Beating the Success Trap - About the Book

BEATING THE SUCCESS TRAP
Negotiating for the Life You Really Want
and the Rewards You Deserve

by Ed Brodow

About the Book

Beating the Success Trap, Negotiating for the life you want Headlines often resound about a famous celebrity's downward spiral into drugs and suicide or a wealthy CEO's law problems with "fixing the books" trying to obtain more money. Most people respond by saying "I can't believe they did that, they had it all. If I had all of that money and success I would be so happy." But is this really true? Did they really "have it all?"

Beating the Success Trap by Ed Brodow argues that millions of Americans who have acquired the symbols of success do not feel successful. Instead of pursuing our true desires, we have been brainwashed to seek very superficial and ego-based ideals. The yardstick that measures success is the car we drive, the electronics we own, the town we live in, and the clothing we wear. It can be a warped and dysfunctional way of living. We have one of the most affluent societies in human history but are faced with an epidemic of depression, drug abuse, alcoholism, violence, and suicide.

The good news is that in today's world, everything you have dreamed about is possible. But before you can reconnect with your passion and enthusiasm, first you have to escape the trap and the values of success that you were conditioned to accept.

Beating the Success Trap is an analytical, prescriptive and personal guide to show readers how to redefine "success" so that their lifestyles are true to their own temperaments and preferences. Brodow draws on real-life, personal experiences (his own and those of his friends and colleagues) to illustrate how to lead the fulfilling life you've always wanted. The book is broken into four parts that guide readers on the easy road to emotional and personal happiness.

	Part I--Deals with what the success trap is and how to escape.
	Part II--Exposes the "abuse-based thinking" that forms an invisible barrier between you and the lifestyle you'd love to have.
	Part III--Explains how we often give away our power to succeed and offers practical techniques for reclaiming that power.
	Part IV--Shows you how to visualize the lifestyle you've always wanted, how to create and implement a plan to make that lifestyle a reality, and where to find the courage to act on your convictions.

You will learn why:

Failure is often better than success
Many people are happier without fame and fortune
Getting fired can be the best thing that ever happened to you
Changing careers is good for you
Following your bliss is better than following the herd

Beating the Success Trap is the first step to dealing with the real question: If I feel discontented with my life, why don't I do something about it?

CONTENTS
Introduction
Prologue: A Modern Success Fable
Part One: BRAINWASHED
	Chapter 1: If I'm So Successful, Why Am I Taking Prozac?
	Chapter 2: The Images of Success
	Chapter 3: Lessons from an Unseduced Maverick
	Chapter 4: Discovering the You In You
	Chapter 5: Tapping Into Your Gut
Part Two: ABUSED
	Chapter 6: Abuse Will Not Make You Successful
	Chapter 7: A New Perspective On Failure
	Chapter 8: The Affection-Based Support System
Part Three: VICTIMIZED
	Chapter 9: The Victim Mentality
	Chapter 10: The Confidence Mystique
Part Four: FREE AT LAST
	Chapter 11: Your Money or Your Lifestyle?
	Chapter 12: Four Steps to Personal Fulfillment
	Chapter 13: The Courage to Succeed
Bibliography
Recommended Reading
Acknowledgements
About the Author

HarperCollins Publishers 2003
SELF-HELP 288 pages
0-06-000882-2
$25.95

Order this book

Ed Brodow, CEO
Ed Brodow Seminars, Inc.
Keynotes/Seminars on Negotiation & Success
857 Lobos Street, Monterey, CA 93940
Phone (831) 372-7270		Fax (831) 655-4715
ed@brodow.com www.brodow.com