Trendspotting: Think Forward, Get Ahead, and Cash in on the Future
Author: Richard Laermer
List Price: $14.95
Our Price: Click to see the latest and low price
ISBN: 0399527494
Publisher: Perigee (March, 2002)
Sales Rank: 68,091
Average Customer Rating: 4.06 out of 5
Customer Reviews
Rating: 5 out of 5
It's A Most Unusual Tome
Ok. I was skeptical. But I read it - and found out a lot of really innovative stuff on tech, politics, religion, education, and, well, MY future...I'm a little scared about how my house will work, how we will all communicate, what our entertainment will be like and how much longer this darn planet really has!
I like the fact Laermer exposes truths and is not afraid to say some things we are all thinking..but are too politically correct to actually speak. This book definitely got me past all of the hype and straight to what kind of matters. The world is complicated enuf. Thankfully someone has a sense of humor, writes really well, and has loads of things to tell me that I care about. I am recommending it. Definitely. Oh, and it helped me win a few bets.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Useful, Fun, Futures!
Richard Laermer's Trendspotting is exactly what the author claims it to be -- Cliff Notes for future business trends "without the guilt." In an easy to read, light style (I read it in a few hours on the plane) Laermer conveys what makes the time we live in so filled with possibility. From SMS messaging and integrative medicine to spirituality and wireless infrastructure, he lets the people who are doing it talk about it; and then throws in some of his own spice for good measure.
Rating: 1 out of 5
Does not deliver on it's promise.
I have read a number of trendspotting books over the years, and this one does not deserve a place in this genre. There are two major shortfallings:
1. Laermer makes the crucial error of letting his liberal/progressive political bias affect his interpretation of culture. I agree with his politics to a great extent, but introducing it into his research affects his perceptions and make his findings shallow. This is most obvious where he discusses "The Family" and "Spirituality" where he is clearly an outsider.
2. Unlike genuine trendspotting books by Rushkoff, Naisbitt, Toffler and Popcorn, this book does not offer any new thesis in decoding culture. Why is there only one chapter on the "how" of trendspotting?
The book should really be titled "My Trendspotting".
3. The back cover claims "original insights" from various industry insiders. Don't be misled, these guys don't get much input in the book, and they are also hampered by their own interests or bias.
I suggest you use the Amazon browse feature and read a few pages before you make your purchasing decision, and compare it with serious trend spotting books by the authors mentioned above.
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