The Energy Bus: 10 Rules to Fuel Your Life, Work, and Team with Positive Energy

The Energy Bus: 10 Rules to Fuel Your Life, Work, and Team with Positive Energy by Jon Gordon
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I heard this book was required reading for the UGA football team. UGA's Coach Richt had learned from Atlanta Falcons' coach, Mike Smith, that the Falcons team also read through this book. Apparently many sports' teams as well as many businesses have read through this book to help them exceed in their programs. The book is written as a story presenting principles that could apply to any team, business, or person. I trust the quotes from this book that I have listed below will be a challenge to you!


Everything happens for a reason. Don’t forget that. Every person we meet. Every event in our life.  Every flat tire happens for a reason. You can choose to ignore it or ask what the reason is and try to learn from it. Every problem has a gift for you in its hands as my man Richard Bach says. You can choose to see the curse or the gift. And this one choice will determine if your life is a success story or one big soap opera.  ~Jon Gordon

Always remember that you are the driver of your bus. It’s the most important of the rules because if you don’t take responsibility for your life and control of your bus then you can’t take it where you want to do. If you’re not the driver, then you’ll always be at the whim of everyone else’s travel plans.   ~Jon Gordon

The energy you fuel the ride of your life with is entirely up to you. And as the driver, you are the one who must also choose your vision of where you want to go.  You have the best seat and the best view of your life so it’s up to you. You gotta have vision.  ~Jon Gordon

… the closer you get to truth, the simpler and more powerful the lessons become.  ~Jon Gordon

… you can’t go somewhere if you don’t have a vision of where you want to go.  ~Jon Gordon

It takes a crisis for so many of us to change.  ~Jon Gordon

Sometimes we have to see what we don’t want, to know what we do want.  ~Jon Gordon

This is your crisis but it’s also your opportunity. Every crisis offers an opportunity to grow stronger and wiser.   ~Jon Gordon

Desire, vision, and focus move your bus in the right direction.   ~Jon Gordon

We can’t control the events in our life but we can control how we perceive them and our perception and response to the events determine our outcome.  ~Jon Gordon

Fuel your ride with positive energy.   ~Jon Gordon

Desire, vision, and focus help you turn the bus in the right direction but positive energy is necessary to take you where you want to go. Every day when we look at the gas pump of life we have a choice between positive energy and negative energy. Positive energy is high octane fuel for the ride of your life while negative energy causes sludge to accumulate in your energy pipeline.  ~Jon Gordon

What do I do with the negativity I have?  You let it go. You release it. You throw it out. You transform it. When the work is piled high on your desk, think about how thankful you are to even have a job while so many are unemployed. When work is driving you crazy, think about the fact that you are healthy enough to work. When you are sitting in traffic, be thankful you can drive a car while many have to walk miles just to get clean water. When the restaurant messes up your meal, think about how many unfed mouths there are in the world. And as I told my father a number of years ago when he lost the love of his life – my mother, “ You had the kind of love for so many years that many people spend a lifetime searching for and never find. Let’s be thankful for that.” Where there is a negative there is always a positive. Where there is a dark cloud, there is always a sun shining behind it.   ~Jon Gordon

Being grateful floods the body and brain with positive endorphins and emotions and combined with walking is a powerful energy booster.    ~Jon Gordon

Invite people on your bus and share your vision for the road ahead.   ~Jon Gordon

As you drive you want to keep asking people to get on. The worst they can say is no. If you don’t ask they won’t know to get on. Plus, the more people you pick up along the way the more energy you create during your ride. The goal is to eventually have a standing room only bus and since this is an energy bus it is always expanding so you’ll always be able to add more people.   ~Jon Gordon

I am not bound to win; I am bound to be true. I am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to live up to the light that I have.   ~Abraham Lincoln

Every person and every team will be tested on their journey. It is part of the curriculum of life.  It’s just like riding a bicycle.  In the beginning you’re going to fall off and get knocked down but the important thing is to get back on, stay strong, and after a while once you master it you’ll ride with the confidence of a champion.    ~Jon Gordon

You haven’t failed until you stop trying.  ~Jon Gordon

Don’t waste your energy on those who don’t get on your bus.  ~Jon Gordon

The more energy you spend worrying about the people who didn’t get on your bus, the less you will have for the people who are on your bus. And if you are worrying about the people who didn’t get on your bus you won’t have the energy to keep on asking new people to get on.  ~Jon Gordon

It’s not easy to deal with the negativity in the world but it’s something that’s got to be done. Your success and life are so important that you must surround yourself with a positive support team.  ~Jon Gordon

There are people who increase your energy and there are people who drain your energy. I call the people who drain your energy Energy Vampires and they will suck the life out of you and your goals and vision if you let them. ~Jon Gordon

Post a sign that says, “No Energy Vampires Allowed On Your Bus”  ~Jon Gordon

Enthusiasm attracts more passengers and energizes them during the ride.  ~Jon Gordon

Enthusiasm comes from the Greek word entheos, which means, “inspired” or “filled with the divine.”  ~Jon Gordon

Negative people often tend to create negative cultures whereas positive corporate cultures are created by positive people.   ~Jon Gordon

Love your passengers.  ~Jon Gordon

Love is the answer for the team’s success.  ~Jon Gordon

Love takes time. It’s a process not a goal. Love is something that needs to be nurtured. But if there is one thing I urge you to start immediately it’s focus on bringing out the best in each person on your team. When you love someone you want the best for him. You want him to shine. And the best way to do this is to help him discover the value inside him.  ~Jon Gordon

Dust on gold doesn’t change the nature of gold.  ~Jon Gordon

Letting people share their gifts and strengths is real love.   ~Jon Gordon

Five ways to love your passengers:
1. Make time for them
2. Listen to them.
3. Recognize them.
4. Serve them. – A great leader once said, the higher you get in an organization the more it is your duty to serve the people below you rather than having the people below serve you.
5. Bring out the best in them.  ~Jon Gordon

Drive with purpose. ~Jon Gordon

Purpose is the ultimate fuel for our journey through life. When we drive with purpose we don’t get tired or bored and our engines don’t burn out.  ~Jon Gordon

There’s a story about when President Lyndon Johnson visited NASA and as he was walking the halls he came across a janitor who was cleaning up a storm, like the Energizer bunny with a mop in his hand. The president walked over to the janitor and told him he was the best janitor he has ever seen and the janitor replied, “Sir, I’m not just a janitor, I helped put a man on the moon.” See, even though he was cleaning floors he had a bigger purpose and vision for his life. This is what kept him going and helped him excel in his job.  ~Jon Gordon

When you fuel up with purpose you find the excitement in the mundane, the passion in the everyday, the extraordinary in the ordinary.  ~Jon Gordon

Have fun and enjoy the ride.  ~Jon Gordon


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