Three Feet from Gold: Turn Your Obstacles Into Opportunities!

I agree with the other reviewer that said it’s not particularly believable in how the parable plays out but who cares? There are so many valuable lessons in this book and it’s a super easy read. I read it with a pencil so I could underline and highlight passages. It’s short and a very worthy book that gives solid life/business advice.

Before writing this review, I did something I very rarely do; I went in and read a few of the other reviews. I purposely don't do that because I don't want the other reviews to influence my own words, but I had already made up my mind on what I wanted to say and something caught my eye in the reviews. So anyway, THREE FEET FROM GOLD, by Sharon Lechter and Greg Reid has some mixed reviews, to say the least. I'm going to give some credibility to the nay-sayers first. It is quite a stretch to believe that a total stranger, after a one-time meeting of only a few minutes, would put up thousands of dollars of their own money to send someone on such a pilgrimage as what is described here. I love parables, but even as parables go, that is a bit of a stretch. So we can certainly settle on this; the story is a little hoaky and more than a little unbelievable. Now, putting that aside, let's look at the content and relevance of this book. The book begins by taking it's namesake from the story Napoleon Hill tells of in "Think and Grow Rich" about R.U. Darby, the man who sold his gold mine to a junk dealer, only to learn later that he was only 3 feet from a major vein. The moral being, never give up, you may only be 3 feet from gold. From this lesson, the subject of the story, Greg, goes on a once in a million lifetimes journey to meet some of the most incredible mentors and successes of our time. The cast of characters in this portion of the "parable" are 100% real, their stories are real, and their message is real. If you destroy books the way I do, you'll end up with highlights, underlines, arrows and margin notes of virtually every page. The cast of mentors is broad and obviously a lot of work went into gathering this information. The story may not be all that, but the information contained within the story is worth it's weight in gold. If you judge your reading material solely on the basis of believability, you will be disappointed here. But if you judge your reading material on the value of the content, then you want this on your "must read" list. From that aspect of it, this is one of the best books I've read this year. If you're looking for a great story, read "To Kill a Mockingbird". If you're looking for a great message, read this book.

I heard about the release of Three Feet From Gold last weekend. I picked it up on Tuesday and read it cover-to-cover on my flight from Minneapolis to Los Angeles on Wednesday. This insightful book captures the key points of Think and Grow Rich and is a terrific refresher. And while the principles of Think and Grow Rich are timeless, the style of writing and examples are understandably a bit dated for today's readers. Three Feet From Gold is written for 2009 -- it is the right book at the right time. You will learn and be inspired as you find encouragement and ideas to persist in the pursuit of your professional dreams. The challenging economic times have created doubt and difficulty for many entrepreneurs. Sharon Lechter and Greg Reid share principles and wisdom from some of the most impressive entrepreneurs and business leaders today, reinforcing and expanding on the Think and Grow Rich concepts. The ideas I received for further improving my own business and myself were invaluable. Thank you for this wonderful book. I am motivated and energized to take my business to a whole new level. I loved Three Feet From Gold and recommend it highly.

This book gives the personal success secrets of how a number of people have achieved success. It's not written like a text book. It's not lecturing you. It's telling you in story form how to succeed. I highly recommend this book to anyone seeking the ability to persevere. Having lived 89 years, I've seen in a lifetime how perseverance and determination pays off. I think so highly of this book that I bought 2 copies; 1 for each of my grandchildren. F Crerie (Phoenix)

"Three Feet from Gold" picks up where the classic "Think and Grow Rich" leaves off. It teaches anyone how to keep on going on when the going gets rough. This easy to read and fun to read book is filled with great examples of people who could have quit but decided to persevere. It will help you develop the mental toughness to persevere in the face of life's storms. Greg Reid spent over a year criss crossing America to personally interview everyone in the book. Buy it, read it and apply it's timeless lessons and you will realize your goals and dreams.

The book reminded me in some ways of the One Minute Manager books. Rather than simply laying out the content in a text book format or a series of short anecdotes, it's written as a novel. What I love about this style of teaching is that it is both educational and entertaining. Once I started reading it, I couldn't put it down. Stories are generally easier for people to remember than mere facts. In this story, a man named Greg is going through personal adversity in his business and his personal life. Greg meets a super-successful businessman, Jonathon Buckland. During his personal journey, he meets with a series of real life successful men and women who share their secrets of success--particularly the value of persistence through adversity. While the story is fictional, most of the people he meets along the way are real people with real lessons that they have learned from their own experiences. This helps bring the ideas and lessons they share out of the "ivory tower" of theory and into the real world of everyday men and women. I liked the way the main character has very real and contemporary problems, but learns how to overcome them with positive persistence and a commitment to self-improvement. As a big fan of Napoleon Hill, I loved the way Hill's teachings are woven into the story. While Greg receives a helping hand from his friends, it's clear that the reason they are helping him is because the gradual improvement in his own attitude and a sincere desire to help improve the lives of other people. I believe that a great book is worth more than it's weight in gold. That is because wisdom and relationships are more valuable than money. Wise thought is the "stuff" that is used to create wealth and success. One of the points made in the book is that "you're the same today as you will be in five years except for two things: the people you meet and the books you read." I think that with the adversity that many people are experiencing today, the message from "Three Feet From Gold" is especially timely. Keep moving forward. Keep growing and learning. Serve others with sincerity. Consistently and persistently apply the proven, timeless principles of success and you can achieve your goals. Since you're reading this review, you are clearly thinking about getting this book. Go ahead, buy it, read it, study it. You won't be disappointed.