Book Review: The 5 Laws The Determine All of Life’s Outcomes

I have had the opportunity to spend time with the author of the 5 Laws, Brett Harward, on a few different occasions.  What struck me as odd is that I had heard from other people how good his book was but hadn’t taken the time to read it.  I decided to change that about a month ago and I am glad that I did.

In terms of a “self help” type of book, Brett gives a lot of practical advice that I think readers will find refreshing.  The premise of the book is that there are five areas that contribute to your success.  Those areas are: Vision, Frequency, Perception, Accountability and Leadership.  Brett breaks down why each of these areas is important, where we allow ourselves to get in our own way in these areas and some steps that we can take to more fully align our lives successfully with these laws.

Some of my favorite point from the book:

1. In the law of frequency section, Brett talks about failing faster as one of the steps that you can take to ensure that you get to success faster as well.  The number one area that trips us up is our desire to always be right.  I have certainly been guilty and not jumping in and doing something because I wasn’t sure if I had all the answers and I see this area as a big stumbling block for a lot of business owners.
2. In the law of perception the author talks about how we receive information.  Again this has to do with our desire to be right.  An important point that Brett makes in this section is to receive feedback that we get from people around us with an unbiased filter as much as we possibly can.  Too often we get negative feedback and close ourselves off to what someone else is saying by with devaluing the advice or the person giving the advice.  We all have done this a few times in our lives and it hinders our ability to see what others see and make the necessary corrections for the better.
3. The last point I wanted to share with readers has to do with the concept of aggregate IQ and it’s role in success.  I am big on using a team and collaborating with people to achieve the best result possible.  Sometimes, however, I try to go it alone with underwhelming results.  This point has to do with accepting different skills and traits that people bring to the table so that your project is more complete and has a better chance for success.  Too often we overlook this area and fail to collaborate with people because they are different from us.

Brett’s background is as a business consultant.  He also works with people on their own limiting beliefs through a non profit program he runs.  This is a great book on success that gives you practical tools to implement and a fresh perspective.