Go-Giver Mindset
Living a healthy lifestyle is as much mental as it is physical. One of the best ways to feed your mind is to read a great book. The book the Go-Giver is a great story about an ambitious young man who is desperately trying to make a sale before the end of the 3rd quarter. At the start of the story, Joe is fixated on himself and what other people can do for him. In a desperate attempt to do whatever it takes to make a sale, he visits a super successful businessman and consultant named Pindar who he will use as leverage to land a customer. Pindar instead teaches Joe the 5 laws of stratospheric success.
Law #1- Law Of Value- Your true worth is determined by how much more you give in value than you take in payment.
We recently returned from an excellent vacation in Maui. On our last night we were given a “Wow” experience at Nick’s Fishmarket. The restaurant was located near the ocean with a breathtaking view. The servers made us feel like we were the only guests in the restaurant. Not only was our server, Jesse, friendly and attentive but the Assistant manager, Cheston, checked on us multiple times in order to make sure we were having a great time.
A server who didn’t even have our table, Beau, performed several magic tricks for us including pulling a champagne bottle from underneath our table. When Kelsey and Steph left for the bathroom the staff literally zoomed over right before they returned in order to pull out the chairs for them. The food and drinks were spectacular. To say the service was A+ is an understatement. The entire staff made us feel like rockstars and now I’m literally writing about how fantastic my experience was. That’s the power of providing exceptional service.
Law #2-Law of Compensation- Your income is determined by how many people you serve and how well you serve them.
The amount of lives you affect and provide exceptional value to the higher your income will be. The more copies of The Go-Giver the authors sell the more lives they will affect, which will increase their income. They made several good points in the book about how the most successful people do what they love and are passionate about it and the money comes later. I remember a quote from the book where Joe is told that it’s okay to think about money but it shouldn’t be the first thought or only reason you do something. Blake Mycoskie from Toms started the 1 for 1 movement. For every pair of Toms sold they donate a pair in Argentina, Ethiopia, Haiti, India or Kenya. He was on a mission trip and became passionate about helping people in poorer countries and came up with this idea. He started with a purpose and then the money came later and helps sustain his mission and fuel the growth.
Law #3- Law of Influence- Your influence is determined by how abundantly you place other people’s interests first.
In the start of the story Joe was all about himself. Pindar gives him a challenge every day for 5 days to act out his laws. Joe is faced with losing a big account and actually refers the account to his biggest rival. He put the needs of the account above his own because he knew the rival could better help this customers needs. The rival called him later asking for help on a huge account which ultimately led to the biggest deal of Joe’s life.
Law #4- Law of Authenticity- The most valuable gift you have to offer is yourself.
Pindar takes Joe to a speech by a top real estate broker. The broker does an excellent job of captivating the audience and keeping it real. She talks about how she was depressed because she was unable to find a job after her divorce. After staying at home with her kids, she had difficulty finding a job without practical work experience. Her first year as a realtor did not go well. She had decided to quit after one last house showing. On the last showing, she decided to stop trying all of the closing and sales techniques, and instead, chose to be her genuine self. She talked to potential clients about personal things (kids, hobbies, etc.) and she finally made a sale. By “keeping it real” and being authentic the customer trusted her and the broker used this to become a top producer.
Law #5- The Law of Receptivity- The key to effective giving is to stay open to receiving.
Pindar teaches Joe that in order to be a giver you have to be open to receiving. He likens it to breathing. You can’t just breathe out you have to breathe in as well. An example would be charities that receive donations from businesses and then raffle them off. This helps increase the ability of the charity to affect lives by increasing the amount of money they raise.
This was an excellent book about the power of giving time, energy, value and improving the lives of others. They did a great job of illustrating how the most successful and happy people serve as many people as possible and live with passion and purpose. The characters in the book were all eager to mentor and help Joe become the best version of himself. What can you do today to help improve the lives of others and make this world a healthier, happier, safer place?
Aaron