Pyramid Principle, The: Logic in Writing and Thinking (Financial Times Series) Paperback – 16 Mar. 2021

This is an amazing book and i would say it should be made part of the teaching in colleges especially for people who are about to start a corporate career. There are so many books around for people who give GMAT, GRE etc on analytical writing with a lot of concepts and philosophies on good writing, but this is the best book and the best philosophy i have come across on writing business documents.The classification of business documents, the way to structure your thoughts, the ability to put yourself in the readers' shoes and the examples - all of it is very well presented in the book.But, the book is almost solely focussed on writing business documents with the sole purpose of how to get the message across in the most clear and logical way. Other areas of writing and even in the business world where documents need to be written with legal/contractual implications or purely technical aspects are not really touched upon, but of course these other documents are read by a specific group and not general community.

Brilliant book on how to structure hypotheses.

Came highly recommended and the content is good.Do not expect an easy read and this is not a 'self-help' light read. This is very heavy going and will take time to get your head around the subject matter. It really needs to be read in short bursts and is most definitely not easily absorbed. Some of that is the writing style which is a bit dated, but the message certainly isn't.However i has made a material impact on my work and I'm glad I bought the book.

A useful book full of relevant theory on writing, logic, and conveying information for really anyone, not just consultants or businessmen.The book is old, e.g. does not cover modern email correspondence or PPTs; nowadays Letter of Proposals are often via PPT with less focus on written words.However, the underlying theory is still relevant and practical. The described methodology can be applied to any text (incl. verbal) and moreover, the book does cover logic and argumentation, thus I am not disappointed by the lack of modern examples.I am especially happy because it covers such a wide topic in a concise manner (plus any attempt to correct poor business writing should be applauded).

Good for my hubby to help with his corporate communication.

Oh dear. A clear example of how even the best professional books age badly.I'm having a flurry of reading professional books right now. I can't read them all the time, so I swallow them in batches. And now it is the turn of the Pyramid Principle. For those who don't know The Pyramid Principle is one of the classic books of the consulting industry. I first came across it over 25 years ago when I was working for the consultancy A.T. Kearney. Whilst never exactly a fun read, it then seemed like good advice, well explained.It is essentially the book that defined the way that many of the strategy firms, like McKinsey, developed presentations and documents. At least they did. They may still do so, but fortunately I don't need to know that sort of thing anymore.The problem with the book is that reading it in 2018 it reads almost like something from the Victorian era. I exaggerate, but it just feels so old and ponderous. It was obviously written for the era of the typewriter and overhead projector. You can't help thinking Barbara Minto should hire a modern author to give it a zippy overhaul and create a book about a third the length with more punch. Another problem is it is so self certain. It does not explain this as a way to write - but the one and only way to write, which I am little doubtful of.Reading the references is interesting, as Minto certainly picked some serious influences, including Wittgenstein, Chomsky, Karl Popper and Thomas Kuhn. The influence of Popper is evident. I was less clear about how the others had influenced her book. What is noticeable is there is no reference published after 1972, and many are much older. I know this book was first published in 1978 - but I have just read the "2009 revised edition". The existence of any 21st century revisions is not evident.The reason I still give it 3 stars rather than less, is below the long winded style and outdated examples, is some seriously good advice about how to structure your thinking and your writing. Good advice, that many modern pithy writers could heed, to make their writing clearer and have more impact. If you have the patience and stamina its worth the effort, but don't expect hours of fun.

Outstanding guidance for anyone wanting to come to a conclusion about anything or support others to do so.

Great book that helps you structure and articulate your content, so the reader gets the maximum value and you can communicate your message effectively!This book has transformed the way i write emails, presentations and even contract my sentences!