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Personal Development | SUCCESS | What Achievers Read

A four-second time-out&mdash;the duration of a deep breath&mdash;can mean the difference between screwing up and being successful on any given day, says best-selling author and consultant Peter Bregman.This quick pause &ldquo;can be powerful enough to subvert a poor decision and replace it with a smarter one,&rdquo; writes Bregman, a Harvard Business Review columnist who scored big with his last book, 2011&rsquo;s <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0446583405/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0446583405&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=J6EISVJNMCLVDVF7">18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done</a>.The time frame matters less than the objective. Bregman&rsquo;s point in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0062372416/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=390957&amp;creativeASIN=0062372416&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=ZCCSNGV6QHBHKL4I">Four Seconds</a> is that a quick time-out is all you need to take a step back, override knee-jerk responses, reassess your behavior and adjust your reactions. He aims to help readers improve personal and professional interactions and optimize their work habits through incremental changes&mdash;ditching the urge to be perfect, making time for rituals, being helpful instead of nice, accepting criticism and establishing boundaries with others. While the ideas aren&rsquo;t revolutionary, Bregman&rsquo;s amiable style, positivity and encouraging advice are enough to keep the reader&rsquo;s attention.by Peter Bregman February; HarperOne; $26

[node:summary] - All the Time You Need to Stop Counter-Productive Habits and Get the Results You Want

A four-second time-out&mdash;the duration of a deep breath&mdash;can mean the difference between screwing up and being successful on any given day, says | SUCCESS

Reading List: Four Seconds

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Reading List: Four Seconds | SUCCESS

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A lot of the time&mdash;too much of the time&mdash;<a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/blog/do-you-have-a-good-idea-avoid-the-8-things-that-can-kill-it" target="_blank" title="Do You Have a Good Idea? Avoid the 8 Things That Can Kill It | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">new ideas die on the vine</a>. We aren&rsquo;t ready for them when they hit us, we don&rsquo;t nurture them, we put up roadblocks to stop them in their tracks or we simply let them fizzle by not providing appropriate support.There are measured ways to foster innovation, though. Consider a few of these.1. Carry a notebook or an audio recorder with you. You never know when a great idea will strike&mdash;on a walk, in the shower, in the car or at the grocery store&mdash;so capture it immediately, right where you are. Did you realize your smartphone has a built-in voice-recorder app?2. Ask the right questions. Your team should be motivated to make improvements and comfortable suggesting new things. Even small changes can yield significant results.&nbsp; <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/before-your-next-meeting-apply-these-7-tips-to-your-agenda" target="_blank" title="Before Your Next Meeting, Apply These 7 Tips to Your Agenda | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">At your next staff meeting</a>, ask what one thing they would change in the workplace to improve productivity by 1 percent. Reward suggestions with gift cards and see how much more quickly they come.3. Consider all ideas carefully. A particular idea may not work, but a variation of it might. Cross-fertilization may produce something unique, so get team members to piggyback off one another&rsquo;s ideas. Write down suggestions on slips of paper, throw them in the center of the table and <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/3-new-techniques-to-brainstorm" target="_blank" title="3 New Techniques to Brainstorm | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">challenge people to build on another&rsquo;s thoughts</a>.4. Keep an open mind, and open others&rsquo; minds. You must prune away any because-we&rsquo;ve-always-done it-that-way attitudes. <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/7-parts-of-your-life-that-suffer-when-you-fail-to-change" target="_blank" title="7 Parts of Your Life That Suffer When You Fail to Change | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">Reluctance to change</a> will keep your idea garden from growing. Ask, &ldquo;If we had to scrap this and start over, how would we perfect it?&rdquo;5. Revisit good ideas regularly. As the last agenda item at the end of a regularly scheduled meeting, raise a question for team members to ponder. Let their subconscious simmer for a week. Then bring up the topic at the beginning of the next meeting to see what developed.Static teams stagnate. Those that grow survive. In business, growth requires innovation, creativity and forward thinking. As a leader, you must do your part to foster growth.But how do you tap innovation in the first place? Check out 6 ways to stir your creative juices.

A lot of the time&mdash;too much of the time&mdash;new ideas die on the vine. We aren&rsquo;t ready for them when they hit us, we don&rsquo;t nurture

A lot of the time&mdash;too much of the time&mdash;new ideas die on the vine. We aren&rsquo;t ready for them when they hit us, we don&rsquo;t nurture | SUCCESS

5 Smart Ways to Foster Innovation

5 Smart Ways to Foster Innovation | SUCCESS

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Thanks to technology, we have easy access to copious amounts of information, amusement and global connectivity. But that access comes at a cost, writes tech journalist and entrepreneur Ben Parr. As a result of our 24/7 world, our attention spans have diminished, making it more difficult for individuals and companies to be noticed. The &ldquo;science&rdquo; of captivology explains how to rise above the noise to capture and hold on to attention for your brand, company, idea or cause. Parr amiably explains the three stages of attention and seven captivation triggers that can save a company or idea from disappearing into oblivion. These triggers include:&bull; Automaticity: Exploiting compulsive responses to specific sensory cues such as colors, symbols and sounds.&bull; Framing: Adapting to or changing another&rsquo;s view of the world to get his attention.&bull; Disruption: Violating people&rsquo;s expectations to redirect their attention.&bull; Mystery: Creating uncertainty and suspense to keep an audience intrigued.Showing how to implement each trigger, Parr supports his reasoning with scientific studies, interviews with individual attention-grabbers and the examples of companies such as Airbnb, Kickstarter and the Make-A-Wish Foundation. He also ties in his personal experiences as co-founder of a venture capital firm. Throughout <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0062324195/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0062324195&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=J7MTYWE5LRBOJB26">Captivology</a>, Parr keeps readers engaged, amused and focused, proving that the science of captivology works.by Ben Parr March; HarperOne; $27.99

Thanks to technology, we have easy access to copious amounts of information, amusement and global connectivity. But that access comes at a cost, writes

Thanks to technology, we have easy access to copious amounts of information, amusement and global connectivity. But that access comes at a cost, writes | SUCCESS

Reading List: Captivology

Reading List: Captivology | SUCCESS

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Connectional intelligence is the ability to combine the world&rsquo;s diversity of people, networks and disciplines to influence the greatest number of people &ldquo;toward a loftier purpose&mdash;improving people&rsquo;s lives, building sustainable societies and creating the futures we want,&rdquo; declare Erica Dhawan, a teaching fellow and researcher at Harvard Kennedy School&rsquo;s Center for Public Leadership, and Saj-nicole Joni, Ph.D., the founder and CEO of Cambridge International Group, an advisory firm.The authors&rsquo; message is that our ability to connect globally means that power and influence are more attainable than ever, and consequently <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/tony-robbins-on-how-to-achieve-the-extraordinary" target="_blank" title="Tony Robbins on How to Achieve the Extraordinary | SUCCESS.com">we can achieve more</a> than we previously imagined by working in conjunction with others.To show how connectional intelligence works, Dhawan and Joni include examples of entrepreneurs such as Ben Kaufman, founder of the invention website Quirky, and Luis von Ahn, who helped create CAPTCHA (those distorted characters that websites make you enter to prove you&rsquo;re a real person) and then applied the system to digitizing printed words and books for the masses.While the authors of <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1137279788/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=1137279788&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=7YGBDXIN2553HKDO">Get Big Things Done</a> offer general pointers, they don&rsquo;t quite deliver the promised road map so that just anyone can get big things done. Still, the profiles of social entrepreneurs who use connectivity as a conduit to do something good combines with the authors&rsquo; passion for global possibilities to inspire and motivate.by Erica Dhawan and Saj-nicole Joni February; Palgrave Macmillan; $28

[node:summary] - The Power of Connectional Intelligence

Connectional intelligence is the ability to combine the world&rsquo;s diversity of people, networks and disciplines to influence the greatest number of | SUCCESS

Reading List: Get Big Things Done

Reading List: Get Big Things Done | SUCCESS

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Do you&nbsp;think of yourself&nbsp;as extraordinary?
Are you rolling your eyes because you think extraordinary is some special, unattainable status held by a privileged few?
Let me share a secret: The distance between ordinary and extraordinary is much smaller than you think, and they’re separated by the smallest of margins. Crossing over is as simple as shifting your mindset and making a series of incremental changes. Here’s how to get started:
Focus just a little more. Unintentional neglect can impact us in subtle ways that we don’t begin to realize until after the fact. You probably don’t go out of your way to make your closet messy, but it happens anyway. Messiness and clutter occur in larger parts of people’s lives in the same way.
Isn’t that the truth? How much of your life is bogged down with mundane tasks, misplaced priorities and trivial details?
Repeat after me: <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/the-upside-of-no" target="_blank" title="The Upside of No | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">It’s OK to say no</a>.
Not an offhanded no, but instead an intentional decision to put certain essential activities ahead of others of little importance.
Personally, I start by regulating my calendar. I control what goes on it and keep others from hijacking my agenda. I’ve discovered that by focusing a little bit more and wiping out some nonessentials, my results increase significantly, as will yours.
Slay a dragon before breakfast. My friend Michael Hyatt, the former CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers, says he fights a dragon named Lethargy each morning. He explains on his blog, “If I don’t slay this dragon before breakfast, he usually gets the best of me. After breakfast, when the day’s activities are crowding into my life, my chances of doing battle and winning drop dramatically.”
Hyatt wakes up early—while Lethargy is still dreaming sweet dragon dreams about the land of Honalee—and uses those predawn hours to gain the upper hand through prayer, exercise and reading.
If you have a hard time slaying your dragon, plan your battle the night before. Do this every day for a month, and you will be amazed at the positive results.
Schedule your family first. I measure my success by the strength of my family relationships. To keep those bonds firm, I make sure to <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/creating-the-perfect-day-4-steps-to-prioritizing-your-priorities" target="_blank" title="Creating The Perfect Day: 4 Steps To Prioritizing Your Priorities | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">prioritize my time</a> with them above all else.
Balance isn’t easy. The list of things I want to do is longer than the time I expect to have on this earth. I could work 24/7 and not do all that I want. Does that mean I work 24/7? No. I set my work aside and put my family first.
Each December, when I plan the coming year, I block out several weeks just to be with my wife, Margaret, or our family. I pay particular attention to vacations, holidays and birthdays. Family time goes on the calendar first.
At the start of each month, I carve out days here and there for my loved ones. And I’ll spontaneously shift daily priorities to make room for family—whether it’s dropping everything when the grandchildren stop by or letting Margaret organize an afternoon outing.
Too often successful <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/6-tips-to-balance-the-work-life-seesaw" target="_blank" title="6 Tips to Balance the Work-Life Seesaw | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">people give their families the leftovers</a>. It’s difficult to live an extraordinary life if things aren’t good at home, though. Family relationships take work. But that one effort will yield a huge return.
Add one extraordinary team member. Every leader knows that the better the players, the better the team. <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/john-c-maxwell-4-ways-to-help-your-team-surge-forward" target="_blank" title="John C. Maxwell: 4 Ways to Help Your Team Surge Forward | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">Good teams create momentum</a>, and momentum makes leadership easier.
I’d rather have one extraordinary player than three ordinary ones. Extraordinary people make things happen. They are game changers. They carry more than their weight, and their influence is felt in everything they touch.
If you can find just one all-star player, you’ll change the entire dynamic and performance of your team. And that change can take the entire group to another level, including you, Coach.
Dive in and start swimming. Extraordinary people take risks. I have yet to meet one who plays it safe. When a good idea or opportunity comes along, don’t test the water. Don’t wade in. Dive!
It’s unnerving when you don’t know how cold that water is—or whether your forward-flipping somersault will end in a belly flop. But <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/blog/5-ways-to-reframe-failure" target="_blank" title="5 Ways to Reframe Failure | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">failure isn’t the end of the world</a>, and extraordinary lives don’t exist in languid streams. Seek the riptides.
Possess an extraordinary attitude. While this step might seem the simplest, it could be the most important. Hall of Fame third baseman Wade Boggs once said, “A positive attitude causes a chain reaction of positive thoughts, events and outcomes. It is a catalyst, and it sparks extraordinary results.”
Your attitude may be the greatest determining factor in how you live your life—positively or negatively. And it is entirely within your control. <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/blog/you-have-2-options-dance-or-drown" target="_blank" title="You Have 2 Options: Dance or Drown | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">Choose to be extraordinarily positive</a>.
Reflect on your day every day. Too many leaders are on the go all day, every day, and rarely take the time to reflect. Extraordinary leaders, however, pause for a few minutes every evening to consider how they spent their time, what they accomplished during their day and what they can do better tomorrow. That’s how you learn from your mistakes and improve. That’s how you become exceptional.
Let me leave you with one last thought. Becoming extraordinary rarely hinges on what you can or can’t do. More often it lies in what you will or won’t do.
As author Mark Sanborn wrote on his blog, “Every morning when we wake up, we are confronted with a choice: another day just like the last or a clean slate to start all over.”
Make today the day you choose to pursue an extraordinary life.
<a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/tips-from-the-pros-how-to-be-your-own-life-coach" target="_self" title="Tips from the Pros: How to Be Your Own Life Coach | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">Ready to exceptionalize your life? Find out how to improve yourself—by yourself—with tips on how to be on your own life coach. </a>

Do you&nbsp;think of yourself&nbsp;as extraordinary? Are you rolling your eyes because you think extraordinary is some special, unattainable status held

Do you&nbsp;think of yourself&nbsp;as extraordinary? Are you rolling your eyes because you think extraordinary is some special, unattainable status held | SUCCESS

John C. Maxwell: Do You Realize How Close You Are to Being Extraordinary?

Unleashing Extraordinary Potential: Insights from John C. Maxwell

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[node:summary] - Reed Hastings led Netflix to new heights in 2014 in the midst of a bold plan to remake the entertainment industry, making him our 2014 SUCCESS Achiever of the Year.

The story of Netflix is about the continuing evolution of TV and film, and the journey of one man who turned his annoyance over a late fee into a | SUCCESS

2014 SUCCESS Achiever of the Year: Reed Hastings

2014 SUCCESS Achiever of the Year: Reed Hastings | SUCCESS

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In November 1993, toy tycoon Ty Warner introduced Beanie Babies at the Smoky Mountain Gift Show in Gatlinburg, Tenn.&ldquo;Always prepared to build hype, Warner had only two of the Beanies available for sale at that event,&rdquo; writes Zac Bissonnette. &ldquo;Seven more were on display but not then available for order.&rdquo; Implying or creating a shortage by &ldquo;retiring&rdquo; certain Beanie Babies was a tactic Warner employed repeatedly to ratchet up demand. Eventually his scheme worked. By the mid-1990s, &ldquo;the children&rsquo;s toy transitioned to an adult obsession.&rdquo; Warner had orchestrated a craze that swept the country with the help of some Beanie Baby-obsessed Illinois housewives. (At the height of the craze in 1998, a single Beanie Baby sold for $10,000.) Warner made a fortune and thrived until the Internal Revenue Service caught up with him.In 2013 he pleaded guilty in a huge offshore tax-evasion case. Bissonnette has penned a mesmerizing tale about speculative collectibles, personal demons, love affairs, greed and gullibility. Full disclosure: In <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1591846021/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=1591846021&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=T4MYGBGKNCPBRSEV">The Great Beanie Baby Bubble</a>, the author confesses that Whisper the Deer, a Beanie Baby released in 1998, sits on his desk.by Zac Bissonnette February; Portfolio; $26.95

[node:summary] - Mass Delusion and the Dark Side of Cute

In November 1993, toy tycoon Ty Warner introduced Beanie Babies at the Smoky Mountain Gift Show in Gatlinburg, Tenn.&ldquo;Always prepared to build hype, | SUCCESS

Reading List: The Great Beanie Baby Bubble

Reading List: The Great Beanie Baby Bubble | SUCCESS

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After a series of personal tragedies threatened to derail her, clinical social worker and psychotherapist Amy Morin wrote a blog about the things that mentally strong people do not do and the things that let them <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/doubtbusters-erase-self-limiting-beliefs" target="_blank" title="Doubtbusters: Erase Self-Limiting Beliefs | SUCCESS.com">sidestep self-defeating attitudes</a> (self-pity, resentment and dwelling on the past) to overcome obstacles and push through challenges.Her blog post went viral in a flash, accruing 10 million views worldwide. Now Morin expands on her post, fleshing out 13 don&rsquo;ts and illustrating how avoiding these behaviors improves your mental outlook and your life. Morin suggests that you:&bull; Avoid comparing yourself to others.&bull; Develop an awareness of your stereotyping.&bull; Stop emphasizing your weaknesses.&bull; Quit magnifying other people&rsquo;s strengths.&bull; Don&rsquo;t shy away from change.&bull; Don&rsquo;t worry about pleasing everyone.Writing with intelligence and clarity, Morin presents concrete strategies to help readers shift from negativity to positivity. Her advice is crisp, precise and actionable. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0062358294/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0062358294&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=GSZIHDK4GDSJK4UT">13 Things Mentally Strong People Don&#39;t Do</a>&nbsp;is one self-improvement book that satisfies and delivers surprises.by Amy MorinJanuary William Morrow; $26.99&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/feed-the-positive-dog" target="_self" title="Feed the Positive Dog | SUCCESS.com">Check out an 11-day positivity plan that includes daily exercises to help you be a more optimistic person.</a>

[node:summary] - Take Back Your Power, Embrace Change, Face Your Fears, and Train Your Brain for Happiness and Success

After a series of personal tragedies threatened to derail her, clinical social worker and psychotherapist Amy Morin wrote a blog about the things that | SUCCESS

Reading List: 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do

Reading List: 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do | SUCCESS

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The world&rsquo;s biggest problems are also the world&rsquo;s biggest business opportunities, says tech entrepreneur, philanthropist and author Peter Diamandis. &ldquo;Today anyone who is passionate about solving a problem can make a dent in it,&rdquo; he says.Diamandis&rsquo;s new book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1476709564/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=1476709564&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=IMTUZUCKX4NEERXM">Bold: How to Go Big, Create Wealth and Impact the World</a> (Simon &amp; Schuster), co-authored with science writer Steven Kotler, aims &ldquo;to offer guidance and encourage entrepreneurs to take big swings at the world&rsquo;s biggest problems,&rdquo; he says.With the democratization of technology, access to capital and expertise are just a click away, and this means that even tech novices can achieve success by partnering with the right people, says Diamandis, founder and chairman of the XPRIZE Foundation and co-founder and chairman of Singularity University.Going bold and big demands other traits, as well: &ldquo;the same qualities that I look for when I&rsquo;m interviewing potential hires&mdash;curiosity and passion,&rdquo; Diamandis says. &ldquo;<a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/bored-6-ideas-to-embrace-your-curious-side" target="_blank" title="Bored? 6 Ideas to Embrace Your Curious Side | SUCCESS.com">Curiosity</a> is fundamentally what you need to self-educate because the technology is constantly changing. <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/the-passion-test-for-success-whats-your-passion" target="_blank" title="The Passion Test for Success: What’s Your Passion? | SUCCESS.com">Passion</a> is the most important of all. It&rsquo;s what drives you to keep going when other people give up, and it gives you the persistence to develop the skills you need.&rdquo;To prove the point, this self-assured man who gives hugely popular TED Talks and speaks all over the world reveals that he once was afraid of public speaking. &ldquo;But I knew that it was important so I forced myself to do it over and over.&rdquo;&ldquo;Fear shuts you down,&rdquo; and the best antidotes are passion and practice, he adds. To learn the rest: &ldquo;Read my book.&rdquo;<a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/abundantly-clear-peter-diamandis-looks-to-the-future" target="_self" title="Abundantly Clear: Peter Diamandis Looks to the Future | SUCCESS.com">Whether it&rsquo;s planning to remedy the world&rsquo;s ills or mine asteroids in space, Peter Diamandis thinks positively large. Read the story behind his &ldquo;crazy ideas.&rdquo;</a>

The world&rsquo;s biggest problems are also the world&rsquo;s biggest business opportunities, says tech entrepreneur, philanthropist and author Peter

The world&rsquo;s biggest problems are also the world&rsquo;s biggest business opportunities, says tech entrepreneur, philanthropist and author Peter | SUCCESS

Peter Diamandis Shows You How to Go Big, Create Wealth and Impact the World

Peter Diamandis Shows You How to Go Big, Create Wealth and Impact the World | SUCCESS

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In this follow-up to his best-selling book <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0385528205/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0385528205&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=APBXYJL6RL6ZC4P3">The Other Wes Moore</a>, the author resumes his personal story with his time as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University.He chronicles his deployment to Afghanistan with the 82nd Airborne Division, followed by his stint as a White House Fellow working as a special assistant to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, his time as an Obama campaigner and also as a Wall Street banker during the financial crisis, a community activist, a best-selling author and a social entrepreneur. Moore writes with candor, insight and humility about his good days and bad days, about <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/doubtbusters-erase-self-limiting-beliefs" target="_self" title="Doubtbusters: Erase Self-Limiting Beliefs | SUCCESS.com">rising above doubts</a>, faltering and pushing through, always in search of contentment and comfort with his life&rsquo;s work.Moore also shares stories about the people who inspire him, such as Daniel Lubetzky, the CEO of KIND, the company behind the eponymous health bars billed as &ldquo;the dream snack of foodies with a conscience.&rdquo; KIND uses social media to spread its brand philosophy and inspire followers to participate in its acts of kindness campaigns.Of the 10 years covered in the book, Moore concludes that &ldquo;our greatest work comes from serving others.&rdquo; Thinking about his life, Moore realizes that &ldquo;the best decisions I had made&hellip; were the ones where I let go of fear and had confidence in myself.&rdquo; A natural storyteller, Moore&rsquo;s writing style elevates <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0812993578/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0812993578&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=KGRYW2EH57F2GOWY">The Work</a> from a good read to a great book.by Wes MooreJanuary Spiegel &amp; Grau; $25

[node:summary] - My Search for a Life That Matters

In this follow-up to his best-selling book The Other Wes Moore, the author resumes his personal story with his time as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford | SUCCESS

Reading List: The Work

Reading List: The Work | SUCCESS

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Everything you know about <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/3-proven-ways-to-save-time" target="_blank" title="3 Proven Ways to Save Time | SUCCESS.com">time management</a> is wrong, writes self-discipline strategist Rory Vaden in Procastinate on Purpose.OK, why? Because time management hinges on logical factors (checklists and calendars) without accounting for the emotional underpinnings (wanting to impress or needing to feel valued) that influence how we choose to spend our time. According to Vaden, the most successful people he&rsquo;s observed, studied and worked with find ways to &ldquo;multiply&rdquo; time. These Multipliers spend time on things today that give them more time (and results) tomorrow.Multipliers also give themselves certain &ldquo;permissions&rdquo;&mdash;the permission to ignore, to eliminate, to automate, to delegate, to procrastinate on purpose. While a few of these permissions may sound counterintuitive, Vaden devotes a chapter to each of the permissions, clarifying and explaining how each applies in everyday life both at home and in business. He neatly wraps up each chapter with a handy summary of key points, unexpected findings, startling statistics and action questions.Despite his sometimes-convoluted analogies, the author offers plenty of solid advice and intriguing alternatives to making the best use of your time.by Rory VadenJanuary Perigee Books; $24.95<a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/8-ways-to-squeeze-the-most-out-of-your-time" target="_self" title="8 Ways to Squeeze the Most Out of Your Time | SUCCESS.com">Learn 8 ways to squeeze the most out of your time.</a>

[node:summary] - 5 Permissions to Multiply Your Time

Everything you know about time management is wrong, writes self-discipline strategist Rory Vaden in Procastinate on Purpose.OK, why? Because time | SUCCESS

Reading List: Procrastinate on Purpose

Reading List: Procrastinate on Purpose | SUCCESS

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If you&rsquo;ve been running a successful retail business for years, eventually your sales might someday seem to hit a brick (and mortar) wall. And if you&rsquo;ve been attracted by the allure of an online store&mdash;where the rent is cheap and the selling hours are 24/7&mdash;rest assured that it&rsquo;s easy to get started and that the rewards can be significant.Online sales crossed $1 trillion for the first time in 2012. Driving this trend are purchases via smartphones. The Census Bureau found that mobile commerce in the U.S. is growing at three times the rate of general e-commerce. This means consumers don&rsquo;t even need to be sitting in front of a traditional computer to fatten your bottom line. Here are more reasons why online sales are alluring:Increased sales with flexible hours. Say you&rsquo;re running a retail business in Boston. An online store allows you to sell to your local customers long after you&rsquo;ve closed for the night, as well as bring your product to someone in Boise, Berlin or Buenos Aires 365 days a year. So go ahead and take that much-needed day off once in a while.Additional inventory. When you run a physical shop, space limits the merchandise on hand. Not so online. You can use your website to offer oversized products that are difficult to display, niche items with customized features, or special orders. The web even allows you to test new products online and bring them to brick-and-mortar retail based on proven popularity.Your customers demand it. New Yorkers already live in a world where food (Seamless), laundry service (Washio), transportation (Uber), massages (Zeel) and doctors (Pager) can be summoned to their doors within an hour, simply by using an app. If customers can&rsquo;t get your product quickly and easily, they&rsquo;ll simply move on to the next website.The following steps can help you either get started in e-commerce or put a charge into your existing retail website.<h3 class="SUBHEAD">Step 1: Be clear about your business model.</h3>Whether you&rsquo;re an established brick-and-mortar shop looking to <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/how-to-boost-online-sales" target="_blank" title="How To: Boost Online Sales | SUCCESS.com">start selling online</a>, a new venture ready to launch a web-based business from scratch, or a hybrid, you need to deal with the business side as your first priority.Nishant Saxena, co-founder of website and e-commerce development firm SAXENA, says, &ldquo;Too many people put their immediate focus on the website itself. The companies that we&rsquo;ve helped bring online most successfully already have a clear vision of their business. This includes a deep knowledge of the industry and the types of products they offer, scouting the competition, clarity about their ideal customers (and how to attract them), and having a compelling marketing message. The technology behind it is just a tool to get the job done.&rdquo;The socially conscious sunglasses company Waveborn, similar to TOMS Shoes or Warby Parker eyeglasses, is a prime example. &ldquo;We know that our typical customer is an urban professional in his 20s or 30s who values the opportunity to help others as much as he values durability or high-quality lenses,&rdquo; says CEO Mike Malloy. &ldquo;Given how loyal consumers are toward a particular cause, it&rsquo;s not surprising that 25 percent of our customers buy a second pair within a year of purchasing their first pair.&rdquo;Waveborn.com, the online shop offering about 15 products, markets to maximize its appeal to these core customers&mdash;and to great success. The company has funded more than 1,000 sight-restoring cataract surgeries by donating a portion of its profits to charity partners aligned with its mission of improving sight, preventing blindness and creating measurable impact in the community.<h3 class="SUBHEAD">Step 2: Sketch your product path.</h3>Map the path that your products will need to take&mdash;literally sketch it out&mdash;in order to follow the flow of your production.Steps will include:&bull; Where is it manufactured? &bull; Where is inventory stored? &bull; How will sales be handled? &bull; What is the payment structure? &bull; Who handles customer service? &bull; How are rush orders fulfilled?Fortunately, a lot of the heavy lifting (both literally and figuratively) can be outsourced. Many manufacturing companies also handle fulfillment, and companies such as Amazon.com now lend their expertise to make your job a lot easier.Once the product side is set, think about your customer experience. While a retail store might be all about location, an online store is about discoverability. Entire industries have been created around Internet marketing and <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/win-the-seo-game" target="_blank" title="Win the SEO Game | SUCCESS.com">search engine optimization, or SEO</a>, so make sure you&rsquo;re up to speed on best practices, such as building keyword-rich content around your products and being active on social media platforms that are relevant to your customers. For example, a consumer-facing, design-centric company might target Pinterest or Instagram, while a small business looking to engage in direct conversations should probably focus on Twitter.A huge advantage of selling online is that just about everything can be measured. At minimum, take advantage of free Google Analytics, which shows audience demographics and top sources of traffic, such as results returned from online searches, clicks from your Facebook page, or users who typed in your website name directly.For more detailed data, check out companies such as Crazy Egg, Unbounce, Optimizely, KISSmetrics and Mixpanel. These websites allow you to view heat maps (visually highlighting exactly where users are clicking), scroll maps (showing how far down users scroll on a long page), A/B testing (trying multiple offers to see which results in more sales), and funnel analysis (revealing the point at which users drop out of your sales process). Each company offers a free trial period followed by tiered pricing ranging from free to $2,000 per month or more for sophisticated, high-volume plans.<h3 class="SUBHEAD">Step 3: Choose your technology.</h3>Now that you&rsquo;re ready to start building out your online store, consider these options, depending on your situation.DIY&mdash;For companies that are beginning their <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/the-birth-of-e-commerce" target="_blank" title="The Birth of E-Commerce | SUCCESS.com">e-commerce venture</a> and are comfortable digging into the technology, do-it-yourself is a possibility. While many might still think of WordPress as the popular and free site for those looking to start a blog, major companies, brands and celebrities&mdash;such as Best Buy, UPS, NASA, The New York Times, BBC America, Harvard Law School, the Dallas Mavericks, the Rolling Stones and Beyoncé&mdash;are using the platform as well (WordPress.org). Once you have determined your content and its placement on a WordPress template, it&rsquo;s easy to install an e-commerce plug-in such as Woo Commerce, a software add-on that integrates with WordPress to add storefront functionality (free to install but may require additional fees).Sell with the big boys&mdash;One easy way to get started is to set up your store with websites like Shopify, Amazon, eBay or Etsy. These sites allow you to integrate your website with their commerce capabilities such as payment methods, account login, shopping carts, coupon codes and suggesting related products that are for sale (the person buying your custom-made dresser might also be interested in your mahogany mirror). Fees vary widely based on your setup and may include monthly plans, a cost per item and various transaction fees, so read the fine print carefully and then run some numbers to be sure you&rsquo;ve got a firm handle on real costs. The good news is that these large sites provide plenty of guidance, including wikis, user discussion forums, resource guides and video tutorials.Go custom&mdash;The final option is to hire a design/development shop to create a custom solution for your company. This path provides a lot more hand-holding and the ability to add a higher level of customization, such as integrating sites like <a href="https://www.salesforce.com/company/" target="_blank" title="About Us | salesforce.com">Salesforce.com</a> for customer relationship management (CRM) or specific design considerations. Costs vary widely, but a pro might cost a few thousand dollars (or less); an advanced website for a small business probably will run $10,000 and up.&nbsp; Evolving and EvaluatingAs companies grow and needs change, they&rsquo;ll often switch platforms. For instance, Bread and Badger, a five-employee business that sells sandblasted glass and ceramic gifts, migrated its online store from WordPress to Shopify, which helps its clients manage inventory, orders, price cuts and customer relationships. In addition, clients can use the Shopify Payment system or PayPal for secure transactions. Shopify, which offers a free 14-day trial, costs from about $30 to $180 per month, depending on which plan is chosen; the fees include hosting as well as the software.Websites such as <a href="https://www.etsy.com/about/?ref=ftr" target="_blank" title="About | etsy.com">Etsy.com</a>, which had $1.35 billion in sales in 2013, make it easy for practically anyone to start selling in an online store. Merchants pay Etsy 20 cents per item posted plus a 3.5 percent commission on the sale. Deb Myatt took her lifelong hobby of creating custom quilts and pillows and set up an online shop called Hattie Belle Studio&mdash;at age 64. &ldquo;I was looking for a project as I transitioned from the corporate world into retirement, and Etsy helped handle everything&hellip; postage, selling, analytics and promotion tips. What&rsquo;s amazed me is that it&rsquo;s so human&mdash;person-to-person selling, yet with all the perks of a big business.&rdquo;Regardless of your choice, pay special attention to both the visual design&mdash;the look and feel&mdash;as well as the overall user experience: Does the site load quickly? Is it easy to navigate? Is the checkout process simple? Also make sure your website is mobile-responsive, which ensures that users can navigate easily whether they&rsquo;re viewing from a 21-inch desktop monitor, a 9.7-inch tablet or a 4-inch mobile phone.What about selling services, not products?Just because you don&rsquo;t market something physical doesn&rsquo;t mean you can&rsquo;t generate sales online. In fact, selling your services avoids the problems of managing inventory and resolving complaints about packages left on doorsteps in the rain.<a href="https://idocelebrate.net/aboutus/" target="_blank" title="About Us | idocelebrate.net">IDoCelebrate.net</a>, which has $1 million annual revenue, is a case in point. The company helps people plan weddings and events in public places like Central Park and South Beach, handling all the tedious logistics while navigating the client almost effortlessly through the red tape. With enormous growth in recent years through the power of online sales, IDoCelebrate is now working with SAXENA to bring its event-service offerings online with a fully customizable sales, management and production system. Users will be able to take planning into their own hands and coordinate everything online, from selecting the musician to catering. This allows customers to buy services before and after office hours, with the company doing follow-up oversight.&ldquo;Our goal is to meet or exceed expectations at the highest level of customer service,&rdquo; says founder Thomas Noel. &ldquo;IDoCelebrate.net allows users to map out what they want and purchase the services they need online. It&rsquo;s really streamlined the process for us to get an event qualified and ready for production in a fraction of the time while reducing overhead by more than half and increasing our sales exponentially.&rdquo;The Final PackageWill your online commerce site have the chance to be a major part of your business or just be a side hobby to generate extra revenue?A major benefit to launching and running an online store is that companies can start small and gauge interest, land those first few customers, and then iterate and expand. These steps allow an entrepreneur to take affordable risks and receive extensive feedback in a short amount of time, perhaps throwing out half the things that were tried along the way. It&rsquo;s a process.<a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/3-inventory-management-methods-for-your-online-store" target="_self" title="3 Inventory Management Methods for Your Online Store | SUCCESS.com">Check out 3 inventory management methods for your online store&mdash;you decide how much of the heavy lifting you can handle.</a>

[node:summary] - Want a top-performing online store? Find out what small businesses need to know for e-commerce success today.

If you&rsquo;ve been running a successful retail business for years, eventually your sales might someday seem to hit a brick (and mortar) wall. And if | SUCCESS

3 Steps for Crushing It in E-Commerce

3 Steps for Crushing It in E-Commerce | SUCCESS

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The biggest impediment to a successful negotiation isn&rsquo;t the person sitting on the other side of the desk or dinner table. It&rsquo;s our human tendency to react in ways that ultimately undermine our interests, writes William Ury, co-founder of Harvard&rsquo;s Program on Negotiation and co-author of the worldwide best-seller <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1847940935/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=1847940935&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=4FD7TGXGJTZINKHO">Getting To Yes</a>.To illustrate the point, Ury details a particularly tense mediation session in which the president of a country shouted angrily at him. Ury stayed calm by taking mental notes of his own physical reactions (jaw clenching, cheeks flushing) and emotions (embarrassment, anger). Focusing on what he was feeling, a tactic Ury calls &ldquo;going to the balcony,&rdquo; helped him ease the emotional effect of the verbal assault and think more &nbsp;clearly.For more than 35 years, Ury has taught the art of negotiation to executives, small-business owners and diplomats. In this book he distills his simple yet substantive six-step method to help readers engage in win-win personal and professional negotiations. Among the six steps: Put yourself in your shoes (observe your thoughts and feelings without judging), stay in the zone (be present and release negative emotions), and respect them even if they disrespect you (put yourself in their shoes). In <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0062363387/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0062363387&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=U47YEEC7YXPXNII6">Getting to Yes with Yourself</a>,&nbsp;&nbsp;Ury recommends reviewing the six steps before any negotiation, be it your teenager&rsquo;s curfew, a raise or a merger. He&rsquo;s right. This little book will make a big difference in your ability to parley like a pro.by William UryJanuary&nbsp; HarperOne; $26.99<a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/how-to-ask-for-and-get-everything-you-want" target="_self" title="How to Ask for (and Get) Everything You Want | SUCCESS.com">Find out how to ask for (and get) everything you want with 6 strategies for overcoming the obstacles of requests.</a>

[node:summary] - (and Other Worthy Opponents)

The biggest impediment to a successful negotiation isn&rsquo;t the person sitting on the other side of the desk or dinner table. It&rsquo;s our human | SUCCESS

Reading List: Getting to Yes with Yourself

Reading List: Getting to Yes with Yourself | SUCCESS

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Reading List: Getting to Yes with Yourself  | SUCCESS

Businesses today need an infusion of wonder, enchantment and mystery, contends self-described business romantic Tim Leberecht, chief marketing officer of the global design and architecture firm NBBJ.In Leberecht&rsquo;s lexicon, a business romantic &ldquo;embraces hope as a strategy&hellip; delivers return-on-community, and develops, designs and implements &lsquo;acts of significance,&rsquo; that restore&hellip; trust in business as the most impactful human enterprise.&rdquo; Business romantics &ldquo;bring the art of life&rdquo; to their companies and strive to find deeper meaning and fulfillment in their lives.In <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0062302515/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0062302515&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=HKIGZALES7AUFD2C">The Business Romantic</a>, Leberecht encourages individuals, startups and established companies to create opportunities for informality and to build serendipitous encounters into their organizational design. He also shares a series of starry-eyed &ldquo;Rules of Enchantment&rdquo; for people and organizations to follow. The author claims that after reading this book, &ldquo;you will have more ways to open yourself up to the delights, the mysteries, the moments of transcendence&hellip; of an everyday life in business.&rdquo; The book&rsquo;s message doesn&rsquo;t quite jell. Even so, Leberecht&rsquo;s fresh approach and storytelling skills make it worthwhile.by Tim LeberechtJanuary HarperBusiness; $27.99

[node:summary] - Give Everything, Quantify Nothing, and Create Something Greater Than Yourself

Businesses today need an infusion of wonder, enchantment and mystery, contends self-described business romantic Tim Leberecht, chief marketing officer of | SUCCESS

Reading List: The Business Romantic

Reading List: The Business Romantic | SUCCESS

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As Adam&nbsp;Walker&nbsp;waded into the Hawaiian surf, he felt supremely confident. An aspiring long-distance, open-water swimmer, he&rsquo;d already mastered the bitterly cold English Channel, so the swim that lay ahead of him&mdash;the 26 miles of Pacific Ocean between Molokai and Oahu&mdash;should have been a piece of cake by comparison. &ldquo;I thought, Let&rsquo;s have some warm water for a change,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;How hard could it be?&rdquo;The swim started well. Eight hours in, Walker was 3 miles from Oahu and on pace to set a world record when the current started carrying him backward. Night fell. And then, suddenly, Walker felt the most excruciating pain he&rsquo;d ever experienced. He&rsquo;d been stung by a Portuguese man-of-war. &ldquo;I can only describe it as being scalded by a kettle, but times a thousand,&rdquo; Walker says. &ldquo;I lost feeling in my spine and I started to vomit for five to 10 minutes.&rdquo; Walker asked the boatman accompanying him how far he was from shore. The answer: about an hour. I can&rsquo;t do a minute, let alone an hour, Walker thought. Yet he was no more willing to quit than he was to drown. He had to persevere.The incident was just one horrific episode in a career that grew to encompass a challenge of epic scale and suffering: This past August, 36-year-old Walker became the first Briton (and the sixth person in history) to achieve the &ldquo;Ocean&rsquo;s Seven&rdquo; by swimming all seven of the world&rsquo;s most difficult open-water passages. The final feat, crossing the North Channel between Northern Ireland and Scotland, topped a list that included the Strait of Gibraltar, California&rsquo;s Catalina Channel, Japan&rsquo;s Tsugaru Strait and New Zealand&rsquo;s Cook Strait. Along the way, Walker faced sharks, giant jellyfish, fatigue and prolonged bouts of vomiting. &ldquo;Some people might find it pointless,&rdquo; admits Walker, who has since launched a motivational speaking career, &ldquo;but to me it was a sign of discipline and dedication.&rdquo;Growing up in Nottingham, England, Walker was always athletically inclined. He played cricket and water polo and thought he might have a future as a pro athlete. But at the age of 16, he dislocated a kneecap while playing cricket, destroying any hopes for a professional career. After university, he joined a local swim club and competed in sprints. &ldquo;Long distance was a big no-no. It was too much like hard work,&rdquo; he remembers. &ldquo;I only ever swam for a straight hour once, and I remember thinking, God, it seemed like I&rsquo;d swum for days.&rdquo;Walker figured he could channel his competitive spirit into career success. He became a salesman, and by 27 he was a national account manager for a company that distributed kettles and toasters to retailers. &ldquo;I thought that doing well professionally would tick my boxes,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;What I realized was that I wasn&rsquo;t really interested in the job. In fact, I hated it. And that made me realize that success isn&rsquo;t about doing something that you don&rsquo;t want to do. <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/why-happiness-matters-0" target="_blank" title="Why Happiness Matters | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">It&rsquo;s about being happy</a> and chasing what&rsquo;s important to you.&rdquo;Then came the epiphany. On a long flight to Australia in March 2007, Walker watched a movie about a man who loses his job and can&rsquo;t figure out what to do with himself, so he decides to start long-distance swim training and ultimately swims the English Channel. &ldquo;When I finished watching it,&rdquo; Walker remembers, &ldquo;I put my earpiece down and said to myself, I&rsquo;m going to swim the Channel.&rdquo;Many would have forgotten that resolution before they exited the Jetway, but something inside Walker had clicked. &ldquo;I think I saw this challenge as a way of putting a marker down in my life,&rdquo; Walker says, &ldquo;a way to accomplish something that I was really proud of.&rdquo;Once he got home, he decided to see if he could swim for an hour nonstop in the local public pool. It had been a decade since he had swum for so long, but he managed to pull it off&mdash;barely. &ldquo;I was constantly gasping, not knowing how to breathe properly,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;And I&nbsp;remember thinking, How the hell am I ever going to swim the English Channel, when an hour is such a struggle?&rdquo; But he kept at it. He started swimming an hour three times a week, then four times. He upped his time in the pool to three hours, then five. He challenged himself to swim&nbsp;faster.By that October, he decided to try swimming in cold water. His first lap in a nearby pond left him so severely hypothermic that the paramedics who rescued him told him that if he&rsquo;d been in the water another two minutes, he would have died.Chastened, he waited until spring before traveling to Dover to start acclimatizing himself to the Channel. That July he made his first attempt at swimming across&mdash;and succeeded, less than a year and a half after conceiving his epic plan. &ldquo;As I walked out of the water, a French family said, &lsquo;Have you just swum from England?&rsquo; and I said, &lsquo;Well, I think so.&rsquo; And they said, &lsquo;Can we have a picture?&rsquo; I put my arms around them, all soaking wet, took a picture, and then swam back to the boat, thinking to myself: I never, ever have to do this horrific sport ever again.&rdquo;It wasn&rsquo;t long, though, before he began to dream of another challenge. <a href="https://adamwalkeroceans7.co.uk/about.html" target="_blank" title="Adam Walker &amp; Ocean's Seven | https://adamwalkeroceans7.co.uk" rel="noopener">The Ocean&rsquo;s Seven</a> fit the bill. A sort of oceanic marathon-of-marathons devised by California swim coach Steven Munatones, it seemed to Walker to straddle the gray area between the outlandishly ambitious and flat-out crazy. Finishing it took seven years, including training. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve had some horrific times,&rdquo; he says.Yet along with the suffering have come moments of transcendence. Midway across the Cook Strait, Walker suddenly saw a fin scudding straight at him. Soon he found himself surrounded by a pod of dolphins that leaped and played around him. &ldquo;I thought, God, this is incredible,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;After 20 minutes, I looked down and saw deep underneath a shark floating. My instant thought was: The dolphins have come to protect me.&rdquo; When he next looked down, the shark had vanished. After another hour, the dolphins went on their way, too.And that encounter with the Portuguese man-of-war near Hawaii? In Walker&rsquo;s telling, even that horrible experience contained a spark of the sublime. To pull himself through, Walker forgot about his grand ambitions and forced himself to focus on what was immediately in front of him. &ldquo;The boat was 100 feet ahead of me, and I told myself that I had to get to the boat,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;I was in so much agony that I couldn&rsquo;t stretch out my legs. I&nbsp;had to drag my body across the water. People talk about having a devil on your shoulder; I had probably 100 devils telling me to quit. To get by, I was thinking of every <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/10-unforgettable-quotes-by-jim-rohn" target="_blank" title="10 Unforgettable Quotes by Jim Rohn | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">motivational quote</a> I&rsquo;d ever heard, things like, Pain only lasts for a minute; success lasts for a lifetime. I did two minutes, then another two minutes. An hour went by, two hours. In the end it took me 3&frac12; hours to finish the swim, and I was in the most pain I&rsquo;d ever had in my life.&rdquo;What some people might experience as a trauma to be medicated away was the essence of what Walker was seeking. &ldquo;Some people are happy to go on their beach holidays and lie on the beach for two weeks and then go back to work. That&rsquo;s just not me,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m at my happiest when I&rsquo;m challenging myself and pushing myself. I chose open-water swimming, but honestly it could have been anything. It could have been rock climbing or anything else that would have let me look in the mirror and say, You know what? You&rsquo;ve done all right, lad,&rdquo; Walker says. &ldquo;You&rsquo;ve achieved something above and beyond.&rdquo;<a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/john-c-maxwell-5-reasons-why-dreams-dont-take-flight" target="_self" title="John C. Maxwell: 5 Reasons Why Dreams Don't Take Flight | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">Do you dream of doing something big, accomplishing something incredible? Recognize the 5 things that can trap dreams&mdash;and overcome them.</a>

As Adam&nbsp;Walker&nbsp;waded into the Hawaiian surf, he felt supremely confident. An aspiring long-distance, open-water swimmer, he&rsquo;d already

As Adam&nbsp;Walker&nbsp;waded into the Hawaiian surf, he felt supremely confident. An aspiring long-distance, open-water swimmer, he&rsquo;d already | SUCCESS

Danger Stalked, but That Didn’t Stop Adam Walker from Swimming 7 Oceans

Danger Stalked, but That Didn’t Stop Adam Walker from Swimming 7 Oceans | SUCCESS

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&ldquo;Creating is not magic; it&rsquo;s work,&rdquo; argues Kevin Ashton, a successful entrepreneur and co-founder of the Auto-ID Center at MIT. Ashton challenges what he calls the &ldquo;creativity myth,&rdquo; the belief that human inventiveness and ingenuity result from eureka moments of inspiration or genius.As proof he recounts a personal story. In 1997, while at Procter &amp; Gamble, Ashton solved an inventory problem by introducing radio frequency ID onto store shelves, for which he coined the now-familiar phrase, &ldquo;the Internet of Things.&rdquo; The solution to the problem was the end point of a long, arduous process with many missteps and setbacks. Through stories, Ashton recounts how many of mankind&rsquo;s most pivotal and valuable discoveries and inventions came to be. There was the young slave whose flair for botany led to the worldwide availability of vanilla, or the bet that ultimately birthed the stealth bomber. Amazingly, the Wright brothers&rsquo; achievement stemmed from a desire to &ldquo;fly a horse.&rdquo;By unraveling the science behind the process of invention and discovery, Ashton offers reassuring proof that while we&rsquo;re not all equally creative, we are all innately creative. &ldquo;Creating is not rare,&rdquo; he writes in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0385538596/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0385538596&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=QYXP6ZJHZHUZFYQM">How to Fly a Horse</a>. &ldquo;Our creations are too great and too numerous to come from a few steps by a few people. Invention is incremental&mdash;a series of slight and constant changes.&rdquo;by Kevin AshtonJanuary&nbsp; Doubleday; $26.95<a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/6-techniques-to-foster-creativity" target="_self" title="6 Techniques to Foster Creativity | SUCCESS.com">What&rsquo;s the best way to get your creative gears moving? We have 6 ideas. &nbsp; </a>

[node:summary] - The Secret History of Creation, Invention, and Discovery

&ldquo;Creating is not magic; it&rsquo;s work,&rdquo; argues Kevin Ashton, a successful entrepreneur and co-founder of the Auto-ID Center at MIT. Ashton | SUCCESS

Reading List: How to Fly a Horse

Reading List: How to Fly a Horse | SUCCESS

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In an acting career that has spanned almost four decades and more than 70 movies, Liam Neeson has played a lot of tough guys and uttered thousands of tough-guy lines. Here are some of the most memorable, along with a couple of the less-familiar. Can you match the macho dialogue to the movie?LINES1.&nbsp; Somebody in this town is going to die.2. Son, nobody can protect nobody in this world. The sooner you realize that, the better.3.&nbsp; The blood stays on the blade.4.&nbsp; Sometimes I do favors for people. Sometimes in return they give me gifts. So what can I do for you?5.&nbsp; Once more into the fray&hellip; Into the last good fight I&rsquo;ll ever know. Live and die on this day&hellip; Live and die on this day&hellip;6.&nbsp; Feel, don&rsquo;t think. Trust your instincts.7.&nbsp; You know how to fight six men. We can teach you how to engage 600. You know how to disappear. We can teach you to become truly invisible.8.&nbsp; I can tell you I don&rsquo;t have money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills, skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you.9.&nbsp; Give me a minute, I&rsquo;m good. Give me an hour, I&rsquo;m great. Give me six months, I&rsquo;m unbeatable.10.&nbsp; I am everywhere and nowhere, everyone and no one.11.&nbsp; Someone on this flight is threatening to kill someone every 20 minutes unless $150 million is transferred to this account number. MOVIESA.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005LAIIRQ/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=B005LAIIRQ&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=X3TIOQJHE4JWEGAI">The Grey</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;B.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00QHMEDLC/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=B00QHMEDLC&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=2NCB2AUTEB4U4LK7">A Walk Among the Tombstones</a>C.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HLTD49C/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=B00HLTD49C&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=KMRXX74DRGR5IQGW">Non-Stop</a>D.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ESZZO4A/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=B00ESZZO4A&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=BUFTL4VYURAUHM2D">Darkman</a>E.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002BI6SMI/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=B002BI6SMI&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=WTCNWBAX2XYIEBBN">Taken</a>F.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004G8ZZHU/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=B004G8ZZHU&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=HWKTIOLXFZD4ZJKD">The A-Team</a>G.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00O8NSTIK/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=B00O8NSTIK&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=5OZM3DBHQHZKFFFD">A Million Ways to Die in the West</a>H. <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000NOIVT0/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=B000NOIVT0&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=Z6XD3WZ2LJ5VZPV4">Seraphim Falls</a>I.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006RXQBUC/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=B006RXQBUC&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=G3L4XPNZ3NAEIR6X">Gangs Of New York</a>J.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00003CX5P/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=B00003CX5P&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=FZGJTWQXZDPKW7JC">Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace</a>K.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009B08LJ2/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=B009B08LJ2&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=6TSJOZMASPOOR4WS">Batman Begins</a>&nbsp;ANSWERS:1-G2-H3-I4-B5-A6-J7-K8-E9-F10-D11-C<a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/liam-neeson-the-unlikely-action-hero" target="_self" title="Liam Neeson: The Unlikely Action Hero | SUCCESS.com">From his blue-collar roots in Ireland, Liam Neeson has become a tour de force in movies ranging from Schindler&rsquo;s List to his Taken franchise. He reflects on his work ethic, critiques his performances and tells how he coped after tragedy in the February 2015 issue of SUCCESS magazine. Read the full story.</a>

In an acting career that has spanned almost four decades and more than 70 movies, Liam Neeson has played a lot of tough guys and uttered thousands of

In an acting career that has spanned almost four decades and more than 70 movies, Liam Neeson has played a lot of tough guys and uttered thousands of | SUCCESS

How Well Do You Know Liam’s Lines?

How Well Do You Know Liam’s Lines? | SUCCESS

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Meetings come in all shapes and sizes. Whether it&rsquo;s a chance encounter, an informal get-together or an official gathering, the way you interact, react and handle the discussion majorly impacts the results. In his well-organized, thorough and sensible approach to the art of communication, consultant and conversational skills trainer Paul Axtell presents eight strategies that cover everything from choosing a perspective to deciding what matters and who cares.In <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0943097142/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=0943097142&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=sm0fe-20&amp;linkId=VIIV6RQVUIP7XLPX">Meetings Matter</a>, Axtell bolsters his strategies with core ideas and useful &ldquo;try this&rdquo; boxes that simplify how to implement those strategies to improve your professional and personal interactions. Axtell also includes relationship-building exercises, questionnaires and assessments. He tops off this excellent multicourse feast with a handy checklist that boils down the most important points in each chapter.by Paul AxtellJanuary&nbsp; Jackson Creek Press; $24.95

[node:summary] - 8 Powerful Strategies for Remarkable Conversations

Meetings come in all shapes and sizes. Whether it&rsquo;s a chance encounter, an informal get-together or an official gathering, the way you interact, | SUCCESS

Reading List: Meetings Matter

Reading List: Meetings Matter | SUCCESS

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When merchants&mdash;even the little guys who run an Etsy or eBay store&mdash;sell products online, inventory is a key issue. Where do they store it? And how do they keep track of what&rsquo;s running low and what&rsquo;s not moving at all?The best option may largely hinge on the stage of the business, whether it&rsquo;s a manageable startup with a trickle of customers or a thriving website with dozens of sales (or more) each day.As a primer for running a <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/the-birth-of-e-commerce" target="_blank" title="The Birth of E-Commerce | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">successful e-commerce business</a>, we&rsquo;ve outlined three methods commonly used in inventory management.&nbsp;In the February 2015 issue of SUCCESS, you&rsquo;ll find the 3 steps to supercharge your online sales.1. Start (and possibly stay) small and do things yourself. Let&rsquo;s say you&rsquo;ve designed a new iPhone case or your grandmother is knitting scarves that everyone actually wears and receives compliments on. Go the old-fashioned route and have the first prototypes shipped to your house, take orders yourself, package them at your kitchen table, and hand over the packages to the post office or UPS guy while you&rsquo;re getting started.Inventory management: You notice that you&rsquo;re running low, so you enter your inventory levels manually from the admin panel of <a href="https://www.shopify.com/online" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Shopify</a>, the software that runs your online store, and it will reflect that on your website. You order more items as needed and perhaps you launch a sale of slow-moving colors, styles and models.2. Outsource fulfillment. In this method&mdash;with fulfillment by <a href="https://services.amazon.com/content/fulfillment-by-amazon.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Amazon (FBA)</a> being the best-known option&mdash;you have a third party overseeing packaging and shipping. With Amazon, all of your final products are shipped directly to an Amazon warehouse; Amazon tells you which one. Then when a customer orders, Amazon handles everything&mdash;boxing, shipping and customer support. Other alternatives include <a href="https://www.shipwire.com/about/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Shipwire</a> or Webgistix, which both integrate directly with Shopify and give you more control of the customer experience, such as the ability to use boxes with your company logo (not Amazon&rsquo;s) for branding benefits.Inventory management: You can sign in to Amazon&rsquo;s web interface (or that of another fulfillment provider) to have &ldquo;near real-time&rdquo; management of your inventory. Amazon will automatically alert you when you are low so that you can replenish your inventory. And again, a sale is an option for the stuff that is collecting dust.3. Use your manufacturer as your distributor. In some cases, the manufacturer of your products will be the source that does all of the distribution&mdash;drop-shipping your product right to your customers&rsquo; front door.Inventory management: Manufacturers often have their own inventory management systems, allowing you to log on over the web to monitor your levels. The balance here is around volume. Ordering high quantities will bring down the cost per item but will increase your total inventory. Conversely you&rsquo;ll pay more when creating a smaller number of products, but if they are higher-end and you can charge a premium, you can make up the difference with wider margins.<a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/inventory-purgatory" target="_self" title="Inventory Purgatory | SUCCESS.com" rel="noopener">Is your inventory just sitting there? Find out what tactics can help get your products moving.</a>

[node:summary] - You decide how much of the heavy lifting you can handle.

When merchants&mdash;even the little guys who run an Etsy or eBay store&mdash;sell products online, inventory is a key issue. Where do they store it? And | SUCCESS

3 Inventory Management Methods for Your Online Store

3 Inventory Management Methods for Your Online Store | SUCCESS

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As more small businesses take to Facebook to promote themselves, many have seen a decline in the number of fans their posts actually reach. Yet a study by social media marketing company Komfo found that engagement rates are actually increasing.Komfo&rsquo;s study analyzing over 8,000 business pages worldwide from August 2013 to August 2014 discovered the reach of those pages dropped from 25.2 percent to 11.34 percent over the course of the year. But the click-through rate increased from 5.62 percent to 8.32 percent.What does this mean for <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/ask-success-how-should-small-businesses-approach-social-media" target="_blank" title="Ask SUCCESS: How Should Small Businesses Approach Social Media? | SUCCESS.com">your business page</a>? Your post may not reach 100,000 people&mdash;it might not even reach 1,000 people&mdash;but the people it does reach will interact with the post. Your takeaway: Create better content that engages your fans to maintain your engagement rates. Here are three ways to achieve it:1. Invoke emotion. A study by the online content analysis tool BuzzSumo examined 100 million articles to <a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/5-keys-to-a-viral-campaign" target="_blank" title="5 Keys to a Viral Campaign | SUCCESS.com">find out what makes content go viral</a>. It found articles that invoked awe, laughter and amusement were most successful. Rather than posting something possibly informative but dull about your product or service, try posting something funny that will make your audience laugh.2. Use visuals. Don&rsquo;t just share links to articles or boring text; get creative and share images. The same study by BuzzSumo found that when a post included an image, it was twice as likely to be shared.3. Get feedback. Worried your new product won&rsquo;t do well? Use Facebook to predict its success. Ask your audience for opinions about your new products. Your loyal fans will share their thoughts. Questions like these will help increase engagement and make them feel valuable as customers.<a href="https://successcom.wpenginepowered.com/article/gary-vaynerchuk-sent-me-a-bacon-cheeseburger" target="_self" title="&quot;Gary Vaynerchuk Sent Me a Bacon Cheeseburger!&quot; | SUCCESS.com">Get a lesson in one-to-one marketing from social media expert Gary Vaynerchuk.</a>

As more small businesses take to Facebook to promote themselves, many have seen a decline in the number of fans their posts actually reach. Yet a study by

As more small businesses take to Facebook to promote themselves, many have seen a decline in the number of fans their posts actually reach. Yet a study by | SUCCESS

Smart Ways to Engage Your Social Media Fans

Smart Ways to Engage Your Social Media Fans | SUCCESS

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