Please share with our readers about your latest book.
I have just had two books come out. The first is MOJO: How to Get It, How to Keep It, How to Get It Back if You Lose It. The second is its companion, #MOJOtweet, which is part of the THINKaha series. This 100-page THINKaha books contain 140 well-thought-out quotes (tweets/ahas) celebrating how to define and keep your MOJO.
What is one key component of this book you would like to share with our readers?
One of the key insights in the book is: “The only person who can define meaning and happiness for you is YOU!” This book will make you think, this book will make you act, this book can help you cultivate better Mojo and become a better YOU. I find that for most people, “Our general tendency is to continue to do what we are already doing,” but the paradox is “this might not be sufficient for getting and keeping Mojo.” So, do something different–something powerful, something purposeful, something positive—and one thing you can do is to get and keep #MOJOtweet today.
Tell us something about yourself.
I teach executive education at Dartmouth’s Tuck School and frequently speak at leading business schools. I am a Fellow of the National Academy of Human Resources (America’s top HR honor) and my work has been recognized by almost every professional organization in his field. In 2006 Alliant International University honored me by naming their schools of business and organizational studies—the Marshall Goldsmith School of Management. I earned my Ph.D. from UCLA. I currently live in CA with my wife Lyda.
What inspired you to write this book, #MOJOtweet?
In my work, the most frequent question I hear is: What is the one quality that differentiates truly successful people from everyone else? My answer is always the same: Successful people spend a large part of their lives engaging in activities that simultaneously provide meaning and happiness. In other words, and in terms of my book, truly successful people have Mojo. Because the only person who can define meaning and happiness for you is you, that’s what this book is about. It is to help people to define and achieve Mojo.
How do you do research for your books?
After reading countless books on leadership, writing or co-editing 27 of them (with two more on the way next year), and reviewing profiles for desired leadership behavior in more than 100 corporations, I think there is one critical question that repeatedly gets left out when assessing the potential of our future leaders: How much do you love leading people?
To me, Mojo is about achieving two simple goals–loving what you do and showing it, and it plays a vital role in our pursuit of happiness and meaning. These goals are what govern my operational definition, which is: Mojo is that positive spirit toward what we are doing now that starts from the inside and radiates to the outside. Our Mojo is evident when the good feelings we have toward what we are doing come from inside us and our apparent for everyone else to see. There is no gap between the positive way we perceive ourselves—what we are doing—and how we are perceived by others.
What did you learn from writing this book?
It may be the most critical piece of advice within these pages: You should not feel obligated do any of this alone! If you want to improve your performance at almost anything, your odds of success improve considerably the moment you enlist someone else to help you.
What is the best advice you could give other writers about writing or publishing and it reference with MOJO?
You won’t get your book out to your readers without self-confidence; to build it, you have to believe in yourself. You can’t worry about being perfect—you just have to put up a brave front and do the best you can. The building blocks of Mojo, which I discuss thoroughly in my book, are not self-esteem they are identity, achievement, reputation, and acceptance. Learning about finding your Mojo is what the book is about and those who want to find it, keep it, or get it back if they’ve lost it will get much from MOJO: for those who don’t want to change, this book can’t help!
Where can readers learn more about you and your book?
First, I want to say thank you for allowing me to share with you and your readers about my books.
You can pick up a copy of #MOJOtweet at ThinkAha.
