Tom Peters talks about the little big things

Tom Peters sat down to answer some questions for us on video.

Great stuff here. If you don't have 12 minutes for the entire thing, check out the timeouts below and do listen to Tom answer at least one question.

We discuss business, excellence, writing, toilet reading, marketing using free content, and life on a Vermont farm. And we also talk a bit about his new book The Little Big Things: 163 Ways to Pursue EXCELLENCE (just released).

Tom Peters has been writing bestselling books and has been a top-level speaker to international business audiences for more than 25 years. Both Fortune Magazine and The Economist call Tom, "uber-guru of business."

His advice is just as important today as in 1982 when his groundbreaking book In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America's Best-Run Companies (called "the greatest business book of all time" by Bloomsbury UK), was published.

Direct link to video in high resolution

Here are some of the things we discussed:

:00 - 1:25 Why the best place to read Tom's new book The Little Big Things is sitting on the toilet.

1:25 - 3:05 About excellence

3:05 – 4:40 What's changed and what's stayed the same in business over the past 30 years?

4:40 – 6:05 Tom talks about his idea: "Hard is soft and soft is hard."

6:05 – 7:40 Tom's new book was written by drawing on 163 blog posts. I ask him how writing a book is different using this technique (which I use too).

7:40 - 10:20 Tom on giving away free content as a marketing technique. (Spoiler alert – he’s been doing this for nearly 30 years!)

10:20 – 12:00 I ask Tom why he doesn't just retire and sit by the fire in Vermont.

Thanks, Tom, for taking the time to speak to us!

Comments

[David Hutchison]

It's remarkable, and inspiring, that Tom can have such current ideas and remain a leader for so long. I loved his work in 1982 and I follow his blog today.

I love checking out the latest slides he has shown at a speaking engagement - quick reminders of how we shold be conducting ourselves and our business.

[Julia Stander]

Looks like another good book for my "must read" list. The "hard is soft and soft is hard" part of the interview was interesting, Tom is right, there will always be the human element to business. I will be interested in reading more about this when I get the book.

[DawnV]

Thanks @broganmedia for sharing this post.
Found this video intriguing and will definitely pick up the book to learn more. Love his concept of excellence and giving away free content as a marketing technique.

[Tom Hood]

David,

Great interview with one of the all time "masters" of business. I pre-ordered this bok and am about one-third in and love it. I intend to keep it with me as a reference and reminder. I also got your latest book and love it!

[Brian Haugen]

It's refreshing to be reminded in today's age of the convergence of the Web and content marketing, that there were those before us who have been giving away free content as a marketing tactic for a LONG TIME!

This got me thinking about how our clients (mainly in B2C service industries) could apply this idea, and I wrote this blog post that contains some free content marketing tips along those lines.

Here it is: http://priorityresults.com/blog/free-content-as-a-marketing-technique/

[Tony Faustino]

David, thank you for sharing this "conversational video" between you and Tom Peters.

My favorite quotes from Mr. Peters:(1) These are ideas I care about and I would like to get them out to as many people as possible and (2) The blog has become the best marketing tool I've ever had. It wasn't my intention but it happened.

If sharing knowledge without any strings attached and writing a blog is good enough for Tom Peters, it should be good enough for the rest of us.

[David Meerman Scott]

Thank you all for jumping in. Tom is indeed a master marketer (and business strategist) so it was a thrill for me to have an opportunity to interview him.

[anne sorensen]

Great interview (conversation) David. Have just retrieved my copies of 'In Search of Excellence'(a little bit yellowing now); and 'The Circle of Innovation' from the bookshelf. Loved both .. particularly the format of 'Circle'which still proudly contains multiple multi coloured bookmarks! Can't wait to read 'The Little Big Things' ..just ordered. Thanks for bringing this to us! Fantastic.

[John Spence]

I admit it… I am an unrepentant Tom Peters fanatic and have been for 20+ years. But even with that said, there have been a few (very few) of Tom’s books that I felt were…uh… “Less-than-excellent”(small “e”). So it was with a bit of trepidation that I sat down to read his newest book: “The Little BIG Things – 163 Ways to Pursue EXCELLENCE.”

At 507 pages of main text, it is a significant commitment for many readers to undertake the study of this weighty tome… but I promise you it is worth every single page of it! I read it cover-to-cover (twice) in the span of two days of flying to meet with clients. I simply could NOT put it down, as I was greedy to get to the next page of TP wisdom and wise-cracking.

If you are a Tom Peters devote’ you will recognize much (nearly all) of what this book contains… and that is just fine. It is filled with a relentless parade of “Tom Peters' Greatest Hits” that keep slapping you in the face and pushing you to think, adjust, change and take action. If you are a business leader of ANY kind – you MUST read this book. I absolutely guarantee that you will find not one… not two… but 20 or 30 game-changing ideas that could truly take your business and your career to a completely new level. As Tom readily admits, a great deal of what is in this book is just plain common sense (very much like my book: Awesomely Simple) but common sense is not always "common practice" in many businesses and this book is jam-packed with incredibly powerful ideas and suggestions that far too many of us simply forget to do. If you read this book carefully, and with a an earnest desire to make your business better, there is no way you could ever be dissappointed.

As someone who has read a minimum of 100 – 120 business books a year, every year since 1989, (and it all started with In Search Of Excellence) I will tell you with NO hesitation that “The Little BIG Things” is now in my top 5 all-time favorites. YES – it is that good!

Mr. Peters… this one is a complete home run!!!!!!!!!

[David Meerman Scott]

John - thanks for Jumping in.

The good thing about this book is that you do not need to read it in one go. As Tom himself says, you can read it on the toilet.

David

[find domain name availability]

Looks like another good book for my must read list. The hard is soft and soft is hard part of the interview was interesting, Tom is right, there will always be the human element to business. I will be interested in reading more about this when I get the book.
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