2 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
Generally, proverbs are profound in apt situations. In some cases, this 'profoundness' really hits close to home. Take H.J. Shalev’s story, for example. After decades of hard work in the accounting field, a journey that saw him rise to the high profile CFO position, he realized he was unfulfilled in his career. Unlike many people in this familiar dilemma, he took a radical step to find a career he would be not only happy in but also be able to maintain the standard of living, he and his family were accustomed to. As a result, Shalev has coached thousands of clients to reach breakthrough results in their businesses, management, and careers. Shalev has finessed and packaged the ‘winning formula’ his experiences taught him into this 314-page nonfiction book, Getting used to Success.Necessity is the mother of invention.
Whether you believe in evolution, creation, none or both, the resounding message of this book is that you have the potential to create the reality you want for yourself. Here, Shalev does not advocate for the reader deluding himself/herself into not seeing the prevailing circumstances as they are. Rather, he guides the reader through practical ways of getting around these circumstances, because Shalev believes that one’s habits, beliefs, and emotions determine his/her level of success. Shalev has condensed his lessons into a methodology he calls the CO-OP formula, derived from its components - Consciousness (awareness), self-Observation, Option (choice) and Practice. The take home is, if you want radical results in your life – whether personal and careerwise, you have to commit to radical changes in the way you do things.
The book is divided into 3 parts, which I roughly call the ‘why,’ the ‘how,’ and the practical tools to an effective radical change. Told in a conversational narration style, the author combines illustrations, scientific facts, spirituality, anecdotes and relevant quotes to bring the message excitingly home. Some of the quotes are profound, some witty and some almost outrageous. Sample this:
I enjoyed that the author highlighted some known principles in very amazing perspectives. I also liked the way he cast doubt to some widely believed paradigms. For example, did you know that people cannot multi-task unless some tasks are performed automatically, out of habit, by the unconscious mind? Shalev actually had an explanation for why it would seem women multi-task compared to men. I learned many new things including a different approach to weight loss! The author even gives a step by step guide to business planning. He has some input on how to control negative emotions and thoughts, amongst many other practical suggestions.If you have one foot in the past and one foot in the future, you are pissing on the present – Malachy McCourt
The most annoying thing about the book was that most illustrations did not correspond to the discussion at hand. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words. Despite Shalev also alluding to this saying, most of the tables, graphs and other illustrations in the book were either mismatched with the narration or missing altogether. In some instances, the cover page was placed in the position of an illustration. In addition, whenever he used a superscripted number for reference, the rest of the sentence after the number would also end up being superscripted. I had to keep adjusting the font to read the superscripted phrase. I have a feeling the copy I got was a draft and should not have been the final published book. Moreover, the book had many grammatical errors, mostly missing words or minor tense errors. For these reasons, I rate the book 2 out of 4 stars.
Undeniable, Getting used to Success is an invaluable source of information for anyone feeling stuck in the rut, or wanting to be a better person in some way. However, without the correct illustrations, anyone reading the book will feel shortchanged. It is quite off-putting to read a passionate discussion referring to an illustration that is obviously wrong, or even missing. It is for this reason that I am hesitant to recommend the book, in its current state, to anyone. But with a round of editing and correctly matched illustrations, I would urge everyone seeking means to any breakthrough in life to give the book a try. It is good for general knowledge too, even though the title seems mismatched to the content of the book!
******
Getting Used to Success
View: on Bookshelves
Like Cotwani's review? Post a comment saying so!
$u$han €kanayak€ 
