.This is a different style of book but well worth reading.