When Randy Pausch, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon, was asked to give such a lecture, he didn't have to imagine it as his last, since he had recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer. But the lecture he gave - "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams" - wasn't about dying. It was about the importance of overcoming obstacles, of enabling the dreams of others, of seizing every moment (because "time is all you have... and you may find one day that you have less than you think").

In a world inundated with sales books on getting to yes, this audiobook recommends just the opposite, focusing on how increasing your failure rate can greatly accelerate your movement toward ultimate success. Go for No! chronicles four days in the life of fictional character Eric Bratton, a call-reluctant copier salesman who wakes up one morning to find himself in a strange house with no idea of how he got there.

Be honest: Ever lay awake thinking how much more fun married life used to be? If you’re a member of the human race, then the answer is probably “yes” to all of the above. Marriage is a mysterious, often irrational business. Making it work till death do you part—or just till the end of the week—isn’t always easy. And no one ever handed you a user’s manual. Until now.

A five-time Moth GrandSLAM winner and bestselling novelist shows how to tell a great story - and why doing so matters. Whether we realize it or not, we are always telling stories. On a first date or job interview, at a sales presentation or therapy appointment, with family or friends, we are constantly narrating events and interpreting emotions and actions. In this compelling book, storyteller extraordinaire Matthew Dicks presents wonderfully straightforward and engaging tips and techniques for constructing, telling, and polishing stories that will hold the attention of your audience (no matter how big or small).

If You're In My Office, It's Already Too Late. James Sexton knows this. After dealing with over 1000 clients whose marriages have dissolved over everything from an ill-advised threesome with the nanny to the uneven division of carpool duties, he also knows all of the what- not-to-dos for couples who want to build - and consistently work to preserve - a lasting, fulfilling relationship. Described by former clients as a "courtroom gunslinger" and "the sociopath you want on your side", Sexton tells the unvarnished truth about relationships. These usually derive from dishonest communication.

Michael and Kristen Harper are overwhelmed with financial burden. After being introduced to network marketing, Michael believes he may have found a way out. When his three best friends try to discredit the industry, Michael is tempted to trust their opinions. Fortunately, he recalls an encounter he had at his father's funeral with a high school dropout turned multimillionaire named Blake Easton. After discussing it with his wife, Michael decides to call Blake and ask him for financial advice. Little does he know that one simple phone call will send the Harpers on a life-altering journey.

Growing up in poverty, in a family with extremist religious beliefs, Noell Jett knows what it’s like to work hard to survive. When she married Daniel and they began a family together, she discovered the joy of working hard to achieve her dreams. In From the Ground Up, Noell shares the unbelievable story behind her 3,700-square-foot custom farmhouse—built by hand and savvy influencer marketing—and the key strategies she learned about never giving up.

Ever since she was a child, every aspect of Julia Haart’s life—what she wore, what she ate, what she thought—was controlled by the dictates of ultra-Orthodox Judaism. At 19, after a lifetime spent caring for her seven younger siblings, she was married off to a man she barely knew. For the next 23 years, her marriage would rule her life. Eventually, when Haart’s younger daughter, Miriam, started to innocently question why she wasn’t allowed to sing in public, run in shorts, or ride a bike without being covered from neck to knee, Haart reached a breaking point.

Career Magic is full of priceless advice and insightful experience. Lee Cockerell chronicles how he dropped out of college, rose through the ranks at Hilton and Marriott, and eventually became the executive vice president of operations for the Walt Disney World Resort. Lee candidly shares the specific things he did to experience such dramatic success in the corporate world, but he also shares the mistakes he made along the way and the million-dollar lessons he learned that ultimately led him to the top spot at the number one vacation destination in the world.

Exposing the many lies told on and off the psychoanalyst's couch, Lying on the Couch gives listeners a tantalizing, almost illicit glimpse at what their therapists might really be thinking during their sessions. Fascinating, engrossing, and relentlessly intelligent, it ultimately moves listeners with a denouement of surprising humanity and redemptive faith.

Want to know how to read the personality of anyone in 60 seconds or less to create pain free communication? You will now have the power to do just that! Anything from getting that promotion at work to creating harmony at home is all within your reach! Learn the easy tips and tricks to having it all by understanding how we are each different and what pushes the "action" buttons in other people. Success can be yours and it isn't even hard. Take control of your relationships now and for good. Unleash the power of personality profiling using the DISC Personality Assessment System.

For years, Michelle LeClair, former president of Scientology's international humanitarian organization, tried to reconcile her same-sex attraction with the anti-gay ideology of the church. Michelle finally ends her horrific marriage, finds the love of her life, a woman, and ultimately leaves the Church. But the split comes at a terrible price. In this tell-all memoir, Michelle offers an insider's perspective on Scientology's pervasive influence, secret rituals, and ruthless practices for keeping members in line.

Soul in the Game is a book of inspiring stories and hard-won lessons on how to live a meaningful life, crafted by investor and writer Vitaliy Katsenelson. Drawing from the lives of classical composers, ancient Stoics, and contemporary thinkers, Katsenelson weaves together a tapestry of practical wisdom that has helped him overcome his greatest challenges: in work, family, identity, health—and in dealing with success, failure, and more.

Follow Your Heart is about doing what you love and finding peace of mind. It is about dealing with disasters and not blaming your mother! It is about how happy people think, why rich people make money - even by accident - and it's about what losers do, and how not to be like them!

Entitlemania is an epidemic. Well-intentioned parents across the country are enabling a ''me'' generation of children who lack the wisdom and satisfaction of accomplishment that only struggle and adversity can bring. A groundbreaking book, Entitlemania sheds important light on an increasingly pervasive social trend affecting children at every age - and at every income bracket. Entitlemania will provide practical strategies like creating boundaries, walking your talk, and allowing children to fend for themselves.

Follow Your Heart is about doing what you love and finding peace of mind. It is about dealing with disasters and not blaming your mother! It is about how happy people think, why rich people make money - even by accident - and it's about what losers do, and how not to be like them!

How many times have you tried to change your own habits, only to find that changing yourself is even harder than trying to change someone else? With his signature wit and commonsense psychology, Dr. Kevin Leman walks you through your own personal five-day action plan. You will come to accept the truth about yourself, boost your confidence by identifying the lies you’re telling yourself (and putting them to rest for good), and change your life by concentrating on becoming who you really want to be.

Some people feel they don't measure up to anyone's expectations. As a result, they tend to procrastinate, set unrealistic goals, or continually try to please others. With the positive, no-nonsense strategies offered in When Your Best Isn't Good Enough, listeners can raise their low self-perception and overcome these feelings of rejection and inadequacy.

With the knowledge of a seasoned business consultant and the warmth and wit of a natural storyteller, the Wizard will help you to multiply the effectiveness of your advertising, understand the tug-of-war between intellect and emotion, and more.

Heloise considers it a blessing to be a person who seldom attracts attention. In her suburb, she's just a mom, the young widow with the forgettable job, who somehow never misses a soccer game. In the state capital, she's the redheaded lobbyist with a good cause and a mediocre track record. But in discreet hotel rooms throughout the area, she's the woman of your dreams - if you can afford the hourly fee. For more than a decade, Heloise believed she was safe, managing to keep up this rigidly compartmentalized life. But her secret life is under siege. One county over, another so-called suburban madam has been found dead in her car, an apparent suicide.

A deep yet simple guide to revolutionizing the romance-building communication every thriving marriage needs. Love Talk is like no other communication book you've ever listened to. The fruit of years of research by two foremost relationship experts (who also happen to be husband and wife), this book forges a new path to the heart of loving conversation. You'll begin by identifying your security need and determining your personal communication style.

Everyone imagines top CEOs as larger-than-life figures who do things no one else could. But deep down every good business leader is an everyman who combines vision and high energy with the ability to connect with all types of people and learn from them

Blending literature and memoir, Ann Patchett, author of State of Wonder and Bel Canto examines her deepest commitments: to writing, family, friends, dogs, books, and her husband in This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage. Together, these essays, previously published in The Atlantic, Harper, Vogue, and The Washington Post, form a resonant portrait of a life lived with loyalty and with love.

Arthur is a chauffeur who is intellectually gifted. Jonathan is no less bright than Arthur, equally hard-working, yet a billionaire. So why is Jonathan in the back seat of the limousine and Arthur in the front? What explains the difference between success and failure? Joachim de Posada found the answer in a Stanford University study of children who were able to delay gratification by not eating a marshmallow with the promise of receiving another one if they resisted eating the first for 15 minutes.

What does a megasuccess like Al Franken - best selling author, Emmy-award winning television star, and honorary Ph.D. - have to say to ordinary people like you? Well, as Dr. Al himself says, "There's no point in getting advice from hopeless failures." Filled with wisdom, observations, and practical tips you can put to work right away, this is a cradle-to-grave guide to living, an easy-to-follow user's manual for human existence.

Everywhere she looked, Fawn Weaver saw negative portrayals of marriage dominating the airwaves and dooming everyone to failure. Looking at Keith, the love of her life, she knew that wasn't true. Happy Wives Club is Fawn's journey across the world to meet her friends and discover what makes their marriages great. Join her on this exciting, exotic trip across six continents and through more than 18 cities.

New York Times best-selling author Iyanla Vanzant recounts the last decade of her life and the spiritual lessons learned—from the price of success during her meteoric rise as a TV celebrity on Oprah, the Iyanla TV show (produced by Barbara Walters), to the dissolution of her marriage and her daughter's 15 months of illness and death on Christmas day.

Two very different women with this in common: Each harbors her own secret, her own reason why she can't just let this go. Neither can yield, not before they've dredged up all that's hidden, even if it has the power to shatter all they've built.

Behavioral economist Dan Ariely revolutionized the way we think about ourselves, our minds, and our actions in his books Predictably Irrational, The Upside of Irrationality, and The Honest Truth About Dishonesty. Ariely applies this scientific analysis of the human condition in his "Ask Ariely" Q and A column in the Wall Street Journal, in which he responds to readers who write in with personal conundrums ranging from the serious to the curious.

Linda Kaplan Thaler and Robin Koval have moved to the top of the advertising industry by following a simple but powerful philosophy: it pays to be nice. While so many companies encourage a dog-eat-dog mentality, The Kaplan Thaler Group has succeeded through chocolate and flowers.