Twenty-five years ago, veteran author, activist and motivational speaker Shiv Khera launched his first book You Can Win, which went on to become an international bestseller and a bible for those who wanted to achieve big things in life. As we stand in 2023, a lot has changed. The world has evolved in good and bad ways.
We asked Khera if he swears by the same principles mentioned in the book or if there are any new additions to the strategies which were talked about in the book, 25 years ago. He said, “What I mentioned in the book 25 years ago were not just tips to succeed or tips to win in life, they were principles, and principles and values never change. At the same time, I agree, a lot has changed, and there is a need to remind people of those values differently.”
“Wars are going on, political crises, manual jobs are taken over by Artificial Intelligence, and whatnot. This is all making people more and more anxious today,” he adds.
Here are some must-have attitude changes in 2023, as suggested by Khera:
Be the right person
“Anyone can be at the right place at the right time,” says Khera. But being the right person is important, and people today should learn that. He recommends grabbing the opportunity when it is at your door but with the right attitude. Khera, who is known to talk with real-life examples, whether it is in his books or his speeches, gave an example of a person applying for a job to amplify his point. “People apply for job roles at which they are skilled, but they forget that will is more important than skill. Even if you are skilled for the job, but have an attitude of lazing around at work, you are not the right person,” he says.
Time and time again, he mentions in his books, to be the right person, it is important to have a positive attitude, which doesn’t come by only thinking positively but comes by acting positively.
Know the difference between making money and earning money
“I see the generation today just wants to make money,” says Khera. He believes that there’s a difference between making money and earning money. He says, today, people want to quickly make money and not work hard for it. “Only 13 per cent of the people in an organisation contribute diligently to the larger goal of the company. Rest all of them are just getting their salaries but not working as hard as they should,” he says. If you are not serving the organisation with quality work, then, sooner or later, employers will start looking for replacements, he adds. Khera believes there is a sense of satisfaction when you earn money for your hard work that can never come with making money. Do look back at your work and see whether you are making money or earning it!
Value your relationships
In today’s fast-paced world, we have forgotten to value the relationships we have or that we build along the way, believes Khera. Whether it is with a colleague or a family member, people just move forward and leave the relationships behind, he adds. However, this is not how it should be. “What we do is that we meet people, we jot down their contact details for the future, and then leave. This is not how relationships are built. This might be a way to network, but that person will only help you out if you talk heart-to-heart and build a relationship with them. We are all born to help each other and not just use each other,” he says. Khera is coming up with a book this year that will talk about the importance of relationships in life.
'85% of those successful are readers'
Khera, who himself is an avid reader, gives out a number and says that 85 per cent who hold the top position today are readers. “And they don’t read fiction. They read books that add value to their lives,” he adds. Asked about what he likes to read the most, he says, “self-help books. My book You Can Win is my favourite.” He further says learning is earning, hence, those who are readers go on to become the most successful people in life. That’s true. Famous personalities, including Barack Obama, Richard Branson, Bill Gates, Brené Brown, Sheryl Sandberg, Oprah, Mark Zuckerberg, Reese Witherspoon, and JK Rowling, are some of the most avid readers. Khera says, one should not read a book only once. “A book should be read multiple times with a pen and paper in hand to make notes. This is how you feed the lessons into your system,” he adds.
Khera is an Indian author, activist and motivational speaker best known for his book, You Can Win (1998). Some of his other notable works include, You Can Sell: Results are Rewarded, Efforts Aren't (2010) and You Can Achieve More: Live By Design, Not By Default (2018). He plans to come up with two more books this year.
He also launched a movement against caste-based reservations in India and founded an organisation called Country First Foundation.
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