When it comes to love and business, Americans like to get advice.

Benjamin Franklin’s biggest business success came from the publication of poor Richard’s Almanack, which he began in 1732. Two centuries later, Dale Carnegie’s ‘How to Win Friends and Influence People’ was published.

Carnegie considered the employer-employee relationship to be a sacred bond. Jessica Weisberg, author of ‘Asking for a Friend: Three Centuries of Advice on Life, Love, Money and Business’ says today’s service economy is more like a string of one-night stands:

(Weisberg) “You probably perceive that you change jobs and you’ll change companies at least a few times in your career. And Dale Carnegie is really setting people up for a kind of permanent relationships with his or her employees.”

Weisberg says today most companies don’t make a big effort to retain their workforce.

I’m Carole Zimmer.