Attitude 101

January 1, 2003
It would be nice if this point-of-purchase inspirational tract by bestselling author Maxwell (The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership) could distill the motivational wisdom of a long career into a single, power-filled package, but instead, it siphons off a little draught as an enticing taste-test. The idea expounded here is simple enough: a good attitude, while not a guarantee of success, is crucial, whereas a bad attitude--which could include "failing to forgive," "petty jealousy" or "the disease of me"--will ensure failure. Thick with anecdotal evidence, from the life of Van Gogh (a man with a very good attitude, apparently) to the last guy who won the lottery (he still has problems), and studded with confessions that seem like veiled self-compliments, this palm-sized pep talk is a pithy and accessible reminder of basic common sense notions than many of us are apt to forget. For example,"the true nature of leadership is really sacrifice," and "many of us picture success as looking like someone other than who we are." Built as a string of quotations by successful people, the case Maxwell presents is hard to argue against, although any world view that draws equally from activist Martin Luther King Jr. and union-buster Henry Kaiser would seem to leave certain, difficult questions unanswered.