Trap Tales. David M. R. Covey

p>David M. R. Covey

      Trap Tales

      PRAISE FOR TRAP TALES

      “Trap Tales is a triumph! The book reveals the 7 traps that can turn life's journey into an obstacle course. With clear examples and calls to actions, David Covey and Stephan Mardyks give you tools to escape and avoid these harmful traps. Read this book, apply its wisdom, and live your best life.”

– Ken Blanchard, bestselling coauthor of The New One Minute Manager and Leading At a Higher Level

      “Wow! What a tremendous book. I found myself enraptured by the story. Covey and Mardyks created characters that the reader comes to truly care about and whose stories they want to follow. That, along with very insightful content, creative analogies and relevant examples kept me deeply engaged throughout. I genuinely loved it.”

– Jim Loehr, cofounder of the Human Performance Institute, renowned performance psychologist, bestselling author

      “Covey and Mardyks are a dynamic duo! They've broken free from the standard approach to bring us a novel, hopeful book – one that shows that we can change the trajectory of our lives. If you feel trapped by circumstance or stuck in old patterns of thinking, read Trap Tales and breakthrough.”

– Liz Wiseman, bestselling author of Multipliers and Rookie Smarts

      “Anyone interested in learning how to avoid the basic pitfalls of life will enjoy the engrossing read that Trap Tales delivers. Covey and Mardyks eye opening story of life imparts invaluable wisdom and is an amazing guide for people of all ages.”

– Stedman Graham, bestselling author, speaker and entrepreneur

      “Few in the world of personal and organizational development have a more comprehensive view of all the field has to offer. I highly recommend a careful reading and application of the accumulated wisdom Covey and Mardyks have to offer for both spotting and liberating ourselves from life's most subtle and pernicious traps.”

– Joseph Grenny, cofounder of VitalSmarts and bestselling coauthor of Crucial Conversations

      “Freedom in not only a mental and physical construct.. it is a core human need. Traps catch us and hold us prisoner in unhealthy repetitive cycles. Trap Tales imparts invaluable wisdom that can truly set you free. This book is your key to that freedom.”

– Brian Tracy, bestselling author of The Psychology of Selling and Eat That Frog!

      “Wouldn't it be great to be born with X-ray vision? Imagine being able to see what's up ahead or around the next corner, aware of every obstacle in your path. This entertaining book is an amazing guide that enables the reader to do just that.”

– Bonnie St. John, bestselling author of Live Your Joy and coauthor of Micro-Resilience

      “David and Stephan have identified the most common things that trip us up in our lives and work, and they've supplied a set of practical techniques for directing our focus to transcend them. An easily digestible manual for getting sticky things unstuck!”

– David Allen, bestselling author of Getting Things Done

      “I always believed wisdom could only be acquired through hard-earned experience, but Trap Tales proves me wrong. It is rich with advice you can immediately act on. Read this book and you'll learn specific strategies for avoiding the most common mistakes while capturing life's greatest moments.”

– Andrew Sobel, bestselling author of Clients for Life and Power Questions

      “This book addresses a far more important topic than success in business. Instead, it is a remarkable treatise on overall success in life. It is chock-full of practical advice on how to avoid or extricate yourself from the many traps into which people fall. It is a powerful wake-up call to anyone who is innocently walking into a trap. It also sets some warning flares around traps by vividly and viscerally describing their consequences.”

– Jack Zenger, CEO of Zenger Folkman and co-author of the bestselling The Extraordinary Leader

      “To start thinking about our challenges as traps offers all of us a new and compelling framework that transforms our current predicaments. This book is brimming with insights and approaches that will surprise and amaze you.”

– Don Yaeger, nine-time New York Times bestselling author

      “As story analysts, we appreciate the authors' fine-tuned attention to the story – giving us rich characters and compelling struggles that deliver powerful concepts. David and Stephan have raised the bar for story-based business books.”

– Wendy Gourley and Amy White, directors of Second Sight StudioTrap TalesOutsmarting the 7 Hidden Obstacles to SuccessDavid M. R. CoveyStephan M. Mardyks

      Cover design: Wiley

      Copyright © 2017 by John Wiley and Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.

      Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.

      Published simultaneously in Canada.

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      ISBN 9781119365891 (cloth); ISBN 9781119365907 (ePDF); ISBN 9781119365914 (epub)

      FOREWORD BY STEPHEN M. R. COVEY

      You might think it's automatic to trust your brother because you're related to him, but that's not always the case in families. Fortunately, it is the case in ours!

      I've known David his whole life and I'm grateful to be able to share this foreword to a tremendous book that has the potential to shift your thinking and impact the rest of your life. Not only am I related to David, but I've also worked with him in a variety of capacities, and I truly trust him. Not only because of our shared parentage. Not only because he has sterling character. Yes, character is essential to credibility but so is competence, and David offers towering competence– his unique insight, capabilities, perspective, and expertise. Those