The BOOK that inspired me

In our profession, we deal with the task of changing behaviour, especially consumer behaviour. The Affluent Society educates us on macroeconomics, its significance on social values and changing behaviour patterns.

Galbraith explains the whole process of economic progress through examples such as a four-wheel drive vehicle, an air-filled mattress, weekend picnics and their effect on public morality. These examples apply perfectly even to the present multiplex economy.

The multiplex theatre is a reality check. It's a clear example of segmentation of people not just on the basis of their economic scale, but also on values and morality.

These mini-societies emerging from ripples in the economic system reflects the affluence of a society. In hindsight, one can sense these correlations, but when I see the connect in a book that has gone through 40 reprints, I realise that this was a huge learning that I had from the book.

Kaushik Mukherji, Vice president, Hungama (Virtual Marketing India)

THE AFFLUENT SOCIETY
Author: John Kenneth Galbraith
Publisher: Penguin Books
PRICE: Rs 574
ISBN: 0140285199

BOOKWORM
10 business bestsellers

The Long Tail
Author: Chris Anderson
Publisher: Hyperion Books
Price: Rs 496
ISBN: 1401302378

The 33 Strategies of War
Author: Robert Greene
Publisher: Viva
Price: Rs 395
ISBN: 8130904101

The Rules of Work
Author: Richard Templar
Publisher: Pearson Education
Price: Rs 225
ISBN: 8131700089

Chasing Daylight
Author: Eugene O Kelly
Publisher: Thomas Nelson Inc
Price: Rs 250
ISBN: 0785281134

Business Class: Etiquette Essentials for Success at Work
Author: Jacqueline Whitmore
Publisher: St Martin's Press
Price: Rs 195
ISBN: 0312338090

Freakonomics
Authors: Steven D Levitt and Stephen J Dubner
Publisher: Penguin Books
Price: Rs 255
ISBN: 0061143308

Screw It, Let's Do It
Author: Richard Branson
Publisher: Virgin Books
Price: Rs 150
ISBN: 0753510995

Workforce Crisis
Authors: Ken Dychtwald, Tamara J Erickson, Robert Morison
Publisher: Harvard Business School Press
Price: Rs 1,419
ISBN: 1591395216

The World is Flat
Author: Thomas L Friedman
Publisher: Penguin Books
Price: Rs 543
ISBN: 0141022728

Goals!
Author: Brian Tracy
Publisher: Tata McGraw-Hill
Price: Rs 250
ISBN: 0070605866

Fish! Omnibus
Author: Stephen Lundin
Publisher: Hodder Mobius
Price: Rs 268
ISBN: 0340924586

List provided by Landmark