Life In Action: The 12 Voy Principles of True Happiness and Success [Hardcover]

Fernando Espuelas (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 6, 2004

Money cannot buy happiness, says Fernando Espuelas. Success cannot be measured in wealth, power, or fame. Success and happiness come from looking inside ourselves to discover who we genuinely are and what we truly need to find happiness. And then striving to live the best life we can: for our loved ones, our community, and ourselves.

Espuelas describes this philosophy-of introspection as the catalyst for action- with the Spanish word voy: "I go." He shows how to visualize success and then to create a plan to work toward it every day. Espuelas's twelve principles and their accompanying exercises are developed from his own life and the lives of people who have used the powers of optimism, persistence, honesty, and courage to overcome obstacles like fear, doubt, and prejudice.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Opening with a forceful epigraph from Winston Churchill, "Never, never, never, quit," this volume seeks to spur readers on toward success and happiness. Espuelas begins his book with a lengthy description of his experiences in life and business: his immigration to the U.S., his rapid rise on the corporate ladder, his creation of "several innovative, wildly successful business ventures," his devastating financial losses and his subsequent return to the top as the CEO of VOY media company. He then launches into a discourse on the 12 doctrines that he believes can guide readers to self-actualization. From "Define Success and Happiness" to "Do Your Duty to the Community," his program resembles that of many other self help books, but it seems to place a great value on developing character traits like persistence, courage, honor and humility. At times, however, his tone can be quite forceful, as when he declares that "those who are so driven to succeed that they’ll sacrifice their friendships and their family life to achieve their goals are misguided and will never know true happiness." Readers who can get past the author’s boastful attitude will find some nuggets of inspiration here.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

About the Author

Fernando Espuelas came to the United States from his native Uruguay as a boy, penniless and speaking no English. The founder of StarMedia Network, he became an international business star while still in his twenties and was recognized as a "2000 All-Star" business leader by Crain's New York Business magazine. Espuelas is the founder of and spokesman for VOY, a company focused on building a cultural bridge between Latinos and the mainstream.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Tarcher (May 6, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585423386
• ISBN-13: 978-1585423385
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,425,965 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Succinct guide to finding success on your own terms, July 30, 2004

By 

Nan (Mesa, AZ United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Life In Action: The 12 Voy Principles of True Happiness and Success (Hardcover)

I've read many books on "success" and "purpose", but this book resonated in a way that others have not. Espuelas stresses that we should find what is important to us and take action to incorporate this in our lives. Although this sounds familiar, he presents this in a way that is doable. Personally books that are spiritual in tone really don't work for me. I want real action steps and this is Espuelas' method.

The reader who called Espuelas a failure is way off target. A failure is a person who never tries or completely gives up and this certainly doesn't describe Espuelas' life. Every successful person I know has failed (except for a really young person who has yet to really get out and do something with their life). Failures build success. This reader seems to have some personal issue.

If you are trying to find direction in your life, this book is worth a read.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not a typical self-help book at all, June 30, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Life In Action: The 12 Voy Principles of True Happiness and Success (Hardcover)

More a philosophy of living your life well, for yourself, your family and your community. Although there's not a lot new here, I really admire the clarity of the writing and thinking. Unlike self-helpers, this isn't telling you how to get rich--in fact, Espuelas insists that if money's all you want out of life, you're bound to fail. This is about figuring out what will make you the most fulfilled human being you can be, then planning how to achieve that. If more people thought and acted like this, it'd be a much greater country than it already is. Lots of interesting historical anecdotes and stories keep it a vibrant read--in fact, the writing throughout is of a caliber you rarely see in these kinds of books. No, this book won't change your life. It doesn't promise to. But it may inspire you to do it for yourself, and that's a much better gift. Gracias, Fernando Espuelas. You're a model of what America's supposed to be all about.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Quite interesting, May 21, 2004

By 

"greenberg6" (Austin, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Life In Action: The 12 Voy Principles of True Happiness and Success (Hardcover)

I thought this book was a very interesting and easy read. It's not a book about "making money" or "losing money" - it's about coming to this country with nothing but the clothes on your back, and being passionate about creating. About finding HAPPINESS (bottom line) as it seems as though he has after traumatic periods in his life. Whether you've lost your job, your family, your motivation in life there are some very nice anecdotes here - and some very interesting tales of getting kicked down, and getting back up and just not stopping your belief in yourself.