* Bit by Bit, The Amazing Power of Five Minutes

This section emphasizes devoting a simple five minutes to gradual progress toward seemingly huge goals on a daily basis. Slow and steady wins race might describe this approach. He refers to this technique throughout book in varied ways to suggest that progress doesn't have to be measured in tireless devoted hours of struggle, but can be achieved much more easily "bit by bit."

* Moments, The Secret of Life

As a teenager, I wondered what my life might look like as a two hour movie and imagined what little slices of time might make it to final cut (as I experienced one of my first identity crises upon finishing high school). Panella suggests that all of our lives are much like that and are defined by individual moments of positive accomplishment and that all lives are made up of a collection of small moments we strongly identify with and remember powerfully.

The striking concept he delivers in book is that we not only have that inventory of past moments, but that we should consider steadily depositing in a bank account of moments from each day, and further, that we consider investing to accumulate a wealth of moments. "Every day, consciously look to create significant and simple moments" to add to your "moments account".

* Maximizing Any Experience

"Before any event or experience . . . simply ask yourself how prepared you are . . . for event. You'll go through details in your head and take a subjective measurement . . . Then you'll ask yourself what you can do to make event a little better ahead of time. You'll repeat asking this question . . . listing your answers . . . When complete, you'll have a laundry list of actions to maximize event . . . You get to play armchair quarterback ahead of time. You pull yourself back and look at big picture with a chance to make positive changes. Something we fail to do more times than not."

"Maximizing almost seems too easy." Indeed it does, but what a powerful tool if we only developed habit.

The 26 Hour Day, I'm convinced, is a real possibility in terms of maximising events, investing in our moments with sincere gratitude and bit by bit, in multiple five minute increments, we can gain additional value from our alloted time.

Vince Panella has unwittingly given me blueprint for my New Years Resolutions for 2002. I'm committed to investing significant time to his program of continual success improvement over coming year.

7. Hate change.

Put simply, it is far easier to sit back and do what you know, than to innovate.

Yet business or business person who is content to let things carry on as they always did will quickly find to their cost that world doesn't wait with them.

'Change is law of life. And those who look only to past or to present are certain to miss future.' John F. Kennedy.

8. Try once, then stop.

We are all guilty of this at some time. If at first you don't succeed, give up.

Success doesn't see it that way at all. The road to success is almost never paved. It is full of potholes, littered with blown down trunks of deserted dreams and blocked by obstacles. But there is gold at end, and unless you keep on trekking, you will never find it.

Edison made 10,000 useless light bulbs before he found one that worked.

J. K. Rowling sent Harry Potter to 20 publishers before one took her on.

They never gave up. Successful people don't.

'Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.' Thomas Edison.

9. Think that you are more important than customer.

Let's be arrogant. We can tell our customers what they want, and they'll thank us for it. Yeah right. And Ford still make only black cars!

I had lunch with editor of a major British women's magazine a few years ago and asked her how she responded to feedback from her readers.

'My dear,' she said, 'I'm editor. It is my job to tell them what they want, not other way round.'

It came as no surprise that 6 months later she was fired, and a few months after that magazine folded.

Don't ever be guilty of corporate arrogance. Even might Coca Cola company can be brought to heel by angry consumers (over introduction in 1985 of New Coke). Just think what negative PR could do to you.

10. Sit back and wait for it to happen.

Whoever said 'Build a better mousetrap and they'll beat a path to your door', had no idea of how business works.

You can have best web site, best book, best store in mall, but if you don't tell anyone, so what?

The very word business means state of being busy.

Marketing and innovation are locks on door of successful businesses. Action is key that opens that door so that you can see, as Howard Carter put it when he opened tomb of Tutankhamen, 'Wonderful things.'

'The individual activity of one man with backbone will do more than a thousand men with a mere wishbone.' William J. H. Boetcker.

11. Listen to your peers.

Surely it is a good idea to listen to what your Dad has to say about your business? Or your sister, or doctor, or cab driver?

Everyone has an opinion. Unfortunately, most people are programmed to fail, and can't see positive aspect of anything.

If you allow other people's negativity to infect your thinking, all of your endeavors are doomed. Most will probably never even get started.

It is vital that you have faith in what you are doing. If you have that faith, and you have seriously thought through all issues, surround yourself with positive people and go for it.

12. Don't belive you can succeed.

What has self-belief got to do with it? Either you have a successful business, or you don't.

Trust me on this. If you have a cast-iron, unshakeable belief in your future success, then every action you take will be a positive one. It may take time, but you will be on right path.

Nothing else is more important than this self-belief.

But, moment you allow any doubt to creep in, you will instantly be on road to failure.

Let's give last word to Abraham Lincoln who said, 'Let no feeling of discouragement prey upon you, and in end, you are sure to succeed.'