I still have around 200 copies of my first book 'Simplicity is the Key' to sell.I've decided to sell them at half price for just £5 a copy plus postage. The book was originally priced at £9.99 per copy.
Two reasons for this: First I've decided that all proceeds from the sales of remaining books will go to our London Marathon Charity 'Carers UK.' and second I would love to get more copies of the book 'out there.'
We now have less than two months to our London Marathon run on 26 April and we are still short of our fund raising target of £3000.
Please spread the word about the book offer to your friends.
Anyone wishing to buy a book can simply contact me by e mail at this address: trevor.simplicity@gmail.com
6 comments:
This is a great bargain for those interested in a simple approach to life's overcomplicated issues. Seeing as I'm in the midst of reading and taking notes on this book, I feel compelled to assist Trevor in moving copies of Simplicity is the key to help spread his message and charitable fortitude.
How ironic...as I'm writing this, I'm watching The Titanic's final hours on the histroy channel (mirrors the world economy).
-Trevor is committed to keeping the language simple in the book and this is stated in the Preface. I agree with simple language and simple meanings, as these are things I remember.
-A quote from the Preface..."I also tried hard to remain grounded in healthcare by going out of my way to seek out patients and carers to spend time with them, to ask them questions about our services and then try to influence change to suit the needs of our customers." I don't care what book you're reading or how you approach business, these words in the Preface crossover to any industry. What a concept? Focusing on client problems to develop corporate solutions.
-In the Preface as well...A note about your dissertation and Leadership in Practice. A note to challenge status quo to move leadership forward.
-Trevor goes on to mention that the book is thin, not quite as thin as me :), and the reader can put it down when necessary. However, like the Foreward by Brian Galbriath mentions, your first desire will be to plow through the book.
-I like the ideas around "legitimate power".
-I like the reference to Rattle-the-Cage.
-I like the "tidy desk" reference.
Trevor-----If you don't mind, I'll continue to share my notes throughout the book as you look to move copies for charity and to spread the Simplistic word.
I'll write tomorrow.
I paid full price for Trevor's book and it came signed, sealed, and delivered within a week or so.
Trevor,
I also forgot one conspicuous absense in your Preface and Forewards for Simplicity is the key:
Your Wife-----Annie
Man---Was that a major oversight? She's the one responsible for carrying you along for the last half of your runs, as well as a majority of your married life.
Cheers---the book is great!
Thanks Scott - I appreciate your comments and I'm glad you’re enjoying the book.
Amazing how time has moved on. I wrote the content for the book in 2002/2003 and at that time Annie and I had not met. (This is our second marriage). The actual publication process took a while and did not actually happen until 2004. The publishing process was slower in those days through a recognised publisher - unlike today's self publishing which can be done in days!
If I were writing this book today then rest assured Annie would be the first and last person mentioned in the book!
God blessed us both by bringing us together in early 2004 and we intend to be together for the next 50 years making up for lost time!
Thank you my friend.
As I cover the first 20 pages of the book, I can't help but consider the similarities between me and Trevor. When I was scribing my own biz book, I had no idea of who Trevor was or why the Simplicity Blog would become important to the everyday leader I'm gonna be. There are huge differences between wannabes and gonnabes.
Trevor begins the "meat" of the book telling the reader about the importance of stories. Story telling is one of the best vehicles with which a manager can lead a meeting, a Scout Master can lead his troops, a DI can lead those of the marine corp. I couldn't help but remember my Geology professor from Texas Tech and how great he was at sharing anecdotes...that's the only way I passed the class. On top of the prof's story telling, he was also very basic in his language (another attribute of Trevor's management style). Even though there are thousands of terms in Geology, the prof was very basic in his approach of teaching Geology to half-hungover student.
How about the $750,000 mistake made by the apprentice? You'll have to pick up a copy of the book to understand a lesson from Trevor. Are mistakes really good? Should we not fear making mistakes?
One thing I liked about the first chapter that I didn't see with others...Trevor had a brief summary of points (should have been continued to the other chapters).
Chalk and Cheese
Oil and Water
Yen and Yang
Managers and Leaders
Trevor has one of the best quotes with regard to managers and leaders at the beginning of this chapter. You need to read no further than the quote to understand managers and leaders in today's business climate...
There is no doubt that Trevor is a fan of Manchester United and he draws upon the leadership of the manager for the football club (another leader is shared as well). Trevor strips down their leadership styles, discusses how they've received essentially no formal training to be leaders, and how they ultimately lead with passion and emotion for a great game. You're right Trevor, competitive sports carry over very well into real life leadership situations.
I was quite dumbfounded that I had stolen an idea from Trevor without even knowing it in my own publication. Trevor writes that maybe we shoud have a mission that reads..."perception is everything." A few years later I had written, "What people remember is more important than what really happened." Strikingly similar in nature and I'm not surprised that Trevor and I agree on so many business principles.
Trevor then opens up the reader to his Git-R-Done list in no particular order. My favorite is The Customer is King or Queen (you Englishmen with your monarchy innuendo). How funny that most corporations have this arrogance that "they" believe "they" know what's best for their client and the company. When all of the MBAs came out of college, they were far superior to the clients purchasing products...one of the reasons why we're in this economic slump.
Speaking of which, Trevor emphasizes in detail the importance of speaking in the language of consumers at any level of an organization. I believe this is most important at the top and business leaders should take note of Sir Richard Branson and his commitment to keeping language Simple.
Part III in a couple days.
BUY THE BOOK AND SUPPORT THOSE CARERS THAT TREVOR AND ANNIE ARE RUNNING FOR.
Thanks again Scott - you are very kind and it is hardly surprising we get on well - we have so many similarities in our leadership and management beliefs - long may it continue my friend :-)
PS - separated by thousands of miles, an ocean and different time zones maybe ... but it seems simplicity rules wherever we are on our planet!
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