BIO: Gisela Hausmann is one of a dying breed of adventurers – she digs in and researches topics of interest from the ground up, then tells things as she sees them.
STORY: Gisela published a book about her time working at Amazon. In the book, she suggested what Amazon should do to improve working conditions. Amazon implemented these suggestions.
LEARNING: Know who your friend is and who is not. Look at criticism as an opportunity.
“If you just get going and try to do your thing, you’re probably gonna get it.”
Gisela Hausmann
Guest profile
Gisela Hausmann graduated with a master’s degree in film & mass media from the University of Vienna, the oldest university in the German-speaking world.
She is one of a dying breed of adventurers – she digs in and researches topics of interest from the ground up, then tells things as she sees them.
An author of two dozen books, her work has been featured in regional, national, and international publications, including GeekWire, Inc, Success (print magazine), Entrepreneur, and Bloomberg’s podcast ‘Decrypted.’ She is also the winner of the 2016 Sparky Award “Best Subject Line.”
Born to be an adventurer, she hiked in the Himalayas and the Gobi Desert, crossed Russia on the Trans-Siberian Railway twice, and meditated in the Dalai Lama’s private room at the Potala Palace in Lhasa, Tibet.
Her motto is: “Don’t wait. The time will never be just right.” – Napoleon Hill
Worst investment ever
Gisela has written very many books throughout her career as an author. Her books have won various recognitions, including Kindle book review awards, and have been featured on Success Magazine and Bloomberg podcast.
At some point in Gisela’s career, many of the cheaters came in and made her life miserable on Amazon. So she decided to have a downtime phase and went to work in Amazon’s logistics department.
While working at Amazon, Gisela found out that all the many principles that the company preaches did not happen there. She even wanted to quit at some point because she was miserable there. Then came COVID, and Gisela was now stuck where she didn’t want to be.
Gisela then came up with a great idea to write a book about her experience at Amazon and published the book. She thought the journalists who constantly investigated everything about Amazon would be thrilled to finally hear from a logistics professional about what needed to be done. But they were not interested in her book.
When Gisela submitted her book on Amazon, it took 104 hours for it to be put online. In most cases, it takes a maximum of 72 hours for a book to be approved. Gisela would soon learn why her book took so long to be published on Amazon. Amazon’s legal department forked over this book in every little detail. Then they literally went ahead and took many of the changes Gisela suggested in her book and implemented them. Amazon is now doing what Gisela wrote.
Lessons learned
- Think through in a creative way who is your friend and who is not worth anything.
Andrew’s takeaways
- Look at criticism as an opportunity.
Actionable advice
If you’re an author and want to contact reviewers, read one of Gisela’s audiobooks. If you run a business and sell on Amazon, read Gisela’s book Naked Truth About Getting Book Reviews, and you’ll find seven tips to boost sales. Another great book everyone should read is Naked Determination, 41 Stories About Overcoming Fear.
No.1 goal for the next 12 months
Gisela Hausmann’s goal for the next 12 months is to refocus and do more for the environment. She wants to write a serial fable in the style of Animal Farm, a standard book that can be read by everybody.
Parting words
“Do it. You don’t know if the opportunities are gonna be there tomorrow. So focus on it; it can be done.”
Gisela Hausmann
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