How to Enjoy Your Life and Your Job Summary: Dale Carnegie
How to Enjoy Your Life and Your Job Summary provides a free book summary, key takeaways, review, quotes, author biography and other vital points of Dale Carnegie’s self-help book.
This is the age of self-help mania. And at this age, it’s tough to know where to start. There’s a new motivational book releasing every day. Hence, it becomes very confusing. It’s time to turn to basics. So, what’s the best way to do that? Well, it’s to go to Dale Carnegie – the father of self-help. “Dale Carnegie’s Greatest Hits” can be the new name of this compilation. It’s because it has all his classics. There’re many examples of how both famous and ordinary people have hit rock-bottom. And then how they rose again. Some of the languages are old. It’s because Dale wrote most of the content in the 1930s. But, the situations he describes aren’t limited to any generation. You’ll be happy to read that you can also be organized and popular. This book How to Enjoy Your Life and Your Job is a must-read for everyone who works with people. It can change your approach to life and people in your life.
“YOU ARE SOMETHING NEW IN THIS WORLD. BE GLAD OF IT. MAKE THE MOST OF WHAT NATURE GAVE YOU.”
This Summary Will Help You Learn
How to benefit from a tough situation;
What it takes to get people to do what you want;
How to generate agreements; and
What it takes to make people respect and like you.
Take-Aways
Don’t ever criticize others. It only hurt feelings and doesn’t get you anywhere.
If you know you’ve put in every effort, don’t let criticism affect you.
You can make even the most boring job, fun.
Always be grateful for what you have. Don’t focus on what you don’t have. Instead, focus on what you have.
Focus on important work. Don’t get burdened with trivial urgent tasks.
Look for good traits in people and let them know about it.
Make a person want to do something. Only then can you make them do what you want.
Try to learn the interests of others. Don’t always talk about your interests.
Develop a real interest in others.
Make others feel important. And, don’t fake it.
Suggested Reading: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Summary: Stephen R. Covey
Suggested Reading: Thinking, Fast and Slow Summary: Daniel Kahneman
How to Enjoy Your Life and Your Job Summary
Your Job: A Source of Joy or Just Slogging Through?
You spend most of your life at your job. It doesn’t matter if you’re an executive or a salesman. This is true for every working person. But, you do have a choice on how to look at this job. It can be complete joy or a toil. Learn to deal with tough situations. Also, approach your post with a new outlook. This way both your life and job will become fulfilling.
You Want to Be Content? Follow These Rules
How to get peace and happiness? Follow these seven rules:
Rule 1: Don’t pretend to be someone you’re not
Be comfortable with yourself. For this find out who you are. What motives you? How do you like to speak, write or even dress? There’s only one “you” in this world. So, make that “you” different.
Rule 2: Prevent angst by getting organized
Organize your desk. Clear out everything besides what you need. When your surroundings are in order, you get calmer. It’s because you don’t get overwhelmed by seeing so much to work on. If you begin a task, finish it. Or, you may give to someone else. But, don’t move on to something else before doing this. Focus on doing the most crucial tasks first. This is the key to prioritizing. Same applies to all issues that need a decision. Don’t put them off. Instead, solve them then and there.
Rule 3: Learn to relax while working
Mental work won’t tire you. Instead, it’s the strain and stress of the work which exhausts you. Check on yourself all through your day. And, ensure that you aren’t making your task more stringent than it is. At day’s end, check your wellbeing. If you feel tired, ask why. There’re chances that you weren’t efficient in your task.
Rule 4: Don’t get bored
You may also get tired if you’re bored. It’s because boredom slows you down. Instead, try to enjoy your work. Also, make the most of your task, regardless of how annoying it is.
Rule 5: Count your blessings instead of focusing on your problems
Ask yourself the reason for your worries. And then, maybe you’ll find out there’s not much to worry.
Rule 6: Don’t take undeserved criticism personally
People mostly criticize because they think you’re better than them. So, don’t let criticism affect you.
Rule 7: Do your best and don’t worry about what other people think
You can’t make the whole world happy. If you try to do so, you’ll go crazy. And you still won’t end up pleasing everyone.
Criticism Gets You Nowhere
There’re many examples of people who blamed others for their hard-luck. These people never blamed themselves for anything. Such an attitude causes terrible results. The case of Al Capone is worth mentioning here. Capone was a gangster. He used violence to make his path through life. Capone was among the most lethal men in Chicago in his day. But, he saw himself as a good citizen. He thought that he was doing society more good than harm. As per him, he was merely unappreciated and misunderstood. Capone was incapable of seeing his faults. Instead, he blamed others for the results. Nobody is perfect. Not even you. So, stop blaming others.
Criticism is harmful for many reasons. If you’re a manager, you can easily demotivate your people by criticizing. This hurts pride, crushes the ego and creates hatred. You may temporarily feel better by criticizing others. But, it’ll never make the case better going forward. Instead, try earning the respect of others. You can do this by willing to understand and forgive when needed. Because, in the end, your greatness will not depend on how many employees you condemned. Instead, people will remember you for how you treated them with forgiveness.
Don’t blatantly criticize people. Instead, they indirectly address someone’s mistakes. You may use non-verbal cues. Also, avoid falling prey to masking a criticism by praising at the start. Many people do this. They start by complimenting and then add a “but.” This will only make the other person question your intention and truthfulness. Rather, use the term “and.” For example, say “you’re a good soccer player. And, if you continue practicing, you may become even better.”
Openly Admit Your Mistakes
If criticizing is necessary, then the first talk of your weaknesses. This straightforward strategy will neutralize the other person. Hence, try making her/him feel less like an idiot. And, motivate her/him to change. This works. Why? Because you’ve admitted that even you can make such mistakes. Also, use your story to show how you corrected that mistake. Others will learn from your story and try changing their behavior.
People Want to Feel Important
This is very true. The no. 1 desire in people is to feel important. But, that doesn’t mean that all want to rule the planet. Some only want appreciation to get a sense of purpose.
Give people a reason to work by making them feel they matter. This way, you can get much more from them. Criticizing them won’t give you the same results. When managers criticize, they kill any dreams their employees may have. Get the reverse effect by giving genuine praise. But, be careful. Praise and flattery aren’t the same. Flattery is not sincere.
Get Your Way by Doing What They Want
There’re times when we want someone to do something, but they won’t do it. And, almost everything we try – threatening, begging, demanding – doesn’t work. There’s a key to getting people to do what we want. It is emphasizing what they want. And, then showing them how to achieve it. Hence, stop wasting time telling others what you want. Instead, focus on their needs and desires.
A Genuine Interest in Others Will Get You Far
Learn something from man’s best friend. Maybe it’s the only creature whose only purpose is to make others feel loved. Yes, they’re dogs. Dogs’ love and appreciation are unconditional. It can’t be compared with love among people. A dog has no formal education. Still, it knows that to win people’s heart, you need to show interest in them. You can’t win anyone’s attention by trying to get them interested in you. Instead, focus on them.
Be enthusiastic while greeting people. Look as if you’re pleased to see them even if you’re not. This will help you win friends. And, in business, it may also help win customers. If people feel you’re interested in them, they’ll start trusting you. They may eventually become loyal to you.
Be Nice – Even When You Have Nothing to Gain
The key to having people love you is by being nice to all. It doesn’t matter if you don’t know them. Also, you may not gain anything from them. But, be nice because of its common decency. Everyone wants approval, praise, and recognition. So, when you request something from others, add some phrases in your sentence. For example, “I’m sorry to bother you,” or “Thank you very much.” Treat others like you want others to treat you. This way you can help the world become a better place.
How to Convince Others You’re Right
If you tell people they’re wrong; you can never make them agree with you. You’ll cause them to debate with you. And it’s most likely that they’ll not change their views. It’s because telling people they’re wrong means telling you’re smarter than them.
Instead, begin your case by admitting that you could be wrong. Then, suggest that they take a look at the facts. Finally, allow them to reach their conclusions. Such approach displays that you have high regards for their opinions. They’ll see your idea as you helped them view it as their own. Many people are unable to see others’ point of view. If you develop this skill, you can convince anyone to do anything. So, the bottom line is to be diplomatic.
Sock it to them… And Get No Results
It’s natural to strike out against people who harmed you. But, such actions won’t help. And, you may end up worsening the situation.
Abraham Lincoln said, “flies throng a honey drop and not a gallon of gall.” Hence, for great results, use reason and be friendly. Most likely your adversary will react to your warmth. Therefore, you’ll attain what you want.
Get A ’Yes’ and Get Your Way
How to convince others to see your perspective? Well, start by focusing on things you both agree. It’s easier to convince people if they agree with you on many things.
But, once they say “no,” it’s tough to convince them otherwise. Hence, stress, which you’re on the same page. Show that you two are working for the same goal. It’s because if they say “no,” you’re facing a big block. In such cases, their position turns into a thing of ego. And, they’re unlikely to change their views. Rather than prompting a “no,” ask things which may lead to an agreement. Soon, they’ll accept your views as their own.
Preserve Other Peoples’ Egos
You may be right or wrong about a thing. But, never point out the flaws of others. Don’t condemn them in front of other people. Instead, help others preserve their esteem by allowing them to save face.
“I KNOW FROM LONG EXPERIENCE THAT ONE IS NOT ALWAYS ABLE TO DO THINGS IN THE ORDER OF THEIR IMPORTANCE, BUT I ALSO KNOW THAT SOME KIND OF PLAN TO DO FIRST THINGS FIRST IS INFINITELY BETTER THAN EXTEMPORIZING AS YOU GO ALONG.”
Don’t Worry About Getting the Credit
Your team has a task to be completed. How to get it done? You can gain cooperation by making people think that the answer was their idea.
For achieving this, following three things:
- Question people what they want to see accomplished.
- Ask for their views on the best way to finish the task.
- During this conversation, subtly put your views into their approach.
Don’t bother that your idea doesn’t remain yours anymore. But, it belongs to others. Instead, enjoy the fact that the purpose is accomplished.
How to Enjoy Your Life and Your Job Review
It is true that a person spends a considerable part of his life in doing this professional job. It is the way of making money for the person, but not all of the people are likely to feel contented towards the job that they are doing. There are some rules for doing the job contented for the person. The first rule is to be you and not try to be like anyone else. The second rule is to be organized because more of the discomfort in the job comes with things clutter around the desk and workplace.
The third rule of being happy with the job is to have relaxation while working in everyday life many of the people feel stress because they think that the workload is very high and before doing the work they feel worried about it. The fourth rule is not to get bored; it is imperative for the person to make the job excited about it and enjoy the work.
The fifth rule is to focus on the good about the work rather than just complaining; the person who sees the positive in thing always find something to be happy. The sixth rule is not to get personal with all of the criticism at the workplace, let the things flow and make it easy to let go rather than worrying about the criticism of the other people all of the times. The seven and the last rule of making the job contented for a person is to do the best in the workplace and not always think about the opinion of the other people around you. Keeping in mind all of the seven rules one may feel contented towards the job he/she is doing.
How to Enjoy Your Life and Your Job Quotes
“You are something new in this world. Be glad of it. Make the most of what nature gave you.”
“I know from long experience that one is not always able to do things in the order of their importance, but I also know that some kind of plan to do first things first is infinitely better than extemporizing as you go along.”
“Hard work by itself seldom causes fatigue which cannot be cured by a good sleep.”
“Worry, tenseness and emotional upsets are three of the biggest causes of fatigue.”
“If I do my work as if I really enjoy it, then I do enjoy it to some extent. I also found I can work faster when I enjoy my work.”
“Remember that unjust criticism is often a disguised compliment. Remember that no one ever kicks a dead dog.”
“Resisting the temptation to criticize and getting in the habit of giving praise and honest appreciation will do more than anything else to make people like us.”
“Instead of condemning people, let’s try to understand them.”
“You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.”
“The deepest craving in human nature is the craving to be appreciated.”
“If we are so contemptibly selfish that we can’t radiate a little happiness and pass on a bit of honest appreciation without trying to get something out of the other person in return… we shall meet with the failure we so richly deserve.”
“My rule is never to lay down a letter until I have answered it. I dictate the reply to my secretary at once.”
About the Author
Dale Carnegie was a famous author, lecturer, and teacher. He left a legacy of a global training program for businesspeople in every area. Carnegie wrote The Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking, How to Win Friends and Influence People, and How to Stop Worrying and Start Living. There are over 50mn copies of his books printed in 38 different languages.
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