Shift Your Thinking for Success by Dean Del Sesto

How we think about what happens to us is important, Del Sesto writes. Our thinking can pave the way forward or hold us back. Sometimes small changes in our thinking can make a huge difference in our confidence and our potential for success.

Del Sesto provides seventy seven areas where readers can evaluate their thinking and behavior. Some are challenges, like taking control of your thoughts, beating them into submission. Some are very practical ideas, like checking with others to see if their performance evaluation of you matches your own. (You need to be willing to accept comments from others and be willing to change.)

Some of the topics will require much work, such as getting a good night's sleep. That might require much more than just giving yourself permission to sleep well. Whole books have been written on the topic. Another issue that might require more work than given is controlling feelings. That might take more than having a negotiating conversation with yourself.

Other topics include lots of practical ideas, like the section on listening. Another topic with some practical suggestions is setting goals. Some topics are about making wise decisions, like having the discipline of continually learning. Others are incentives to value people, like remembering their names. I loved his writing on the Digital Rudeness Syndrome.

Each of the issues Del Sesto raises is thought provoking. Some ideas could be implemented quickly while others might take months of work. This is not a “how to” book, he writes. He doesn't want anyone to try to copy his life. I like his emphasis that success is who we are, not what we do. This book is good for thinking through who we want to be. Developing a strategy for moving forward may require additional reading and planning.

You can read an excerpt here.

My rating: 4/5 stars.

Dean Del Sesto has been in marketing, branding, and corporate development for his entire career. He currently runs the award-winning branding agency called Breviti and is also a partner in VeracityColab, a B2B and consumer based video agency. He speaks nationally on a variety of topics. He and his wife live in Orange County, California. You can find out more at http://www.deandelsesto.com/.

Revell, 224 pages.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.