Success Is in Your Sphere: Leverage the Power of Relationships to Achieve Your Business Goals
Zvi Band
McGraw-Hill Education (May 2019)

“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”  African proverb

What we have here is a collection of examples — drawn from the real world, involving situations with which almost anyone can identify — that demonstrate the power of relationships that can help almost anyone to achieve their goals within but also beyond the business world. Zvi (pronounced “Z-vee’) Band draws heavily upon his own experiences.

More specifically, he focuses on

o How and why professional relationships are important in a professional context
o The extrinsic and intrinsic barriers to sustaining them
o How to set goals
o What the CAPITAL strategy is and how to execute it effectively
o The seven components of that strategy, devoting a chapter to each

Band makes brilliant use of several reader-friendly devices, notably Key Takeaways for each chapter that will facilitate, indeed expedite frequent review of key points later. Also he includes a “Quick Win task you can accomplish right then, making you feel just productive enough to reach for that extra scoop of ice cream.” I also commend him on the dozens of “snapshots” or mini-profiles of some of the people with whom he has had special relationships and from whom he has learned valuable lessons that have guided and supported his own personal growth as well as professional development.

I highly recommend this book to those who are now preparing for a career in business or have only recently embarked on one. Also, to others whose career may have stalled or gone astray. And finally, to supervisors who have direct reports entrusted to their care. Zvi Band’s advice is eminently practical and immediately do-able but ultimately, its value will depend almost entirely on how effectively readers apply it within their own circumstances.

The African proverb quoted earlier should be kept in mind. Here’s another, an admonition from Oscar Wilde: “Be yourself. Everyone else is taken.” Respect and trust must be earned. Be worthy of the relationships you seek to establish and then sustain.