The energy bus
by john gordon ken blanchard summary from four minute books written by
nicholas gerka one sentence summary the energy bus is a fable that will help you
create positive energy with ten simple rules and make it the center of your
life work and relationships favorite quote from the author positive energy is
like a muscle the more you use it the stronger it gets
the stronger it gets the more powerful you become the more you focus on
positive energy the more it becomes your natural state john gordon did you know
that one of the most common times when people commit suicide is 9 a.m on a
monday sadly it seems like the start of yet another work week is what drives
some over the edge when they already feel like they can't handle life anymore
luckily circumstances aren't quite so dire for most of us but that doesn't
mean we don't sometimes go through a serious rough patch john gordon once did
he struggled at work his team was imploding
and due to all the stress his family life was falling apart too after being
fired from his job at a dot com startup his wife even asked him where the man
was that she married but instead of throwing his hands up in despair john
then decided to sit with that question he thought about his life motivation and
purpose and then it came to him that he wanted
to write and speak having no time to lose he immediately
got to work three inspired weeks later he finished the manuscript for the
energy bus and while it would be a long time before the book became the best
seller it is today that was the real beginning of his journey here are three
lessons from the book to help you start yours 1. you must reclaim the driver's
seat of your life you can do so with the e plus p equals o formula two
to inspire others to support your journey be enthusiastic
it's contagious three always do your best to love people by
listening to them showing empathy and commending their work are you ready for
a ride into positivity then here's your one-way ticket for the energy bus lesson
one take control of your life with the e plus p equals o formula the hero of this
story is george he works at a light bulb company and is in a similarly negative
situation john was in several years ago worse
one monday his car breaks down and he finds out that for the next two weeks
he'll have to take the bus what he doesn't know is that from the moment he
gets on his life is about to change the bus
driver joy is committed to unleashing the positive energy in every single one
of her passengers to do so she shares 10 rules with everyone on the bus the first
few are about regaining control over your life if you feel you've lost it
since positive energy is the only proper fuel for a good journey which is the
third rule we should focus on the upside of everything joy says she shares the e
plus p equals o formula with george which means that energy plus perception
equals outcome and if your perception is positive you'll always have a positive
outcome this is similar to the stoic idea of amor fati which means to love
your fate no matter what it brings it's the difference between thinking life
happens to you and life happens for you you can't control everything that
happens but you can control what you believe about what happens if you focus
on gratitude solving problems and learning new things you'll always come
out on top lesson two humans can sense enthusiasm from a
distance and it's what gets people on your bus
the seventh rule is that enthusiasm is what'll get other people to join you on
your ride on the bus and motivate them as you travel through life the word is
originally greek entheos and means to be filled with a
divine joy tells george that he is the ceo of his bus and life the chief energy
officer it's on him to spread his positive energy to as many people as
possible and when your good energy is sincere that's easier than you'd think
if you've ever heard a friend rave about some product event or person you know
how easy it is to get caught in the wave enthusiasm is contagious over thousands
of centuries humans have evolved to understand emotions from afar one
example is our body language john also quotes a study that showed our heart has
its own electromagnetic field and the waves it sends can be sensed by others
even if they're up to 10 feet away so don't just look for the positive
share it with others we don't always have a great day but whenever we do
it's a chance to spread good vibes and inspire those around us now before we
get into lesson number three i'd like to give a quick nod to reading.fm the
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now let's dive into lesson number three lesson three
love people make time to listen recognize them as individuals and
appreciate their accomplishments every day he takes the bus george learns a
little more about life and becomes slightly more positive near the end of
his journey he's rallying his team to work together and deliver a great
product launch presentation hoping they'll catch his renewed spirit
the way he does this and the way you should treat everyone who gets on your
bus is by loving them as humans we all have a deep seated need for appreciation
from other humans love fulfills this need but it doesn't always have to be
the romantic cheesy kind here are the three things joy tells george to do for
and with his team one meet people one on one make time and
listen two practice empathy and show people you
realize they too are just humans three
recognize individual accomplishments and highlight people's contributions these
are things you can do with any person you meet be it someone at work a date or
your closest family if you do you'll soon have plenty of
great company on your bus ride of life hey this is nick the founder of four
minute books and i want to thank you so much for watching our video
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