Rating: 
Summary: Interesting, Valuable, and Useful
Review: Above all, this book highlights studies of success and the science of success, all written so that you can understand it and put it to use today. It is presented to not only be clear but also engaging. Each study on success is accompanied by an example of a person who demonstrates the idea in real life. The examples are wonderful, and range from famous leaders to average people. Some, such as the tale of the fall of the Schwinn Bicycle company, are incredibly valuable examples. I got a lot from this book, and I think everyone I work with would benefit from reading it.
Rating:
Summary: Interesting, Valuable, and Useful
Review: Above all, this book highlights studies of success and the science of success, all written so that you can understand it and put it to use today. It is presented to not only be clear but also engaging. Each study on success is accompanied by an example of a person who demonstrates the idea in real life. The examples are wonderful, and range from famous leaders to average people. Some, such as the tale of the fall of the Schwinn Bicycle company, are incredibly valuable examples. I got a lot from this book, and I think everyone I work with would benefit from reading it.
Rating: 
Summary: Useful and interesting
Review: I admit to being a sucker for books with titles like "Secrets of the Most Successful People, or "The 10 Greatest Secrets of Success," or "Secrets of Success the World's Most Successful People Don't Even Tell Their Wives," and so on. I always figure that these people, since they're probably richer, more famous, or better looking than I, have somehow divined the ultimate secrets of existence, or at least of the Socratic summum bonum (i.e., the "good life"), and that for $12.99 plus tax, I can have those selfsame secrets handed to me on a platter, or at least on the printed page.Well, I can't say this book was a disappointment, as it is full of much useful, interesting, and practical advice. Sometimes the research cited isn't always clear as to the practical application, as another reviewer here mentioned, but I didn't mind that. I've read many less useful academic tomes than this, probably why I've never been as successful as most of the people in this book. Anyway, this book really does have some interesting and fun little pieces of information. For example, one of them states that the fear of hiring someone who was TOO talented is a factor in one-fifth of all hiring decisions, because of the fear that this person will make everybody else look bad to management. No doubt this explains my own dubious success in life. :-)
Rating: 
Summary: Not a successful book
Review: I had read the author's previous book "The 100 Simple Secrets of Happy People" which I found to offer practical advice, and it was also fun and interesting to read. I had similar expectations for "The 100 Simple Secrets of Successful People" which has the same format of providing a research finding along with advice and an example. The 100 secrets of the "Successful People" book do not seem as practical and concrete as the secrets in the "Happy People" book. Also, I felt like the examples often did not directly relate to the research finding. I would read an example and find myself more perplexed than enlightened, wondering how it was supposed to illustrate the current "secret". Overall, the book provides numerous research findings that could contribute to success (and provides a reference to the published research), but the reading is tedious--not a successful book.
Rating:
Summary: Lots of useful tips on how to succeed
Review: I'm a sucker for books that draw me in with a captivating
title . . . so when I saw THE 100 SIMPLE SECRETS OF
SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE by Dr. David Niven, I just had to read it. The book's subtitle (WHAT SCIENTISTS HAVE LEARNED AND HOW
YOU CAN USE IT) was also of interest . . . it gave me the impression
that the secrets would be based on actual research findings. That said, I must admit to being disappointed with the author's
attempt to back up his secrets with research . . . this approach seemed forced, in the sense that the studies that were presented
didn't relate all that well to the point that was seemingly being made. Yet I still liked the book for what it did do well; i.e., give useful
tips on how to succeed--be it in work or life . . . furthermore,
each of the 100 short chapters was backed up by an inspiring
story, such as Olympic gold medalist Paul Gonzales' rise from
a gang-ridden Los Angeles neighborhood . . . another one
I liked: a schoolteacher's simple advice that helped make David
Brinkley a top news anchorman. There were several sections that I really enjoyed; among them:
* Think of success as filling a box. You'll be finished sooner not just
by working harder to fill it but also by choosing a smaller box. Becky considers herself normal in most respects. She has a career,
a husband, two children, and almost no time. "Do you ever feel like you woke up in an episode of Twilight Zone?
My story is the person who constantly has more things to do and
less time in which to do it. It's like every day I have to make more
runs to the store than the day before, and I have to do it in half
the time." Becky concluded that the key to living life at her own pace,
instead of in a rushed hurry, was "to realize what is really important.
I spent so much time doing things because I thought I was supposed
to instead of because they were really necessary." To get out of her Twilight Zone, Becky stopped going after everything.
"If you run out of time trying to do absolutely everything, then some-
times you wind up finishing the stupid stuff and missing out on what
really matters." * No matter what your career dream, it will at some point cause conflict
in your home life. It is easier to pretend these conflicts do not exist
or to dodge the matter whenever possible. But ignoring conflict doesn't
make it go away; it just feeds the conflict and makes it worse.
Discuss conflicts between your work life and your home life because
that is the only way you can make the situation better. The Coalition for Marriage, Family, and Couples Education teaches
people that the surest path to resentment, strain, and relationship
disaster is the complete absence of disagreements. Having on
disagreements means you aren't saying what you think and feel
and that emotions will simmer within you until they reach a boil.
One of the coalition's main lessons is that in any relationship there
are "ten irreconcilable differences." According to Dianne Sollee, the director of the coalition,
"The problem for most people is that they
don't recognize that differences are inevitable and should be talked
about, and they instead seek refuge from another relationship. Of
course, their new relationship will have ten new irreconcilable
differences, and the pattern will just be repeated." Healthy relationships are successful, not because people have fewer
disagreements, but because they apply problem-solving skills to
arguments. Dianne says, "Instead of an emphasis on who is right
and who is wrong, the underlying emphasis in healthy relationships
is on what can be done to improve the situation for everyone involved." * People don't buy houses or cars if they're not sure about every detail.
It's too important to rush into that kind of commitment. But how many
of us toil in jobs that we don't think are right for us? You will spend more time between the ages of twenty-five and sixty-
five working than you will spend doing anything other than sleeping.
Your job not only will define possibilities for your future, it may also
come to define you. Never stop thinking about what you need to do
to love what you do. William Raspberry is a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for the
WASHINGTON POST. He loves his job and wishes more people
loved theirs. "You need to love what you do. Love the hell out of it.
Don't settle for just liking your career, for becoming a data processor
or school principal or Toyota saleswoman because 'the pay-check's
decent and, hey, it's a job.' " William has a simple test for figuring out if you're in the right line of
work: "Imagine the job you have right now paid you the least amount
of money you could possibly live on. Would you still want the job? If
not, you're not in the right line of work."
Rating:
Summary: Great Reminders of Timeless Success Principles
Review: In "The 100 Simple Secrets of Successful People," author David Niven consults scientific research to uncover the traits of success. But this is no dry academic paper. It's a fun read filled with great ideas.
Here are five highlights that grabbed my attention:
- It's not how hard you try. Effort is the single most overrated trait in producing success. Your goal should be to make progress, not just expend energy.
- Enjoy small victories. Pursue your passions like you would put together a jigsaw puzzle -- work piece by piece. While you ultimately want a final outcome, take pleasure in the
journey to get there. People who enjoy a steady stream of minor accomplishments are happiest.
- Don't force yourself to like broccoli. Personalities and talents are like shoe sizes. They can't be redirected without uncomfortable consequences. Realize who you are and what your true personality is -- and plan a future that fits it.
- Be an expert at something. Choose a particular subject that is crucial to what you do and learn everything you can about it. Sixty-eight percent of people who consider themselves successful say there is at least one area in which they are an expert.
- Hope springs internal. Your best source of confidence is not the latest economic report or other external factor. Assertiveness comes from your belief that you can accomplish what you want, regardless of what else is happening around you.
Think about these five tips (and the 95 others in the book) -- and see if you can apply them to your life.
-Bob Baker, author of "Unleash the Artist Within"
Rating: 
Summary: Good Bathroom Reading
Review: The key to understanding this book is right in the title, "simple secrets". There is nothing complicated or deep about any of the 100 short stories, complete with a moral and lesson of the day. Most of the "secrets" seemed a little forced and within the 100 there was a bit of redundancy. This book also focused about 75% of it's secrets and stories on work/business related experiences. The lack of variety made this seem more like a "how to do better at your job book". Really one-dimensional. I was dissapointed, but kept the book...the short stroies are trite but offer some tiny gems of western culture wisdom. Nothing really new, but a good 5 minute read.
Rating:
Summary: The Most Useful Thing I've Read In A Long Time
Review: This book is interesting, insightful, and most importantly useful. It provides a brief look at people who have succeeded in all walks of life - whether it be in raising a family or running a company - and research results that explain where the basic elements of success come from. I recommend this book for anyone who is trying to improve what they're doing.
Rating:
Summary: The Most Useful Thing I've Read In A Long Time
Review: This book is interesting, insightful, and most importantly useful. It provides a brief look at people who have succeeded in all walks of life - whether it be in raising a family or running a company - and research results that explain where the basic elements of success come from. I recommend this book for anyone who is trying to improve what they're doing.
Rating:
Summary: Useful and Practical
Review: What a brilliant idea! Niven has taken scientific studies, summarized their results, and placed them in a format that can easily be read by the general public. He is to be commended for taking discoveries from the academy and making the results useful to anyone interested enough to tap this resource. To illustrate, I'll cite a few examples. He tells readers "people who regularly keep a journal, or some kind of written record pertaining to their asperirations, are 32 percent more likely to feel like they are making progress in their lives." A person who wanted to know the source can find the citation in the back of the book and review the study in detail.
A second example, "your success is far more dependent on your behavior now than it is based upon where you grew up, where you went to school, or whether your path so far has been easy or difficult." The source here is Arrison, 1998 and is listed in the bibliography. A third example is "people who approach things with order, common sense, consistency, and persistence will ultimately succeed." Again, the citation is given. There are 100 "secrets" presented. This is an inspiring motivational book. I highly recommend it.
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