Derek Sivers is brilliant. I often find myself talking about his latest blog entry, and his thoughts are often inspiration for my blog. Derek's book "Anything You Want - 40 Lessons for a New Kind of Entrepreneur" came out this week and it is outstanding. Anyone who manages people, all business owners, and all entrepreneurs will benefit from the wisdom that Derek shares. This is not an 'old school' business book that takes months to read and digest; it is short and readable. No need to give up hours of your life to learn from Derek - you just need an hour (less if you read quickly). If you would like a sampling of his wisdom, Derek has recorded some audio and video messages to go with the book, several of them are linked in this interview with Derek
Derek has a way with words that make it easy to remember the lessons he is sharing. One that I have written about before "No Yes. Hell Yeah or No" is expanded on in the book. That phrase can be a paradigm shift if you really let it impact your life (not just work life). Most of us complain that we are 'too busy' but we need to understand that we are the people who are creating that busyness. If you want more time in your life to do what is really important to you, then you need to learn to 'say yes less'. When new opportunities to tie up your schedule arrive, or when you look at how you are currently using your time; applying 'hell yeah or no' can change your life or your business. Saying no more often leaves you the room to fully apply yourself to the 'hell yeah's' in your life!
If you manage people the lessons on 'delegate, but don't abdicate', 'trust but verify' and 'delegate or die' will be useful for you. The line between delegation and abdication gets blurred in organizations large and small, and it is essential that you ensure that the line is clear.
I really like the way Derek presents his perspective on our collective misunderstanding of the importance of persistence. “Success comes from persistently improving and inventing, not from persistently doing what’s not working." Think about that. We often blindly persist thinking we just need 'more time' or 'more effort' and we will achieve what we want. As he says, "if it's not a hit, switch" meaning that if you are not creating the success you want, then you need to make some changes; not simply do more of the same. For example if your product or service is not resonating (whether you measure by sales or by profit) then you need to tweak what you are offering. Doing more of the things that aren't working is not the solution. This does not mean give up - it means that you need to innovate and improve until you are achieving the success you want.
You aren't going to agree with everything Derek says, but I guarantee that you will find valuable information in this book!