Undeniably it is delightfully dreamy to imagine how you would live, work, and play if you achieved megasuccess; the type of success owned by those such as Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey, and Elon Musk. What is the secret to this success? An ambitious young man named Joe earnestly worked hard toward his goal of megasuccess, and during a rough period of missing his target work goals, he found himself with the unlikely opportunity of meeting with a renowned mentor, Pintar. Pintar revealed the secret of megasuccess, in actuality, stratospheric success, dreamed of by many, pursued by many, yet achieved by very, very, very few. Bob Burg and John David Mann’s national bestseller, The Go-Giver is an amazing brief book sharing this story of Joe and his mentor Pintar. In essences it is a concise story of inspiration and know-how truths in achieving real world success. The Go-Giver is a masterful must read for everyone, everywhere, revealing timeless wisdom of the secret of megasuccess.
First, The Go Giver is a book formulated to change lives in the real world with deep roots in the ancient proverb “Give and you shall receive.” The reader, right along with Joe, is drawn in and reflectively engaged with stratospherically successful Pintar to discover the powerful truth in gaining success. “All right. I’m going to share my Trade Secret with you now,” Pindar leaned forward a bit and softly spoke one word. “Giving.” (p13). The story combines Joe and the readers’ bewilderment with Pintar’s warm, frank insight of “There’s nothing wrong with making money. Lots of it, in fact. It’s just not a goal that will make you successful. You see,’ Pintar continued, ‘the majority of people operate with a mind-set that says to the fireplace, First, give me some heat, then I’ll throw on some logs. And of course, it just doesn’t work that way…You see? You can’t go in two directions at once. Trying to be successful with making money as your goal is like trying to travel a superhighway at seventy miles an hour with your eyes glued to the rearview mirror.” (14). Seemingly suited toward the business world, this story offers just as much to the student in school, who is studying, planning, and preparing to achieve their successes. Along with countless others, I want to recommend this book to everyone. If the idea of wisdom and an engaging clever story with memorable characters, is not enough to have you consider reading this book, then consider the five laws that Pintar shares:
1. The Law of Value- Your true worth is determined by how much more you give in value than you take in payment.
2. The Law of Compensation- Your income is determined by how many people you serve and how well you serve them.
3. The Law of Influence- Your influence is determined by how abundantly you place other people’s interests first.
4. The Law of Authenticity- The most valuable gift you have to offer is yourself.
5. The Law of Receptivity- The key to effective giving is to stay open to receiving.
However, striving for more than a book review, what is most important is your take on this book and its principle five laws to achieving success. Please do share them as comments below.
Through reflection, the unexpected idea of karma and whether it is real or not, as well as, the enduring directive my parents have been telling me for years, namely giving is more important than receiving sparked through my many thoughts. Additionally, the idea of what is true worth and how it is often determined by how much you give in value rather than your take in payment. In sum, giving helps you out.
Further, it is interesting to wrap your mind around Law Two and the often missed perspective that income is frequently determined by how many people you serve or impact. This could explain or justify the astronomical salaries of the few, especially in upper levels of management, versus the majority of workers contributing to the corporation and its overall work mission. Whereas, Law Three’s principle to place other people’s interests first meets the needs of meaningful collaboration, cooperation, and synergy in life; super-sizing the concept of treating others how you wish to be treated. Law Four’s principle that the most valuable gift you have to offer is yourself; how cool is that to realize. Yet, reflecting on Law Five’s principle that you maximize giving by staying open to receiving is profound; achieving your highest potential of success runs full circle. Seemingly, there is a sense of balance to what you give out is what you can receive back and visa-a-versa that what you receive is what you can give out.
Live life to the fullest! Midway through the book Pindar and Joe are discussing a life motto of sorts—survive, save and serve. Pindar explains, “They are the three universal reasons for working. Survive—-to meet your basic living needs. Save—to go beyond your basic needs and expand your life. And serve—to make a contribution to the world around you…..Unfortunately, most people spend their entire lives focusing on the first. A smaller number focus on the second. But those rare few who are truly successful—-not just financially, but genuinely successful in all aspects of their lives—keep their focus squarely on the third.” (59). Survive, save and serve. The Go Giver is the type of book that is meant to inspire, as well as, mentor through real world examples and memorable characters. It makes you reflect and think from a different perspective, with the likely result of empowering your perspective and potential success. Once again the request is made to share your comments below, what’s your take on achieving success?
Works Cited
Burg, Bob, and John David Mann. The Go-giver: A Little Story about a Powerful Business Idea. NY, NY: Portfolio, 2007. Print.
