Al Ries and Jack Trout believe that personal talent and hard work are not the keys to success. Rather, they argue, you should find the right horse to ride and let that take you to the top.

In that respect, Dan Quayle would certainly qualify as the poster child for this philosophy.

This book is well laid out and a breeze to read. The concept is certainly sound in today's marketplace.

Most personal development books focus on finding success from the inside out. Think and Grow Rich, The Power of Positive Thinking, and similar studies are excellent examples of this philosophy. Horse Sense looks outside for success and makes a very compelling case. In my mind, combining the two is a terrific recipe for everyone.

Do you remember the advice Dustin Hoffman received in the movie The Graduate? "One word. Plastics." That was the recommended horse for him to ride.

Let's start with the basics.

What is a horse?

A horse is a way to achieve success. Success is a personal definition, but in general it is measured in our society in terms of wealth, time freedom, power, and influence. Our own mix may differ, but these are all elements. As a kid, I envisioned success as being King of Tahiti, but this never seemed to be listed in the classified ads. Wherever we are along the way to success is largely due to the horse we chose to ride. Some are easier to handle than others. Some are easier to find than others. The authors have provided excellent examples and set the odds for each type.

Long Shots

The longest odds, tagged at 100 to 1, are for those of us riding the hard-work horse. That is not to say that successful people don't work hard, but it is to point out that working hard is not a guarantee of success. On the one hand, you can only rely on one person's efforts—your own. If all of your assets are tied up in your efforts, when your assets aren't at work you aren't getting paid!! In order to get ahead all you can do is whip that horse harder and Work longer hours. The average worker spends twenty percent more time on the job and has thirty-two percent less free time than in 1973. It is not uncommon to find two adults working four jobs. That horse race is not a likely path to success. At least not from my definition.

The next longest odds go to the IQ-horse. I'm sure our current president is a very smart man—after all he attended Yale University. However, I don't think his intelligence got him into the White House. We'll talk about his horse in a moment, but let's focus on the IQ-horse for the rest of us. Successful people need a decent amount of intelligence in order to deal with paperwork, regulations, travel planning, and other administrivia demanding personal attention. Too much intelligence, or too much reliance on just this area, can lead to absent-minded professor syndrome. Successful people do not analyze until paralyzed. Instead they get the facts, make a decision, and move on. If the decision later proves flawed they rely on their innate intelligence to correct the course. Most of the Fortune 500 CEOs range from the upper middle of the pack. A college president stated, "Be nice to your A students because they'll come back and be your colleagues, but be exceptionally nice to your B and C students because they will come back and give us a new auditorium and a new science building." If someone is less intelligent, they already know it. As a result they are quicker to look outside of themselves for another horse to ride.

The education horse is closely related, and runs at 60 to 1 odds. Fifty-nine percent of all high school graduates go on to college and twenty-five percent of the American workforce is college educated, higher than anywhere in the world. Dr. John Francis Welch, Jr. didn't get to be the chief executive of the fifth largest US industrial company based on his PhD. Rather, he dropped the baggage and rose to the top of General Electric with the simple moniker of Jack. A good education gives you a good start but the best benefit is relationships, as we will soon see.

Everyone's favorite is the company horse. This was true in the past when signing on with a solid company was the best path to success. Right now IBM has in excess of 387,112 employees. How likely do you think your chances are going to be as employee number 387,113?

Medium Shots

The creativity horse is another favorite, not readily available to many of us. As Epinions writers, we all have and use talent. Certainly some of us will write that blockbuster, providing a legacy income for our children's children. Most of us, though, will write for pennies. Thomas Gray wrote, "Full many a flower is born to blush unseen, and waste its sweetness on the desert air." If you are a writer, you need a publicist. If a musician you need a recording company. How many famous writers and musicians failed their way to the top, becoming "overnight successes" after countless rejections? Some talented people find that changing talents along the way is a better road to success. Bob Hope was an accomplished soprano with years of singing practice before his voice changed in adolescence. Wringing jokes rather than notes proved a better talent.

The hobby horse is related to talent, but more closely related to personal desire than perceived opportunity. We have a talent for public speaking and sales pays well but our true passion is golf. Combine the two and sell golf-related items. To consider which items, find a short odds horse in a moment.

The geography horse is related to where you are. It may be city or country, large company or small. It may be exotic or mundane. Start where you are and consider your options from what you know best.

A huge advantage is the publicity horse. Be careful of this beast, though, as it works both ways. Negative publicity can be a major handicap. Positive publicity is an asset that can help you forever. Former Miss America Bess Myerson keeps the title, and flaunted it her entire life. Riding this horse takes an aggressive personality, though.

Short Shots

This category is the best area for success and you will notice that as you move along the odds table you can see that the less reliant you are on your own efforts and abilities, the more likely the chances of success.

The product horse is a 5 to 1 shot. Not a bad ride. Lee Iacocca found a horse called Mustang. He didn't design it, but he saw and rode it to the top. Ray Kroc was a food service equipment salesman when he met the McDonald brothers in 1948. Asa Candler bought a soft drink formula from an Atlanta druggist and later made billions of dollars selling Coca-Cola.

The birth of products is the idea horse. Few people recognize good ideas, though, generally because they are focused on themselves. Additionally, people only like their own ideas—not yours. The Beatles were told that four-man bands are out. Frank Sinatra labeled rock and roll as phony and false. Richard Avedon told Cher she would never be on the cover of Vogue since she didn't have blond hair or blue eyes. Years later her cover issue outsold all others.

The other person horse was Dan Quayle's success. Find someone with a vision and passion and hop on for the ride. This nag leaves the gate at 3 to 1 odds.

The partner horse is a variation on this theme. Simon and Garfunkle were partners. So were Hewlett and Packard. Two heads are better than one and the odds for this horse are 5 to 2. However, as S & G illustrate, a partner horse can be difficult to handle, as two egos often clash.

The spouse horse is another variation, running at 2 to 1 odds. The spouse doesn't have to be a partner, as many successful men got their start by marrying the boss' daughter.

The problem with the spouse horse is that divorce is a possibility. This is not an issue with the family horse. One hundred and seventy five of the Fortune 500 companies are family controlled. It is a great asset to be a Ford, Marriott, or Kennedy, to the tune of 3 to 2 odds—best on the board.

Once the odds are described, the book turns its attention to some of these in more detail. After all, we can't all be born into wealth and power. Although the company horse is not a great bet, timing can certainly improve it, for example. Jumping on a new company destined for success is a good way to improve the odds.

This entire text is great food for thought and I highly recommend giving it a look. I have been in the computer industry for years and that has been a great horse to ride. But, with quite a few years left in the saddle, I am always looking for another avenue. That, too, is part of the message. Stay flexible and stay open to new possibilities. You never know where that horse will come from.

Just the facts
Publication year: 1991
ISBN: 0-07-052735-0
Section: Success in Business, Job Hunting, Marketing

The authors also co wrote Positioning, Marketing Warfare, and Bottom-Up Marketing

Hardback
231 pp.
Currently out of print, but very available on used book websites.


Recommended: Yes