Book: As We Were Saying

Overview

As We Were Saying (1937) by William Feather collects a series of short, practical essays that originally appeared in the author's house magazine. The pieces range from brisk business counsel and career-minded observations to reflections on personal character and common-sense living. Feather writes as a seasoned publisher and observer of American commerce, offering maxim-like sentences, rural and office anecdotes, and short meditations on how people live and work.
The tone stays conversational and brisk, aimed at readers who want actionable ideas rather than abstract theorizing. Each essay stands alone, but together they form a coherent portrait of an ethic centered on responsibility, thrift, clear thinking, and the ordinary virtues that sustain both private life and public enterprise.

Major Themes

Practicality anchors the collection: habits, time management, plain dealing, and the small disciplines that compound into success recur across the essays. Feather treats thrift not as mere penny-pinching but as a habit of attention to value, advising readers to distinguish between cheap and good, urgent and important. He frames business as a moral and social activity, stressing reputation, courtesy, and the slow work of building trust.
Individual responsibility and self-improvement appear often, but always without sanctimony. Feather prefers pragmatic tests, try, observe, correct, over abstract moralizing. He also explores leadership and organizational life, offering counsel to managers about clarity of purpose, humane firmness, and the practical art of motivating people. Implied throughout is an anti-faddish stance: fashionable methods give way to tried habits and common sense.

Style and Approach

Feather's prose is aphoristic, economical, and wry. Sentences blink with memorable turns of phrase and pointed observations that aim to be quotable yet grounded. Short parables and vignette-like scenes, encounters at a desk, a brief conversation with a clerk, an episode in a small factory, make abstract points concrete. The writing balances humor and seriousness, often sliding from a chuckle to a clear, incisive rule.
The structure of the essays reflects the magazine origin: compact sections designed for a reader's coffee break rather than a long sit. That economy of attention suits the subject matter; advice that cannot be quickly grasped or applied would seem misplaced when the goal is better daily practice. Feather's voice combines managerial savvy with the sensibility of a lay philosopher, translating broad ideas into workplace habits.

Historical Context and Reception

Published in the late 1930s, the collection reflects the fallout from economic hardship and a renewed interest in practical, stabilizing habits. Its emphasis on thrift, steady work, and local responsibility resonated with readers negotiating uncertain times. Critics and practical-minded readers alike appreciated the author's plain speech and useful maxims, which stood apart from both academic treatises and self-help extravagances.
Over time the book found a place among collections of business wisdom and quotable practical philosophy. While some observations are period-specific, many of Feather's core prescriptions, clarity of purpose, attention to reputation, discipline of habit, retain relevance for modern managers, freelancers, and anyone interested in how small choices shape a life.

Who Will Benefit

Anyone seeking short, no-nonsense counsel on living and working will find the essays congenial. The collection suits readers who prefer actionable reflection to theoretical abstraction, and those who enjoy a wry, conversational style that delivers quick lessons with a human touch. For the reader interested in mid-20th-century American business thought, the essays also provide a lively snapshot of attitudes that helped shape workplace culture in the era.