The Go-Giver Summary

1-Sentence-Summary: The Go-Giver teaches a pattern for becoming a better person and seeing more success in business and work by focusing on being authentic and giving as much value as possible.

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The Go-Giver Summary

“He’s a real go-getter!”

How many times have you heard this phrase? This might inspire you to work hard to become a millionaire, but it’s pretty misleading. It would seem that making it big in business these days requires snatching every opportunity. You’ve got to focus on your own growth to get ahead, right?

Actually, that’s not how it works. As we’ve seen time and again, the better way is to genuinely care about people. You’re more likely to succeed by putting the spotlight on others needs. What you really need is to become a go-giver by using Bob Burg’s five laws of stratospheric success:

  1. Value
  2. Compensation
  3. Influence
  4. Authenticity
  5. Receptivity

These laws are what Burg’s book The Go-Giver: A Little Story About a Powerful Business Idea is all about. After reading this you’ll see how to take advantage of the power of giving more to receive more. 

Here are the 3 most inspiring lessons about focusing on others more than yourself:

    1. Develop a go-giver mentality to initiate your journey toward unimaginable success and enjoyment in what you do.
    2. Product improvements have limits, but the power of improving customer experience is infinite.
    3. Being authentic is the foundation for people having a positive experience with your business that will have a lasting impact on those you serve.

I hope you’re looking forward to learning how to get the upper hand in business and in life! Let’s go!

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Lesson 1: You’ll enjoy what you do and be more successful if you focus on trying to give your all to help others.

Do you ever feel like the harder you work the further away your dreams seem? If this is the case for you, then what you need is a mindset shift. It’s natural to want to be successful, but the way we look at how we get there is vital to making it actually happen.

Burg’s friend Joe is a perfect example. You could accurately say that he’s a go-getter. He works hard, is ambitious and dedicates himself to his craft. But working harder only seemed to make his goals feel more distant. The difference between successful people and Joe’s way of doing things is that people who actually get ahead focus more on what they can give to others. 

Giving is at the heart of a go-giver attitude. It’s all about focusing on the pleasure of giving, but also that you find what you seek. 

Right now, try to find all the blue objects in the room. Now can you tell me where all the red items are? No, because you were looking for blue! Life is the same way. If you’re afraid that people will cheat you, they will. Worrying you’ll run into conflict only brings it into your life. 

But this principle works for the positive things in life, too. If you look for the good in others, you’ll find it. And if you seek ways that you can do good to others, you’ll see how. This shift in perspective will put you into the go-giver mentality and help you become successful.

Lesson 2: You can only make your product so good, but connecting with your customers has long-lasting positive effects.

Alright so you know that focusing on giving is where it’s at, but what are the details of how this works? This is where Burg’s five laws of stratospheric success come in, the first of which is the law of value. This rule is all about helping your customers have an enjoyable and memorable experience with your work. 

A lot of people think that getting customers to return requires making their product perfect. Sometimes this works, but it’s not possible for every business. A hotdog stand is a great illustration of this principle. You can only make your hot dogs so much better than the next guy’s, right?

That’s why you need to take great care of your customers by giving them a positive feeling if you want to really stand out. 

Consider one hot-dog stand owner named Ernesto. He went above and beyond by remembering customers names, birthdays, and their favorite orders. Everyone that bought from him felt special. It paid off in a big way, too. His business did so well that he eventually owned six restaurants!

Giving and doing good to others reaps the same rewards coming back to you. It’s a small thing, but a customer’s positive experience with you is extremely valuable to them.

Lesson 3: People would rather do business with someone who is authentic than a person that just wants to sell them something.

Do you remember the last time a salesperson accosted you outside of their store? It’s annoying to have to hear them drone on about how “their product is the best.” If you want to succeed in business you need to do the opposite of this and be yourself. 

The law of authenticity is another of Burg’s rules of success. Think back to a time when a company representative was themselves instead of robotically going from their script and you know what I mean. To be genuine, you just need to view people as humans like yourself, rather than just another potential customer. 

Debra Davenport’s story is an example of how this works. When she began, making a sale was difficult for her. She had all the right training and skills and knew about the houses she was selling. But none of that made any difference to her clients. 

This all changed once when Debra decided to have a conversation with a customer about his day. This made the appointment much more relaxed and fun, and in the end she sold the house! It wasn’t long before her newfound ability to engage with clients as people brought her a lot of success.

The moral of the story is when you talk with people, just be yourself! Letting your uniqueness shine is the gateway to becoming truly successful. You can have all the skills in the world, but what people really want to see is your personality.

The Go-Giver Review

The Go-Giver is an excellent and inspiring book that looks at entrepreneurship from a better, more efficient perspective. As a business owner, I’ve seen these principles work for me already and I know how hard it is when I don’t apply them. I highly recommend everyone reads this to improve the effort they give at work, entrepreneur or not.

Who would I recommend The Go-Giver summary to?

The 47-year-old salesman who has a difficult time closing sales and wants a way to improve, the 28-year-old who is considering going into business for herself that is curious to know what will make the biggest impact on her success, and anyone who wants to be successful in their work. 

Last Updated on August 26, 2022

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Luke Rowley

With over 450 summaries that he contributed to Four Minute Books, first as a part-time writer, then as our full-time Managing Editor until late 2021, Luke is our second-most prolific writer. He's also a professional, licensed engineer, working in the solar industry. Next to his day job, he also runs Goal Engineering, a website dedicated to achieving your goals with a unique, 4-4-4 system. Luke is also a husband, father, 75 Hard finisher, and lover of the outdoors. He lives in Utah with his wife and 3 kids.