A couple months ago, Mark Trueblood did a review of KNOCK THE HUSTLE. (Yeah, some people are still reading that damn book; go figure.) So here's his review, as-is, unedited. If you want to know more on Mark, visit Mark Trueblood here.:
KNOCK THE HUSTLE Review by Mark Trueblood
I first read Hadji Williams’ Knock The Hustle about three
years ago, and enjoyed it. But after re-reading it recently, it's clear to me
that Hadji was really ahead of the curve on some important concepts and trends
when he wrote it. The following may not sound like a traditional book review.
I’m just reacting to the themes in the book that really jumped out at me.
First, a little background. According to his book, Hadji
grew up in a hardworking blue-collar family in some of Chicago's tougher
neighborhoods. He ended up becoming a copywriter, and working at well known
agencies in Chicago and elsewhere. Through his career, he eventually learned
that the business world and the world he grew up in had something in common.
They were all about the Hustle.
In the first part of the book, Hadji tells stories from his
career that illustrates the hustle in the corporate world. If you've worked in
advertising, you have worked with people exactly like he describes, and
experienced the agency culture (or lack thereof.)
What I got out of this was that agencies, especially the
bigger and badder ones, are set up to extract the most amount of money they can
out of your brain, while compensating you as little as possible. And this
hustle takes many forms. Sometimes they scare you and make you feel small.
Other times they promote an indulgent and ego-driven culture. But in the end,
they're trying to hustle you, both by limiting your opportunities for growth
and by making you grateful for being treated as less than you're worth. This
resonates with thoughts about Corporate America from Seth Godin’s recent
masterwork Linchpin.
Personal comment: The advertising industry is peculiar in
that the biggest and fastest-growing agencies are almost never the ones that
consistently pump out the best ideas or get the best results. Often the most
effective growth is focusing on being a creative wrist and a vendor for your
clients most of the time, with thought leadership only happening in the upper
end of projects.
The second thing that jumped out to me about Hadji's book is
his convincing argument that Corporate America has managed to milk black and
urban culture for all it's worth, without actually listening to black and urban
persons. There is no doubt that Black culture has had the most impact on
American culture in the last century, more than any other culture. It would
seem to be a given that the advertising industry would be eagerly looking to
immerse themselves in authentic Black culture, and recruit African American
talent. Well clearly, this isn't happening. Not only are ad agencies and
corporate marketing departments very homogenized, the authenticity of black
culture is constantly overlooked in favor of the stuff that sells in suburbia
and in corporate boardrooms.
Personal note: Despite that I've only worked in very small
agencies, I've had the blessing of working with many talented folks from Latin
America, Asia, and Europe. Diverse cultural perspectives = inspiring work
environments and unique ideas. Give your agency this blessing.
Now for the happy stuff. The second part of the book is
where Hadji really stands out, because he was way ahead of the crowd on some of
his concepts. The first is the idea of Tribes. Tribes, as a way to understand
disparate subcultures, are somewhat well-known now. But when Hadji first
published Knock The Hustle, it was a pretty new idea.
Lastly, Hadji gives advice to those of us who'd like to
market more respectfully, build creative businesses, and prosper, all while
being able to look ourselves in the mirror.

















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