Joachim de Posada - Keep Your Eye on the Marshmallow: The Fastest Way to Gain Focus and Resilience - and Come Out Ahead in Hard Times

Keep Your Eye on the

Marshmallow!

Berkley titles by Joachim de Posada

AND ELLEN SINGER

Dont Eat the MarshmallowYet!

Dont Gobble the MarshmallowEver!

AND BOB ANDELMAN

Keep Your Eye on the Marshmallow!

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Keep Your Eye on the

Marshmallow!

Gain Focus and Resilience
And Come Out Ahead

Joachim de Posada
and Bob Andelman

THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP

Published by the Penguin Group

Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

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This book is an original publication of The Berkley Publishing Group.

Copyright 2013 by Joachim de Posada, Ph.D.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the authors rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

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eBook ISBN: 978-1-101-62240-7

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Posada, Joachim de.

Keep your eye on the marshmallow! : gain focus and resilienceand come out ahead / Joachim de Posada and Bob Andelman. First edition.

p. cm

ISBN: 978-0-425-24739-6

1. Success. 2. Goal (Psychology) 3. Success in business. I. Andelman, Bob.
II. Title.

BF637.S8P59847 2013

650.1dc23

2012048452

FIRST EDITION: May 2013

The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for
author or third-party websites or their content.

This book is dedicated to my daughter, Caroline; her
husband, Orlando; my three grandkids, Orly, Justin, and
Ryan; my mother, Carmita; and to Aisha, my life partner.

Acknowledgments

Joachim de Posada

A big thank-you to all members of our team: Bob Andelman for doing a fantastic job as my coauthor; literary agents Jane Dystel, Miriam Goderich, and Lauren Abramo for their fine work representing my interests; and editor Denise Silvestro for having faith in our third Marshmallow book and graciously extending the deadline because of unforeseen circumstances.

Thanks, also, to my daughter, Caroline, who is my rock, for being there for me always, without exception. She motivates me in every area of my life and has given me two beautiful grandsons, Orlando Joaquin and Justin Gonzalo, who inspire me every day of my life.

To my mother, who I love with all my heart and who still treats me as a kid.

My sister, Patty, and her husband, Manuel, who allow me to stay in their beautiful home in Westport, Connecticut, anytime I need to meet with my agents or publishers and whenever I have a speech in New York City. Thank you!

To Aisha, the woman in my life, who I love dearly and is with me all the time, supporting me 100 percent in all that I doeven when I write until four or five in the morning.

Writers and speakers constantly need new ideas and I would like to thank the members of the two mastermind groups with whom I regularly meet: Bruce Turkel, Rebecca Staton-Reinstein, Helen Turnbull, Mace Horoff, Ken Akers, Rick Goodman, Robert Stack, and Alicia Bain. My other and most recent mastermind group: Terry Brock, Randy Gage, Lisa Jimenez, Bob Burg, Gina Carr, Kathy Zader, and Patrick K. Stinus.

Thank you to my partners: Ramon Arias, president of InterAmerican Consultants, with whom I have been associated for seventeen years; Jorge Fernandez, who works with me directly in my company, Dr. Joachim de Posada and Associates, Inc.; and Frances Rios, my strategic partner in Puerto Rico and my mentee in the speaking business.

And to all my dear friends and followers online who constantly write me with ideas, constructive criticism, and much-needed comments about my books or speeches.

Finally, my everlasting appreciation to every human being who inhabits this world with the intention of leaving Planet Earth in better shape than they found it and who always tries to construct instead of destroy.

Bob Andelman

My career as a coauthor relies on finding good, smart people with interesting stories to tell. Joachim de Posada is definitely one of those folks. We found an easy rapport from day one. I greatly enjoyed the process of writing this book alongside him, profiting from his insights and good humor.

I would never have met Joachim if not for a recommendation from my agent, Jane Dystel of DystelGoderich Literary Management, and I continue to be in her debt for successfully playing matchmaker. (I also appreciate ongoing support at the agency from Miriam Goderich, Lauren Abramo, and Michael Bourret.)

It has been a pleasure working with and getting to know our delightful editor, Denise Silvestro.

Jana Ward joined me as a transcriber with this project and what a great addition to the team she is: hardworking, attentive to details, and conscientious about deadlines. Thank you, Janaand our mutual friend Kim Caswell, who introduced us.

Joachim and I live five hours apart by car, so we needed a middle ground to meet. That became the Hilton Garden Inn near the Fort Myers, Florida, airport. We asked the staff for permission to meet in a corner of the lobby and they graciously allowed us to hash out much of the spine of this book there. Thanks! And just across the street from the Hilton, at the Gulf Coast Town Center, we became fans of the made-to-order charburgers (and milkshakes for Joachim!) at Fosters Grille. Yum.

Finally, I always acknowledge the support of my wife, Mimi, and my daughter, Rachel, as writing each book creates its own stresses on a household. But I couldnt do what I do without the long-distance enthusiasm of my mother, Phyllis, my sister, Lori Parsells, and my brother, Ira. Thank you all.

H ave you ever noticed that some days, the greatest challenge in life starts with making your goals and desires square with those of someone else?

Maybe its a spouse or a partner; maybe its a boss or the person in the cubicle next to you. It could just as easily be the straphanger next to you on the morning train or the driver alongside you rushing to get home tonight.

Some days we all struggle to make the right choices, the ones that will allow us to pursue our own life, liberty, and happiness without detracting from the desires of someone right next to us.