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January 20, 2014 Biz Books

Keys to personal, business success

“Everything I Know about Success I Learned from Napoleon Hill” by Don M. Green (McGraw-Hill, $22).

In 1937, Napoleon Hill's Think and Grow Rich helped people find the power within themselves. The Rich spoke powerfully of the spirit of individual and communal achievement, not just financial success. Green carries on Hill's work as the executive director of the Napoleon Hill foundation; he provides us with reminders of Hill's timeless lessons. Here are some highlights:

“The principles of success do not change.” It's always the positive, not the negative that makes good things happen. Think of positivity as fertilizer that helps ideas grow into reality.

“Don't ever be afraid to ask for help.” You don't know what you don't know; but others can fill in your knowledge gaps and connect your dots. Hill spoke of “Master Mind” groups, which are your networks of positive people. “No two minds ever come together without, thereby, creating a third.”

“Success requires no explanation, while failure requires alibis.” That said, the road to success isn't a straight line. There will be detours and obstacles. Don't think of these as failures. Treat these challenges to success as learning opportunities and forge ahead. A corollary: Focus on those items that you can control and learn to respond to what's beyond your control.

Commitment and persistence are success' essential tools. Thomas Edison, when questioned about his “failed” experiments to invent a light bulb, commented, “I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”

Reading ensures continuous improvement. Books can open the door to new ideas, and change your thoughts and outlook.

The core message: “The only limitations you experience in life are those that you place upon yourself.”

• • •

“Word of Mouse: 101+ Trends in How We Buy, Sell, Live, Work, and Play” by Marc Ostrofsky (Simon & Schuster, $24.99).

Word of Mouse (n.) a one-to-one but often one-to-many communications method using the power of networks and the Internet to disseminate content within an environment of constant evolution.

Chapter five, The Way We Work, focuses on how the business of business has and will change. In the age of connection, we can search for and provide information with a few keyboard strokes and a mouse click. “Collaboration is king!” Coworkers are now “coworking.” File-sharing apps like Dropbox and Documents to Go allow people to collaborate real time.

No longer are companies restricted by their employees' capabilities. Coworking also allows firms to take, locate, and contract with talent specific to a project through sites like Freelancer, Guru and oDesk. LinkedIn groups provide cloud-based discussion forums for participants.

Companies can connect on an enterprise basis, too. Huddle, Share Point and Yammer provide cloud-based file sharing. Huddle's Notes feature is a mobile app that replaces email with group messaging. Lingo 24, a translation provider, virtually eliminates the language barrier.

Ostrofsky provides a case study on Kia Motors Corp. use of Huddle. As a global marketplace player, Kia has to operate a multilingual, two-way communications system that connects corporate with dealers, suppliers and consumers. Huddle allows participation in topics pertinent to specific projects and interests.

The small business owner can use the Internet to create referral networks through a Referral Key (it's free). The business owner sends an email to friends and associates and asks them to join their network. By joining, they're simply agreeing to keep you in mind. When a referral leads to business, you reward the referring member with a gift.

The bottom line: If a business doesn't take advantage of the technology-based tools, it will suffer a self-inflicted competitive disadvantage.

Jim Pawlak is a syndicated book reviewer.

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