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Deliberate Success: Realize Your Vision with Purpose, Passion and Performance

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"Achieving success is not an accident; it results from a deliberate process of identifying a compelling purpose, passionately pursuing your vision, preparing for high level outcomes, and performing at your best." Thus we being our journey with a seasoned (two decades) executive coach, professional speaker, and consultant in peak performance. The author is a proven expert in his field-a specialty that has enduring value for individuals, teams, and organizations.

The book--full of advice and counsel that would cost you thousands in a personal consultation--is organized into five strategies. The strategies are Direction, Culture, Empowerment, Coaching, and Renewal. Each strategy is presented as a section of the book, with three or four chapters on each category. Two special features add value to this book: an abundance of relevant quotes throughout the book and cameo contributions from thirteen fairly well-known authors and executives. A bibliography and index round out the book.

Under Direction, Allenbaugh shows readers how to link purpose and passion with performance. Chapters focus on creating a compelling mission and vision, linking into your passion, and implementing your vision. The Culture section describes how to sustain a results-oriented, customer-focused climate-valuable for individuals as well as organizations. The three chapters illuminate various aspects of culture, including the importance of values. The Empowerment section focuses on releasing human potential. There are several insightful chapters on empowering people, honoring the differences among people, and hiring winners by using Attitude, Aptitude, and Alignment as filters. The coaching section addresses building others' success, effective expression and listening skills, and a focus on results. The last portion of the book explores the "3 Rs of Renewal: Release, Reaffirm, and Reinvent." Chapters on individual renewal and organizational renewal contribute useful perspectives.

Easy-to-read book for individuals, managers, business owners, consultants, and those charged with the responsibility (and opportunity) of coaching others to deliberate success. This is a good how-to book, enjoyable and enlightening as a read-through and worthwhile as a reference when you need a re-focus.

I have been a fan of Eric Allenbaugh for some time now and was pleased to see that he has put his ideas in print so that everyone can benefit from them. Dr. Allenbaugh's style is down-to-earth and common sense. He makes what so many people shy away from because they don't think they understand it, straightforward. The book is based upon his real life experience as a consultant and coach. If readers will apply Dr. Allenbaugh's advice on vision and mission and combine it with creating a culture of empowered associates, their organizations will reap long term dividends! If the reader does nothing else, the chapters on performance coaching should be taken to heart. The workplace will be so much the better for it! Deliberate Success should be required reading for all CEO's and executives!

I am into the second go around of this book. What fascinates me the most is the fact that Eric doesn't provide the tyical text book solutions. This book makes you think about your situation and helps you in creating innovative solutions.

"Achieving success is not an accident: it results from a deliberate process of identifying a compelling purpose, passionately pursuing your vision, preparing for high
level outcomes, and performing at your best." So begins Eric Allenbaugh's latest book, in which he masterfully shows you how to achieve it. He lays out scores of
ideas, peppered with lots of examples and inspirational quotes.

Allenbaugh weaves these together through five success strategies:

Direction - linking purpose and passion with performance.
Culture - sustaining a results-oriented, customer-focused climate.
Empowerment - releasing human potential.
Coaching - creating giants out of other.
Renewal - sustaining your competitive edge.

Underlying these, and woven throughout the examples, are three performance principles:

Being tough on issues and tender on people.
Honoring differences and aligning talent.
Building the bottom line and the human element.

He believes, as I do, that most people want to do their work well and to contribute to the success of their organization. Leaders must harness these individual
desires in a way that serves the collective purpose. Organizations that show this, really hum! They are the industry leaders - the best of the best - even if their CEOs
are not the flashiest ones around.

A primary role of corporate leaders is to shape and reinforce the culture of the enterprise. Allenbaugh provides a useful model of four corporate cultures, as they
are influenced by their attachment to the bottom line and to the human element. Closing my eyes and rifling through my memory bank of the organizations I have
worked in and the scores of companies I have consulted with, I not only could not think of any that did not fit this simple model, but I also understood why some of
them behaved the way they did. That set of insights alone far exceeded the price of the book!

Integration of values into an organization is a long-term endeavor, but vitally important. It's all about alignment - linking of vision with action, paying attention to
both people and profits, walking the talk, learning, growing, and striving always to exceed expectations.

In such organizations, leaders do not "manage" their employees. Rather, they "coach" them to draw out their innate talents and allow them to blossom. From his
years of experience, Allenbaugh describes several different coaching methods, all of which honor and build upon the many ways people learn. Of course, one must
deal with problem performers and even terminate them when their performance and attitudes do not match those of the organization, but it's surprising how few in
number such individuals are when given solid guidance, a supportive culture, and regular coaching.

This is not a fast read. Not because Allenbaugh's prose doesn't draw the reader along easily: it does. Rather, because the shear number of ideas is dense. I
frequently lifted my eyes from the page to ponder what he meant or explore a model he presented and to consider how I might apply it myself. These diversions
were necessary to absorb the full impact of the book.

I have deliberately left out of this review many of the most provocative learning points, so you can discover them for yourself.

The principles in Eric Allenbaugh's book can transform your life, as well as your company, but only if you will it. My advice is simple. Read it. Enjoy it. Learn
from it. Apply its lessons.