It was a pleasure to listen to this book on audio – a lot of it made total sense, but to hear it reinforced a lot of things for me and also helped me to prioritise what is really important – how I serve others. The key points from the book are outlined below.
*Foreword*
You can’t saw sawdust, you can’t push a rope, you can’t put toothpaste back in a tube.
You will have everything you want in life if you just help other people to get what they want!
How to be successful
Will, skill, refill – having the desire, having the ability, and reinforcing both every single day. Everything is either getting better or worse, moving towards or away from success.
Ask yourself: “What did I do that made the biggest impact on others?”
Steps to take: Plan, prepare, expect to win
“Not everyone wants to be great. And some who want to be great are not willing to put in the work to make it happen.”
Potential
It’s not your potential that counts, it’s what you do with the potential that’s important.
Desire gives you the will to do tough things. It’s where motivation is born. What do you most desire? Created with vision – what is the change you’d like to see in the world?
Be-do-have – most people get hung up on doing rather than being.
The difference people are looking for in their lives: health; prosperity; peace; security; happiness; friends. Your business should tackle one of these areas.
Steps to take:
- Write down your goals
- Surround yourself with the right people
- Practice
- Get the right advice
- Do things or learn from others
A good mentor or coach has the following attributes
- Good character: honesty; dependability; trustworthy
- Track record of success (not self proclaimed) – you hear of their success from others
- Good listener
- Make good decisions, test bad decisions, and steer away from them
- Tell the truth
- Good relationships with others (not self centred, lonely people are bitter)
- Celebrate success of others (not helping others fail or being happy when others fail)
You can have six mentors – we all need help!
Expect to win – the importance of beliefs
Our beliefs drive our desires – what do you believe will happen? Thinking and processing knowledge – apply what you’ve learned, don’t just learn it. This is related to the knowing-doing gap.
Hope is important – it forms part of our beliefs – what are you hopeful for?
Learn positive thinking – ‘what if it goes right?’. Indecision is a main cause of worry – do the planning to support your decision-making and make the decision – you’ll stop worrying about it. Learn from poor decisions.
Perfectionists have a tendency to catastrophise, but failure is an event not a person. Don’t worry too much about the results.
- Learn to recognise opportunities
- Do something today to make your life better
- Encourage others (and yourself!)
Business wheel
Marketing – attract prospects
Sales – convert prospects to customers
Operations – Service & support customers
Administration – systems, finances
Leadership – strategic goals vision etc
“Your business exists as a vehicle to achieve your personal life goals”
