I read this book a few weeks back and just now had time to get to writing up a review. I have followed Eric Thomas for the last year watching and absorbing all his motivation via his YouTube channel. I am a fan of the TGIM feeding off his energy and enthusiasm for life.
I found a whole new level of profound respect for this leader while listening to his mixtape. I listen to his mixtape at least once a week when I head out for my training runs. A few of his speeches give me goosebumps.
It only made sense for me to read his book. I wanted to read about his journey and take away some key things that I can bring to my job as a teacher and a coach.
I found the book to be an easy read, but one that allowed me to take away some key passages. I have shared my Kindle notes below in case you don’t have access to a Kindle. If you do have a Kindle, then feel free to check out my notes yourself.
I found the book to be good. I took away many good things. I don’t know that any of it was new to me, but the way it was presented allowed for me to reflect and rethink some key ideas that I have not thought about in a while.
If you need a boost of motivation or need an example of someone making it from nothing, then you must follow Eric Thomas by reading his book, following his tweets, and watching his YouTube channel. This book is just one more weapon is his tool chest to spread his word.
You can tell by all my notes below that I enjoyed the book. I highlighted 55 passages so that is telling you that you need to read this book.
I did have one issue and that was with the Kindle format. The format was not fluid. Some pages only had one letter. There were simple spelling and grammar errors. This was an issue with the content of the book, but the format. It drove me crazy and did screw with the flow. I don’t like interruptions and this bothered me from time to time.
Overall, this is a good read worth your time. It will not blow your mind, but the book will give an insight into where Eric came from. It you want to have your mind blown, then check out everything he offers online.
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Here are my notes highlighted from my Kindle
The Secret to Success by Eric Thomas
You have 55 highlighted passages
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Last annotated on October 29, 2012
What are you going to do now, huh? You just going to sit there and do nothing, is that it?” “Every time you’re in a crunch, like a little punk, you freeze up. You wanted to be a grown man well you are grown now. Ain’t nobody going to bail you out this time!”Read more at location 246
Let’s do an exercise. If I told you I would give you 10 million dollars to jump out of a Boeing 757 aircraft with no parachute, what would you say? If you answered no, I am not mad at you. I would have given the same answer at one point in time. “Even though I could really use 10Read more at location 302
million dollars right now, it does me no good if I’m dead.” But for those of you who answered no, you would be very disappointed when you found out that the aircraft was not 30, 000 feet above sea level. That’s right, the monstrous machine never left the ground and the jump down would be about 6 feet.Read more at location 304
Consider all factors before making a decision, ask as many questions as you can about the situation. I have learned over the years that the higher the level of emotion, the lower the level of reasoning.Read more at location 306
Principle 3: You can change environments, but until you change yourself nothing else will ever change.Read more at location 336
• Principle 1: Don’t make a habit out of choosing what feels good over what’s actually good for you. • Principle 2: Avoid being your own enemy. • Principle 3: You can change environments, but until you change yourself nothing else will ever change.Read more at location 341
“Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.” – Carl BardRead more at location 343
Everything you need, to get everywhere you need to be, is already inside of you. But without a strong desire, and I stress a strong desire, to know or learn something we will never experience the change we so desperately say we want!Read more at location 375
• Principle 4: Learn to be curious. • Principle 5: Don’t be afraid to explore your curiosity. • Principle 6: You have to saddle your dreams before you can ride them.Read more at location 416
The people you associate yourself with have the greatest influence on your life. Your relationships will either makeRead more at location 469
you or break you and there is no such thing as a neutral relationship. People either inspire you to greatness or pull you down in the gutter, it’s that simple. No one fails alone, and no one succeeds alone.Read more at location 470
Character isn’t something that happens to you. With each decision that I made, I was consciously or subconsciously forming my character. Character is like my fingerprint; it identifies me from everyone else in the world.Read more at location 491
I learned that a real friendship is not about what you can get, but what you can give. Real friendship is about making sacrifices and investing in people to help them improve their lives.Read more at location 525
I think I made it quite obvious why it is so important to surround yourself with the right people. Your destiny and your dynasty is determined or demolished by those closest to you.Read more at location 569
Here is the question you need to ask yourself before you enter any environment, “Is this soil the ideal environment for the type of harvest I am expecting to gain?”Read more at location 571
Peter Marshall, “When we long for life without difficulties, remind us that oaks grow strong in contrary winds and diamonds are made under pressure.”Read more at location 679
Once I was exposed to a new environment, it didn’t take me long to discover that successful people were not successful because of some superior gene they inherited at birth. It had more to do with their outlook on life and their ability to keep momentum on their side.Read more at location 707
Principle 11: Just Do It. If you keep doing what you’ve always done, you’ll keep getting what you always gotten. There will never be a perfect time or perfect situation in our life to do something we should have done a long time ago. At some point we have to stop making excuses and like Nike…Just do it.Read more at location 785
When you make a decision to change, the Universe will do all in its power to make sure you have everything you need to make that change. All you have to do is be cooperative.Read more at location 814
Principle 12: You need your undivided attention. Whenever you decide to change your life for the better, just know it won’t be a simple process. There will be a number of distractions enticing you to go back to your past ways.Read more at location 838
A great deal of people will never reach their dreams and it won’t have anything to do with their ability or skill set. They won’t reach their dreams because they were too afraid to try.Read more at location 874
I was so concerned with staying pumped up and motivated that I put together an “In Case of a Rainy Day box.” Black taught me the importance of forecasting challenges so you can cut them off at the root. The box wasn’t elaborate or expensive to make. It had little simple stuff in it like my favorite underdog movies, songs, books, poems, and goals for the year. Whenever I felt the slightest bit of discouragement and felt like giving up I would get my “In Case of a Rainy Day” box and encourage myself.Read more at location 1202
P.U.S.H (Push Until Something Happens) “Never underestimate the importance of the beginning. The beginning has the seeds of everything else to come.Read more at location 1209
You Gotta Want It As Bad As You Want To Breathe “The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra.’ Jimmy JohnsonRead more at location 1319
replied,“Think and Grow Rich: A Black Choice by Dennis Kimbro.” He then started reading this section out of the book about this guru and a young man.Read more at location 1326
Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent. It’s not who you are that holds you back, it’s who you think you’re not.Read more at location 1394
• Get support. • Set up the triangle offense. • Add weapons to your game. • Utilizing resources. • Maintaining a balance. • Establishing a routine time to study for each class. • Discovering your learning style. • Taking care of your body.Read more at location 1460
The advice was simple yet game changing: “They don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.”Read more at location 1547
• Build a relationship. • Remember each student is different. • Find a balance. • Create an energetic learning environment. • Involve the parents as much as possible. • Be a life long learner. • Give students a sense of purpose.Read more at location 1605
If I could have you take just one thing from this book, it would be that there is no magical formula for success. It’s about having a dream and working towards it no matter what negative circumstances occur along the way.Read more at location 1647
“The only way to get out of a shooting slump is to keep shooting.” The same can be said for our lives. The only way to get out of mediocrity is to keep shooting for excellence.Read more at location 1649
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