Disrupting the Game: From the Bronx to the Top of Nintendo

Reviewed by:

G. Connor Salter, Professional Writing alumnus from Taylor University, Upland, IN.

Title:

Disrupting the Game: From the Bronx to the Top of Nintendo

Author:

Reggie Fils-Aimé

Publisher:

HarperCollins Leadership (an imprint of HarperCollins)

https://www.harpercollinsfocus

Publication Date:

May 3, 2022

Format:

Hardcover

Length:

224 pages

OVERVIEW

In 2004, Reggie Fils-Aimé opened his presentation for Nintendo at the E3 Conference with, “I’m about taking names, and we’re about making games.” That year proved to be a milestone, helping bring Nintendo back to the top of its industry. It also proved to be a milestone for Fils-Aimé, who became the President and Chief Operating Officer of Nintendo of America Inc. He overviews his life—from growing up in a Haitian immigrant family in New York City to becoming a protégé of Nintendo leader Satoru Iwata. He uses an economic tone that covers his many accomplishments without too much bragging, always staying on point. As he surveys his life—the successes and the failures—he outlines key lessons he learned about finding success in business and in life.

Books written by business people (or at least, businessmen) tend to adopt an aggressive tone that gives the impression the author “just kept pushing.” They rarely discuss if there are times one cannot just keep pushing to achieve positive results. What does one do if superiors resist change and one subordinate cannot make a change?

Fils-Aimé admits up front that those times have happened to him—for example, while working for Guinness he had a supervisor who said he was being “too positive.” Fils-Aimé advises readers to be ready to leave if those unfortunate “nothing can be fixed because the people above won’t change” situations come up and to leave without any bitterness. His emphasis on forgiveness in those terrible times gives readers an excellent tool. Throughout the book, he shares other excellent tools (the need for high communication, the need for mentors) that are time-tested and practical. He also freely discusses the times when things didn’t work out—job changes where the company flip-flopped its direction a year later, navigating being a father after a divorce. The lessons learned from the failures prove just as interesting as the lessons learned from the successes. Fils-Aimé tells a story about finding success that could so easily follow clichés, but goes beyond them to accomplish something more interesting.

A discerning, fluff-free book about leadership and success.

ASSESSMENT

Rating (1 to 5 stars)

4 stars

Suggested Audience:

Entrepreneurs seeking principles of effective leadership and mentoring.

Christian Impact:

Fils-Aimé does not discuss his spiritual journey, but his advice consistently follows Judeo-Christian principles. Whether it’s talking about forgiveness or overcoming adversity, he provides a clear vision of how to be an effective, moral leader. A story about finding success that could so easily follow clichés, but goes beyond them to do something more interesting.

https://www.amazon.com/

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/