Fish!: A Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results | 
 enlarge | Authors: Stephen Lundin, Harry Paul, John Christensen
Creator: Mallory Kasdan
Publisher: Random House Audio
Category: Book
List Price: $21.95
Buy New: $12.71
You Save: $9.24 (42%)
New (25) from $12.71
Avg. Customer Rating:  219 reviews
Sales Rank: 266102
Format: Abridged, Audiobook, Unabridged
Media: Audio CD
Edition: Abridged
Number Of Items: 2
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.1
Dimensions (in): 5.6 x 4.9 x 0.4
ISBN: 0553528734
Dewey Decimal Number: 658.314
EAN: 9780553528732
ASIN: 0553528734
Publication Date: October 16, 2001
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: BRAND NEW
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Amazon.com
Here's another management parable that draws its lesson from an unlikely source--this time it's the fun-loving fishmongers at Seattle's Pike Place Market. In Fish! the heroine, Mary Jane Ramirez, recently widowed and mother of two, is asked to engineer a turnaround of her company's troubled operations department, a group that authors Stephen Lundin, Harry Paul, and John Christensen describe as a "toxic energy dump." Most reasonable heads would cut their losses and move on. Why bother with this bunch of losers? But the authors don't make it so easy for Mary Jane. Instead, she's left to sort out this mess with the help of head fishmonger Lonnie. Based on a bestselling corporate education video, Fish! aims to help employees find their way to a fun and happy workplace. While some may find the story line and prescriptions--such as "Choose Your Attitude," "Make Their Day," and "Be Present"--downright corny, others will find a good dose of worthwhile motivational management techniques. If you loved Who Moved My Cheese? then you'll find much to like here. And don't worry about Mary Jane and kids. Fish! has a happy ending for everyone. --Harry C. Edwards
Product Description
Fish! is an inspirational parable for all businesses and managers that need to boost morale and regain enthusiasm. Using the example of Mary Jane Ramirez, a manager hired to turn around the "toxic energy dump" that had become Seattle's Pike Place Market, the authors present the keys to turning a stagnant department into a positive, thriving environment. Fish! provides the concrete steps to maximizing energy, enthusiasm, productivity, and creativity in the workplace. A must for frustrated managers in any business
Download Description
In this engrossing parable, a fictional manager is charged with the responsibility of turning a chronically unenthusiastic and unhelpful department into an effective team.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 214 more reviews...
 Fish! for Teambuilding August 15, 2008
We used Fish! as a team-building exercise at work. We read about 20 pages a week and then discussed. Even people who don't like to read, enjoyed it because it's such a quick, easy, story. I did get CD's for a few people. This was a group that needed to become cohesive, and after the second week, everyone was animated about Fish! People shared their own experiences as it related to the story. Very easy discussion starter. Now they want to take a field trip from Kansas City to Seattle to visit Pike Place Fish Market!
 Great learning, easy read August 6, 2008
I loved this book. Simple and direct, it makes you reflect about all that can be done in our day to day to make it superb. It does not rely on magic formulas or rocket science, the author just leaves it in our hands... He does not deny the fact that businesses are overwhelmed with emotions and percetions, which in the end are much more powerfull than we realize.
It is written in the format of a story which makes this book a pleasure to read. Once I started I wouldn't stop !
 I thought we weren't allowed to bring religion to work August 6, 2008
I have met Jim Bergquist and been to his seminars and almost quit my job because if it. He preys on anyone who seems vulnerable so he can say they had a "breakthrough". This is no different than bringing in a church leader and breaking people down and calling it revival. I don't understand how this and others like it (landmark Education) has become acceptable in the workplace. I think it is a money making machine and they prey on the gullible. In his seminars they never pick on the bosses who are paying instead they stroke their ego. I would recommend anyone forced to go to these seminars to question why and not be afraid to walk out.
I also agree 100% with the post copied below another person left.
"As to the first, I do not believe that a company can motive or change a person. That is the business of missionaries, evangelist and philosophers. Business has no business in shaping the beliefs and ideas of the employees. These motivational programs all have silent value-statements, and to propagate these is a a form of intellectual evangelism. In short, you manager is a missionary for the gospel of corporate success. Unless you specially work for a church, or a philosophy-specific organization, such as the Freemasons or a political party, this smacks of violating conscience. "
The Best and Quickest Way to Boost Corporate Morale August 3, 2008
When our employees began reading Fish! the morale immediately went up. The readers were astounded that you could actually choose your own attitude. After the book was completed, their energy and excited has spread around our entire office of 100+ people. Everyone is reading Fish! and talking about it. They all definitely think FISH! should be read by everyone working in any organization.
 The story is inspiring, but not in an overwhelming way July 2, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
There are certainly bad jobs, but even the best job can be mildewed by a bad attitude. If a large percentage of the people in a group feel that their job is lousy, then it will be contagious and all will catch the disease.
This story is about Mary Jane, a woman that moved to Seattle, Washington with her husband, only to have him unexpectedly die of an aneurysm. She is the manager of a group that does very well; the negative talk is not within, but about the third floor. Apparently, the floor is populated with the slackers of the company, people who care little for the quality of their work or how it appears to others.
Since her husband died, Mary Jane has been struggling to pay off the residual medical bills, so when she is offered the management position of the third floor with a substantial pay raise, she accepts. She arrives to find that things are about as bad as she expected. Morale is horrendous; people delay in answering the phone and sometimes unplug it instead. There is no energy in the workers, everyone arrives as late as possible and seems to just endure until it is time to quit.
At first, Mary Jane has no idea what to do and when her superior gives her an ultimatum to increase productivity or else, she knows that she has to do something. Her first idea comes from her trip to a fish market. The workers there clearly are enjoying themselves; they toss fish around and even use them as makeshift hand puppets. When she asks about their positive attitude, one of the workers, a kind man named Lonnie, points out that a positive attitude is a necessary prerequisite to enjoying any job.
When Mary Jane calls a meeting and discusses it with her staff, she finds them much more positive than she expected. They are not by nature negative, in fact they are happy that someone is trying to improve their situation. After a few more visits to the fish market, Mary Jane discovers the other "secrets" to making her work environment a positive one and at the end, her staff is a team, happy and enjoying their work.
The word "secrets" is extremely overused in the context of success. No effective tactic is really a secret, everyone knows about it, the difference is in the effective application. Mary Jane learns, and you will too, that treating people as valuable and appreciated members of a group is a sure way to raise morale, which always improves performance. It also helps if you can disguise the work as play, which is another one of the tactics employed by Mary Jane. The story is inspiring, but not in an extremely dynamic manner.
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