Book Review: Today We Are Rich

I blogged about the days in our lives here and received an email about one of the books that I read and posted. I started writing a reply when I realized that I should blog it afterwards. One of my goals earlier this year is to write book reviews of all the books I read this year (I read a lot and sometimes I forgot what I read after a month or two! That is why my books are all highlighted and marked like textbooks :)). Writing book reviews will help me remembering the key points. But over the long weekend, I have a different goal in writing this blog. Maybe somewhere out there, someone would be interested to form a (business) book club with Kevin and I. Reading business books and meeting once a month to discuss the keypoints. Pushing each other to be (more) diligent in reading. Keeping each other accountable in our dreams and goals. Send us an email if you read this and you are interested. 🙂 (hello[at]helloinspira.com)

Today We Are Rich by Tim Sanders

This book is so RICH! So easy to read but so hard to put down.

The opening story about Tim’s grandmother, Billye, who welcomed a stranger to work for her one day in the summer was captivating. Little Tim learned the lesson early in his life that “You cannot control your material wealth, but by cultivating a strong sense of confidence, you can control your attitude about whether there’s enough to go around.” I love that, there’s enough to go around. I really believe, there is plenty to go around, always.

Tim started the first chapter with a story of one of his friends and slowly disclosed the story of his life during the hardtime or he called it “the sideway years”. From here, he built the foundation of seven principles of total confidence:

1. Feed your mind good stuff
Filter out the negative news/thoughts/people and be selective to only feed your mind with the positive ones. He has an exercise and log book to follow in the book. And, I have started doing this: to only read the Bible and inspirational readings in the morning. Do not read the newspaper until lunch. After lunch, take a walk and spend 5 minutes on positive thought and think about what is going right and the positive things you will accomplish by the end of the day. Before going to bed, read good book on not too complicated subjects.

2. Move the conversation forward
Flip your conversation to the positive ones. Tim gave an example of Chicken Littles of how everyone screamed “The sky is falling! The sky is falling!” When you think negative thoughts and gave a wrong alert  to everyone around you, the whole group is just doomed! Take the time to face the worst scenario, write it down and move forward/do what you need to do today. We need to be builders of ideas and not destroyers of dreams. Change the subject, focus on the positive subjects and tones and move the conversation forward!

3. Exercise your gratitude muscle
Be grateful everyday and exercise that muscle! Remember when you first got this job, how you loved this job, remember your first day, every thing that will reinvigorate the sense of gratefulness. I have started a gratitude journal because of this chapter and I can say that it’s life-changing!

4. Give to be rich
When you choose where to give, make sure that it reflects your value. And then give and do not expect anything back. I love when Tim wrote that we always have something to give even though we are poor and exhausted. Giving is like breathing. As long as you live, you do it. Giving is a boost to take you out of that burnt out phase in your life. He ended the chapter with a beautiful story of an eighty-six years old lady who was accepted into an emergency room and was still able to give to the doctors and nurses who attended her. How this situation had turned into a miracle and they testified to it. You need to buy the book and read it yourself! 😉

5. Prepare yourself
Practice, practice, get smart and practice some more! And read a lot, be the master of your subject/work. You are not reading enough and you need to carry a book everywhere you go. Give book tips to people in your contacts and you will find others happily share their book tips with you. He mentioned about a group of six people who meets weekly/monthly to discuss books, findings and knowledge gaps as this will prepare you. I am dying for this business book club thing…

6. Balance your confidence
A good recipe always has the right mix of ingredients, his grandmother told him, and it’s the same with life: you need to strike the balance from making dinner to making money. This is applicable to confidence. Confidence is not about what you trust in yourself alone. You need to trust other people around you. And you need to trust something that is greater than yourself. Tim summed up the combination of three beliefs is where a full sense of confidence comes from.

7. Promise made, promise kept
Jot down the promises you make. When you fail to deliver promise(s), it will affect your confidence to deliver your words/finish what you have started. I find myself to be a people-pleaser sometimes and I am grateful for Tim’s suggestion to not to say anything during a meeting where someone calls out for help/volunteer, think about it for 24 hours or so and get back to the person if you can fit it into your agenda and set your deadline to it.

I love this book so much. And my love towards Billye, Tim’s grandmother, grew as the chapters came to an end. This review should not make you think that now you know what’s in the book. I only reviewed some of the the points. There is still so much to take on and I suggest you pick one yourself and let me know what you think. I have started reading the descriptions on Tim’s other books on amazon and have my eyes on The Likeability Factor. I am halfway on a very good book that I am thinking about reviewing next month but for sure I will end this year not lacking in good books to read and the chance to write my personal reviews on them here. Stay in touch!

~Love,

Kevin and Jennifer~

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