The Success Principles(TM) - 10th Anniversary Edition
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DEDICATION
This book is dedicated to Patty Aubery, my business partner, president of my companies, and—for 25 years— my sounding board, confidante, and closest friend.
From those early days typing the first Chicken Soup for the Soul ® stories to building a hugely successful company that has expanded my impact worldwide, Patty has helped guide my career, advanced these teachings, and held a vision of my work that is bigger and bolder than anything I could have dreamed myself.
Words cannot express my gratitude for your endless energy, selfless focus, and lifelong dedication to this work. You are a treasure.
Life is like a combination lock; your job is to find the right numbers, in the right order, so you can have anything you want.
BRIAN TRACY
If we did all the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves.
THOMAS A. EDISON
CONTENTS
Dedication
Foreword
Introduction
I. The Fundamentals of Success
1. Take 100% Responsibility for Your Life
2. Be Clear Why You’re Here
3. Decide What You Want
4. Believe It’s Possible
5. Believe in Yourself
6. Use the Law of Attraction
7. Unleash the Power of Goal-Setting
8. Chunk It Down
9. Success Leaves Clues
10. Release the Brakes
11. See What You Want, Get What You See
12. Act As If
13. Take Action
14. Just Lean Into It
15. Experience Your Fear and Take Action Anyway
16. Be Willing to Pay the Price
17. Ask! Ask! Ask!
18. Reject Rejection
19. Use Feedback to Your Advantage
20. Commit to Constant and Never-Ending Improvement
21. Keep Score for Success
22. Practice Persistence
23. Practice the Rule of 5
24. Exceed Expectations
II. Transform Yourself for Success
25. Drop Out of the “Ain’t It Awful” Club . . . and Surround Yourself with Successful People
26. Acknowledge Your Positive Past
27. Keep Your Eye on the Prize
28. Clean Up Your Messes and Your Incompletes
29. Complete the Past to Embrace the Future
30. Face What Isn’t Working
31. Embrace Change
32. Transform Your Inner Critic into an Inner Coach
33. Transcend Your Limiting Beliefs
34. Develop Four New Success Habits a Year
35. 99% Is a Bitch; 100% Is a Breeze
36. Learn More to Earn More
37. Stay Motivated with the Masters
38. Fuel Your Success with Passion and Enthusiasm
III. Build Your Success Team
39. Stay Focused on Your Core Genius
40. Redefine Time
41. Build a Powerful Support Team and Delegate to Them
42. Just Say No!
43. Become a Leader Worth Following
44. Create a Network of Mentors and Others Who Will Up-Level You
45. Hire a Personal Coach
46. Mastermind Your Way to Success
47. Inquire Within
IV. Create Successful Relationships
48. Be Hear Now
49. Have a Heart Talk
50. Tell the Truth Faster
51. Speak with Impeccability
52. When in Doubt, Check It Out
53. Practice Uncommon Appreciation
54. Keep Your Agreements
55. Be a Class Act
V. Success and Money
56. Develop a Positive Money Consciousness
57. You Get What You Focus On
58. Pay Yourself First
59. Master the Spending Game
60. To Spend More, First Make More
61. Give More to Get More
62. Find a Way to Serve
VI. Success in the Digital Age
63. Master the Technology You Need
64. Brand Yourself with an Online Persona
65. Use Social Media in a Way That Enhances Your Reputation
66. Use the Exponential Power of Crowdfunding
67. Connect with People Who Can Expand Your Vision
Afterword: Empower Yourself by Empowering Others
The Success Principles Free Success Tools
Bring the Power of Change to Your Organization: The Success Principles Keynote, Workshop, and Training
Suggested Reading and Additional Resources for Success
Acknowledgments
Permissions
Index
About the Authors
Praise for The Success Principles™
Credits
Copyright
About the Publisher
FOREWORD
A decade ago, Janet Switzer and I envisioned a time when The Success Principles would be read in dozens of languages and followed in more than 100 countries—a time when individuals from every walk of life and groups of every kind would use it as a guidebook for dreaming bigger dreams, planning bigger outcomes, taking action in a bigger way, and enjoying the kind of expanded, abundant lifestyle that, for them, never seemed possible before.
We envisioned a time when educators, corporate managers, and small-group leaders would take up our challenge to advance the message of The Success Principles by training others in these human-potential basics—a time when we could look back, with pride, at the millions of lives that had been touched by the universal message and proven principles in this book.
I’m happy to say that time is now.
Over the past 10 years, not only has The Success Principles spread to 108 countries in 30 languages, but the feedback and success stories we’ve received in return have been gratifying—and humbling. Men, women, teens, students, athletes, entrepreneurs, stay-at-home parents, rising corporate stars, and other achievers have become dedicated to creating lives of abundance, joy, professional fulfillment, and personal accomplishment.
They are proof positive that these principles work—if you work the principles.
Through countless stories and heartwarming reports, I’ve watched this phenomenon unfold, as readers moved beyond today’s culture of resignation and mediocrity to create the exciting, compelling life of their dreams.
They have overcome their own limitations—whether physical challenges, economic hardship, past failures, or simply their own limiting beliefs—to achieve astounding success.
At one time, perhaps just like you, they wondered how a single book could change their lives.
Doug Wittal, a builder from Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada, doubled his income within a year of applying what he learned, then doubled it again 12 months later. He began enjoying substantially more free time and built four magnificent homes so he and his family could spend summers and winters in temperate climates.
Days before talking to Doug, we heard from Miriam Laundry—a mom who dreamed of bringing self-esteem concepts to more than 100,000 children, changing lives and communities around the globe. Not only did she surpass her goal in less than a year, she attained a Guinness World Records ® title for her accomplishment.
Sean Gallagher, a successful Irish entrepreneur, appeared for three seasons on the hit television show Dragon’s Den (Shark Tank in the U.S.), and later fulfilled his most audacious goal when he stood for election to become the President of Ireland. He’s now a highly sought after speaker and writer hel
ping to inform and inspire the next generation of Irish business leaders.
Justin Bendel—an aspiring orchestral musician—used The Success Principles to visualize playing at a world-class concert hall whose picture he’d had for years. Though he didn’t know the name of the concert hall in the photo, he pasted it to his vision board anyway. Soon after, he received a fully paid scholarship to pursue graduate studies in music and, within his first year of grad school, was chosen to play with the university orchestra at Carnegie Hall in New York—the concert hall in the photograph he had pasted on his vision board.
Using Principle 24: Exceed Expectations, 25-year-old Canadian franchisee Natalie Peace built one of her juice-bar locations to record revenues, then sold it for the highest amount ever received for that franchise. She’s since earned her MBA and now (among other things) teaches business administration classes to fourth-year university students—recommending The Success Principles as a powerful textbook for future entrepreneurs.
After one of my readers—a successful Malaysian businessman—was incarcerated under extremely harsh conditions in China, his wife convinced the guards to pass along his tattered, dog-eared, and marked-up copy of The Success Principles so he could stay motivated during his 20-month ordeal. He not only reread it hundreds of times but also used it to transform himself into an even more motivated, excited, and fearless person who—since his release—has launched a successful information technology business, started two restaurants, and acquired a portfolio of international properties with a group of real-estate investors.
Pavel Popiolek—Czech Republic’s leading importer of computer equipment with a $600 million business to manage—used what he learned in The Success Principles to balance his life and work, making time for his true passion—competitive cycling. So far, he’s won the Val d’Aran UCI World Cycling Tour race in the Pyrenees, qualified for the World Master’s Cycling Championship, and been profiled in Men’s Health magazine.
Of course, beyond business success and professional accomplishment are those readers whose entire lives have changed because they implemented the principles in this book.
Heather O’Brien Walker, who sustained a devastating brain injury in a warehouse accident at work, first heard The Success Principles from her hospital bed as her fiancé read them aloud during Heather’s 30 days of rehabilitation. Though she couldn’t walk or talk—or even function normally—she began to visualize her wedding day and made walking down the aisle her breakthrough goal. The process of learning to walk again was grueling. But today, Heather has not only recovered but she also shares her message of overcoming adversity through speaking engagements and her book, Don’t Give Up, Get Up.
Akshay Nanavati, an ex-Marine who was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder upon his return from Iraq, is using the principles to beat the condition. His dream? To run across every country in the world, border to border, over the next 25 years—not only as a way to inspire others, but also to give himself the inspiration to get up and take action every day.
And Lewis Pugh of Great Britain is the only person to have completed a long-distance swim in every ocean of the world. Over a period of 27 years he has pioneered swims in the most hostile waters on Earth including the Antarctic, the North Pole, and the Himalayas and developed an understanding of the beauty and fragility of life and its many ecosystems. Millions have viewed his talks at TEDGlobal and he campaigns tirelessly for the creation of Marine Protected Areas and changes to the legal framework governing oceans. In 2013, the United Nations appointed the maritime lawyer as Patron of the Oceans. And yes, he’s a Success Principles reader, too.
With stories like these—and thousands more that have poured in—when it came time to prepare the 10th Anniversary Edition of The Success Principles, I quickly realized that I could produce an entire companion book filled with just the inspiring and fascinating stories we’ve received from readers over the last decade. Countless others have used what they learned to become bestselling authors, start businesses, purchase investment properties, get married, lose weight, achieve professional honors, get job promotions, travel the world, get out of debt, raise amazing kids, and so much more.
But while many of these readers knew exactly what they wanted to achieve when they picked up their copy of The Success Principles, many more didn’t. For some readers, achievement seemed so far away that their only “want” was for life to simply get better.
Forrest Willett was one of those readers.
At 31 years old, Forrest’s life was right on track. He owned three homes and seven businesses. He’d been married for seven years to a beautiful woman and had a 2-year-old son. He was on top of the world. That is, until his world turned upside down. Literally. He was in an automobile accident that threw his car end-over-end three times, leaving him with a catastrophic brain injury.
Suddenly, Forrest found himself incapable of doing even the simplest tasks—with his beautiful wife now teaching him to brush his teeth and comb his hair. Although he knew he was lucky to be alive, he began to spiral faster and faster into a deep pit of depression, anger, and despair.
In the beginning, like a stroke survivor, he had difficulty conversing on even the most basic level. His humiliation rendered him housebound, and soon, fatigue and apathy dominated his existence. For hours, Forrest lay on the sofa, sleeping or watching television. The doctors, his speech therapist, his occupational therapist, his physical therapist—essentially all of the experts—told him that returning to a productive life with the promise of success wasn’t possible. So Forrest gave up all hope of ever having a normal existence—let alone a life that fulfilled his dreams.
Then one day, as he lay in bed, numbly surfing the TV channels, the words, “If you want to get from where you are, to where you want to be . . .” caught his attention. Forrest sat up enough to focus on what the news anchor was saying. “Jack Canfield was coming up next” to discuss his book The Success Principles. With the smallest spark of hope ignited, Forrest bought the book they were talking about—the first edition of The Success Principles, which was over 400 pages. At the time, Forrest was just learning to read his son’s books—a 35-year-old man reading books for a kindergartener. His speech therapist thought a 400-page book was being overly ambitious. But Forrest was more than ready to get from where he was to where he wanted to be.
And so, he began his journey.
In the beginning, reading even a single page was slow and laborious. Though he was motivated, Forrest began to wonder if his therapist had been right. Maybe he was being overly ambitious.
Then, several months after starting to work his way through The Success Principles—and a full five years after the accident—he got his biggest wake-up call. At his son Hunter’s seventh birthday party, Forrest was out in the yard with the boy and a group of his friends as Hunter opened his presents. Picking a round-shaped package from the pile, Hunter ripped the wrapping paper off to reveal a baseball. Smiling with delight, he immediately threw it at the ground. Naturally, the ball landed with a thud and rolled a couple of feet into the dirt. Hunter picked it up and hurled it at the ground again, where it once more rolled away from him. Before he could try again, the friend who had given him the baseball, shouted, “Hunter, baseballs don’t bounce!”
In that moment, Forrest was thunderstruck as the impact of his absence hit him like a ton of bricks. How could his son know about such things? They had never thrown a baseball together.
Forrest realized he had spent more time with his negative thoughts than with his own son—essentially abandoning him, as well as his wife. He knew that if he didn’t take charge of his life, it would end up in pieces. He’d find himself divorced, homeless, or worse.
The spark inside him turned into a blaze. He went back to the first of the Success Principles, Take 100% Responsibility for Your Life, and tackled it in earnest.
In his case, taking 100% responsibility for his life meant he had to stop the negative self-talk: no more “Poor Forrest
“ and “Why did this happen to me?” Without that constant negative soundtrack to distract him, Forrest could see that he hadn’t been an active participant in his own rehabilitation. He had been letting his physical therapist stretch him—then wondered why he wasn’t getting stronger. He’d sat there passively listening while his speech therapist read to him—then complained that his reading skills weren’t getting any better.
Now Forrest started to believe that his life could be different, that he could make it different. And that’s when things really started to change.
Almost immediately, his self-awareness began to grow. Things that had gone over his head for so long finally registered. Where were all his friends? The answer was as painful as it was clear: He’d abandoned them, in the same way he’d abandoned his family. Everyone had stopped calling long ago, pushed away by Forrest’s negativity—and he’d been too self-absorbed to care. Just noticing these things was a success in itself, Forrest reminded himself. He was making progress.
Next, he decided to give up blaming and complaining—not an easy task. It had become so habitual that Forrest didn’t even realize he was doing it. So he asked the people around him to help him become aware when he slipped back into his old ways. In fact, his wife and therapists had a sign: If Forrest began to blame or complain, they let him know by pulling on their ear. When he saw that, he’d stop whatever he was saying in midsentence, take a deep breath, and consider his next words more carefully.
Not that speaking—positively or negatively—was easy for him. Forrest still hadn’t fully regained his speech faculties, and sometimes he was unable to find the words he needed, or he stuttered. Because of this, he didn’t want to go to the grocery store or post office in case he ran into someone he knew. To counter this, he focused on Principle 22: “Practice Persistence.” Each day he read The Success Principles for twenty minutes and practiced stepping out of his comfort zone. Day after day, he practiced a little more and went a little further.
One of his steps out of his comfort zone took him to a local coffee shop. For years, Forrest had put his head down and walked past the coffee shop, keeping his eyes glued to the cement. But this day he walked in—reminding himself of Principle 15: “Experience Your Fear and Take Action Anyway.” Unfortunately, he was met right away by his worst fear. An old acquaintance recognized him and called out.