Kids teach the value, purpose, surprise action, and the wisdom of WOW!

It’s a small world.

Twenty-five years ago I met Rob Gilbert. He was the editor of a monthly publication called Bits & Pieces. If you’re old, I’m sure you’ve heard of it, seen it, read it, or maybe even subscribed to it. If you’re young, Google it.

Bits & Pieces was a motivational, inspirational, and informative booklet that has, for decades, helped people create ideas and see things in a more positive light.

The other day I was looking at someone’s email magazine and found this story:

WOW!

Rob Gilbert then tells the story of a walk in the park. He saw a mother and her young daughter. The girl was holding a helium balloon tied to a string. Unexpectedly, the wind took the girl’s balloon and carried it away. Gilbert was ready to hear the girl burst into tears.

Instead, he was surprised to see the girl watch the balloon sail away and joyfully cry out, “Wow!”

For Rob Gilbert, the girl’s reaction was a lesson. Later in the day, when he was faced with a problem, instead planning for the worst, he said to himself, “Wow, that’s interesting. How can I help you?”

Life is full of problems – and solutions. You can never plan on the unexpected, but you can control your reaction to it.

As Gilbert wrote, “The next time you experience one of life’s unexpected gusts, remember the little girl and make it a “Wow!” experience. The “Wow!” response always works.

What an insight.

And, like I said, it’s a small world. In this case, it’s also a very affirming world. During the first five years after I moved to Charlotte, as I was building my reputation and speaking skills, I spoke for free at civic clubs and organizations. My topic was “What we’ve learned from our children.”

My talk gave examples of patience, humor, imagination, creativity, persistence, taking risks, enthusiasm, unconditional love, blind faith, and positive attitude. I told true stories of my daughters, and what they taught me by their words and deeds. And I always ended with a quote from my then 11-year-old daughter, Rebecca’s, autobiography that read, “One really good thing about me is I’m a very nice person, and a very positive person, just like my dad.” These words are one of the highlights of my fatherhood.

Reading that line to the audience always created emotional response, but also brought me to the height of my inner emotions. Very powerful. Very real. And very true.

Rob’s lesson is a WOW! all the way around. First of all, NO ONE responds to a negative situation or problem with “WOW!” When things go wrong, people either get defensive, look for a scapegoat, or reluctantly look for some resolve.

This story and lesson are a phenomenal insight, and a total reversal of thought – for the better. It’s an AHA! not just a WOW! And it’s simple to understand and implement. You can start doing it with your very next screw up.

For years I have taught my children and my audiences to say “thank you” rather than “I’m sorry.” It’s a positive and powerful way to present yourself in a tenuous situation or conversation. It’s a positive communication that stops a negative one. And it leads to truth rather than excuse, responsibility rather than blame. It’s my version of an attitude AHA! and WOW!

It’s interesting to me that the traditional interpretation of WOW! has been associated with some magical action or over the top event that makes people say, “WOW!” Not so after this lesson.

WOW! is now a thought changer, and a mental refocus from a negative that forces a positive response or action. If that’s not a WOW!, what is? And here’s the cool part: you can begin to WOW!, NOW!

Rob Gilbert has created thousands of Bits & Pieces, but this one is in the top ten. He spent seven years on the job, and has now enhanced his personal offerings on motivation at GilbertSuccessHotline.Blogspot.com.

Rob also has the Guinness Book of Records world’s most motivational phone hotline. It’s called Success Hotline and the number is (973) 743-4690. It has broadcast success messages for 6,201 days in a row! WOW! Podcast? Of course: search for Success Hotline with Dr. Robert Gilbert in the podcast app.

Free GitBit…When I gave my talk on “What we’ve learned from our children,” I also created some rules to parent by. They are short, sweet, and powerful. If you want to read the list, go to www.gitomer.com, register if you’re a first-time visitor, and enter the words PARENTS RULE in the GitBit box.

Orison Swett Marden

The Founder of Success Magazine.

A brief insight into the life and mind of an amazing man from a collector of his books and student of his works on attitude and productivity.

by Jeffrey Gitomer

It’s very hard to find original thought.

Orison Swett Marden was part of a group called “The New Thought Movement.” It was a spiritual group that emphasized metaphysical beliefs and personal development. While it had religious overtones, it had, at its base, infinite insight and intelligence.

Here’s a classic Marden example: Don’t wait for extraordinary opportunities. Seize common occasions and make them great. Weak men wait for opportunities; strong men make them.

Marden was influenced and inspired – as were many – by one of the original personal development writers, Samuel Smiles. Smiles is an original. The Smiles book, Self Help, was the trigger for Marden’s career. He is quoted as saying, “The little book was the friction which awakened the spark sleeping in the flint.” The 21st century translation might be, “Samuel Smiles lit my fire.”

Early in his life, Marden came across the Smiles book on accident, rummaging in his attic. He became an evangelist for the book, and for his own positive thinking philosophy. When he looked for more books, and found few, his mission was set. Study, write, publish, preach, speak – and by being a living example of his writings, set the standard for others to follow.

You might also know some of the original writers who preceded Marden. The most prominent author was William James, a physiologist and a pragmatist. James hung out with a bunch of brainiacs, of whom the most notable were PT Barnum, Mark Twain, Horatio Alger, and Sigmund Freud. (Not a bad group of guys.)

It’s more interesting to note who followed Orison Swett Marden, most notably Napoleon Hill and Dale Carnegie. These guys came 30 years after Marden founded Success Magazine in 1891. Also note that Napoleon Hill was a significant contributor, and he also published his own magazine in the late teens and 1920s called Hill’s Golden Rule. The subtitle: For those who think and want to grow. (Sound familiar?) As popular as Napoleon Hill was (and is), he was a disciple and a follower of Orison Swett Marden.

Marden had one amazing contemporary. Elbert Hubbard. Their work often appeared in other magazines, but they never wrote anything together. I can only assume that they knew one another, and corresponded with one another, out of respect for their mutual capabilities. They were competitors in their time. While Marden was writing Pushing to the Front, Hubbard was writing Message to Garcia. They both began their own publications. Hubbard’s was the Fra magazine. They both were exceptionally prolific authors. Hubbard and Marden were considered the thought leaders of their time.

Marden expanded the original thoughts of Smiles to an unprecedented degree. Not just a prolific writer, he was also a speaker, an editor, a publisher, a doctor, and a lawyer. Marden’s books could be found in the library of every major early-American industrialist. He was the word, and words, of success and spirit.

Orison Swett Marden wrote more than 60 books in a period of 30 years without a word processor, and barely with a typewriter. Also keep in mind that he was an educated person, having graduated from Boston University, Andover Theological Seminary, and Harvard University with an MD and LL.B. degrees. He also went back to school to master oratory skills. WOW!

Marden was successful at every endeavor because he was a student who put his knowledge to work. And by his religious beliefs, he literally practiced what he preached. His genius allowed him to take on business ventures, capture publishing opportunities, study every aspect of life, and still speak and write. His success came from putting all those elements into positive execution and achievement.

When I wrote The Patterson Principles in 2002 (now titled Jeffrey Gitomer’s Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching!), my research took me to Dayton, Ohio, the home of John Patterson and the business he founded, the National Cash Register Company (NCR). I was contacted by a bookseller in Dayton who offered me several books from the Patterson library.

These books were actually signed by Patterson to connote ownership, and include passages he underlined, because he found them meaningful and wanted to act on them. At or near the turn of the century. The 20th century. I bought them in a minute. OK, 10 seconds.

One of the books I purchased was He Can Who Thinks He Can, by Orison Swett Marden, generously underlined by the hand of John Patterson. WOW!

NOTE: from 1880 to 1912, when Marden wrote his works, it was perfectly acceptable to only use the male pronoun when making a statement. Today it is obviously more correct to use BOTH he and she, but I do not want to change the author’s words. Please do not be offended by the gender…
concentrate on the message.

Here are the quotes Patterson personally underlined in his book. I have added my challenges to each one. These few quotes will give you insight into Marden’s thinking and philosophy, and hopefully provide an inspiration for you to own and read his works.Keep in mind he wrote this book around 1906 when Patterson acquired it NEW:

Google yourself and discover what others think of your character.

Can you depend on yourself?

Substitute fear for excitement, and you will achieve.

What are you thinking about? And how are those thoughts leading to action?

What are you studying? What opportunities are you overlooking?

When you have an extra five minutes, put your phone to achievement use, not game playing.

If your home scale is up, your achievement scale is likely down.

NOTE: This is one of the most powerful quotes I have ever read. If you have children, this should be your mantra, your passion, and your lifelong mission.

Jeffrey Gitomer

How has your judgment and use of common sense affected your success?

Productive daydreaming creates ideas. Daydreaming about a vacation is a waste of time.

How is your work spirit?

Put away your phone and pay attention to what’s around you.

Discover your pluck and grit early, and you will never lose it.

Be responsible to yourself and for yourself.

If you want others to believe you, first you have to believe in yourself.

Love what you do, or do something else.

The key to self-achievement is inspired self-determination.

The biggest waste of time on the planet is procrastination.

You develop character day by day.

When you tell the truth, you never have to remember what you said.

Don’t worry, be happy.

Start with humor, and happy will follow.

When you bring ideas to the table, you bring power. When you bring slide shows to the meeting, you bring boredom.

Ideas bring value and create dialog. Slides are boring and create sales pitches.

It takes courage to step out of the pack. Be bold.

Imitation is not flattery. It shows your lack of originality.

“No statue has ever been erected to a critic, but the people they criticized, many statues have gone up. Got statue?”

Jeffrey Gitomer

I’ve been rich, and I’ve been poor. Rich is better.

Hard work makes luck. Create your own.

Stay well-oiled so you can always run smoothly.

It also helps to know why.

If you want to gain wealth, first gain wealth of knowledge.

Get over hate. Forgive and move forward.

And somewhere in the middle, is the “work hard” part.

Happiness is not at the end of the road, it’s along the way.

Master these 3 elements and achievement automatically follows.

Free GitBit…You can find a complete list of Marden quotes underlined by John Patterson, and a list of Marden titles by going to www.gitomer.com and entering the word MARDEN in the GitBit box.

“In order to be the best for others, you must be the best for yourself first.”

Jeffrey Gitomer

Be yourself has been a common theme of brilliant “advice givers” from Oscar Wilde, “Be yourself, everyone else is already taken” to Dale Carnegie, whose immortal classics, How to Win Friends and Influence People and How to Stop Worrying and Start Living carry “be yourself” as a consistent thread throughout both of these books.

In my collection of Marden’s work, I have a personal letter sent by Marden to potential subscribers of his Success Magazine (early direct mail). It gives a rare glimpse into the philosophy and salesmanship of the founder. Dated 1922, and signed by Marden himself, the letter has a quote at the top of the page that reads, “Impossibilities are merely the half-hearted efforts of quitters.”

The letter begins: “Dear Dreamer,” and here for your GSD pleasure is the body of that letter:

What a classic solicitation.

I have been influenced by many writers and thinkers through the years. Orison Swett Marden is at the top of my short list. Not just as a writer, but as a thinker. Not just an author, but someone who practiced what he thought. An achiever. A leader. A standard-setter. A doer.

Start reading Marden today. Many of his works have been reprinted in paperback. Own a few, read a few, and get a feeling for his philosophies and ideas.

What’s the best way to apply Marden’s wisdom to your life? Start studying, and apply what feels comfortable for you.

Jeffrey Gitomer

The Get Shit Done Real-World Action Plan

Blaming REALITY. Blaming other people or other things for your lack of productivity? …OR IS IT YOU?

CHANGE YOUR MORNING
WAKE UP ATTITUDE…
Wake up and smell POSITIVITY
Wake up and smell RESPONSIBILITY
Or you will wake up and smell your inactivity,
wake up and smell your lack of productivity,
wake up and smell your negative attitude,
wake up and smell your mediocrity, and wake
up and smell your unemployment.

Jeffrey Gitomer

THE WORLD OF EXCUSES…
Tons of excuses, but not one good reason

Jeffrey Gitomer

3.5 Realities to Help You Get Over the “Hump”

1. Please tell me the definition of Hump Day
   • Hump Day is the day you do nothing but complain, commiserate, and plan your weekend. Maybe even get drunk HUMP NIGHT (Wednesday) in anticipation of it. This shows your true “rebellious” manner. Rebellious of course meaning “stupid idiot.”
   • Stop whining, stop complaining about your job, your boss, your income, your spouse, your life, and GSD (get SOMETHING done)
   • Plan for success as much as you plan for the weekend and you’ll be one of the most successful people in the world.
   • Love it or leave it. Job, relationship, career, or neighborhood. Do NOT measure money, measure love.
   • Might be time for a reassessment.

The LEAST productive days of the week are Wednesday and Friday. Huge opportunity to double productivity by just doubling effort.

2. Time management is bullshit
   • The biggest waste of time is an all day course in time management
   • ALLOCATE YOUR TIME
   • DO ONE IMPORTANT THING EVERY DAY
   • Listen to music; it sets your inner rhythm and happiness
   • Get in the groove
   • Read something positive or inspiring
   • Talk to someone you love
   • Call an old friend and relive a story
   • Talk to yourself

You already know what to do, you’re just not doing it.

3. The blessing and curse of multi-tasking
   • It’s not natural and it’s also not good
   • When you try to do two things at once, one thing gets done half-assed – maybe both
   • Do one task, take a break, and re-focus on the other task

CONCENTRATE on ONE THING AT A TIME

3.5 OVERCOMING FIRST STEP PARAYLISIS…

• TOO MUCH TO DO – NO TIME TO DO IT – OVERWHELMED
• Make the TOTAL list on a spreadsheet to get a clearer view
• Not just numbers and names of what to do, but time estimates and deadlines
• Do Important Things (long-term wins) vs Mitigate Urgent Things (gotta do it now)
• INVESTING TIME (reading) vs SPENDING TIME (Netflix)
• INTEND TO DO IT, and you will GSD

Poor Attitude and Low Belief thwarts desire, determination, and intentions. Get Intentional and You’ll Get Productive.

Jeffrey Gitomer

12.5 Action Steps to Get Shit Done!

1.

MAKE THE DECISION… DECIDE IT’S YOU

• Trade hump day for PUMP DAY
  • – Quit complaining and start producing
• Trade obligation for opportunity
  • – Love of what you do turns obligation into opportunity
• The best time is NOW!
  • – Build your success BEFORE you build your Facebook
• Take pride in achievement
  • – Take ownership of your life and the rest follows
• Second place is not an option
  • – Second place in sales is first loser
• Decide a day at a time
  • – Intend to implement the plan of the day
• Ask for help
  • – Who are the BEST people you know?
  • – Who are the experts you know?
  • – Be professionally friendly and seek relationships, not just favors
  • – Offer perceived value, not the lure of money

2.

Don’t “manage” time… “allocate” time AND take advantage of time

Time management is a frustrating waste of time

• Divide your day into 30-minute bursts of time.
• Allocate each time slot with something productive.
• Take action on each allocated segment.

Time allocation will triple your productivity.

3.

Have a FUNDAMENTAL UNDERSTANDING OF ACHIEVEMENT.

There are four kinds of goals – achieve, improve, material, monetary. Two are good.

• The danger is striving for MATERIAL HAVE and MONITARY HAVE over BE BEST and ACHIEVE AND DO BEST.
• Improve first, achieve first, “have” second.
• Improve and achieve on goal elements and celebrate the completion along the way.
• Don’t complicate it, Outline the daily plan.
• Intend to take action.
• Get help as needed, not in a panic.

The daily dose is the secret.

4.

What the HEALTH?

• Health of body and mind are the KEY FACTORS of achievement.
• Failing mental or physical health will prevent productivity.
• Every self-help writer for the past 150 years puts health in the top 5 categories for positive attitude and achievement. There must be something to it.
• BUT when you’re feeling healthy, you tend to take your health for granted.
• It’s when your health fails that you’re all in to “get better.”

Maintain your health while you’re feeling good.

5.

INTEND IS THE GOLD BULLET (and you have the fire power).

• Your intentions, NOT YOUR GOALS OR TO-DO LIST, determine your achievements.
• If you love what you do or have inspiration to achieve, you will Get Shit Done.

Once your intentions are set, your achievement follows.

6.

Do social media and personal communication BEFORE 8 and AFTER 8.

• Where and when do you start your day?
• Before 8 and after 8 will give you a full day of work, evening with family, and plenty of social networking and interaction time.
• Morning vs. evening work. Get Shit Done as much as you can in the morning.
• Produce during the day – promote and prepare at night.

It is imperative that you produce during your most “productive opportunity” time.

7.

MEET WITH MONEY FOR BREAKFAST.

AUTHOR NOTE: This has been my practice for the past 20 years. IT WORKS.

• Start your day with positive talk, positive anticipation and productive outcomes.
• Meet in your home if possible. Cook breakfast. Second best places are neutral. Starbucks or the like.
• Light but personal conversation.
• Projected outcomes: 100 meetings = 2 meetings a week will deepen 100 relationships and get you 50 sales – MINIMUM.
• Make it fun – ALWAYS buy their stuff in advance.

Start your day with a money or relationship meeting.

8.

Start GSD when you wake up.

• Develop a morning money routine.
• Prepare for the morning by going to sleep sober.
• You will be most productive if you love what you do.
• There’s a 5-part secret for waking up early in the morning and being on fire.
• Dedicate the first hour of the day to yourself. In your hour – DO THESE 5 THINGS: Read. Write. Prepare. Think. Create.

Write, Read, Prepare

               Think, Create               

This has been my morning routine for the past 25 years… it works!

9.

ON YOUR WAY TO PRODUCTIVITY AND PROFIT, YOU WILL BREAK BARRIERS and HAVE GSD BREAKTHROUGHS.

• Why should you celebrate the win? To have the incentive, the courage, and the good feeling that achievement brings to your self-confidence to do it again.
• Clear your mind by documenting everything that’s on it. This will help you “remember” everything that’s bogging you down, and create clarity to begin the achievement process.
• What to do if you’re not in the mood – don’t feel like it – on overload and other bullshit excuses – this is THE TIME to kick your own ass.

At some point you will begin to achieve, and it’s paramount that you document the moment and what happened.

10.

POST THE GSD SECRET FORMULA WHERE YOU CAN SEE IT EVERY DAY.

Productivity minus Procrastination = PROFIT

ALSO POST The GSD secret ingredients… desire, determination, love of what you do, and taking “get shit done success-based actions.”

ADD YOUR FULL UNDERSTANDING THAT “Decide” and “Intend” are the unknown forces that create your desired GSD actions… then it’s a matter of concentration without distraction.

11.

KNOW THE VALUES AND THE CAUTIONS of GSD.

The value of doing, the value of completion, and the cost of failure to achieve

• The more you value yourself, the more you will automatically value your time.
• The more achievement actions you take, the more you will value yourself.
• Achievement is compounded daily (or not).
• The win is as much mental as it is physical.

The cost of achievement is mostly time – INVESTED time.

12.

ADD The emotional factor of success “even-if-your-ass-falls-off.”

• When you make a goal or have a task to complete, ASK YOURSELF: what is my level of commitment to it and intention to do it?
• Add emotion to it, and it becomes more of a priority and an intention.
• The emotional addition to any task, project, or goal is the difference between achieve and “almost.”

Think about rewriting and restating your goals and tasks and end them with “even if my ass falls off.”

12.5

The LOST SECRET…

LOVE OF DO

• Always do what you’ll remember the most. While this seems a bit far-fetched as it relates your real world – I mean, at some point you gotta go to work – but as it relates to getting shit done – better stated – your productivity toward success – if you LOVE what you do, you’ll always be “wanting” to do it.
• Marry your success – marriage is a lifetime commitment - be loyal to yourself – and be eager to achieve – for the love of it.

Show me the passion and I’ll show you the achievement AND the money!

Serendipity.

I have defined it before as “God’s way of remaining anonymous.” But it’s more than that. Serendipity is that moment when chance and opportunity collide. And it’s at that moment when you are challenged to grasp it, and make yourself and your loved ones better off.

Successful. Fulfilled. You reached for the brass ring, and you caught hold.

NOTE WELL:
If you get what you want, you better be ready. Ready to capitalize, ready to grow, ready to take advantage of, ready to share, and ready to enjoy – but not over-indulge.

Jeffrey Gitomer

Jeffrey Gitomer’s Recommended Tools to Help you Get Shit Done

Go to getshitdonethebook.com

in
THE END,
it’s up to you.