The Energy Bus summary

Joy offered George an incredible opportunity, but it wasn’t until his wife and boss told him he was poised to lose everything that he was ready to accept it. Once he did, he committed to learning Joy’s ten rules for a new life. The first rule was: become the driver of your own bus and take back control.

Here’s how his journey began.

Everybody knows that it can be difficult to focus on the positive, but working on your attitude and outlook on the world can make all the difference. Your perception of events is entirely within your control.

Just take the formula E + P = O. It says that Events + Perception/Positive Energy = Outcome. In other words, there are lots of things you’ve got no control over, but what you do control is how you perceive those events. So, by choosing to have positive thoughts, rather than negative ones, you can achieve better results.

Whether it’s at work with your colleagues or at home with your partner, happiness and success often rely on teamwork. After all, a happy family life and a successful work environment can only be achieved when everyone does their part.

So, as George began to realize his vision in life, he started to get worried; if he was the only one approaching his work with passion and energy, it was unlikely that he’d be able to pull off a successful product launch or improve his marriage. Luckily, Joy was on hand with rule number four: tell others about your vision and ask them to join you.

When George met with his team again, he was shocked to hear that one team member, José, didn’t want a seat on the bus. George was surprised because José was one of his best employees. This unexpected development made George question his vision; how could he succeed if others didn’t want to help him?

Well, it’s actually less important than George might think. If people don’t want to get on the bus, you shouldn’t try to convince them.

Have you ever known someone who gets ridiculously excited about new albums or movies? Have you noticed that seeing such an energetic person describe their passion fills you with excitement and happiness as well?

It’s only a natural response. After all, the human body can sense the emotions of others. Just take a study from the Institute of HeartMath, an American research and education institution that specializes in the way the heart influences well-being. Their research found that the heart can transmit emotions through its own electromagnetic field. Not just that, but such a field can be sensed from a distance of up to ten feet!

You’ve probably noticed that you work harder when others recognize your efforts and care about you. It seems obvious, but it points to a deeper human need for appreciation.

In other words, by loving your team members, you can make them feel good, but also motivate them to do their best work and follow you wherever you go. That’s why rule number eight is to love the passengers on your bus.

By implementing all the rules you’ve learned so far, George managed to get his marriage back on track and spend more time than ever with his kids. However, as his product launch approached, George wondered how he could inject another shot of energy into his team.

To do so, he needed to understand that purpose makes his work easier. A story about President Johnson and a janitor at NASA offers a great example. The president was visiting the space program when he encountered a custodian enthusiastically cleaning the floors. The president told the man that he was probably the best janitor he had ever met, to which the janitor responded, “Sir, I’m not a janitor. I just helped put a man on the moon.”