and I ended up at a comprehensive school, where I’d later go on to meet my first ever “superstar.”
I stood in front of my class on the first day. “Hello,” I said matter-of-factly, “I’m Tobi, and I have a certified learning disability.” I held up my certificate as evidence (laminated, by that point, because I needed it more and more frequently). If my school career thus far had taught me anything, it was to make light of your weaknesses and wear them on your sleeve. The certificate was like my personal trademark.
This school was where everything would change. A single statement shifted the course of my whole life. The teacher slowly and deliberately opened a drawer, took out a big pair of red-handled scissors, took the certificate from my hand, and cut it in half. I remember her exact words: “Tobias, if you accept this label, this label will become your story. What becomes your story becomes your life, what becomes your life becomes your identity, and what becomes your identity becomes you. Starting from today, we’re going to learn math differently.”
From that moment on, my mirror neurons and I learned math in a way suited to right-brain, creatively-minded learners. Much to the relief of my parents, I even passed my high school exit exams.
Why am I am telling you this story? Well, I want to show you that there are people who change the lives of others. They don’t necessarily do so consciously, but rather by simply living their own passion. There are people for whom work is not work, because they do exactly what they love; they give something back with their whole being and their whole heart. For me personally, that’s what makes me a successful person. Success is not what’s in your bank account; it’s not having a job where you feel important and can hide behind an impressive title, either your own or your parents’. Success, in my world, is what comes from you. Success is when you are passionate for a cause and make yourself deaf to the negativity in your environment. Success is when you enjoy every breath of life; when you wake up with the realization that you have the potential to play a part in the stories of many others. Most wonderfully of all, you can be successful by doing exactly what you love. On the following pages, I’ll tell you how to pursue this path.
Take the Personality Test
Before we go any further, I want to give you a little freebie. Do you want to have more influence on other people? Would you like it if people would do what you tell them to do? Every human being is special in his or her own way! However, there are certain characteristics which indicate how a person acts in his everyday life, his career, and his or her relationships. We’ve designed a ten-to-fifteen-minute test that lets you determine your personality type. Check it out!
Answer the following fifty questions.
| Question 1: If there is a problem, I ask myself how this problem arose. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 2: I am a self-confident person. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 3: I love to analyze things and work on them until I understand every detail. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 4: Working on my own projects is easier than working in a group. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 5: Others readily allow me to lead them and people trust me. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 6: People do not need authoritarian structures in order to work efficiently. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 7: I am the right person when it comes to giving instructions. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 8: Competition is not important—only the work itself is. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 9: Reading newspapers and watching the news are part of my daily routine. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 10: I love to analyze philosophical issues. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 11: Experiencing adventures and discovering new things make me feel good. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 12: What others say about me is very important. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 13: I know exactly who are the people in my life whom I can trust. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 14: My fellow human beings respect me. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 15: Material security is more important than being successful. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 16: Having expertise in a field is more important than being socially competent. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 17: I am an overly cautious person. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 18: My expertise affords me many advantages. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 19: Sometimes I am too tough and cold-hearted. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 20: It is important for me to do my job well. I am not responsible for innovative thinking. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 21: It is difficult for me to accept hierarchical structures. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 22: I love speedy procedures. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 23: Discipline and decency are important values. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 24: The company I work for needs to exude a warm and cordial atmosphere. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 25: Other people value my expertise. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 26: It is difficult for me to take risks and stay strong, even when necessary. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 27: It takes a long time for me to trust a person. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 28: I am not satisfied until every detail of my task is completed. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 29: I enjoy collecting things and putting them into order. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 30: Life consists of giving and taking. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 31: I am what some might call a control freak. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 32: I would never judge anyone, but what I do not tolerate is giving up. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 33: I am a rather reserved person. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 34: Creative thinking is one of my strengths, and I am good at adapting to new situations. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 35: It is easy for me to work in a team, but I would never lose sight of good competition. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 36: I am the mediator in groups. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 37: I am not good at losing and I often insist on my rights. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 38: When I am successful, I want the world to know it. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 39: I don’t have much endurance and quickly give up. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 40: I have the ability to motivate my colleagues and to drive them on. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 41: As long as I love my job, it is not important how much money I make. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 42: I find it important that the company I work for is successful. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 43: Being successful is the most important thing in life. Everything else is secondary. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 44: I sometimes tend to avoid problematic situations rather than solving them. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 45: My head is full of innovative ideas. | ||||
| True! | False! | |||
| Question 46: Whenever there is a problem,
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