Nathan Martin

This week I’ve been listening to Andy Stanley’s latest book on audio.  I’ve talked about Andy before.  In his latest book, The Principle of the Path: How to Get from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be, Andy explains that direction, not intention, determines destination.  I found the book to be a good reminder to think long term.  Andy points out several times that we don’t always see an immediate effect from our actions.  That doesn’t mean there are no consequences.  The analogy of the path leading to a destination is useful.  We sometimes get off track…make a poor decision.  Each action or decision is a part of our journey and compounded those actions and decisions do lead somewhere.  Where do you want to go?  It is useful to ask yourself if what you’re doing leads down the path toward the destination you choose or if you’re defaulting down another path.

My only gripe with this book (not saying I agree with everything…I’ve never found that book/author) is that the audio book is not read by the author.  Most books I’ve listened to that are not read by the author lose some of the feeling–the inflections aren’t in the right places.  I think this is especially true of books written by speakers, like Andy Stanley.

One thing Andy pointed out that I found especially helpful: talk with people who are where you wish to go.  People who have already traveled the path know the best route.

In You Don’t Need a Title to Be a Leader, Mark Sanborn gives a good overview of leadership skills.  Sanborn defines a leader as someone who influences others.  By that definition we all are leaders.  The author challenges us to use that influence positively.  He shares many stories throughout the book to illustrate the ways that people lead others even when they hold no authoritative office or position.  We can bring positive change to our workplace, community, and relationships without being the boss.

Sanborn is also an excellent speaker.  I saw/heard him speak at Charlie “Tremendous” Jones’ memorial service.

Steve Chandler and Sam Beckford put together a collection of 100 essays (most are two to four pages each) for becoming a more complete person in 100 Ways to Create Wealth. The small sections provide food for thought.  Treat it as a quick mental stimulant for the day…many of the topics are cliched and unoriginal, but still very valuable to contemplate.  Chandler and Beckford want you to spend time thinking of ways to add value to your world and truly create wealth as opposed to waiting and hoping something good will come to you.

I wrote about Chandler and Beckford’s fiction book here.  If you like Chandler and Beckford at all, be sure to read 9 Lies That are Holding Your Business Back. I’ll write about 9 Lies soon.

Collapse Of Distinction: Stand out and move up while your competition fails by Scott McKain has been on my nightstand since April.  I received this as a part of the Thomas Nelson Book Review program.  I like the topic and was excited about reading the book.  I kept having trouble “getting into” Collapse though.  Ultimately, my take is that the book is just OK.  The author  seems–at least from the bio– like someone I would really enjoy speaking with.  He is a successful businessman and speaker.  Unfortunately, the book didn’t hold my attention the way I imagine McKain’s speaking would.  The core of the book was solid, if uninspiring:

1.  Clarity

2.  Creativity

3.  Communication

4.  Customer-Experience Focus

More interesting was Thomas Nelson’s try at something different with the sales of this book.  When buying the hardcover, you are given access to the ebook version and/or the audiobook to read or listen as well.  The idea was unique.  I didn’t love it in practice though.  The audiobook required too many different downloads…too much like work=)

The bottom line for me… Collapse Of Distinction contains solid content.  There are valuable insights especially if you haven’t studied differentiation and distinction before.  If you are interested in this topic at all,  make sure you read the 30 year old classic, Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind. Al Ries and Jack Trout are marketing legends and give plenty of real life examples to get your mind turning to come up with your own distinctions.

I recently finished Brian Tracy’s book, Flight Plan: The Real Secret of Success.  It wasn’t my favorite Tracy book, but I definitely found it useful as it is loaded with some of Brian’s simple truths.  The basic premise is that you can chart a course to a goal then follow the “flight plan” to said goal.  Probably any analogy breaks down if you carry it too far.  The weakness I saw in this book was that keeping the flight plan analogy the whole way through the book felt forced at times.  That said, the content is solid.  And timely since I read it at year end when, like many others, I was taking stock of my own plans and progress.

Here are a handful of Tracyisms from the book:

• “For you to change your outer world, you must change your inner world.”
• “You have more talent than you could use in a hundred lifetimes.”
• “The most valuable asset you have in achieving your goals and reaching your destination in life is your mind.”
• “Fear is , and always has been, the greatest enemy of mankind.”

At the beginning, Tracy guides the reader through choosing a destination and formulating a plan.  Expecting turbulence and making continual course corrections were two parts of the airplane analogy that were especially insightful.

Overall, Flight Plan is well worth the fifteen bucks.  In fact, I believe there is a paperback available now.

Don’t be thrown off by the bland cover and unimaginative title… Steve Chandler and Sam Beckford’s book is a fun fictional story about an entrepreneur and his daughter figuring out how to revive their restaurant from the brink of bankruptcy.  The Small Business Millionaire helped them achieve an unprecedented level of success in the business.  Throughout the process dad and daughter also found meaning and joy in their lives.

This quick read will give readers plenty of food for thought and some good reminders.  Here are some of the highlights I picked out:

• “Advertising is salesmanship in print.”  All salespeople should yield measurable results.
• DECIDE to make the business succeed.
• Sell the experience, not just a meal, book, or service.
• Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
• People want to see you succeed.
• Win over your local market and watch word of mouth spread.

Go read The Small Business Millionaire.  I have more Chandler books to talk about in future posts.

In 10-10-10: A Life-Transforming Idea, Suzy Welch shares a strategy for decision making.  When faced with a decision, Suzy asks:

1.  If I choose to do this, what will the outcome be in 10 minutes?

2.  If I choose to do this, what does the result look like in 10 months?

3.  If I choose to do this, how does my life change in 10 years?

As Suzy explains, don’t get hung up on exactly 10 minutes, 10 months, and 10 years.  That’s just meant to be a catchy way to remember to determine the immediate, short-term, and long-term effects of our decisions.  I found 10-10-10 to be a great reminder of the Law of Cause and Effect.  Suzy puts her journalism background to excellent use as she fills the book with real-life examples of people from various walks of life that have used 10-10-10 in all sorts of decisions large and small.

The concept of 10-10-10 is simple and very practical.  You’ll pick that up quickly in the book.  Suzy’s storytelling makes the rest of the book worth reading.

Enjoy.

As a Thomas Nelson book reviewer, I had an opportunity to read through Max Lucado’s new book for a few weeks before it was released.  What grabbed my attention was the title and subtitle…Fearless:Imagine Your Life Without Fear.  I don’t consider myself to have an above average number of fears, but who doesn’t have some?!  At any rate I love the idea of Imagining Life Without Fear.  In other words, dreaming of what I would do if I weren’t holding back.

This is my first Max Lucado book and I did find value in Fearless.  Here’s what I liked:

Self Esteem

Lucado quotes scripture to say that you were “fearfully and wonderfully made”.  It is important to remember that we as humans are very complex and significant creations.  Remember when you give or receive criticism that “the fear that you are one big zero will become a self-fulfilling prophecy that will ruin your life.”  So true.  We become what we dwell upon.

Spell it out

“Left unchecked, [fears] metastasize into obsessions.”  Lucado advocates exposing our fears.  Write them down and look again.  Many fears in the light of reason don’t look so scary.

Doubt

One of the things I found comfort in was Lucado’s admission that he, a famous minister, sometimes finds himself facing “the fear that God isn’t.”  In my own spiritual journey, I’ve found it scary to admit such personal and seemingly heretical statements and I appreciate Lucado’s honesty and vulnerability.

In summary:

Max Lucado is a Christian pastor whose writing points toward God as the solution to problems.  If that philosophy offends you, I can recommend other books to deal with fears and live productively.  Overall, I found Fearless to be an easy read and worth the short time invested.

Brian Tracy sent the following out as his Quote of the Day email yesterday… “Time flies.  It’s up to you to be the navigator.” –Robert Orben  The email came at a perfect time for me.  This week has been extremely unproductive.  I needed a reminder to step back and assess what I’m doing with my time.  Jumping from one fire to the next doesn’t get me closer to my goals.  Sometimes those fires need to be put out, sometimes not.  The thing to remember is to set aside at least a little time to focus on longer-term goals and keep momentum toward those goals.  Back to the Rule of Five.

Speaking of Brian Tracy…a great time management book is Eat That Frog! Eat That Frog is based the concept of tackling your most dreaded task first thing then the rest of your day is easier.

Time Management advice by Brian Tracy:

• Continually ask yourself:  What is the most valuable use of my time right now?
• Say to yourself and others:  Back to work!  or Well, I’ve got to get back to work.

What methods do you use to remain productive?

I just finished Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers.  The basic premise is that a series of fortuitous circumstances rather than amazing talent enabled the Beatles, Bill Gates, hockey stars, and others to reach high levels of success.  Gladwell believes that high levels of excellence require at least 10,000 hours of practice.  So far, so good.  Then Gladwell explained that unique opportunities were the reason those hours were available to the successful.  The case studies made very interesting reading, but didn’t help the kids at home who weren’t born in a certain month!

Ready, Set…

Aside from the 10,000 hour rule, I was disappointed by the lack of actionable points in Outliers.  I believe the subtitle should have been A Story of Success or Parts of Stories of Success rather than The Story of Success.  Gladwell seems to attribute the source of success largely to luck.  Kind of a downer to those of us not terribly lucky yet no less desirous of our own level of success.

What if?

While I enjoy stories like Susan Boyle, who just “needed a chance”, it seems that many success stories I hear and read about are of people who pushed through countless obstacles and made their own luck.  The stars did not just one day align for them.  What if we all have opportunities throughout our lifetimes that we are unprepared for or do not recognize that could move us closer to success?  Also, what could December-born children do to make it to the NHL?