Cut to the Chase and 99 Other Rules to Liberate Yourself and Gain Back the Gift of Time by Stuart R. Levine, Currency/Doubleday, 180 Pages, $19.95 Hardcover, ISBN 9780385516204

Business books range from fables to advanced project management titles. I tend to especially appreciate books that have a practical side, books that have instant takeaways. Some critics may say they have only takeaways. I don’t think that accusation is a slight. Books that can give you quick and instantly applicable data are hard to do. Trust me, I have seen the other side of this coin and it is grim.

Stuart R. Levine wrote a book I like called Six Fundamentals of Success a few years ago. The germ for this book came when he was going live on the Today Show promoting his previous book and Matt Lauer leaned in and said, “You know what really drives me nuts? When people come into my office for a five-minute conversation and, an hour later, they’re still there! Why can’t they cut to the chase?