The Greatness Guide: One of the World's Most Successful Coaches Shares His Secrets for Personal and Business Mastery

by Robin Sharma

well lived is all about reaching for your highest and your best.

Each day, life will send you little windows of opportunity. Your destiny will ultimately be defined by how you respond to these windows of opportunity. Shrink from them and your life will be small. Feel the fear and run to them anyway, and your life will be big.

Life’s just too short to play little. Even with your kids, you only have a tiny window to develop them and champion their highest potential. And to show them what unconditional love looks like. When that window closes, it’s hard to reopen it.

Work gives meaning to our lives. It influences our self-worth and the way we perceive our place under the sun. Being great at what you do isn’t just something you do for the organization you work for—it’s a gift you give yourself.

Good things happen to people who do good things. And when you bring your highest talents and deepest devotion to the work you do, what you are really doing is setting yourself up for a richer, happier and more fulfilling experience of living.

The words you speak, the thoughts you think, the food you eat and the actions you take are defining your destiny—shaping who you are becoming and what your life will stand for. Small choices lead to giant consequences—over time. There’s no such thing as an unimportant day.

You can’t win without leaving your safety zone and taking some calculated risks. No risk, no reward. And the more risks you take in the pursuit of your dreams, the more you are going to fail.

Those among us who craft extraordinary careers and spectacular lives are those who spend most of their time giving their best out on the extra mile. Yes, ordinary people don’t spend much time on the extra mile.

Often, we have weak reference points so we see the limitations of a scenario rather than the opportunities. With world-class reference points, you will realize far more of your potential and life will have more wonder. You will play a bigger game as a human being if you pick the right people to model.

Big idea: People want to know that you are real. That you are decent, kind and trustworthy. They want to feel you and sense you and look into your eyes to see what you are made of. They want to know your passion for whatever it is you stand for. And when they sense that you are the real deal, they will open up to you. When they see that you have their best interests in mind, they will trust you—and keep your best interests in mind.

Here’s your To Do: Make a list of your 10 Greatest Passions, 10 activities that fill your heart with joy and remind you of how good life can be. And then, over the coming 10 weeks, inject one of those pursuits into your weekly schedule.

Easy times don’t make you better. They make you slower and more complacent and sleepy. Staying in the safety zone—and coasting through life—never made anyone bigger.

Being a leader (and in my mind, every single one of us has an obligation to show leadership daily—regardless of title or position) isn’t about being liked. It’s about doing what’s right.

They are courage in action.

LEAD BY EXAMPLE. The best way to influence your kids is to walk the talk. Model the behavior you wish to see.

The people I love to be around are generally those that have a simple, heartfelt quality: They are enthusiastic. Wildly so. They are open to life. They are curious. They love to learn. They smile when they see me. And they have a lot of fun. Play hard or don’t play at all.

Rather than using negative words, they prefer winning words that inspire those around them to dwell in possibility and keep their heads focused on the dream. The words you use influence the life you live. Select them wisely.

There’s a cure for aging that no one talks about. It’s called learning. In my mind, as long as you learn something new each day, stretch your personal frontiers and improve the way you think, you cannot grow old.

“If you eat three times a day you’ll be fed. But if you read three times a day you’ll be wise.”

Any good psychologist will tell you that one of the deepest needs of a human being is the need to belong. We are happiest when we feel connected to others—when we are part of a community.

Pleasure comes from something on the outside. Happiness comes from within.

We all need systems installed into our days to ensure consistency of results, order and superb outcomes.

The more experiences, the better the life. The person who experiences most wins.

DON’T EAT AFTER 7 P.M. You will sleep more deeply as well as more sweetly. It’s the quality, not the quantity, of sleep that’s most important.

DON’T LOUNGE IN BED after your alarm clock goes off. Jump out of bed and start your day.

PAY ATTENTION TO LIFE. Make the time to reflect on what you want your life to stand for, what you have learned from your years and what your legacy will be.

“When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left and could say, ‘I used everything you gave me.

INNER WEALTH. This includes a positive mindset, high self-respect, internal peace and a strong spiritual connection.

PHYSICAL WEALTH. Your health is your wealth.

FAMILY AND SOCIAL WEALTH. When your family life is happy, you will perform better at work. No one gets to the end of their life and regrets making their family their first priority. Related to this is the imperative of forging deep connections with friends and members of your personal community

CAREER WEALTH. Actualizing your highest potential by reaching for your best in your career is incredibly important. Getting to greatness in your profession brings a feeling of satisfaction on a job well done.

ECONOMIC WEALTH. Yes, money is important. Not the most important thing in life but very important. It absolutely makes life easier and better.

ADVENTURE WEALTH. To be fulfilled, each of us needs mystery in our lives. Challenge is necessary for happiness. The human brain craves novelty.

IMPACT WEALTH. Perhaps the deepest longing of the human heart is to live for something greater than itself. Each of us craves to be significant. To make a difference. To know that the world has somehow been better because we have walked the planet.

Greatness arrives for those who are never satisfied with what is, no matter how nice it looks.

there are six big reasons for you to set goals: Focus, Growth, Intentionality, Measurement, Alignment and Inspiration.

FOCUS. Where your focus goes your energy flows.

GROWTH. Goal-setting promotes personal growth. The real value of reaching a goal lies not in the result achieved but in what the journey you’ve walked to get to the goal has made of you as a person.

INSPIRATION. Goals breathe life into your days. The very act of articulating your goals on a crisp white piece of paper causes you to step into a whole new possibility for what your life can become.

Give out what you most want to come back. Want more understanding from others? Be more understanding and give that out. Want more loyalty? Be the most loyal person you know. Watch what happens. Want more love? Give more love.

Rewarding yourself with good things sends a message to the deepest—and highest–part of you. One that says “I’m worth it—and I deserve it.”

The person who tries to do everything accomplishes nothing.

It’s never too late to become the person you have always dreamed of being.