When I Stop Talking, You'll Know I'm Dead: Useful Stories from a Persuasive Man by Jerry Weintraub
My Rating of “When I Stop Talking, You'll Know I'm Dead: Useful Stories from a Persuasive Man” by Jerry Weintraub: 10 / 10
Years ago I read this when ramping up my volume of book reading. It would have to be one of the best books I read back in 2015. Seven years later I decided to listen to it again - this time the audiobook to hear Jerry tell his own story. It was a treat just as I remembered!
Weintraub is an entertainment mogul. This is a person who has managed Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, John Denver, Led Zeppelin amongst many others. He also produced a number of blockbuster films - namely Ocean 11, Ocean 12 and Ocean 13. He started with nothing and ended up a successful and very wealthy man. He also has an incredible amount of stories which he shares in this book.
That is what makes this book so good - the stories! It the fun stories and of course how he goes about telling them. It’s the intricate details of each story that only those in it only knew. For example, we all know the success of the Ocean’s series however what we didn’t know is how Weintraub convinced all of the big stars to get back together for a sequel. I’ll leave that one in the book for you to enjoy.
One thing to keep in mind is that you won’t come away from this book learning any new skills. Instead you come away with many good stories and life lessons. It is a truly entertaining book and one I will come back to time and time again.
Three key takeaways from the book:
- People might see Weintraub’s success as luck. After reading this book you realise he has a lot of core talents but it was his hard work and consistency that provided the many opportunities he has had over the years. His ability to build rapport and convince people to work with him was second to none.
- The stories on how he toured with Presley and brought Sinatra back on tour were exceptional.
- The Elvis Presley Miami story to a classic design thinking case which I’ve written about before! (URL)
