Category: Book Club (Big Books & Short Books)

 

The name FISH co-authored  by Stephen C. Lundin, Ph.D., Harry Paul,
and John Christensen is inspired by the famous Pike Place Fish Market at Seattle. The fish market is cold , wet, dreary, stinky and dismal.Despite of the existing reality the fish mongers chose to convert this dreaded place with enthusiasm and energy by making it lively . The visit to this market place forces a smile on people after observing the way the fish market operates. The writer might have taken this as a premise and proposed 4 timeless philosophy to lead a successful team .1)Choosing your attitude: Fishmongers chose to be lively rather than grumpy.2) Play: Enthusiasm and energy are the end result of the playful attitude demonstrated by the fishmongers. The flamboyant attitude of fishmonger has transformed this place. 3)Marking the presence, being vigilant and observant about the customers needs and requirements and making them involved respectfully in the madness . 4)Making Someone’s Day: Giving a unique experience to the customers makes their day and they never forget the way they were dealt with . This enforces them to visit the place over and over again.

The businesswomen Mary Jane at First Guarantee Financial have been assigned the responsibilities to lead the operations of Third Floor of The First Guarantee Financial The third floor is viewed with dread and apprehension by the employees of the organization . They are also described as Zombies .It is labelled as the TOXIC ENERGY DUMP The presumptions turned out to be true when she took charge of the Third Floor Having known the existing reality of the third floor she is in the dire need to change the situation for the better. She wanted to transform the place for the betterment of herself and her subordinates. Her quest begins and the story unfolds as to how did she manage to bring into effect the changes which she once dreamt  for the Third Floor.

A short plot summary of the chapter/book

Choose your attitude , you don’t have much choice in choosing the work rather you have the choice to change your attitude. Also have faith in what you do . Not changing is rather more disastrous than fearing the consequences we might come across if we wish to change. Also being playful is what ensures liveliness, enthusiasm and immense energy.The fish market engages the customers respectfully and makes them a part of the madness going around the fish market . Making someone’s day is something which will unfold many aspects. BE PRESENT to the moment will help you be focused and serve the customers better. The quote in the book caught my attention. Past is a history , Future is a mystery and present is a gift hence the name present. The fourth philosophy is Make someone’s day . Try to provide helping hand to those in distress , lend an empathetic ear to their worries .Resolve the queries of the customers rather than making them toss from one counter to another without any intention to address their queries. After receiving the feedback as the zombies the third floor felt the need to be present to the customers needs. Also the conversation about eliminating that department and outsourcing it to the external company raised an alarming signal amidst the employees. The feeling of impediment , the job is adequate but does not extend to serve the external customers needs was obstructing the progress of Third Floor.The four philosophies mentioned seem as the bedrock to achieve the success in every responsibility we shoulder. Fish is the universal language which reinforces and taps the energy, enthusiasm , creativity and innovation hidden within each one of us.  

This book is a good read for everyone . The language is simple yet eloquent. The big idea is transferred successfully. Those who are not avid readers will not find burdensome to complete the book. The vivid illustrations and real life situations mentioned in the parable aids in comprehending the meaning and capture the true essence of the parable.

Regards,

Kinjal Morkhia

Fish – A book is written by Stephen C. Lundin, Harry Paul and John Christensen.

The title was chosen because they were inspired by the world famous, “Pike Place Fish Market”.

The book is helpful to bring positive change, more energy, satisfaction for your job and help you love what you do.

I personally felt that it is helpful in both – “Our professional life and our personal life”. We can simply implement our key learning to all the aspects of our life.

My Key Takeaways –

1. I learned about choosing the right attitude for whatever we do. If a place like a fish market can become interesting and world famous then any other place can become famous and interesting to work provided that we choose the right attitude towards it. One more thing like in this book is that, “You can not always be doing what you love to do, but you can always love whatever you are doing”.

The four philosophies given in the book, “Choose your attitude, Play, Be Present, Make their day” are so wonderfully explained that anybody can easily understand the same and apply the same in their lives.

Choose your attitude – Past is a history, Future is a mystery, Today is a gift and that’s why we call it Present. I really liked these lines. We have a day and we can make it worst or best by choosing the right attitude. This is the first Philosophy of the book and most important one to begin with.

Play – We can be serious about work without being serious to ourselves. We can make our work as play and by doing so we can add a lot of fun to it. And when fun is added to your work the work becomes a reward itself. It is surely better to have such rewarding work rather than working for rewards. Adding to it when fun is added to your work, you can observe a remarkable boost in your energy in the same work which you were doing earlier with the wrong attitude. And that is another important philosophy of the book.

Be Present – This Philosophy talks about giving importance to people around you. Be it your client or internal staff members. By doing so we make them feel more valuable which is a great addition to the energy of both the parties involved in the conversation.

Make their day – Here we are expected to involve others in our fun and make that experience memorable for them. By doing so you can make the bond stronger day by day be it your customers or colleagues. You will surely be able to connect FS culture here while reading the book.

I also like the ending of the book when Mary Jane and Lonnie get married. It was truly a beautiful end.

I really enjoyed reading this book and recommend it to all to read it.

On Day 1 of our Life class (Book club), as an extension to reading the book ‘The Happiness Project’ by Gretchen Rubin, we gave ourselves the task of creating our own Happiness Project. The tasks included reflecting on the following:

What is that one thing that you can and will spare time for everyday to make sure that you are Happy?

Create your happiness journal and write about your experience of taking on the project

Click a snap of doing what makes you happy everyday and speak about it.

What are the challenges you face in doing this everyday?

How have you attempted to overcome the challenges?

The one grouch that I have always had is my battle with my weight – even as a child I was heavy but athletic. Over time, I have lost the willingness to work on my fitness.

My commitment is my health and to that end, I think exercising to lose weight will make me happy. I commit small, but I will use 15 to 20 mins everyday to exercise. I will maintain my journal about the experience over time. I will add snaps when possible. I will also reflect on the challenges (the main challenge is willingness to start) and how I have attempted to overcome it.