“What I Know Now About Success: Letters from Extraordinary Women to Their Younger Selves” edited by Ellyn Spragins, Da Capo Lifelong Books, $18.
The 33 letter writers achieved success on their own terms — they aren’t “men in pink.” You’ll find learned-from-experience advice from entrepreneurs, executives, fashion designers, celebrities, media personalities, a former governor and a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world champion. Here are excerpts from a few of my favorites:
Sharon Allen, as chairman of Deloitte, manages a global accounting and consulting firm. She grew up on a farm in Idaho, graduated from the University of Idaho and spent the first 24 years of her career in Boise. She reflects on her time in Boise in her letter: “… you’ve had the good fortune to work in a small office serving large clients. You’ve recruited talent, brought in new business, watched the receivables — basically run the business in a fuller sense than you would have if you’d been in a large office with more support.”
Emily Kwok, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world champion, was kicked out of her home by her father when she was 14. She provides these inspiring words: “Don’t let the fear or insecurities of others dictate the path you were meant to follow. Your spirit will be tried many times — by loneliness, jealousy, fear and ego — but it will not break.”
Ouidad, a daughter of Lebanese immigrants, diminishes the bad-hair-day angst of curly-haired women. Her curly-hair empire includes 52 Ouidad-certified salons and 22 products. She writes: “Remember how when you were little you used to tell your father that you wanted to run your own country? You will create a company that feels like its own world, complete with citizens you help and protect.”
Actress, author and entrepreneur Suzanne Somers’ earliest memories are hiding in a closet from her violent alcoholic father. She was fired from Three’s Company, the Number 1 show on TV in the late 70’s, for asking to be paid like male TV stars. She writes about the dark times after her firing: “As you sit there on the couch, making yourself feel miserable, remember this: we are not our accomplishments. True success means accepting yourself as you are. Instead of focusing on what you lost, why don’t you focus on what you have?” What advice would you give your younger self?
“The Mirror Test: Is Your Company Really Breathing?” by Jeffrey Hayzlett with Jim Eber, Business Plus, $24.99.
In any business, “zero growth is not surviving, it’s dying….” While you’re stuck in neutral, some competitors are growing — stealing bits of your company’s life. The authors’ three mirror tests define the differences between life support and life success.
1. Proof of Life — Why are you in business? If your answer included “passion,” you may be standing too close to the forest to see the falling trees. Passion doesn’t sell anything; people and processes do. Hire the best and let them do what you hired them for.
Next comes “How?” How is your product and service going to reach its sales expectations? How will your value proposition really solve the problems of your prospects and customers?
Combine your “Why and How” into a sales pitch. But remember the 10 Commandments Rule: Moses only needed two slides, five bullet points each. If you can’t tell your story in less than two minutes, customers will not engage.
2. Leadership — “If not you, who?” Many small business owners confuse ownership with leadership; large businesses often confuse management with leadership. “Be original — Be You.” People won’t follow fakes or imitators.
Leaders define direction for the business; owners try to do everything themselves; managers define processes. They stretch the boundaries. They take risks that managers won’t. Leaders also ask employees — and use that feedback to feed-forward.
3. The Bottom Line — “Know your target and your tools.” Business growth doesn’t occur because of low prices. Quite the contrary, customers pay for value. When you keep cutting price, you have to cut corners on deliverables. Small business, because they don’t have the economies of scale, must build their relationships around “customization, service and attention.”
When you take the mirror tests, don’t use a funhouse mirror that distorts images. Be brutally honest as you answer the questions.
Jim Pawlak is a nationally syndicated book reviewer.
