The Greatness Guide

by Sharma, Robin S.

• ISBN13: 9780061240195
• ISBN10: 0061240192
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-08-02
• Publisher: Harpercollins

Summary

An enormously practical handbook, The Greatness Guide contains 101 tips to help you move beyond simply existing and toward really experiencing life. Robin Sharma has distilled the lessons he has learned as a consultant to such organizations as Microsoft, Nike, FedEx, and NASA to show how following his universal principles will lead to exceptional business and personal growth and performance. Discover: Specific strategies to turn setbacks into opportunities How to attract true wealth along with real happiness Breakthrough ideas to generate health and an ?energy explosion? Tools for work-life balance and ways to experience a lot more fun And much more! The Greatness Guide is a tool that anyone can use to get to world class, achieve greatness, and become truly extraordinary.

Table of Contents

I'm No Guru	1	(2)
Harvey Keitel and Windows of Opportunity	3	(3)
Nothing Fails like Success	6	(2)
Be a Rock Star at Work	8	(2)
Your Days Define Your Life	10	(2)
Drink Coffee with Gandhi	12	(2)
Get Some Skin in the Game	14	(2)
Be into Breezes	16	(2)
Make Time to Think	18	(2)
Leadership Begins on the Extra Mile	20	(2)
Mick Jagger and Reference Points	22	(2)
Business Is Relationships	24	(2)
Life Lessons from SpongeBob SquarePants	26	(2)
How to Be a Happier Human	28	(2)
Work Hard, Get Lucky	30	(3)
Know Your Genius	33	(3)
Listen Twice as Much as You Speak	36	(2)
Your Customers Buy with Their Hearts	38	(3)
Learn to Say No	41	(2)
Burn Your Boats	43	(2)
Grow Leaders Fast	45	(2)
Your Four-Minute Mile	47	(2)
Push the Envelope	49	(2)
On Obituaries and the Meaning of Life	51	(3)
Leadership Isn't a Popularity Contest	54	(2)
What Do You Evangelize?	56	(3)
Under the Kimono: My Best Practices	59	(2)
Culture Is King	61	(3)
Your Schedule Doesn't Lie	64	(2)
Shine as a Parent	66	(3)
Be a Merchant of Wow	69	(2)
Getting What You Want while Loving What You Have	71	(3)
Think like a CEO	74	(2)
Act like an Athlete	76	(2)
Be Wildly Enthusiastic	78	(2)
Success Isn't Sexy	80	(2)
On Cuddle Parties and the Sad State of the World	82	(2)
The Value of Good	84	(2)
Grace under Pressure	86	(3)
To Be More Productive Relax and Have More Fun	89	(3)
The Two Magic Words	92	(2)
The Value of Dying Daily	94	(2)
Client-Focused vs. Out to Lunch	96	(2)
Lead Without Title	98	(2)
Do Your Part	100	(2)
Do You Play?	102	(2)
Avoid the ``Four F's Syndrome''	104	(3)
Problems Reveal Genius	107	(2)
Love Your Irritations	109	(2)
Speak like a Superstar	111	(2)
Learning or Decaying	113	(2)
Simple Tactics for Superb Relationships	115	(2)
Rock Stars as Poets	117	(2)
The Innovator's Mantra	119	(3)
Pleasure vs. Happiness	122	(1)
The $600 Sandwich	123	(2)
Good Business Is Good for Business	125	(2)
Build Success Structures	127	(2)
The Person Who Experiences Most Wins	129	(2)
Brand like Diddy	131	(2)
Get Big into Blessings	133	(2)
Be Wise, Early Rise	135	(4)
Who Made Success a Dirty Word?	139	(2)
Get Great at Life	141	(2)
The Steve Jobs Question	143	(2)
What's Missing from Your Coolness?	145	(2)
No Ask, No Get	147	(2)
Sell Your Desk	149	(2)
Get Fit to Lead	151	(2)
Extreme Leadership and Kids' Clothing	153	(2)
The Seven Forms of Wealth	155	(3)
Apply the U2 Standard	158	(2)
Learn More to Earn More	160	(2)
See Through the Eyes of Understanding	162	(2)
The Heart of Your House	164	(2)
Become an Inspirational Human Being	166	(2)
Make a Dent in the Universe	168	(2)
Not All Leaders Are the Same	170	(2)
Six Reasons to Set Goals	172	(3)
Remember the Boomerang Effect	175	(2)
Make People Feel Good	177	(2)
Commit to First Class	179	(3)
Do a Clean Sweep	182	(2)
Follow the Million Dollar Baby Rule	184	(2)
The Earth Is Small	186	(2)
Guests Are God	188	(2)
The Beauty of Time	190	(2)
On Mountains and Mastering Change	192	(3)
What Happened to ``Please''?	195	(2)
Bon Jovi and the Power of Focus	197	(2)
Do a ``101 Things to Do Before I Die'' List	199	(2)
Spend Time with Your Kids	201	(2)
Get Goofy at Work	203	(2)
Revere Great Design	205	(2)
On Evian Water and You as a Big-Time Dreamer	207	(3)
Be like Garth	210	(2)
Don't Give Up	212	(2)
Get Big on Self-Care	214	(2)
Guess Who Inspires Me?	216	(2)
How to Live Forever	218	(2)
Lay Claim to Greatness	220

Excerpts

Greatness Guide Intl, The
Powerful Secrets for Getting to World Class

Chapter One

I'm No Guru

The media sometimes calls me a leadership (or self-help) "guru." I'm not. I'm just an ordinary guy who happens to have learned ideas and tools that have helped many human beings reach their best lives and many organizations get to world class.

But I must be really clear: I'm no different from you. I have my struggles, my frustrations and my own fears—along with my hopes, goals and dreams. I've had good seasons and some deeply painful ones. I've made some spectacularly good choices and some outrageously bad mistakes. I'm very human—a work in progress. If I have ideas that you find insightful, please know it's simply because I spend my days focused on the knowledge you are about to experience. Thinking about practical ways to help you play your biggest game as a human being and reach greatness. Dwelling on how I can help companies get to the extraordinary. Do anything long enough and you'll get some depth of insight and understanding about it. Then they'll call you a guru.

A man at a signing I did at a bookstore in Bangalore, India, heard me say, "I'm no guru." He came up to me and said: "Why are you so uncomfortable being called a guru? 'Gu' simply means 'darkness' in Sanskrit and 'ru' simple means 'dispel.' So the word 'guru' simply speaks of one who dispels the darkness and brings more understanding and light." Nice point. Made me think.

I've had good seasons and some deeply painful ones. I've made some spectacularly good choices and some outrageously bad mistakes. I'm very human–a work in progress.

I guess my discomfort stems from the fact that if you think I'm different from you, then you might say, "Well, I can't do the kinds of things Robin talks about because he has talents and abilities I don't have. All the stuff he talks about is easy for him to do. He's this guru." Nope. Sorry to disappoint you. I'm just a guy working hard to make the best of his days, trying to be a great single dad to my two wonderful children and hoping he's—in some way—making a difference in peoples' lives. No guru here. But I do like the "dispelling the darkness" point. Need to learn more about that one. Maybe some guru can help me.

Greatness Guide Intl, The
Powerful Secrets for Getting to World Class. Copyright © by Robin Sharma. Reprinted by permission of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Available now wherever books are sold.

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Excerpted from The Greatness Guide Intl: Powerful Secrets for Getting to World Class by Robin Sharma
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.