THE FLIP SIDE Break Free of the Behaviors That Hold You Back by Flip Flippen Publisher: Springboard Press/Warner Books Publication date: May 2007 Price: $23.99/hardcover ISBN: 0-446-58078-3 "This book hits me just the way Flip himself does: straight on, powerful, loving, and practical. . . Everything he touches brings out the best in people, so I implore you to let his book touch you." -- Tom Hanson, Ph.D., CEO, Heads-Up Performance, Inc., Co-Author, Who Will Do What By When? NEW BOOK BY EDUCATOR AND PSYCHOTHERAPIST, FLIP FLIPPEN, HELPS PEOPLE BREAK FREE FROM THE CONSTRAINTS THAT DERAIL CAREER AND PERSONAL SUCCESS Flippen's Constraint-Busting Process Will Change Your Life Forever "You're often told to play to your strengths, but that will take you only so far in life," says Flip Flippen, author of THE FLIP SIDE: Break Free of the Behaviors That Hold You Back (Springboard; May 2007; $23.99/hardcover). "To truly experience success and personal fulfillment, you must overcome your constraints, those attitudes and behaviors that hold you back. This is true no matter who you are or what you want to achieve. Ignoring your constraints is a blueprint for failure." Flippen is a psychotherapist and educator, who has worked with thousands of individuals, organizations, and sports teams, and is head of The Flippen Group, one of the fastest growing corporate training companies in the United States and the largest educational trainer in North America. He has learned that it's a person's constraints that truly define how much he or she can achieve, not simply one's talents, personality, or academic abilities. "Families implode. Careers derail. Relationships unravel. Personal constraints often act like hidden landmines, detonating where and when we least expect them," he explains in THE FLIP SIDE. From being overly confident, highly aggressive, or too critical, to suffering from low self-confidence, no passion, or low self-control, Flippen focuses on the ten killer constraints that are most debilitating. He then shows readers how to identify their own constraints and create personalized action plans ­ what Flippen calls TrAction plans ­ to eliminate them. Flippen's constraint-busting process has worked for thousands of people over and over again ­ at work, in schools, and on the playing field. He took the Fitz/Bradshaw NASCAR race team from 27th in the standings to 12th in just three months by identifying the personal constraints of the pit crew, crew chief, and driver that kept them from working effectively with each other. After training with The Flippen Group, teacher Karen Hart, whose students called her Mrs. Hartless behind her back, learned to develop a more nurturing and supportive attitude. Steve Gaffney, who was President of the Systems Division of ITT (a Fortune 500 company) discovered that increasing his patience and listening skills enhanced morale as well as productivity. The shift that Gaffney made, based on Flippen's advice, not only improved the success of his division and resulted in an important promotion for him, but benefited his family life as well. According to THE FLIP SIDE, the solution to overcoming constraints is to first identify which ones impact you and then create your TrAction plan. Although sticking to the plan requires commitment, it can be broken down into manageable steps that can immediately affect your life. Flippen's powerful ideas for growth include: Resistant to change? Vow to make the first reaction positive and enthusiastic, no matter how strong the tug of resistance is. Too nurturing? Resolve to enforce consequences and not let people off the hook easily. Learn to say no. Overly dominant? Be determined to take a step back in group interactions. Hold all opinions until others have spoken. Avoid interrupting. Too critical or harsh? Stop giving feedback when not requested. Go for an entire day without making a single complaint whether to a family member, friend, co-worker, or fast food employee. Not nurturing enough? Start engaging people and meet them with a smile. Don't go to sleep until an encouraging email has been sent or a compliment has been given. Personal constraints affect everyone both at work and at home. Ignoring them leads to a wide range of problems, whether it's a teenager who fails in school or a business executive who lands in jail (think WorldCom, Enron, and Tyco). Flippen warns, "Don't be hijacked by your constraints. We all carry them to work with us and take them home at night. They won't go away unless you make a commitment to change. If you aren't working on them, you may be risking more than you know." # # # About the Author Flip Flippen is the head of The Flippen Group which offers personal development and transformation processes to businesses, organizations, and individuals. Clients have included football legend Terry Bradshaw, Wall Street private equity investors Richard Allsopp and Mark Bourgeois, IMG founder Mark McCormack, and National Baseball Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan. Over 200,000 people attended the company's programs in 2006. Flippen's work has been featured on the Today show as well as the Super Bowl pre-grame show. He earned his master's degree from Texas A & M University and is a member of the American Counseling Association. Flip and his wife Susan, who is CEO of The Flippen Group, reside in College Station, Texas. Together they have helped raise more than twenty children.
close window