Review of How To Be Successful

[Dzejn_Crvena]

[Following is a volunteer review of "How To Be Successful" by M. Curtis McCoy.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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How to be Successful is a self-help non-fiction book by M. Curtis McCoy. The doctors diagnosed him with diabetes and brain cancer, but he did not let his condition define him. As the title says, this book talks about how to manage your life to become successful. The author includes interviews with investors, entrepreneurs, athletes, pastors, and ex-convicts who chose to improve their lives. The question and answer portions include the definition of success, daily steps to improve, strengths and weaknesses, what keeps them awake at night, what inspires them, and advice to their 18-year-old self.

I learned a lot of new information from reading this book. The writing style is very engaging and straightforward. The topics have small sections with helpful headings so they will be easy to remember. Aside from that, there are quotes from famous people and passages from the Bible. I especially love the mention of influential non-fiction books they love to reread that helped them become successful.

Additionally, I notice that almost every interviewee mentioned loyalty, honesty, and integrity as valuable traits in a person. Most of them are highly competitive. They always seize the opportunity to find solutions to every problem they encounter, and they are not afraid to take risks. They choose to hang out with good people who positively affected their outlook and habits. Lastly, they are God-fearing, goal-oriented, and have a strong work ethic.

Despite the motivational content in this book, it fell short in providing citations to support claims on science, research, or studies to make them more credible. At the end of my reading session, I had lots of questions. Where did the author get the information that 70% of Americans qualify as overweight or obese? Or that 80% of Americans are in debt? When did the studies take place?

Because of the missing parts I mentioned above, I give this book rating of 3 out of 4 stars. I enjoy checking the sources of new information, so the lack of citations negatively affected my reading experience. Also, the errors on misplaced modifiers confused me.

I recommend this book to people who look for self-help books to improve their lives. This non-fiction book does not contain profanity or sexual content. However, I do not recommend this to kids younger than 15 years old who do not understand some complex words used in the book. The mention of a firm belief in God and the Bible may affect some non-religious people.

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How To Be Successful
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[Nqobile Mashinini Tshabalala]

The people you surround yourself with play a crucial role in life. They can help you prosper or derail you. The review is Informative!

[Raluca_Mihaila]

Any advice is useful for succeeding in business. The book seems like an education read. Great review!

[Ruchi Raina]

I have reviewed this book too and I learned so much from this book. I liked that the book emphasised that the definition of success is not same for everyone. Thanks for the great review.

[zainherb]

I enjoyed reading this book very much and I agree with your rating.
It is a beneficial, motivational book, but it could be better.

[markodim721]

I think it's great that the author shared his personal experiences in the book. Such things are priceless.

[WADonnelly]

It is frustrating to end a book like this and still have questions. I suppose this could encourage further reading but still annoying. Thanks for your honest review.

[Wesusa]

Excellent review. It's concise and allows me to get the gist of the book quite easily.

[Ldpuff]

I can understand why you would want more information from the author to validate the claims made in the book. Nothing wrong with that! A little fact checking, if you will. I enjoyed your honest review.

[Laura Ungureanu]

The book sounds very enjoyable, but I can see how not providing the sources to support his claims could be a problem. I would like to be properly informed and not take only a person's words for it. Thank you for this detailed and honest review!

[PeterRabitt20]

it's amazing that the author was able to get through brain cancer and diabetes. His story alone is inspirational, but I would like to have references for figures as well. Good call! thanks for the review!

[Joyful17]

The interviews you mentioned piqued my curiosity. I'll love to lay my hands on this book. Thanks for an insightful review.

[63tty]

I have always wanted to read this book. It is great. I love self-help books. I also appreciate that the author included all kinds of people in the interview and not just successful people. Great review.

[Malve]

The advice the book gives definitely sounds useful. I imagine it to be kind of motivating to read about the author’s cancer and him still being strong.
That’s actually an amazing trait.
Thanks for your great review.

[Chigo Nwagboso]

......... personally, I'd love to be successful so, this looks like a good material that will lead to my success part.. Thanks for great review