Why People Fail: The 16 Obstacles to Success and How You Can Overcome Them

Why People Fail: The 16 Obstacles to Success and How You Can Overcome Them

by Siimon Reynolds
Released November 2011
Publisher(s): Jossey-Bass
ISBN: 9781118106174

Read it now on the O’Reilly learning platform with a 10-day free trial.

O’Reilly members get unlimited access to books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.

Start your free trial

Book description

An essential guide for mastering failure in order to achieve your goals

Success is often just a moment—a goal fulfilled, soon to be replaced with new goals. But failure is the ambitious person's constant companion, often dogging us for months, years or even decades before we finally reach our aim. In the groundbreaking book Why People Fail, Siimon Reynolds, one of the world's most successful entrepreneurs, explores the main causes of failure, in any field, and reveals solutions for overcoming them and creating a successful personal and professional life.

Why People Fail offers strategies and ideas for defeating the sixteen most common failure habits such as destructive thinking, low productivity, stress, fixed mindset, lack of daily rituals, and more.

  • Outlines the common habits that lead to failure and shows how to overcome them

  • Features dozens of tips and exercises to help increase business and personal success

  • Written by Siimon Reynolds, an internationally recognized expert on high performance and business excellence

Many people have changed their lives by mastering just one of the timeless principles in this book. Master five or ten and your life will rocket to a totally new level.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title page
  3. Copyright page
  4. Dedication
  5. introduction
    1. IF I CAN, YOU CAN
    2. FAILURE LEADS TO SUCCESS
    3. STRATEGY IS IMPORTANT
    4. POWERFUL PRINCIPLES
    5. HOW TO READ THIS BOOK
  6. 1 unclear purpose
    1. LIFE PURPOSE
    2. JOB PURPOSE
    3. WEEKLY PURPOSE
    4. THE REMARKABLE RAS
    5. YOUR BRAIN IS YOUR ALLY
    6. TOUGH DECISIONS
  7. 2 destructive thinking
    1. DESTRUCTIVE THINKING AFFECTS YOUR HEALTH
    2. DESTRUCTIVE THINKING MAKES YOU WANT TO GIVE IN
    3. THINKING AFFECTS ACTIONS
    4. THE DAILY MIND RITUALS
    5. AFFIRM YOUR SUCCESS
    6. A SYSTEM THAT WORKS
  8. 3 low productivity
    1. FROM DISORGANIZED TO PRODUCTIVE
    2. PLAN BEFORE YOU START
    3. CREATE BLOCKS OF TIME TO DO JOBS
    4. THINK 80/20
    5. RUSH UNIMPORTANT TASKS
    6. DELEGATE WHAT ISN’T VITAL
    7. GETTING HELP
  9. 4 fixed mindset
    1. FIXED MINDSET
    2. GROWTH MINDSET
    3. YOU CAN LEARN ANYTHING
    4. GROWTH-MINDSET LEADERS
    5. THE RESULTS ARE CLEAR
    6. OVERCOMING CHALLENGES
    7. CHANGING FOR GOOD
    8. A LIFE-CHANGING CONCEPT
  10. 5 weak energy
    1. GOOD-QUALITY SLEEP IS CRUCIAL
    2. EXAMINE YOUR DIET
    3. IMPROVE YOUR ENVIRONMENT
    4. EXERCISE
    5. STRETCH
    6. GET DAILY SUNLIGHT
    7. REGULATE YOUR LIFESTYLE
    8. INCREASE MUSIC
    9. REDUCE COFFEE
    10. POSITIVE SELF-TALK
    11. DRINK GREEN PLANTS
    12. BOOST YOUR ENERGY TO SKY-HIGH LEVELS
  11. 6 not asking the right questions
    1. AN IMPORTANT EXERCISE
  12. 7 poor presentation skills
    1. THE CLASSIC PRESENTATION
    2. VERBAL PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT
    3. COMMUNICATE EYE TO EYE
    4. PAUSE. WHEN. YOU. SPEAK.
    5. VARY YOUR VOICE
    6. GET OBJECTIVE FEEDBACK
    7. SEE YOURSELF AS PERFORMING WELL
    8. PRACTICE USING YOUR HANDS
    9. MEMORIZE YOUR START AND FINISH
    10. INCLUDE STORIES
    11. ARRIVE EARLY
    12. STUDY THE GREAT SPEAKERS
    13. ONE STEP AT A TIME
  13. 8 mistaking IQ for EQ
    1. PERSONAL COMPETENCE
    2. SOCIAL COMPETENCE
    3. HOW DO YOU SCORE?
    4. IMPROVING YOUR EQ IS WORTH THE TIME
    5. FOCUS FOR A MONTH
  14. 9 poor self-image
    1. SELF-IMAGE RULES
    2. YOU GET WHAT YOU EXPECT
    3. ONE-MINUTE TEST
    4. RUNNING OLD PATTERNS
    5. BOOST YOUR SELF-IMAGE THROUGHOUT THE DAY
    6. ACT THE PART
    7. EMULATE YOUR FRIENDS
    8. PICTURE YOUR FUTURE
    9. APPEARANCE AFFECTS FEELINGS
    10. THE POWER OF THE SELF-IMAGE TOOLKIT
  15. 10 not enough thinking
    1. A HIGH PRICE TO PAY
    2. IDEAS ARE GOLD
    3. BRAINSTORM REGULARLY
    4. IDEA CREATION TECHNIQUES THAT WORK
    5. CREATIVITY REWARDS EFFORT
    6. TIME FOR PRACTICE
  16. 11 no daily rituals
    1. THE MIRACLE OF RITUALS
    2. A SYSTEM CAN HELP YOU ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS
    3. SEVEN EXCELLENT RITUALS
    4. JUST PICK THREE
  17. 12 stress
    1. STRESS AFFECTS PERFORMANCE
    2. STRESS AFFECTS RELATIONSHIPS
    3. STRESS INHIBITS YOUR SEX LIFE
    4. STRESS AFFECTS YOUR PROFITS
    5. STRESS AFFECTS EVERY ASPECT OF YOUR LIFE
    6. STRESS RELIEVERS
    7. LOWER YOUR STRESS TODAY
  18. 13 few relationships
    1. 10 BRAINS ARE BETTER THAN ONE
    2. EVERYONE NEEDS FRIENDS
    3. HUMANS AREN’T ISLANDS
    4. THE INNER CIRCLE
    5. THE OUTER CIRCLE
    6. EXPANDING CIRCLES
    7. WORK ON YOUR WORK COLLEAGUES
    8. LITTLE THINGS, BIG RESULTS
    9. A COMMITMENT TO MASTERY
  19. 14 lack of persistence
    1. AVOIDING FAILURE
    2. A TWO-STAGE PROCESS
    3. DO A TINY BIT OF YOUR TASK
    4. GET ASSISTANCE
    5. FOCUS ON WHAT REALLY MATTERS
    6. REST
    7. DON’T FORGET TO EXERCISE
    8. REWARD YOURSELF
    9. IT’S NOT LUCK
  20. 15 money obsession
    1. THE FACTS ABOUT MONEY
    2. FILLING A VOID
    3. NOT LOVING YOURSELF
    4. DEPENDENT ON OTHERS
    5. HAPPINESS BOOSTERS
    6. A MATTER OF BALANCE
  21. 16 not focusing on strengths
    1. THE SPECIALIST ERA
    2. THE GALLUP FINDINGS
    3. KNOW YOUR STRENGTHS
    4. FURTHER KNOWLEDGE
    5. ENVISION A NEW FUTURE
    6. FOUR HOURS IS ENOUGH
    7. BE FLEXIBLE BUT FIRM
    8. GREAT FOR KIDS
    9. NOT JUST FOR YOU
    10. GENUINE LIFE IMPROVEMENT
  22. conclusion
    1. 1. UNCLEAR PURPOSE
    2. 2. DESTRUCTIVE THINKING
    3. 3. LOW PRODUCTIVITY
    4. 4. FIXED MINDSET
    5. 5. WEAK ENERGY
    6. 6. NOT ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS
    7. 7. POOR PRESENTATION SKILLS
    8. 8. MISTAKING IQ FOR EQ
    9. 9. POOR SELF-IMAGE
    10. 10. NOT ENOUGH THINKING
    11. 11. NO DAILY RITUALS
    12. 12. STRESS
    13. 13. FEW RELATIONSHIPS
    14. 14. LACK OF PERSISTENCE
    15. 15. MONEY OBSESSION
    16. 16. NOT FOCUSING ON STRENGTHS
    17. A FORMULA FOR CHANGE
    18. COMMIT TO YOUR EVOLUTION
  23. Recommended Reading
  24. Acknowledgments
  25. The Author

Product information

  • Title: Why People Fail: The 16 Obstacles to Success and How You Can Overcome Them
  • Author(s): Siimon Reynolds
  • Release date: November 2011
  • Publisher(s): Jossey-Bass
  • ISBN: 9781118106174