Shaping up culture by Mark Maciver

Mark Maciver in Shaping up culture, has written a pocket-sized hand book which began as a 'How-to be successful in business' book that grew out of Maciver's blogs and vlogs and evolved into something very much more. Shaping up culture is indeed about building (shaping up) business but additionally and essentially it is about building self and business within the context of culture. This makes it an unusual and timely book in that it looks beyond self-interest and financial gain outwards to the place that business occupies in relation to the community it serves - to the people. To Maciver, successful businesses do not operate and flourish if they are stand alone money-making enterprises built on business plans and buzz words. Successful businesses, he writes, rely chiefly on things like personal mindsets, the strength of networks within the culture in which they exist and 'social credit.'

Maciver is generous in his advice and with sharing  his personal philosophy and experiences of setback and success in the building of his professional haircutting business 'Slidercuts' which is based in London. Maciver's internet presence aligns with Shaping up culture. One example is Slidercut's TikTok platform where he describes himself as a barber, speaker and multi-award-winner business person. With his book, Shaping up culture, he must now proudly add - author!

The structure, design and typesetting of Shaping up culture makes reading accessible and attractive. The chapters are listed with page numbers in bold white on black in large, clear font, enabling the time-poor reader to dive in straight to what they want. The chapters clearly signpost what they are about and within each the information is interesting, honest and easy to retrieve. Maciver starts with the all important "Mindset" and there are the expected chapters on "Goals" and "Teamwork" (albeit with the Maciver twist) but then the reader is enticed to read what he has to say about..."You're always in an interview", "The so-called overnight success" etc, etc. The tone of Shaping up culture is another factor that sets the book apart from many self-help/business advice books. Maciver clearly states his position, placing his words within the context of his lived experience. The information offered is logical, sound and free of pontification. He acknowledges the fears and concerns of his readers and pays attention to their perspective. Throughout, reading Maciver is like being in the company of an amalgam of revered uncle and a warm, whip-smart big brother who only wants the best for you.

Maciver speaks to this secular world from a deep religious faith that has sustained him from childhood throughout all the obstacles of life. He doesn't preach; he does quote eg. from Colossians 3:23 "Whatever you do, work at it with your whole heart..." He quotes from many other sources as a lead-in to each chapter and acknowledges those people at the end of the book.

Shaping up culture, would be useful for many people and groups.  It is a great book for people in the business world wherever they are on their journey.  Likewise it would be a good book for any young person stepping out into life to have beside them. It would be so great to see Shaping up culture in the hands of teachers, librarians, school counsellors, career guidance people, chaplains and pastoral care workers. Equally wherever people are into community building, Shaping up culture has relevance. Thus churches, schools, sporting clubs, service clubs etc could benefit from the wisdom found within its pages especially about building social credit within the community in order to flourish and be successful.

This is the book for anyone interested in shaping up their life and/or their business. This reader would like to place it in the hands of many people and wants it at her own fingertips.  However, being a review copy, it will go to a school...or a public library or maybe a son...or daughter...or...

Themes: Business, Community building, Life coaching.

Wendy Jeffrey