SEE YOU AT THE TOP Read online

  I BELIEVE

  You can have everything in life

  you want if you will just help enough

  other people get what they want.

  Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Edition

  Formerly entitled

  Biscuits, Fleas, and Pump Handles

  By Zig Ziglar

  Illustrated by Al Mayton

  PELICAN PUBLISHING COMPANY

  Gretna 2009

  Copyright © 1975, 1977, 2000

  By Zig Ziglar All rights reserved

  Printing History

  First Edition

  1 printing in English

  First Revised Edition

  56 printings in English

  6 printings in French

  4 printings in Spanish

  1 printing in Portuguese

  1 printing in Chinese

  1 printing in Italian

  1 printing in Polish

  1 printing in Czechoslovakian

  1 printing in Indonesian

  1 printing in simplified Chinese characters

  1 printing in Korean

  1 printing in Serbian

  1 printing in Turkish

  1 printing in Slovenian

  1 printing in India (English language)

  1 printing in Malaysia (English language)

  Second Revised Edition

  First printing, June 2000

  * * *

  The word “Pelican” and the depiction of a pelican

  are trademarks of Pelican Publishing Company, Inc.,

  and are registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

  * * *

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Ziglar, Zig. See you at the top / by Zig Ziglar ; illustrated by Al Mayton.—2nd rev. ed.

  p. cm. “Twenty-fifth anniversary edition.” Rev. ed. of: Biscuits, fleas, and pump handles. 1974. ISBN 1-56554-706-3 (alk. paper); 9781455611805 (eBook version)

  1. Conduct of life. I. Ziglar, Zig. Biscuits, fleas, and pump handles. II. Title.

  BJ1581.2 .Z53 2000 158.1—dc21 00-038530

  No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or by any information storage or retrieval system without permission in writing from the publisher. Permission to teach classes based on this book are reserved by the author. For information regarding classes based on this book, write: The Zig Ziglar Corporation, 2009 Chenault Drive, Carrollton, Texas 75006.

  Special Discounts are available on corporate and premium purchases. Contact Special Sales Department, Pelican Publishing Company.

  Manufactured in the United States of America Published by Pelican Publishing Company, Inc. 1000 Burmaster Street, Gretna, Louisiana 70053

  To Sugar Baby

  The Redhead who has been

  my wife and my life for

  more than half a century—and

  the best is yet to come

  I BELIEVE

  Man was designed for accomplishment

  engineered for success

  and endowed with the seeds of greatness

  Table of Contents

  Why Revise See You at the Top?

  Foreword

  Acknowledgments

  Segment One Stairway to the Top

  Chapter 1 The “More” Way of Life

  Chapter 2 The Time Is Now

  Segment Two Your Self-Image

  Chapter 3 The Thieves

  Chapter 4 Causes of a poor Self-Image

  Chapter 5 Manifestations of a poor Self-Image

  Chapter 6 Fifteen Steps to a Healthy Self-Image

  Segment Three Your Relationship with Others

  Chapter 7 The Way You See Others

  Chapter 8 Good Or Bad, You pass It On

  Chapter 9 The Most Important “Other” person

  Segment Four Goals

  Chapter 10 Are Goals Really Necessary?

  Chapter 11 Characteristics of Goals

  Chapter 12 Setting Your Goals

  Chapter 13 Reaching Your Goals

  Segment Five Attitude

  Chapter 14 Is the “Right” Attitude Important?

  Chapter 15 Ensuring Your Attitude

  Chapter 16 Step Four—Feed Your Mind

  Chapter 17 Habits and Attitudes

  Chapter 18 Stop Bad Habits—Start Good Habits

  Chapter 19 The Subconscious Mind

  Segment Six Work

  Chapter 20 Workers Are Winners

  Chapter 21 Be Ready

  Chapter 22 priming, pumping, and producing

  Segment Seven Desire

  Chapter 23 From Mediocrity to Meteority

  Chapter 24 Intelligent Ignorance

  Chapter 25 David and Goliath

  Chapter 26 America the Beautiful

  WHY REVISE

  SEE YOU AT THE TOP?

  To be candid, I wrestled with whether or not we should publish a revision of See You at the Top. However, I believe there are some compelling reasons for updating and making critical changes in the book. First, Communism is no longer a factor in the former Soviet Union, so I eliminated much of the information concerning that subject. Second, in the relationships section, I felt I could make the information substantially more helpful and less controversial as far as the husband-wife relationship is concerned. Third, one of the examples in the goals segment was in error, and I felt that it should be corrected. I also felt it was important to update some of the things that have changed since See You at the Top was written.

  The only reason for my concern about the revision was the fact that the book has been translated into so many different languages and is now in its 58th printing, with nearly two million copies having been sold worldwide. In addition, twenty-five years after the initial publication, we are still selling thousands of copies in hardcover every year. Authors and publishers tend to be a little hesitant to revise a work that has had—and continues to have—such a dramatic impact, as evidenced by literally thousands of letters from around the world. The very strong feeling that I could make the book better compelled me to make the changes.

  Just to give you a family and career update, my activities have shifted slightly by virtue of the fact that I’m not doing as much speaking and am doing considerably more writing. I do only about fifty corporate engagements each year now, but do teach a large Sunday school class forty-five times each year. In addition, we are creating more training programs in our company to continue to reach a larger audience. From time to time people ask me when I’m going to retire. Some even say they’ve heard that I have retired. My response to those people is always, “You heard wrong. You should have heard I was ‘refired.’ I’m not going to ease up, let up, shut up or give up until I’m taken up. As a matter of fact, I’m just getting warmed up.” All of that to say that I am having more fun, have more things going, and am more excited about what I’m doing than ever before in my life. I can’t see the benefit of stopping something I’m enjoying so thoroughly, particularly since my mail assures me that I’m still playing a role in many people’s lives.

  To bring you up to date from a family perspective, the Redhead (my wife, whom I lovingly refer to as “The Redhead,” but her name is Jean) and I just celebrated in 1999 our 53rd honeymoon. We have four children, four grandchildren, and three step-grandchildren, and all of us live within driving distance of one another. Our oldest daughter, Jean Suzanne Ziglar Witmeyer, went home to be with the Lord on May 13, 1995, and it left a huge hole in our family. But it also drew all of us closer together and strengthened our faith.

  My son, John Thomas, whom I call Tom, is the president and CEO of The Zig Ziglar Network. My son-in-law, Richard Oates, who is married to Cindy, our middle daughter, i
s our executive vice president and chief operating officer. My youngest daughter, Julie Ziglar Norman, is the editor of my books and newspaper column. Cindy is very busy with her therapy dog, “Dr. Emmitt Oates,” and she’s having a ball as a volunteer at Baylor Hospital. In May of 1999, Cindy was recognized by Baylor as the “Volunteer of the Year” in the animal therapy division.

  The Redhead and I travel and spend more time together than ever before. I still find it difficult to believe that I’ve been blessed with such a beautiful family, starting with the wonderful wife God gave me back in 1946. We are more in love, do more things together, talk more, and have more fun than ever. God is good.

  Dallas, Texas March 2000

  THE END

  Perhaps this is an unusual way to start a book, but this is an “unusual” book. It’s about you, your family, your future, and how you can get more out of all of them by giving more to each of them. We believe that this is “the end,” or at least the beginning of the end, of negative thinking, negative action, and negative reaction; the end of defeatism and despondency; the end of settling for less than you deserve to have and are capable of obtaining; the end of being influenced by little people, with little minds thinking little thoughts about the trivia that is the stock and trade of Mr. and Mrs. Mediocrity. In short, for you, it is the end of the world’s most deadly disease—“Hardening of the Attitudes.”

  You were born to win.

  FOREWORD

  The word “different” will probably come into your mind every time you open the pages of See You at the Top. The dust jacket is different, and to start with “The End” is certainly different. The book is different in “feel,” “subject matter,” and “technique.” For example, I will often “shift gears” on you and insert one of the over 800 analogies, examples, one-liners, or power phrases used in this book to force you to pause and hopefully re-read the material to make certain you got the message. I will also emphasize a “different” theme in today’s market place as I stress that you can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want.

  As the author, I believe that the entire book is different and effective, but my objective was not to write a book that was “different.” The difference evolved because I wrote the book as I speak. (I’m like the cross-eyed discus thrower. I don’t set any records, but I do keep the crowd alert.) Over the years, I have given the speech “Biscuits, Fleas and Pump Handles,” the original title of this book, over 3,000 times. Initially, the material only covered a forty-five minute presentation. Through the years that forty-five-minute talk has expanded into this full length book, the “I CAN” course, which is being taught in schools and churches, and the “Born To Win” seminar, a three-day course I teach twice each year in Dallas, Texas.

  I cover a lot of subjects in See You at the Top, but my major objective is to communicate my feelings on faith, love, optimism, and enthusiasm. This is important because in today’s world many people are confused about what real love and real faith are, and are too “sophisticated” to show their true feelings and display real enthusiasm for anything.

  On love—I plead guilty to loving the Lord, my wife, my family, my fellowman, and America.

  On faith—I don’t know what tomorrow holds, but I know Who holds tomorrow, so I approach it with confidence and thanksgiving. My Bible assures me that my past is forgiven and forgotten. That takes care of my past. Jesus Christ said, “I have come that you might have life and have it more abundantly.” That takes care of the present. John 3:16 assures me I will have everlasting life. That takes care of my future. With my past forgiven, my present secure, and my future irrevocably guaranteed, why shouldn’t I be enthusiastically optimistic?

  See You at the Top is a philosophy, but there is little theory involved. The ideas, procedures, and techniques come from a lifetime of living. It incorporates a lifetime of sales and people development experience, as well as personal involvement with many of the world’s top professionals from virtually every field of endeavor. The utilization of the ideas and techniques in this book will mean that you’re learning from other people’s experiences—not other people’s theories. This is the only practical way to grow because it’s too frustrating, too time consuming, and far too expensive to learn everything from personal experience.

  I say with candor and complete conviction that had this particular book been available when I started competing in the game of life, my progress would have been faster and my results better. Obviously, I believe you’ll be richer in many ways if you utilize this philosophy that I spent over 2,000 hours refining and committing to paper.

  I am hopeful you will be like the many See You at the Top readers who enthusiastically stress that this is a book you never finish. You can pick it up, open it to any page for a mental snack, read a chapter for a full mental meal, or read it from cover to cover as a way of life. Then you start over.

  God bless you, and if you utilize the ideas in this book, I will “see you at the top.”

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  It would be impossible to more than scratch the surface in the form of acknowledgments to the many individuals who have helped me through the years. However, some have contributed so much that their names literally jump off the pages of my life and demand recognition. Heading the list is my “Sugar Baby,” who gives my life meaning while making it fun and worthwhile. Her love has been the steadying and motivating factor that is and always has been present, regardless of circumstances.

  My mother, through her living examples of faith, courage, common sense, and love, gave me the foundation for life and much material for this book.

  Mr. and Mrs. John Anderson played a prominent role in my life. Mr. Anderson served as a “substitute father” and treated me like a son, as he blended genuine interest with love and/or discipline as the situation demanded.

  Mr. Walter Haining taught me a lot about “horse sense” and selling myself to the public. Ditto for Bill Cranford, my first sales manager, whose patience and personal interest transcended the normal sales manager—salesman relationship.

  For sheer drama, the short time I spent with P.C. Merrell is unmatched. He “turned me on, turned me around, and boosted me up” with the gift of believing in myself.

  Hal Krause gave me national and international exposure through his company and made the road I traveled as a speaker and author considerably easier. My colleagues on the platform—Cavett Robert, Bob Richards, Bill Gove, Dick Gardner, Ken McFarland, and Charlie Cullen—all played important roles in the areas of encouragement, instruction and inspiration.

  Bernie Lofchick, “Brother Bern,” whose advice, help, encouragement, and belief in me and the “Zigmanship” philosophy was vitally important in furthering my career and my personal life as well.

  My friend, former associate, and fellow speaker Dan Bellus, whose experience was invaluable in the publication of the original edition. Carroll Phillips, whose attentiveness to detail and specifics of instruction contributed greatly to the clarity and effectiveness of See You at the Top.

  Patti Bond, who typed page after page at an incredible speed, and Jorita Symington, my secretary, who “held things together” through it all. Both rate reams of praise and a heartfelt thank you for their contributions.

  Anne Anderson of Nashville, Tennessee, gets a “special” bit of gratitude for introducing me to Sister Jessie, who opened my eyes to the joy of living a fuller, richer life on earth while making certain that I spend eternity with Jesus Christ.

  I would be remiss and even ungrateful if I did not acknowledge the help given me by my brothers and sisters. There has always been a deep love and strong sense of encouragement among us. I hope this effort on my part will be meaningful to each of them.

  Finally, there are my children. Each one is unique and deeply loved in a special way. Suzan, my first born, provided me with much stimulating conversation and encouragement. Cindy, the middle child, quietly comes and goes as she makes her presence
felt everywhere. Julie, the little one, is everywhere doing everything. Tom, the son whose belated but welcome appearance keeps me young and hopping. Each has given me much pleasure and occasionally a little pain. Each has contributed immeasurably to family enjoyment and solidarity. Each was a gift from God for which I thank Him every day.

  To all of you whom I have named, please accept my deepest thanks. To you whom I have not named, please know that even though you are unnamed in this work, you are not unknown to me and you are appreciated more than you know.

  To all of you, God bless you, have a good forever, and I’ll see you at the top.

  IT’S TRUE

  What lies behind us and what lies before us

  are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.

  RALPH WALDO EMERSON

  AND

  You are the only one who can use your

  ability. It is an awesome responsibility.

  SEGMENT ONE

  Stairway to the Top

  Purpose:

  I. To open your mind, stir your imagination, and make you think. To arouse your curiosity and create a healthy dissatisfaction with your status quo.

  II. To identify the things you want in life and chart a course of action to get them.

  III. To arouse the sleeping giant inside you.

  IV. To assist you in recognizing and overcoming your loser’s limps.