The Little Things: Why You Really Should Sweat the Small Stuff - Hardcover

Andrews, Andy

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0718077326 ISBN 13: 9780718077327

Verlag: Thomas Nelson, 2017

Inhaltsangabe

Wall Street Journal Bestseller

Have you ever wondered why we spend so much time and energy thinking about the big challenges in our lives when all the evidence proves it’s actually the little things that change everything?  That’s right…  Absolutely everything.

Little Things embodies Andy’s own approach to life and work, detailing for the first time some of the exclusive material that he uses to teach and coach some of the most successful corporations, teams, and individuals around the world. In his unique humorous style, Andy shows how people succeed by actually going against the modern adage, “don’t sweat the small stuff”.  By contrast, Andy proves that it is in concentrating on the smaller things that we add value and margin.

Discover a new perspective and a game plan for meeting various challenges, such as:

• Managing life in a society that seems to be constantly offended by something or someone
• Creating change that is permanent and not short term
• Dramatically increasing results by harnessing the fraction of margin between second place and first
• Understanding our spiritual connection with God and how that affects planning and outcome
• Identifying the very moment when asking the question why? multiplies the success of an endeavor
• Recognizing the smallest details that ensure the greatest success

Über diesen Titel

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Andy Andrews is a bestselling novelist, speaker, and consultant for some of the world’s most successful teams, largest corporations, and fastest-growing organizations. He is the author of the New York Times bestsellers The Noticer, How Do You Kill 11 Million People?, and the modern classic The Traveler’s Gift. For more information, please visit AndyAndrews.com.

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The Little Things

Why You Really Should Sweat the Small Stuff

By Andy Andrews

Thomas Nelson

Copyright © 2017 Andy Andrews
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-0-7180-7732-7

Contents

Introduction, xi, 
Author's Note, xvii, 
Preface, xxv, 
1 A Little Thing ... like a one, 1, 
2 A Little Thing ... like a few nails, 7, 
3 A Little Thing ... like taking offense, 13, 
4 A Little Thing ... like a three-letter question, 23, 
5 A Little Thing ... like a sixteenth of an inch, 39, 
6 A Little Thing ... like quitting, 49, 
7 A Little Thing ... like the other end, 55, 
8 A Little Thing ... like an increase in understanding, 61, 
9 A Little Thing ... like perspective, 69, 
10 A Little Thing ... like an air rifle, 75, 
11 A Little Thing ... like being different, 83, 
12 A Little Thing ... like a half nickel, 89, 
13 A Little Thing ... like change, 95, 
14 A Little Thing ... like the best, 117, 
15 A Little Thing ... like opening our eyes to what is already there, 137, 
Not the Conclusion, 147, 
A Reader's Guide, 151, 
About the Author, 163, 

CHAPTER 1

A Little Thing ... like a one

How many ideas are out there, waiting patiently for you to show up?

HOW DOES THAT SONG GO? YOU REMEMBER IT, DON'T you?

One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do ...

It's amazing when you think about it. Harry Nilsson wrote a piece of music about the smallest number in the world. Three Dog Night recorded it as a single, and the song was a huge hit!

Of course, one isn't just small and lonely. That number packs a lot of power. Yes, one. One second, one degree, one idea, one more ...

One more? Ah, yeah. That would be two. And there's a canyon of difference between one and two. From 1967 to 1973, the UCLA men's basketball team under John Wooden won a remarkable seven national championships in a row. That's right. Seven consecutive times the team ended the season at number one. Can you name any of the teams that claimed the number two spot?

Who won the last Super Bowl? You remember that, don't you? Quickly now, who did they beat? Odd, isn't it? With thirty-plus teams in the NFL, most of us can't remember the second-best team of less than a year ago!

The modern Olympics have been contested for well over a century and have been the source of many memorable — even legendary — moments for many of us. I wonder ... how many gold medalists can you name? Now make a list of the silver medalists you can remember. Don't feel bad. I can't name more than a couple either. But that's the point, isn't it? There's a big difference between one and two.

How about one idea? The airplane, penicillin, air conditioning, the computer — before they were physical, workable realities, these examples and a million more life-changing inventions or discoveries were merely ideas. In fact, each was ONE idea. It's an empowering realization. In order to change your life, all YOU need is one idea.

Even in the toughest of times, one idea can save the day. In crisis, most people default to excuses of not having enough money or enough time or lacking leadership.

It is important to remember, however, that you aren't really lacking money. You aren't really lacking time. Or leadership. You are only lacking one thing. An idea.

One idea will change everything. One idea will change the world. You and I have seen one idea make billions of dollars. We've seen one idea save millions of lives. And one idea can move you from where you are to where you want to be.

Incidentally, don't ever allow yourself to believe that all the great ideas have been taken. Never forget that, as a society, we put men on the moon before anyone thought to put wheels on luggage!

How many ideas are out there, waiting patiently for YOU to show up?

Or consider not just the power of one, but the power of a fraction of one. When considering financial reward or future opportunities, is there also a significant gap in those items between first and second place? Of course there is. But how much of a gap?

The financial difference in the opportunities offered to a gold medalist versus a silver medalist is hard to quantify, considering the variety of Olympic sports that are contested. But it is clear. Michael Phelps has had more of life's opportunities, personally and in business, because he has won gold medals instead of winning "only" silver.

Decades after winning gold medals, athletes like Mary Lou Retton, Sugar Ray Leonard, Michelle Kwan, Carl Lewis, Peggy Fleming, and Mike Eruzione are all remembered and revered. They also continue to be well compensated. In fact, many gold medalists are paid tens of thousands of dollars merely to stand in front of a group of people and recount their athletic experiences. The silver medalists ... not so often.

"Okay," you say. "This is all very obvious. What's the point?"

Well, the point is very simple, but for some reason it is often missed in our almost constant struggle to understand that ever-popular big picture. You see, the point of demonstrating the chasm between first and second place is not to illustrate the financial difference. Or even to show the financial reward produced over time by lasting fame.

No, if you and I are to become extraordinary achievers, we must learn to recognize the little things that actually create the gap — and, consequently, the difference in opportunities — between one and two. Astonishingly, these little things that most people see as irrelevant sometimes occur days or even weeks in advance of the event.

And know this: the difference really is in little things because the actual gap between first and second place is most often ridiculously small. In fact, as with multiple Olympic sports, the difference between first place and tenth place is less than a second.

During one of his many appearances in the Olympic Games, American swimmer Michael Phelps once won a gold medal by a hundredth of a second. Think about it. A hundredth of a second is smaller than the amount of time it takes lightning to strike. It takes more than a hundredth of a second for a hummingbird to flap its wing one time. The blink of an eye takes longer than a hundredth of a second.

Here is the truth that average achievers never bother to consider: the advantage in any arena of life is earned far in advance of the moment one is required to perform. The truth about Phelps's race is that the tiny burst that propelled him to victory had been acquired in an almost imperceptible manner. It might have been one more swallow of coffee that morning. Or one more practice lap the week before. Or five minutes of additional rest here or there.

Or could it have been a thought?

All activity and movement are initiated in the brain. Had Phelps allowed a negative thought during the race, might that momentary doubt have added two-hundredths of a second to his time? Or was a positive thought, quietly whispered to himself on the starting block, responsible for the hundredth of a second that made the difference between gold and silver?

For winning that particular race, Phelps's former sponsor, Speedo, presented him with a check for one million dollars (which he promptly gave to charity). So whatever Phelps did and whenever he did it, you can be certain that the difference it made was hugely valuable.

And incredibly small.

CHAPTER 2

A Little Thing ... like a few...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Thomas Nelson
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2017
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 0718077326
• ISBN 13: 9780718077327
• Einband: Gebundene Ausgabe
• Anzahl der Seiten: 192
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: HarperCollins Publishers Ireland; enquiries@harpercollins.ie; ; Macken House 39/40 Mayor Street Upper; Dublin 1; D01 C9W8; Irland