Book Notes: The World According to Martha

1. [AN: All notes are taken verbatim from the book. I claim no rights to them.]
2. The World According to Martha Stewart by Bill Adler

Introduction: Like Oprah andCher, needs only be called by her first name

1. Hallmark characteristics
2. i.      Drive for perfection
3. ii.      Pride in accomplishments
4. On Herself“What I try to do every single day is learn. I learned that from Barnard.”
5. On Fans
6. On Her Critics
7. On Customers
8. On Being a Perfectionist
9. On Entertaining
10. On Decorating“Edit. Decide what you really want in a room. Don’t get cluttered.”
11. On Holidays
12. On Fashion“Buttons are the fossils of the sartorial world, enduring long past the garments they were designed to hold together.”
13. On Food“The dining room is a defunct room in the house these days. People eat in the kitchen.”
14. On Style
15. On Weddings“The cake defines the style of the wedding almost as much as the bride’s dress.”
16. On Her Business PhilosophyThere’s very little patience for failure.”
17. On Branding
18. On the Internet
19. “There is no such thing as an instant business.”
20. On Kmart“How else could I reach 77 million people.”
21. On Her Magazine“There is always room for another good thing.”
22. On Fame
23. On Home“Home is where we live. It’s where we do most of our thinking, eating, also practice most of our hobbies.”
24. On Marriage
25. On Pets
26. On Family
27. On Household Chores“I want to elevate the role of the homemaker to a higher level. Homemaking shouldn’t be a drudgery.”
28. “Some people don’t know how to take care of their houses anymore. Mothers forgot to teach the new generation.”
29. On Some Pet Peeves
30. On the Stock Market
31. On the Inclone Debacle“I want to finish my salad!”
32. On Serving Time“Wished to be in a prison near her home so her mother could come and visit.”
33. “I don’t really miss material things at all. It was kinds of nice having a rest from material things.”
34. “I didn’t miss cappuccino. I missed the idea of cappuccino.”
35. On Her Deal with Sirius
36. On Television and Her TV Show“There is a hope on the part of Mark Burnett, my executive producer, that my sense of humor will come out a bit more.”
37. On Other People
38. What Other People say about Martha
39. “Perfectionism is her greatest strength and greatest weakness.”