Book Review - Never too late to be great

Never Too late to be great

Tom Butler Bowdon

Most people over estimate what they can achieve in a year and under estimate what they can achieve in a decade.

Life happens, as John Lennon puts it, when you are making other plans.

What is quick and tales less work is always alluring, but the desire for instant results makes us less open to the paths that will lead to lasting, major achievement.

The laws of probability suggest we are all entitled to a few lucky breaks, but the universe rarely offers short cuts to anything.

Genuine success is the result of ‘rich time', or deep thought given to a work or a problem.

What differentiates the well off from the not so well off in society is their ‘appreciation of time'. This is true over generations.

The well off in society is not about material wealth, not about education or social status but a set of values and beliefs relating to time.

That’s why lower level workers in the initial days were paid by the hour and managers by the month. This payment made people think of life in that way too.

Things you might want to ask yourself at the end of your life : Did I live, did I love, did I matter?

Early success is a double edged sword, it makes you a someone but also increases the weight of expectations.

Thinking about the future makes you wildly successful for the present.

Great companies do not get lost in the day to day, they become great by looking ahead all the time.

People with a long term view feel more confident because they are innately confident about controlling their destiny.

Long term companies value deep domain expertise.

Any organization that goes through too many changes or personnel changes is by nature unstable.

Fashions come and go, but quality and originality are always recognized.

Self reflection may not be compatible with the go getting nature of fast success, but it is compatible with real, slow cooked success.

It is natural to seek shortcuts and dream of overnight success but these are like basing a strategy for wealth creation on buying lottery tickets.

Stephen king said “ talent is cheaper than table salt, what separates the talented individual from the successful one is hard work”

What you need to do is to study what leaders did before they became famous not what they di after they became famous.

Age itself in a career matters little , what matters is readiness and enthusiasm.

Motivational speakers tell us to persevere, but success involves perseverance combined with experimentation, if something doesn’t work, try something else. Agility of mind means you will find a way forward.

If it captures your mind, it will captivate others.

To win big, you need to think small. Do a small thing right and growth will automatically take care of itself.