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Shift into a Higher Gear: Better Your Best and Live Life to the Fullest
Kick fear-based living to the curb and discover exactly how to manifest the life of your dreams!
Is there another level of life that you want to live? Are there goals you’ve been struggling to achieve? Are there areas of your life where you’ve settled for excuses instead of excellence?
With close to two decades of experience working with high achievers globally, peak performance expert Delatorro McNeal II is passionate about teaching people how to live life full throttle. A motorcycle enthusiast, McNeal uses biking metaphors to vividly illustrate how to reject the monotony of living on cruise control. Packed with exercises, journaling activities, compelling questions, and thought-provoking stories, analogies, and examples, this book teaches you the psychology and methodology of shifting into a higher gear. Each of the twelve chapters starts with the word Shift and invites you to make a simple but profound change that will accelerate your results and expand the horizons of your possibilities. You’ll discover how to
From the introduction all the way through to the conclusion, this book is a transformational seminar on paper. Join Delatorro McNeal as he takes you on the personal development journey of a lifetime.
Is there another level of life that you want to live? Are there goals you’ve been struggling to achieve? Are there areas of your life where you’ve settled for excuses instead of excellence?
With close to two decades of experience working with high achievers globally, peak performance expert Delatorro McNeal II is passionate about teaching people how to live life full throttle. A motorcycle enthusiast, McNeal uses biking metaphors to vividly illustrate how to reject the monotony of living on cruise control. Packed with exercises, journaling activities, compelling questions, and thought-provoking stories, analogies, and examples, this book teaches you the psychology and methodology of shifting into a higher gear. Each of the twelve chapters starts with the word Shift and invites you to make a simple but profound change that will accelerate your results and expand the horizons of your possibilities. You’ll discover how to
From the introduction all the way through to the conclusion, this book is a transformational seminar on paper. Join Delatorro McNeal as he takes you on the personal development journey of a lifetime.
- GenresSelf Help
192 pages, Paperback
Published October 19, 2021
5 people are currently reading
133 people want to read
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January 10, 2022Think of your life as a motorcycle, and make sure you’re sitting on it the right way – facing forward, with the past behind you and your vision of the future in front of you. Put up the kickstand of fear and excuses; get out of park, reverse, or neutral; and shift into a higher and higher gear by making small, steady changes in your life. Tap into the power of the emotions you want as your engine, lean into the direction you want to travel, and get a posse to join you on your journey.
Actionable advice:
Form a mastermind group.
“Two heads are better than one,” goes an old saying. Well, do you know what’s even better than two heads? Three or more! Instead of just finding one accountability partner, put together a mastermind group of about four other people with common goals, like investing, losing weight, or parenting. Meet on a regular basis, and act as accountability partners, mentors, and mates to each other.
---
Shift your life by making small, steady changes.
Let’s go back to our motorcycle of life metaphor. We’ve looked at the front and rear wheels. Now we can add another component: the kickstand.
On a motorcycle, the kickstand not only keeps the vehicle upright when it’s parked; when the kickstand is down, it also prevents the engine from starting – a safety feature meant to avert accidental ignitions. To turn on a motorcycle, you’ve got to show the bike you’re ready to ride by putting up the kickstand.
So what’s the kickstand on your metaphorical motorcycle of life? It’s your fears and excuses. They keep you safe – but they also keep you from going anywhere. With the power of cognitive reframing and faith, you know how to put up your metaphorical motorcycle’s kickstand.
Now it’s time to rev up your engine and move forward – which brings us to our next topic: shifting.
The key message is this: Shift your life by making small, steady changes.
Assuming you’re an ambitious person, you probably have some pretty big goals you want to achieve – projects, promotions, business ventures, fitness targets, or whatever the case may be. You also probably want to accomplish those big goals as quickly as possible.
As a result, it might seem like you have to make equally big and rapid changes in your life to be successful. But think of all those people who try to lose weight by making a sudden, drastic change in their diet. It usually doesn’t work out. And that’s because massive, drastic changes are rarely sustainable. People might keep them up for a few days or weeks, but then they get worn out, give up, and go back to their old ways. Then they’re right back where they started.
You can avoid this common mistake by trying to shift your habits, behaviors, and performance, rather than trying to leap to whole new levels in one bound. That means making small but steady changes. Instead of trying to become 100 percent better at something overnight, try to get one percent better at it every day.
Imagine getting just one percent better at managing your money, working with your colleagues, taking care of your body, understanding your target audience, or parenting your kids. Pretty manageable, right? And now imagine doing that consistently, day after day. At first, it won’t seem like much, but over time, it will add up to a major transformation.
---
Make sure you’re leaning in the right direction, with a “posse” supporting you.
To get where you want to go, you’ve got to make sure you’re heading in the right direction. If you’re driving a car, that’s a pretty easy task. Want to head left? Just turn the steering wheel that way.
But on a motorcycle, it’s a much bigger effort. You’ve got to lean your whole body and shift your weight in the direction you want to turn. And if you’re riding with someone sitting behind you, it’s also a team effort. If you lean left, your riding partner has to lean left as well. Otherwise, you could end up crashing.
The same lessons apply to achieving our goals and dreams. Steering your life in the direction you want to go is all about where you’re putting your weight – and whether you’ve got a posse of riding partners who are leaning in sync with you.
The key message here is: Make sure you’re leaning in the right direction, with a “posse” supporting you.
On the metaphorical motorcycle of life, your weight is your time and effort. Wherever you shift your weight is where you’ll end up going. If you want to improve something in your life, you’ve got to invest more time and effort in it.
Want a better family life? Schedule more outings together. Want to improve your health? Go to the gym more often. Want to build your business? Cultivate deeper relationships with your customers.
Don’t just let your ideas float around in your head. Write them down, find some mentors who can provide you with guidance on how to execute them, and then dive in.
In addition to mentors, it can also help to find some mates. These are people who are at similar stages of the journey you’re undertaking, and who can provide you with a sense of camaraderie and support. They can also be your accountability partners, checking in on your progress and keeping you on track with losing weight, writing a book, starting a business, or doing whatever it is you want to do.
Finally, pay all that support forward by finding some mentees – people at an earlier stage of your journey, to whom you can be a mentor. In teaching them, you’ll also be learning many valuable lessons yourself, as you review your past experiences and distill them into wisdom you can impart to others.
Put all of these types of people together, and you’ve got a posse that can help you steer in the direction you want to go. Remember: You’re the driver at the helm of the motorcycle that is your life – but you don’t have to ride alone!
Actionable advice:
Form a mastermind group.
“Two heads are better than one,” goes an old saying. Well, do you know what’s even better than two heads? Three or more! Instead of just finding one accountability partner, put together a mastermind group of about four other people with common goals, like investing, losing weight, or parenting. Meet on a regular basis, and act as accountability partners, mentors, and mates to each other.
---
Shift your life by making small, steady changes.
Let’s go back to our motorcycle of life metaphor. We’ve looked at the front and rear wheels. Now we can add another component: the kickstand.
On a motorcycle, the kickstand not only keeps the vehicle upright when it’s parked; when the kickstand is down, it also prevents the engine from starting – a safety feature meant to avert accidental ignitions. To turn on a motorcycle, you’ve got to show the bike you’re ready to ride by putting up the kickstand.
So what’s the kickstand on your metaphorical motorcycle of life? It’s your fears and excuses. They keep you safe – but they also keep you from going anywhere. With the power of cognitive reframing and faith, you know how to put up your metaphorical motorcycle’s kickstand.
Now it’s time to rev up your engine and move forward – which brings us to our next topic: shifting.
The key message is this: Shift your life by making small, steady changes.
Assuming you’re an ambitious person, you probably have some pretty big goals you want to achieve – projects, promotions, business ventures, fitness targets, or whatever the case may be. You also probably want to accomplish those big goals as quickly as possible.
As a result, it might seem like you have to make equally big and rapid changes in your life to be successful. But think of all those people who try to lose weight by making a sudden, drastic change in their diet. It usually doesn’t work out. And that’s because massive, drastic changes are rarely sustainable. People might keep them up for a few days or weeks, but then they get worn out, give up, and go back to their old ways. Then they’re right back where they started.
You can avoid this common mistake by trying to shift your habits, behaviors, and performance, rather than trying to leap to whole new levels in one bound. That means making small but steady changes. Instead of trying to become 100 percent better at something overnight, try to get one percent better at it every day.
Imagine getting just one percent better at managing your money, working with your colleagues, taking care of your body, understanding your target audience, or parenting your kids. Pretty manageable, right? And now imagine doing that consistently, day after day. At first, it won’t seem like much, but over time, it will add up to a major transformation.
---
Make sure you’re leaning in the right direction, with a “posse” supporting you.
To get where you want to go, you’ve got to make sure you’re heading in the right direction. If you’re driving a car, that’s a pretty easy task. Want to head left? Just turn the steering wheel that way.
But on a motorcycle, it’s a much bigger effort. You’ve got to lean your whole body and shift your weight in the direction you want to turn. And if you’re riding with someone sitting behind you, it’s also a team effort. If you lean left, your riding partner has to lean left as well. Otherwise, you could end up crashing.
The same lessons apply to achieving our goals and dreams. Steering your life in the direction you want to go is all about where you’re putting your weight – and whether you’ve got a posse of riding partners who are leaning in sync with you.
The key message here is: Make sure you’re leaning in the right direction, with a “posse” supporting you.
On the metaphorical motorcycle of life, your weight is your time and effort. Wherever you shift your weight is where you’ll end up going. If you want to improve something in your life, you’ve got to invest more time and effort in it.
Want a better family life? Schedule more outings together. Want to improve your health? Go to the gym more often. Want to build your business? Cultivate deeper relationships with your customers.
Don’t just let your ideas float around in your head. Write them down, find some mentors who can provide you with guidance on how to execute them, and then dive in.
In addition to mentors, it can also help to find some mates. These are people who are at similar stages of the journey you’re undertaking, and who can provide you with a sense of camaraderie and support. They can also be your accountability partners, checking in on your progress and keeping you on track with losing weight, writing a book, starting a business, or doing whatever it is you want to do.
Finally, pay all that support forward by finding some mentees – people at an earlier stage of your journey, to whom you can be a mentor. In teaching them, you’ll also be learning many valuable lessons yourself, as you review your past experiences and distill them into wisdom you can impart to others.
Put all of these types of people together, and you’ve got a posse that can help you steer in the direction you want to go. Remember: You’re the driver at the helm of the motorcycle that is your life – but you don’t have to ride alone!
November 3, 2021
I absolutely love this book & the workbook too! It’s helping me to put so many things into perspective AND to implement it in my life. I truly appreciate how the author took practical principles & found a unique & creative way for people to grasp & envision a life full of purpose. One of my favorite chapters is, chapter eight. Shift Your Posse, because Who You Ride with Matters. This is so key & important because we need people who pour into our life. It’s essential to help us grow. If you haven’t purchased the book, BUY IT! It’s full of golden nuggets that’ll help shift into a higher gear!
October 29, 2021
This book is AMAZING!!! Chapter 5 is my favorite because I'm a word person and strive to be careful of what I say. Dr. Delatorro knocked it out of the park with this one!! Anyone who wants to simply do more in life, get this book. Whether in business or personally, with relationships or finances, spirituality and beyond - this is an amazing book. If you don't have it, grab your copy immediately!!!
November 14, 2021
Shift Into A Higher Gear is one of those books, that is a good, practical read that gives you ACTIONABLE tools you can leverage to apply to your life immediately. From goal setting to emotional intelligence to being cognizant of the words you tell yourself (and so much more) this is the book you need if you're looking to...well, shift your life in a positive direction.
November 17, 2021
I like how McNeal was consistent with his motorcycle metaphors. They really helped to set a picture of how goals and life works. I also enjoyed that he kept saying things like "I am so proud of you." Everyone needs to hear those words. They are such powerful words that can really make a difference for people.
October 30, 2021
If you need to become unstuck, if you want to level up, if you need to find out how to shift to the next level of your life, Then you need this In your life! Go get this book now! Shift into a Higher Gear” Outstanding read!
November 3, 2021
Shift Into a Higher Gear is packed with so many digestible life lessons that You can 100% benefit from reading AND APPLYING the information. There’s heart and wisdom in the pages. Pick this book up, read it and take action!
January 22, 2022
Although I don't feel I was the intended target for this particular book, there were a few things that I will be able to adapt into my own life.
I received a copy of the book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review
I received a copy of the book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review
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February 5, 2022This is a must read! I love, love this book and the workbook. It truly caused me to have an incredible mindshift and desire to shift my life into a Higher Gear! I have recommended anyone who desires to continue to be in my life to read it!
January 11, 2022
Author shares a great analogy of riding a power bike to succeeding in life.
March 15, 2022
Looking for a video summary of the book? Watch it here: https://youtu.be/9nJzW01tLek
August 7, 2023
Great metaphors to motorcycle riding and having a life that’s in high gear- quick read/nothing too earth shattering but great things to reflect in each chapter
October 19, 2025
Enjoyed it.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews