Geared for Growth

I'm fortunate to be part of a group of entrepreneurial people that are exposed on a daily basis to the thoughts and revelations of the masterminds of personal global development on various levels.  If you haven't a clue what I'm writing about, then all I can ask is that you hang in there.  It could be life altering.

I'm currently reading Geared for Growth - The 10 Principles for Reaching Your Potential by John C. Maxwell and Jim Dornan.  You won't find this hardback book on the open market, it doesn't even have an ISBN.  It cost me only $20, quite a deal when you consider the content and that it is a hardback.

It's full of illuminating nuggets, some from the writers themselves and others quotes from eminent people from the past.  This blog is going to be full of quotes.

"The great American preacher Dwight L. Moody" said 'If I had to kick the person most responsible for my problems, I couldn't sit down for a week.'  We need to start with ourselves because we are so often the problem."

"Whether you are trying to lose weight, build a business, build a marriage, raise a child, overcome a bad habit or resolve a depression, it is done the same way: one step at a time.  And the earlier you begin the more steps you can accumulate."

"While it's true that the later you start, the more urgency you feel, the good news is that it's never too late - as this poem illustrates:
Though you cannot go back
And make a new start, my friend,
You can start from now,
And make a brand new end!

"How do you get started with the end in view? First, find your passion.  A passion, a goal that you feel strongly about, gives you energy.  This is the "end" that you want to keep in view.  You can find your passion by asking three questions:
What do I care about?
What are my gifts?
Who do I know who is successful in these areas, who can mentor me?"

I like the paragraph on page 21 where John Maxwell talks about so many people refusing to move ahead until everything is perfect.  As he says, this is really just another excuse or fear masquerading as a reason.  You need to focus on the rewards.

Never having analysed the word "extraordinary" before reading this book meant that the fact there are only 5 letters difference between ordinary and extraordinary had escaped my attention.  Extra means just a little bit more.  Note the word 'little'.  Not a lot, not a whole heap, not a mountain - but a little bit.

"If you see a turtle on top of a fence post, you know he had help getting there!"  Why do I love it says John Maxwell, "Because I'm a turtle on a fencepost.  I know that I didn't get to where I am in life on my own.  I'm just not that smart, gifted or fast.  The truth is that those who reach 'extraordinary' receive help from others to get there".  And that's what I am getting by having access to this book and to those who wrote it.

As a man thinketh, so is he.  "It's surprisingly easy to travel through life without thinking much.  But that path doesn't lead to success.  Simply put, your mind will give you back exactly what you put into it.  It's impossible to harvest extraordinary achievement without also sowing the seeds for it in your mind.  Earl Nightengale said 'You are and you become what you think about.'"

I'll end with a quote by Louis Armstrong "There are some people that if they don't know, you can't tell them." Make 2012 YOUR year, the year you realise that you don't know what you don't know.