One of my touchstone books is “Looking Out for Number One” Sounds like a selfish idea right? Wrong. Knowing what your needs are and ‘delivering’ them to yourself is a critical first step to making sound transactions and building lasting relationships. Of course, you need to meet the expectations of partners, customers and friends for it all to work, so you need to understand the wants and needs of others for it all to work. I urge you to check Robert Ringer’s book, as it has provided some of the guidance I’ve followed in running my own business since 2005.
Here are some of my favorite quotes from Robert:
“Enjoy life, but be flexible in your planning. It’s dangerous to base your decisions on the assumption that everything is going to continue as it now is. It won’t. Worse, because circumstances have a habit of changing with little warning, you are often caught off guard.”
“Unfortunately, most people live in a totally unreal world. They create a world in their own minds based on the way they would like the world to be rather than the way it actually is. They would much rather delude themselves by ignoring the facts, even if their self-delusion only prolongs the inevitable.”
“When it comes to custom and tradition, people tend to spend a great deal of time and energy doing things for which they hope to be appreciated. It’s nice when it happens, but it’s a big mistake to base your actions on the desire to gain the gratitude of others.”
“Never do anything with the expectation of being appreciated. The most valid reason for taking an action is that you sincerely want to do it.”
“People who use bad breaks as excuses are often victims of the World-Owes-Me-a-Living Theory, which states: Anyone who believes that others—or, worse, ‘the world’—owes them something are destined for failure and disappointment. Until a person cleanses this poisonous notion from his mind, he is unlikely to leave the starting gate, much less win the race.”
“People who see themselves as victims of bad luck have a difficult time understanding that the surest road to success is to create one’s own breaks. Sadly, most of them are victims of the Waiting-to-Be-Discovered Theory, which states: If you’re waiting for something to happen, you’re not in control of your destiny. Don’t wait for something to happen; make it happen!”
“Remember: People will bother you until you no longer allow them to.”
“Remember, everything worthwhile has a price. The price of friendship varies in amount and form, but, make no mistake about it, there is always a payment involved. The payment may require your investing a certain number of hours per week in conversation, it may mean that you are counted on for continual inspiration, or it may translate into your having to forego a facet of your life that is important to you. Whatever it may be, just be aware that there is a payment.”
Enjoy and prosper!