Success Is a Journey: 7 Steps to Achieving Success in the Business of Life

by Mayer, Jeffrey J.

• ISBN13: 9780070411296
• ISBN10: 0070411298
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1998-12-01
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill

Summary

In Success Is a Journey: 7 Steps to Achieving Success in the Business of Life, Jeffrey Mayer, the author of the best-selling book Time Management for Dummies, shows you how to make your dreams come true. He gives you the tools you need so you can discover what it is you were born to do. He helps you develop a Master Plan of ACTion, and then shows you how to implement that plan. And most importantly, he gets you to start thinking about who you are, what's important to you, and what you want to do with your life.

Author Biography

Jeffrey J. Mayer is one of the country's foremost authorities on time and business management, and is the author of many best-selling books. These include Time Management for Dummies and If You Haven't Got the Time to Do It Right, When Will You Find the Time to Do It Over? Since founding his consulting firm, Mayer Enterprises, he has helped thousands of people become more productive on and off the job. He has been featured in The New York Times, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, Esquire, People magazine, and many other publications.

Table of Contents

Life and Work Have Become Hectic and Complicated	1	(2)
Where Are We Going with Our Lives?	2	(1)
What Is Success?	3	(16)
Success Depends upon Your Expectations	4	(10)
What Were Your Expectations?	5	(6)
How Did You Do on the Test?	5	(1)
Did You Solve the Problem?	5	(1)
Did You Close the Sale?	6	(1)
Was the Company Successful?	7	(1)
How Did the Team Do?	8	(3)
Success Comes from Participation	11	(1)
Some Things to Think About	12	(2)
The Thirteen Characteristics of Successful People	14	(5)
STEP 1 Successful People Have a Dream	19	(28)
Principle #1: Successful People Have a Dream	21	(3)
Become a Dreamer	23	(1)
Principle #2: Successful People Have Fun	24	(3)
Principle #3: Successful People Have Desire	27	(2)
Principle #4: Successful People Have Faith	29	(1)
Principle #5: Successful People Make Their Own Luck	30	(3)
Principle #6: Successful People Aren't Afraid of Failure	33	(3)
Overcome the Fear of Failure	35	(1)
Principle #7: Successful People Don't Quit!	36	(2)
Principle #8: Successful People Don't Take No for an Answer	38	(3)
What Have You Done with Your Life?	41	(6)
What Have Been Your Major Accomplishments?	41	(1)
What Are You Most Proud Of?	42	(1)
What Are Your Skills and Talents?	43	(2)
What Do You Value Most in Life?	45	(2)
STEP 2 Successful People Have a Master Plan of ACTion	47	(12)
Creating a Master Plan Saves You Time	49	(4)
Put Your Plan on Paper	50	(1)
Creating Your Master Plan	51	(1)
Your Master Plan Is Constantly Changing	52	(1)
Create a Board of Directors to Help You Execute Your Master Plan	53	(4)
Speak with Many Different People	55	(1)
Listen to What Everybody Has to Say	55	(1)
Get Rid of the Naysayers	56	(1)
What Can You Do for Each Other?	56	(1)
What Do You Want?	57	(2)
STEP 3 Successful People Get Results	59	(32)
Clean Up the Clutter	61	(11)
Cleaning Off Your Desk	61	(1)
Tools of the Trade	62	(1)
Cleaning Up the Mess in Four Easy Steps	63	(1)
Organizing Your Desk Drawers	64	(1)
Clean Out Your Desk File Drawer	65	(1)
Setting Up Your Master File Drawer	66	(1)
Setting Up Your Master Filing System	67	(2)
Dealing with Reference Materials	69	(1)
Setting Up a Reading File	70	(1)
Read with a Pen in Your Hand	70	(1)
Setting Up a Resources File	71	(1)
Using Your Master List	72	(5)
Put Your Master List Inside Your Computer	77	(4)
You Need a Place to Store Personal Information	78	(3)
Activities Are Scheduled with People	81	(1)
View Your Tasks in Many Different Ways	82	(4)
View Your Activities by Person	82	(2)
View Your Activities as a List	84	(1)
View Your Activities on a Calendar	85	(1)
The Power to Modify Activities	86	(2)
Automatically Roll Over Your Unfinished Activities from One Day to Another	87	(1)
Rescheduling Activities Is Easy	87	(1)
You Can Take It with You	88	(3)
STEP 4 Successful People Take Responsibility for Their Time	91	(38)
Increase the Value of Your Time	93	(6)
Give Yourself a Raise	94	(2)
Give Yourself an Extra Hour Each Day	96	(1)
Do One More Thing Before You Call It a Day	97	(2)
Setting Your Priorities	99	(12)
Successful People Don't Procrastinate	100	(2)
Create a Sense of Urgency by Setting Deadlines	102	(3)
Focus on the Important Tasks, Not the Urgent Ones	105	(2)
Be the Person Who Solves Problems	107	(1)
Take the Time to Solve Problems	108	(3)
Getting the Most out of Each Day	111	(12)
Schedule an Appointment with Yourself	111	(2)
Make the Most of Your Prime Time	113	(1)
Give Yourself the First Two Hours of the Day	114	(2)
Take Control of Your Meetings	116	(3)
Avoid Impromptu Meetings	119	(1)
Schedule Your Telephone Calls	120	(1)
Schedule Time to Meet with Your Staff, Colleagues, and Co-workers	121	(2)
Taking Control of Your Day	123	(6)
Technique #1: Identify Your Three Most Important Tasks	123	(1)
Technique #2: Schedule Your Day	123	(4)
Technique #3: Who Are Your Biggest Time-Wasters?	127	(1)
Technique #4: Keep a Journal of Your Daily Accomplishments	127	(2)
STEP 5 Successful People Build Relationships with the Right People	129	(20)
Networking: The Art of Making Friends	131	(1)
Give Yourself the Opportunity to Meet a Lot of People	131	(3)
Networking with a Paper-Based System	134	(5)
Obese Rolodex Files Aren't Usable	134	(1)
Adding New People Is a Cumbersome Process	135	(1)
Finding People Isn't Easy	136	(1)
What Happens When a Person Changes Jobs?	136	(1)
Name and Address Books Don't Work Either	137	(1)
Business Card Files Just Collect Business Cards	137	(2)
Put Your Name and Address Book Inside Your Computer	139	(10)
The Way I Used to Do It	139	(1)
ACT! Is the Ultimate Networking Tool	140	(1)
An Electronic Name and Address File	140	(1)
It's Easy to Find People in ACT!	141	(2)
Everybody's Got a Notepad	143	(1)
ACT! Makes It Easy for You to Communicate with People	144	(2)
Getting the Most out of ACT!	146	(3)
STEP 6 Successful People Get to Know the Important People in Their Lives	149	(18)
The Art of Networking	151	(3)
Get to Know the Friends of the Important People in Your Life	154	(2)
Getting an Introduction	154	(1)
The Art of Keeping in Touch	155	(1)
Networking Is a Lifelong Process	156	(1)
Look for People with Whom You've Got Chemistry	156	(1)
Networking Within Your Own Organization	157	(3)
Get to Know Your Boss Better	157	(1)
Get to Know the Important People Within Your Company or Organization	158	(1)
Get to Know the Important People Within Your Business or Industry	159	(1)
Who Are Your Most Profitable Customers?	160	(3)
When You Have a Lot of Customers, You Have a Feeling of Security ... False Security	160	(3)
Getting to Know People	163	(3)
Basic Information	164	(1)
Business or Professional Information	165	(1)
Personal Information	165	(1)
Outside Interests	166	(1)
Goals, Dreams, and Desires	166	(1)
Spend Your Life Making Friends	166	(1)
STEP 7 Successful People Strive for Excellence	167	(24)
There Is No I in Team	169	(3)
Asking For and Getting Help When You Need It	169	(1)
The Art of Delegating	170	(1)
Share the Limelight	171	(1)
Become a Brilliant Conversationalist	172	(15)
The Art of Asking Questions	173	(1)
Always Ask Open-Ended Questions	173	(2)
Listen to Understand What the Other Person Is Saying	175	(4)
The Art of Negotiating	179	(1)
Know What You Want	179	(1)
Look at the Situation from the Other Person's Point of View	180	(3)
Make Everybody Feel Like a Winner	183	(1)
Don't Get into an Argument	183	(1)
But I'm Right...	184	(1)
When You're Wrong	185	(2)
Make the Most out of Every Day	187	(4)
Do Things 1/4 of a Percent Better Each Day	187	(1)
Set Daily Goals for Yourself	187	(1)
Have a Great Day, Every Day	188	(1)
Strive for Excellence	189	(1)
Think Winning Thoughts	189	(1)
Surround Yourself with Positive, Supportive People	190	(1)
Index	191