My kids can't wait.

I’m woken up every morning by a two-year old who wants food.  And he wants it now.  That isn't the only thing my two-year old or my three-year old want right now.  Anything they want, they want it now.  Right now.  A few days ago while I was cooking dinner, they were fussing about how long it was taking.  I admonished them by saying, “You’re acting like children”.  Of course, this didn't have much impact on them, since they are children.  What exactly was I expecting?

(Creative Commons)

But, beyond that they simply don’t have patience, there are two lessons I take from this.

The Traveler's Gift by Andy Andrews

Title: The Traveler's Gift

Author: Andy Andrews

Rating: Good

Reason for Reading: This book was recommended by Dawn as one I would enjoy. She was certainly right on three fronts. First, it's fun to read. It plays like an action-adventure novel or mystery at times. Second, it is educational. The wisdom contained within is impossible to miss as one reads through the narrative. And third, the traveler visits different moments in history, and I am a history buff (but that quality is not necessary to enjoy and learn from the book). This book was purchased, and no compensation was provided for this review.

Summary: The Traveler's Gift is the description of Andy Andrews' Seven Decisions that determine personal success. Andy read 200-300 biographies of successful persons. From this, he identified seven principles at work int heir lives. The decisions they made led to their successes and revealed these principles. The book introduces the reader to each decision by taking the traveler, David Ponder, on a journey to meet an historical figure. These seven people of great influence each teach him a gift. Written like a novel or historical fiction, the narrative the author has composed teaches while it entertains.

Review: Not a self-help in the traditional sense of diagnosing the reader's problem and then providing the authors prescription, The Traveler's Gift instead walks the reader through the decisions with the protagonist, David Ponder. Unemployed and struggling, he begins to wonder if he can find success in life, or if he's just cursed. Through his travels, figures like Harry S. Truman, Christopher Columbus, and Anne Frank give him the decisions that determine personal success. Their advice to him is the author's advice to the reader, though you won't feel preached to. The advice is more like the Maltese Falcon or Holy Grail of a suspense movie or a mystery novel. You won't find the author suffering from a superiority complex. Nor will you find these solutions too shallow to be followed in real life. No "visualize" or "think outside the box" directives that go nowhere in 3-dimensional life. The reader can appreciate how real these principles are to the individuals David meets. Andrew's descriptions of them and their circumstances are compelling, even to a non-history buff. As you read, you'll find parallels to your own life and challenges, even if they don't compare to the Battle of Gettysburg in historical importance. Andrews asserts that everything you do matters, and therefore, are valuable when done well.

Reading like a novel, but educating like a self-help book, The Traveler's Gift is a must-read for all. Brief, compelling, and insightful enough to read every year, put it in your library, or that of a friend.

Devon

Other resources: www.andyandrews.com

Mastering The Seven Decisions by Andy Andrews

Title: Mastering the Seven Decisions that Determine Personal Success, an Owner's Manual to the New York Times Bestseller The Traveler's Gift

Author: Andy Andrews

Rating: Good

Reason for Reading: After reading and thoroughly enjoying The Traveler's Gift (TTG), this book is the logical next step. Even a casual reader of TTG can tell Andrews has more to say than could be squeezed into the book. Mastering the Seven Decisions (Mt7D) provides the context and commentary to flesh out the lessons. This book was purchased and given to me as a gift, and no compensation was provided for this review.

Summary: While TTG is told as a narrative (in fact, some booksellers and reviewers categorized it as fiction!), this book is solidly in the non-fiction, self-help category. Andrews provides a chapter on each of the 7 Decisions, providing examples and insight. Each decision is also described in a letter to Andrews from a famous person, including General Norman Schwarzkopf and Amy Grant. Peppered throughout the book are exercises where Andrews prompts the reader to write down thoughts, feelings, fears, and affirmations. The exercises help the reader find the specific connection between the principles he describes and how work in their life.

Review: Andrews lives up to the promise in the books title that this is an owners manual to TTG. The expanded descriptions of the 7 Decisions help the reader understand how they have been at work in their life. And, perhaps most importantly, how the reader can use a greater understanding of them to be more successful in the future. The exercises are tough, but quite valuable. Have a notebook and pen nearby as you read the book. Completing the exercises will take time and lots of lined notebook paper, but the rewards are worth it. The reader will be facing their fears and failures, evaluating their past, dreaming about their future, and finding resources and actions to be more and do more. The reader's past will become a wonderful education in the principles behind personal success. The reader's looming challenges will become the ingredients in a successful life.

Unlike a lot of self-help books, reading Mt7D and completing the enclosed exercises will produce something personal and tangible. The reader will finish the book with specific steps they can take to make different choices, and consequently find the destiny of their dreams.

Devon

Other resources: www.andyandrews.com

Related book reviews: The Traveler's Gift