Grattitude

Book Review

INGREDIENTS FOR SUCCESS

10 Best Practices for Business and Life

By: Joseph James Slawek

This book was an easy read and an easy delightful approach to business and life practices.  This book was based upon Matthew 25^th chapter and the parables of the Ten Virgins, The Bags of Gold and The Sheep and the Goats.

The Ten Best Practices include:

1. Boldly, yet compassionately, tell the truth.

We must tell the truth in order to define reality and fight denial.  Truth-telling is an essential practice for anyone at any level of any organization. 

2. Plan ahead but be ready for surprises.

We are responsible for planning and preparation, and also for responding to surprises or crises.

3. Know, develop, and use your unique abilities.

God assigns to each of us a certain amount of specific talents, gifts, resources, and abilities along with a unique personality, and the responsibility to use them.

4. Use your talents responsibly or you’ll lose them.

We are entrusted with God’s resources in the form of our talents, skills, abilities, gifts resources, etc. We have a responsibility to use them or lose them.

5. Be ready for the accounting

There is always an accounting—daily, weekly, monthly, annually and eventually, there will be a final accounting from God--- an external audit of your life and what you did with your talents.  There is always an accounting..

6. Invest your talents faithfully for maximum return.

We will all get the same reward from our master if we use our respective talents properly.  He will say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

7. Aim for excellence, not perfection.

There are only four outcomes at home or at work: failure, mediocrity, excellence, or perfection.  Excellence is our target because it requires us and motivates us to get better.

8. Be strong and courageous.

Fear, though a normal part of life, can cause us to bury our talents.  Fear and perfectionism both create procrastination.

9. Redistribute unused talents and resources.

Unused gifts, resources, and talents are always recycled to someone who will use them faithfully.  When we don’t use our gifts, they’ll be given to someone else.

10. Express gratitude to God and others.

Gratitude is our first priority and it precedes all rewards.

The teachings of the parables are presented in a way that is easily understood and exhibited in a way that one could apply them to their personal or business life.  The illustrations of the parables are explained in each of the ten practices as an example of how to apply these practices to your own life. 

This book is a delightful read and I would recommend it be read to enlighten one’s self whether you’re a CEO or a regular Joe. 

Note:  I received this book without charge from Handlebar Publishing in exchange for an honest opinion in the form of a review.