50 Lessons I Learned From The World's #1 Goal Achiever

by Vic Johnson

The Secrets to Living Your Bucket ListOn one eventful rainy afternoon 15 year-old John Goddard was in the kitchen and overheard his parents talking to a friend in the next room. “I wish I was John’s age again,” the friend said, noting how there were many things he would have accomplished if given another chance. “I wish I could start over.”Goddard resolved then and there not to have those kinds of regrets when he was that age. So he took out a yellow legal pad and wrote down 127 specific life goals that Traversing the entire length of the 4,132-mile Nile River* Scaling Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania* Learning to fence* Running a five-minute mile* Lighting a match with a .22 rifle * Visiting the birthplace of his grandfather [Goddard] * Playing Debussy’s Claire de Lune on the pianoThe rest, as they say, is history.He not only accomplished almost all of those goals, but another 400 he set along the way, including defeating prostrate cancer.Best-selling author Vic Johnson met Goddard in the last decade of his life after reading about him in the first Chicken Soup of The Soul book. A friendship ensued and Johnson spent hours with Goddard to learn the secrets that made him arguably the greatest achiever who ever lived.He recounts those lessons here in an easy-to-read format that includes actions steps you can take to achieve your ultimate "bucket list."

Genres: Self Help, Nonfiction

152 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 1, 2014

Reviews

[Jeffrey Bush · Rating 5 out of 5]

You cannot achieve goals on your own.

Dreaming about a goal is only the first step in achievement.

Initiate a relationship with one new positive person and end a relationship with one negative person.

Avoid time wasters. We waste time on many things that serve no purpose. Pinpoint and eliminate 2 wasteful hours per week.

Learn from the mistakes and disastrous moments in life. Surviving a disaster builds confidence.

Every day write down two blessings that happen to you.

Focus on the good. When you focus on what’s good you can intensify it, but when you focus on bad you usually receive more bad.

Apathy is the first stop on the road to depression.

Find things that will inspire your goals (music, stinky notes, pictures, or some kind of reminders).

Never fear failure; failure is a mindset.

If you live the life that naysayers want you to live, you’ll be miserable.

The average man has more than a life’s time worth of fears, so learn to tune out the fears of others.

Negativity has no room in your life while trying to achieve goals.

Persistence pays off. The power of persistence is turning failure into achievement.

Once you have a plan, you must work backwards and begin to plan. Planning is the way you arrive to achievement.

The herd mentality is what the majority of people live by, but there are too many limitations this way.

Prove your worth by working hard and succeeding in certain areas. This will fix much of your negative self talk.

Put in the blood, sweat, and tears to prove to yourself that you can succeed.

Avoid procrastination. Putting something off for the next day does not make it disappear, it just leaves it for the next day. If you fall into the habit of procrastinating on little things, it will affect bigger things such as dreams and goals in life.

Overcome procrastination by posting sticky notes with the word ”now” wherever you can see them. Place the word “now” in front of you constantly.

Enjoy the outdoors. Daily you can see beautiful sunsets, flowers, birds, and nature all around you, so take time and enjoy it.

Write it down. If you have goals or ambitions, make it more serious by writing it down.

Give yourself deadlines. If you don’t have a deadline, you will continue procrastinating and never achieve anything.

Find someone who knows more than you do and learn from them.

Have some alone time where you shut off technology, music, and distractions to simply be quiet and reflect.

Have an attitude of gratitude and you will enjoy life more.

[Carmen Grantham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Author spent time with John Goddard, a man who wrote a list of things he wanted to do with his life at 15 years of age. He added to this list over time.

The book details how he achieved a high number of things in his bucket list, and the mindset that should be adopted so that anyone can achieve them.

[Helfren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Separate yourself from the pack. In the ancient times, the herd help you to survive but in the modern world, the herd makes you lag together. If you delay more, you are borrowing from your future.

Overall nothing really flashy but, I appreciate the collections of lessons from every high achiever all over the world. Love the content and the quotes.

[Tim Genry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Goal setting books can be good reminders of the need and strategies for success. Unfortunately many of these books are not very well written or motivational. This book had enough story, enough strategy and enough encouragement to make this a book that I may reread with a pen and paper.

[Marzieh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many other books or life coaches are saying the same things. However, the book can get you started on making your goals into actions. A good read whenever you feel you need a push.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciated the way this book was written. I listened to it on audio and found it to be engaging. I would suggest reading this in print for others.

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a mighty 'bow-down' to John Goddard, and puts him on a pedestal. Although, I definitely respect his life-long achievements.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing insights. A must read and re-read

[ei_tc Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

JG. An inspiration.

[Krystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Goddard's goals seem easy and focused on being able to go places. They are narrow focused, which is something I could learn from.

[Karen JEC · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened to my first audiobook of 2017 in a couple of hours at x2 speed, comfortably following along this sage advice and useful action items. Clear, concise, helpful. This book is a powerful reminder to plan ahead and stay true to yourself, for today, tomorrow, and forever.

Favourite quotes:

"Personalize your list of things you want to achieve in your lifetime."

"Every goal should make you tingle with anticipation."

"The reality is, when tomorrow comes, the work is still there, it'll be just as hard, and you'll be a day further behind. Therefore, the more you procrastinate, the more the work piles up, which makes it harder rather than easier to achieve success. The best way to handle procrastination is to learn better time management."

"What makes people special is what they do with their time."

A review of these 50 lessons:
- Know what you want.
- Dream big.
- Write it down.
- Put your list where you can see it every day.
- Set deadlines.
- Stop making excuses.
- Be ready to overcome obstacles and adversity.
- Have no regrets.

[Javier · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about John Goddard, the man who at the age of 15 set 127 life goals of which he accomplished 111 and hundred others. I remember reading about John when I was a teenager and he inspired to set and accomplish three goals in my life: teaching myself how to speak English, teaching myself how to play the piano, and to graduate from Brigham Young University.

The book didn't have amazing ideas on how to accomplish goals, but it was entertaining enough

[Adriano · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another clear and concise self-help book by Vic Johnson. He does a great job of breaking down actionable steps and providing examples for how to see them through. It does get a little sycophantic regarding John Goddard at times.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like many of the "Chicken Soup" type books, this one offers up inspiration that will speak more to a teen than an adult. Would make a nice high school graduation gift.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent listen - a lot to act on. Would be a good book to keep around for motivation.