The Inspiration Behind the One Minute Manager

The Inspiration Behind the One Minute Manager

“As John Lennon said, “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans” I met Spencer Johnson at a cocktail party in San Diego- he was a children’s book writer. I don’t know if you remember the the value tale series, the value of honesty, the story of Abe Lincoln. My wife met him first and hand carried him over and said ‘you guys ought to write a children’s book for managers, they won’t read anything else.’ Spencer was working on a mother’s on scolding book with a psychiatrist, and I invited him to a seminar. He stood in the back and he laughed and ran up and said, ‘forget the parenting book, let’s do the One Minute Manager.’ Since he was a children’s book writer and I was a story teller we decided to do a parable. It came out on Labour Day in 1982- next week in was on the New York Times’ best seller’s list because we were on the today’s show. It never left the list for 2-3 years. Now that it’s 30 years later it’s still on the best seller’s list. That really launched my career of writing parables. 

“This other book, (Fit at Last), has been fun. I’ve worked with Berret Kholer on a number of books, two with Mark Miller, who was the head of training for Chick-fil-a, one called, The Secret, What Do Great Leaders Think and Do. And we wrote a follow up book called, Great Leaders Grow, because if you stop learning, you might as well lie down and let them put the dirt on you. 

“I’m always looking for ways to communicate with people, in a way that can make a difference in their lives. When I work on these kind of things, it helps me too. So it’s not just about me saying I’m going to help al you idiots out there, overtime I work on a book, it helps me get down the road a little bit myself” -Ken Blanchard       

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Alan Olsen, is the Host of the American Dreams Show and the Managing Partner of GROCO.com.  GROCO is a premier family office and tax advisory firm located in the San Francisco Bay area serving clients all over the world.

Alan L. Olsen, CPA, Wikipedia Bio

GROCO.com is a proud sponsor of The American Dreams Show.

The American Dreams show was the brainchild of Alan Olsen, CPA, MBA. It was originally created to fill a specific need; often inexperienced entrepreneurs lacked basic information about raising capital and how to successfully start a business.

Alan sincerely wanted to respond to the many requests from aspiring entrepreneurs asking for the information and introductions they needed. But he had to find a way to help in which his venture capital clients and friends would not mind.

The American Dreams show became the solution, first as a radio show and now with YouTube videos as well. Always respectful of interview guest’s time, he’s able to give access to individuals information and inspiration previously inaccessible to the first-time entrepreneurs who need it most.

They can listen to venture capitalists and successful business people explain first-hand, how they got to where they are, how to start a company, how to overcome challenges, how they see the future evolving, opportunities, work-life balance and so much more..

MyPaths.com (Also sponsored by GROCO) provides free access to content and world-class entrepreneurs, influencers and thought leaders’ personal success stories. To help you find your path in life to true, sustainable success & happiness.  It’s mission statement:

In an increasingly complex and difficult world, we hope to help you find your personal path in life and build a strong foundation by learning how others found success and happiness. True and sustainable success and happiness are different for each one of us but possible, often despite significant challenges.

Our mission at MyPaths.com is to provide resources and firsthand accounts of how others found their paths in life, so you can do the same.