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Pushing Up People: The Secret Behind One of the Most Exciting Success Stories in American Business
Art Williams had a gift. He knew that to win not just one game for his high school team, but begin a legacy of winning, he had to work with the only assets available - his team.
Art had learned from the other mentoring coaches in his life that winning had far more to do with what was in the heart of his players and their “will to win”, than what they looked like, where they came from. Focusing on the hearts absolutely built winning teams, and garnered two “Georgia Coach of Year” awards.
From these simple yet powerful principles, Art Williams went on to build a company that
changed the face of one of the largest industries in the world...the life insurance industry. By applying the philosophy of “Pushing Up People”, a group of 85 former teachers, policeman, fireman, and coaches, built a company of 200,000 strong and literally changed forever the lives of countless families.
So Now.... A step-by-step guide to the “people management” concepts behind one of the greatest success stories in American business.
You’ll Learn...
-Why victory doesn’t always go to the smartest people.
-The three things people want most from their job.
-Four kinds of “failure fears” and how to guard against them
-The power of the “little bit more” principle
-The magic of 90 days
-The Three little words that house the most important leadership principle
-Why winners are made not born.
-The biggest obstacle to keeping success once you make it
-Why you owe it to yourself, and your business to try “Pushing Up People”
Art had learned from the other mentoring coaches in his life that winning had far more to do with what was in the heart of his players and their “will to win”, than what they looked like, where they came from. Focusing on the hearts absolutely built winning teams, and garnered two “Georgia Coach of Year” awards.
From these simple yet powerful principles, Art Williams went on to build a company that
changed the face of one of the largest industries in the world...the life insurance industry. By applying the philosophy of “Pushing Up People”, a group of 85 former teachers, policeman, fireman, and coaches, built a company of 200,000 strong and literally changed forever the lives of countless families.
So Now.... A step-by-step guide to the “people management” concepts behind one of the greatest success stories in American business.
You’ll Learn...
-Why victory doesn’t always go to the smartest people.
-The three things people want most from their job.
-Four kinds of “failure fears” and how to guard against them
-The power of the “little bit more” principle
-The magic of 90 days
-The Three little words that house the most important leadership principle
-Why winners are made not born.
-The biggest obstacle to keeping success once you make it
-Why you owe it to yourself, and your business to try “Pushing Up People”
170 pages, Paperback
First published September 12, 2012
98 people are currently reading
705 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
June 3, 2016
Why I Choose this Book
A family friend highly recommended this book, so highly in fact that he bought it for us. Plus I like Art Williams writing style. I've heard some of his talks on audio and so sometimes I hear his voice in my head when I'm reading his books which is pretty cool.
What I Thought about this Book
I haven't read a lot of Art William's books, but I want to read more. His style is easy to read and very down-to-earth. You can tell he really loves people and genuinely wants what is best for others. Pushing Up People was inspiring to read; it reminded me that even though aspects of reaching my writing goals can be difficult, it's still worth it to push on and continue working.
Pushing Up People covered a wide range of topics from making goals to having the right kind of attitude to how we should view failure and how praise is more powerful than punishments. Overall the book is geared toward leaders and the correct way to treat their employees, but I think the book is a good read for anyone.
Conclusion
I enjoyed this book and breezed right through it. I hope to read it again because it is chocked full of solid principles and good advice.
Rating
I'm giving Pushing Up People four stars and recommending it to anyone twelve and up although some portions of the book don't exactly apply to that age group.
A family friend highly recommended this book, so highly in fact that he bought it for us. Plus I like Art Williams writing style. I've heard some of his talks on audio and so sometimes I hear his voice in my head when I'm reading his books which is pretty cool.
What I Thought about this Book
I haven't read a lot of Art William's books, but I want to read more. His style is easy to read and very down-to-earth. You can tell he really loves people and genuinely wants what is best for others. Pushing Up People was inspiring to read; it reminded me that even though aspects of reaching my writing goals can be difficult, it's still worth it to push on and continue working.
Pushing Up People covered a wide range of topics from making goals to having the right kind of attitude to how we should view failure and how praise is more powerful than punishments. Overall the book is geared toward leaders and the correct way to treat their employees, but I think the book is a good read for anyone.
Conclusion
I enjoyed this book and breezed right through it. I hope to read it again because it is chocked full of solid principles and good advice.
Rating
I'm giving Pushing Up People four stars and recommending it to anyone twelve and up although some portions of the book don't exactly apply to that age group.
November 30, 2025
Blueprint to success and building
March 31, 2022
Great motivating and inspiring book... Art get into details on how to manage, develop and motivate people especially on teams/groups etc the whole process to ultimately "push-up" them to get them going to realise their potential and their belief in themselves so on. Great for people who are looking to start a new company, business and also new ideas on how motivate people for their existing set-ups of all forms/fronts.
March 1, 2020
Put helping others a priority
This book has put my mindset on a different platform. I have always put others before myself and I throughly enjoy helping others. Now I know the example has to start with the way I perform personally, socially, professionally, and intellectually. Thank you book club for giving me this read.
This book has put my mindset on a different platform. I have always put others before myself and I throughly enjoy helping others. Now I know the example has to start with the way I perform personally, socially, professionally, and intellectually. Thank you book club for giving me this read.
July 31, 2020
Some of the info is dated, but overall, the success principles in this book are timeless!
Each point is specific and explained in the plain language of a southern football coach.
We have an old copy, which looks typed and is set up a little tight as far as spacing on the pages is concerned, so it can be a bit confusing to the eye. However, the info is well worth getting past the layout.
Each point is specific and explained in the plain language of a southern football coach.
We have an old copy, which looks typed and is set up a little tight as far as spacing on the pages is concerned, so it can be a bit confusing to the eye. However, the info is well worth getting past the layout.
May 29, 2019
I'm sure this is a great book for someone starting a business. I don't even know why I read it. Motivational, yes. Interesting, yes. Exciting, not so much.
August 1, 2022
Wow I understand leadership better now
Art thank you for documenting your journey and teaching me about leadership I am so grateful for my opportunity and your leadership!
Art thank you for documenting your journey and teaching me about leadership I am so grateful for my opportunity and your leadership!
September 21, 2025
It’s a great book, but some of the principles are pretty repetitive
December 13, 2022
This is one of the greatest books ever! Art built an earth-shaking, game-changing company that rocked one of the hugest (and most unscrupulous) industries out there, and he did it by treating the clients we'll, treating his work force well, by doing the right thing for everybody every time, or, as he says it, "treating people good." It turns out that when you do the right thing , people figure it out, and they come back, and they bring their friends and family! Ultimately, we build better business, and make more money by treating people "good". Every business person should be required to read this book. Every person should be required to read this book. And Art proved it: it works! It works better than the other way.
December 17, 2021
My father is one of the people on the cover having worked for A.L. Williams at the time. I read the book and wrote a report on it for an allowance bonus when I was around ten. I can’t say that I recommend it for a ten year old, but if your parents are paying it’s not a hard read.
June 4, 2008
Your business attitude is a reflection of the way you look at life!
September 7, 2016
A somewhat dated, but still a really good book. Art Williams has some great tips for motivating his workforce.
September 8, 2012
Excellent book! Based on the principles of creating a successful buisness by empowering those around you.
September 26, 2012
Great book ops empowerment and connection with your work force, work group, etc... A bit out dated, but good book.
May 4, 2016
Worthwhile read
I like his simple and truthful approach. Simple but not easy. I like his emphasis on hard work and ethics - a rarity spoken today.
I like his simple and truthful approach. Simple but not easy. I like his emphasis on hard work and ethics - a rarity spoken today.
April 7, 2022
Great focus on what truly matters. Clearly spells out the differences of being a manager versus a quality leader. Worthy of periodic re-reading.
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June 3, 2018Amazing book for anyone wanting to hone their leadership skills and learn how to empower people through build them up!
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews