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3/19/09 11:33 AM P
5 Principles
for a
Successful
Life
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5 Principles
for a
Successful
Life
From Our Family to Yours
NEWT GINGRICH
AND
ISBN 978-0-307-46232-9
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
First Edition
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To purchase a copy of
5 Principles
for a Successful Life
visit one of these online retailers:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Borders
IndieBound
Powell’s Books
Random House
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Contents
Why 5 Principles? xi
Why Dream? 5
Dream Big 9
Your Dream and Only Yours 20
Turning a Goal into Reality 27
Why Learn? 77
Learning Anywhere, from Anyone 82
Learning Requires Engagement 92
Learning Through Failure 102
ix
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Acknowledgments 205
Recommended Reading 207
Photography Credits 210
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Why 5 Principles?
xi
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May 2009
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Principle 1 :
Dream Big
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left me, and it was the reason I ran for office. I ran for
Congress twice unsuccessfully, but I never gave up on
my aspiration to serve the public because I remembered
those who never gave up defending freedom with their
lives. After two defeats I won election and achieved my
dream of becoming a leader for America.
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Why Dream?
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¶
s a child in my native country of Cuba, I dreamed
of being an accomplished violinist and symphony
orchestra conductor. By age twelve, my practice of mu-
sic had led to a job in a professional orchestra, and I had
made my conducting debut.
In pursuit of liberty, I left Communist Cuba and went
to Spain, waiting for approval to come to the United
States. While waiting, I practiced the violin seven hours
a day.
My hard work in Cuba and Spain was the basis for
opening doors of opportunity throughout my notable
career in the United States. I dreamed big and worked
hard, and that led me to realize the American dream.
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Dream Big
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* * *
Everyone can see what is certain and real, but only those
who can imagine what could be have a chance to create
and live their dreams. Those without a dream will have
no reason to strive, work hard, or think of better days to
come. People who dream big accomplish big.
Big accomplishments involve risk, and risk inevitably
involves failure. It is the fear of failure that often stops
people from dreaming big. They know that they can
dream small and make something happen. It’s the big
dream that involves risk—but also the grandest rewards.
If you’re lucky, you’ll know someone who lives their
dream—a dream others thought was impossible. Those
who have attained the impossible dreamed the impos-
sible. When you share your dream with these people,
they’ll encourage you. “Big men do not laugh at big
ideas,” David Schwartz says in The Magic of Thinking
Big.
“The greater danger for most of us,” said Michelan-
gelo, “is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but
that it is too low and we reach it.”
A big dream is a goal that will stretch you beyond
your current capabilities. That is the point. Dream BIG.
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¶
ver the course of my lifetime I have discerned that
there is not one single factor responsible for a suc-
cessful life, but rather a combination of factors. I per-
sonally believe the desire to dream big is paramount to
happiness and success.You can succeed when absolutely
no one believes in you, but you have no chance to suc-
ceed if you do not believe in yourself. When you believe
in yourself, then you will dream big.
During my early years I wanted little out of life: a
car, a girl, $5 in my pocket, and a job in the mill. I
thought, “Who could want more out of life?” Then I re-
alized that the only things that will change you from
where you are today to where you will be five years from
now are the people you meet, the books you read, and
the dreams you dream.
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• Have something to do
• Have someone to love
• Have someone to believe in
• Have something to hope for, which is nothing
more than dreaming big.
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¶
hen you work hard, your dreams do come true.
But what do you do when your life exceeds your
dreams?You dream bigger dreams. If people don’t laugh
at you when you share your dreams, then you’re not
dreaming big enough. Make them laugh. Dream big.
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¶
y father came to America from Holland at the
beginning of World War II and served with the
U.S. merchant marine throughout the war, eventually
becoming a ship’s captain. He always believed in the
endless opportunities his adopted homeland offered.
“Dream big, David,” he told me when I was young. “As
long as you work hard, you can be whatever you want
to be.” My father’s advice has guided me through four
years at West Point and thirty-four more in the army,
and I, in turn, have passed on his wisdom to my two chil-
dren, who are now realizing dreams of their own.
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¶
ream big: I couldn’t agree more with this principle.
It’s not that I dreamed of being a professional foot-
ball player ever since I could walk. Truth be told, I almost
gave up football in tenth grade so that I could focus on
ice hockey. It turned out that hockey wasn’t my calling,
and I originally went to the University of Virginia to play
lacrosse. Through all these different turns in my athletic
road, I always kept the same big dream in mind: perfect
greatness.
Whether it was ice hockey, lacrosse, wrestling, or
football, I always pictured in my mind what perfect
greatness looked like on the field, in the weight room,
running sprints, eating properly, and so forth. This vision
has kept me very focused for a long time while I inch
closer and closer to a level of perfect greatness that nei-
ther I, nor anyone else, will ever achieve. It is simply a
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Recommended Reading
207
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Photography Credits
210
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To purchase a copy of
5 Principles
for a Successful Life
visit one of these online retailers:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Borders
IndieBound
Powell’s Books
Random House
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