Nicholas Bate - Being the Best: The A-Z of Personal Success

BEING THE
BEST

Whatever you can do, or
dream you can, begin it!
Boldness has genius, magic
and power in it.
Begin it now.

JOHANN WOLFGANG VON GOETHE

Copyright Nicholas Bate 2003

The right of Nicholas Bate to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

First published 2003 by
Capstone Publishing Limited (A Wiley Company)
The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester,
West Sussex PO19 8SQ, United Kingdom
www.wileyeurope.com

Reprinted December 2003, April 2004

All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of short passages for the purposes of criticism and review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.

CIP catalogue records for this book are available from the British Library and the US Library of Congress

ISBN 1-84112-521-0

Substantial discounts on bulk quantities of Capstone books are available to corporations, professional associations and other organisations.

Please contact John Wiley & Sons for more details on (+44) 1243 770441 or (fax) (+44) 1243 770571

or e-mail

Introduction

My own story is the origin of this book; there came a time when I had to admit my life was a mess .

Not at first glance. My job was prestigious and well paid. It gave security and a comfortable lifestyle. It was stimulating and very enjoyable. Initially.

The reality, however, was increasingly different. I was beginning to struggle. The ways of working which I had utilized in more junior roles were not working in my new, more senior roles, and the new world of working with instant communication and just in time processes seemed to be stretching me beyond my capability.

The signs were small, at the beginning: working longer hours, working at harder rates and without proper breaks. Then came the discovery that I didnt have the time to do what I wanted, particularly outside work. Then more significant signs: becoming unwell, not enjoying work and life becoming very one-dimensional.

Finally, the major signs. Something has to go; it always does. For some its a relationship. For others its their work. For me it was my health. Following months in intensive care, paralyzed by Guillaine-Barr syndrome (Joseph Heller, author of Catch 22 , who also suffered and wrote a book about the experience, said anything named after two French doctors had to be really bad) and my eventual recovery, I decided things needed to change. I needed to run my life in a very different way.

But where to look for help? This was a challenge because so many of my colleagues and friends seemed to be suffering in similar ways: symptoms of ill health leading to a realisation that their lifestyle was not an ideal one. A scientist friend collapsed on a busy high street. A journalist friend began to suffer from food intolerances.

So I went back to basics and did some research. I looked for people who were getting the results, the version of success, that I was looking for. My definition of success: success that would release my potential with balance and enjoyment.

The changes I needed to make didnt seem obvious at first. But as I did my research, I eventually learned that there were straightforward strategies that would enable me to get the success I wanted. This, after all didnt seem too much to seek: a certain level of financial independence, an enjoyable job. Time for my family. Time for myself. And a feeling of purpose to it all.

As I continued conversations with others, I realised that I was not at all unique in my wishes. So many people were suffering overload, ill health and damaged relationships. Increasingly I realised that it didnt have to be that way.

Those statements probably sound very current. In fact, that was all a decade and a half ago! What I went through then is now all too common and becoming increasingly so; success can come at great cost. But it need not: Being the Best is straightforward and accessible if you know the principles.

The consultancy that I formed in 1988, Strategic Edge, still has the same vision: to enable individuals to realise and release their potential. And thats what this book will do for you.

This book is about Being the Best. More completely: Being the Best you can be by identifying your niche. Itll encourage you to take your natural genetic advantages and realise and release your full potential. Itll enable you to be truly successful; to reach your vision with balance. Based on my own original researches of fifteen years ago, it has developed since then through constantly working with those who are striving to be the best.

It has always been a goal of mine when teaching and coaching individuals to help them absorb ideas and concepts as quickly and as easily as possible; thats how the A to Z structure came about. The A to Z of personal success summarizes the twenty-six characteristics that allowed those who become the best in their field to do so. The A to Z is based solely on working with practitioners. There is a minimum of theory.

To help you further each letter, each characteristic bar two has at least one mini case study. Every one of these case studies is based on a real situation which I have dealt with in a workshop or during coaching. Deciding which studies to choose was hard; in over fifteen years of coaching and running workshops I have worked with thousands of people. In the end I have chosen ones which I feel are both representative and illustrate a particular characteristic. Clearly I have changed names and details where appropriate.

My role in writing this book is to act as a catalyst. I do not have all the answers: beware of those who say they do! However I do believe (and I feel my work to date bears this out) that there are timeless principles from which we can all benefit.

How might you use the A to Z? Here are some suggestions:

Focus on a different letter each day of the month.

Choose a letter which appeals and focus on it until you feel you are living and breathing the principle.

Should you set up a learning team, get different members of the team to work on different aspects.

Above all, start giving attention to the characteristics which you seek. There are principles encapsulated in the A to Z which we break at our peril.

Being the Best in your chosen niche is not necessarily easy, but it is certainly a lot more attractive, a lot more fun, and a lot more enlivening compared to the other options

Enjoy the book.
Enjoy your life.

A is Attention