Welcome to living a Life Beyond Code...

 “Do you think your job is safe? Think again! ” 

(Hint: Unless you can DISTINGUISH YOURSELF, no job is safe)

Date: Sunday, 7:12 p.m.
From: Rajesh Setty

Dear Fellow Knowledge Worker,

My name is Rajesh Setty and I am the president of a company called Foresight Plus, LLC where I help business leaders gain unfair competitive advantage. I am also an investor and serve on the boards of several privately-held companies in the United States and India.

Late last year, my book "Beyond Code: Learn to distinguish yourself in 9 simple steps!" was published.  I was fortunate and honored to get the Foreword for the book written by renowned business guru Tom Peters.

This is really my seventh book. I wrote my first book when I was nine. It was a two-hundred page novel. I didn't know what motivated me to write the book - it was probably those seven hundred novels that I read before I turned nine. I was somehow obsessed with books (my wife Kavitha says that I am obsessed with books even today) and at nine I decided to write my own. I won't give my whole story of how I got this first book published by the time I turned thirteen. I have written four novels, a collection of poems and a mathematics text book. All my six books were published before I turned sixteen.   I have included the complete story in the book. Now let me get back to this book...

How It All Began...

I have a passion for technology and also a passion for helping people grow. And wherever I have lived I've seen a PATTERN that kept repeating. The pattern was that technology professionals always go after the "hot" skills that will give them the fastest and greatest rewards, and this starts a cycle in which they pursue certain skills, become successful, and then find that those very skills have become a commodity so that those who possess the skills are no longer valued, because there is an oversupply of those skills. So they go after another set of "hot" skills and the journey continues, and they become experts once again.

This seems to yield good results in the short-term.

What they forget is that they won't be able to repeat these cycles (which will last anywhere from three to five years) more than two or three times, because in a period of 10 to 15 years their flexibility will have diminished so much. When they are young, they can do anything and everything, and if the employer asks them if can they can go to New York tomorrow, they'll say "Yes, of course!" and they'll pack up their bags at once and go to New York. But then three to five years later they'll get married, and then after that they'll have kids. Now I'm not saying that's wrong, I'm just pointing out that they can't do their work at the same pace that they did earlier.

Ten to fifteen years later they'll feel that they're stuck, because the fact that they can't learn new things as quickly as they used to means that they have to struggle harder and harder to compete with the youngsters. There are thousands of people who are stuck like that today and who feel they have so many things to complain about, such as outsourcing, or the business after-effects of 9/11, the bursting of the dot-com bubble, or other external factors. Yet there's a smaller set of people who instead of complaining about such things are continuing to move forward, and I started observing these people.

I found that there is something different in these people. First, they have a different attitude, but I decided there must be something more; they must have some different standard practices. So I started looking at my notes of the last 10 years, and my observations of successful technology professionals, and in my book I've encapsulated my notes of the last 10 years. 

So that's how “Beyond Code” was born.

I Want to Mentor You to live a
LIFE BEYOND CODE
…and I’m Not Holding ANYTHING Back!!!

Technology professionals worldwide are getting caught in a tsunami of massive commoditization. Technologies are changing very fast. What seemed hot today is not hot anymore. There is a constant pressure to give more, be more effective, be more efficient and be more productive. This forces most technology professionals to go after short term skills. Of course, going after short term skills will provide short term results but will hurt them in the long run. Competency in technical skills is necessary to succeed in this world but they are not sufficient to thrive. The question is what can one do differently so that he or she can distinguish and move above the commodity crowd.

Beyond Code provides a framework to win the "Inner Game" and the "Outer Game" to succeed in this fast paced technology world! 

“Beyond Code” is going to be different from many business books just because there are not many business books that are targeted at knowledge workers where topics beyond knowledge work are discussed. I wanted it that way. You will:

• Learn how you can escape the commoditization trap that is causing concerns to knowledge workers worldwide.
• Learn very simple, yet powerful strategies to distinguish yourself from the crowd.
  
• Learn the simple behaviourial and attitude changes you can make tomorrow to be more likeable.
• Laugh more! They say "Smile. It increases your face value!"

Would You Rather Create Your Own Future Than To Wait For Things to Happen? Me TOO!

I think people who can predict the future are the ones that are creating it. Agreed. Things are changing at a rapid pace and you are supposed to adapt and thrive.  Would you be constantly trying to adapt to the changes and be a "follower" or would you try and induce some change (for a change) and force others to follow?

Well, if you are one among the commodity crowd, you can forget about that dream...

This is a game that you can't escape. This is a game where you have to move even if you want to stay where you are. There may be a few lucky ones out there but those are exceptions than the rule.

If there is no other option but to PLAY THE GAME, why not start now rather than later?

"Beyond Code is packed with wisdom!" "Beyond Code is packed with wisdom. It should be required reading for every young professional, and remedial reading for many further along in their careers" -- David Maister www.davidmaister.com

This Book Is All About YOU and YOUR Success!

Section One
“The Inner Game”

Inner game in simple terms is a victory over yourself. The only person you can have total control (over) in your life is yourself. While you can have total control on yourself, in real life you tend to feel victimized and seem to have no control over your life and destiny. The success of any project depends on the right resources being deployed in the right configuration. The biggest resource you have in your life is yourself.

• Learn The first chapter is titled "Learn," because the first big trap that people fall into is when they finish education. Oh, they know when they finish their degree that that's not the end of it, but somehow they quickly slack off a little bit and learn only what is immediately required for their job. But there are so many things that people don't see are required and don't even try to learn until they become very, very required -- even painfully required. Also, on the general topic of Learning, one thing I've learned is the necessity of building long-term relationships, and yet nobody says this -- nobody says "Hey, by the way, how is your relationship-building going on?" Long-term relationships are a competitive advantage, and the very fact that, by definition, it takes a long time to build a long-term relationship, is itself a barrier to entry for someone else that is starting late.
  
  Let me pick one or two more things to say about learning. Keeping a personal scorecard is a key skill. If you look at the company, the company always keeps a scorecard. Even so-called lifestyle companies track things like revenue, profit, and those kinds of things. Well, a person is no different: he or she has to have some metrics, some key performance indicators; otherwise the person won't know whether he or she's making progress or not making progress.
  
  And let me pick one more last thing: you have to use the right tools. And if there are two people that are everything the same their intellect level, and everything, the person who uses better tools always wins..

• Laugh: The second one is called "Laugh," and I wrote it because I observed that most successful people have no problem laughing at themselves, and they're not overly self-conscious and don't have a problem if they make a fool of themselves.
  
  Think of it this way: is there a guarantee that in the year ahead every decision that you make you will be 100-percent right? Of course not: some of your decisions that will be wrong. And how will you react when a decision goes wrong? Some people just can't take it. Even though they know that statistically it's not possible to have all of the decisions right, whenever a decision goes wrong they can't take it, and they start blaming people and blaming circumstances and so on. They have a real problem: when they succeed they don't go and celebrate because the victory seems so small to them, yet when they fail they can't stop beating themselves to death. So either way they lose.
  
  And the second point is that sometimes people over analyze themselves, and spend a lot of time trying to figure out how the other person is thinking about them. But my belief is that nobody really cares, because everybody really is busy with so many things in their own lives, they don't have the time to go and over-analyze for example, how a person is dressed. I mean, they do it, but they don't do it to an extent that they'll spend the next two hours analyzing how you came across; everybody is busy with their own preoccupations. So just being cool and doing their work is what is required. And that's what I write in the "Laugh" chapter.
  
  
•  Look: A big thing I learned from many of my mentors is that successful people look at things very differently. Four people can look at the same situation, but one of them will look at it very differently from the others. Four people can look at it without being able to see any opportunities, but one person says, "Here is an opportunity!"
  
  A successful person has to look for associations. It can be at simple as when a technology person is working on a project. He can look and think: What can I associate this project with? Where is the repeatability? What can I reuse? Those kinds of questions. Silicon Valley entrepreneurs will typically associate stuff that's very different from what other people can imagine.
  
  Let me take an example. I have a friend called Steve, a serial entrepreneur, and he was fascinated with the Netflix business model, so he asked himself where he could apply the metrics business model to? Well, he started a company that basically applied the Netflix business model to luxury handbags for women. With his service "Bag Borrow or Steal", a woman can rent up to five luxury handbags for a monthly fee. I mean the whole business model was thought through, and all he had to do was to find another area where the same business model will look like. So he didn't have to think a lot except to associate what was all ready existing into a new investment.
  

  "You don't have to be a software consultant to profit from Beyond Code. In fact, you don't have to be a consultant or a software professional. This book is filled with solid advice and timeless wisdom for anyone dealing with the pressures of doing business in a 24/7 world." -- Bo Burlingham (Editor at Large, Inc Magazine.) www.smallgiants.com
• Leave a lasting impression: The reason I wrote that chapter is because, especially in the technology world, people work on multiple projects work with multiple clients. And they work with multiple people. I like to ask this question: do you remember any of your teachers from your childhood? And people say yes, and then they offer one or two names. So I say, well, can you remember all of your teachers? But they have a hard time: there are very few of them who remember all of the teachers. There are only one or two teachers who made a lasting impression in their lives. The same kind of thing happens with technology as well -- because there is so much commoditization that happens. If you go and ask a CIO, "Can you name one or two consultants who made a big difference," the CIO will happy to answer that question, because there are usually only one or two consultants who just blew them away with the way they conducted their business, and attitude and just the fact that they cared so much about the work, and they just got things done. But lasting impressions don't come easy; you have to work hard to leave a lasting impression. 
  
  
• Love: If people don't love their jobs, every small thing that happens here and there becomes a problem. But if they turn it around and start loving the job, then they will start looking for reasons to love the job.
  
  I have done this exercise multiple times in multiple companies. It's called "I love my job" exercise. We get people in a group and in five to 10 minutes they write why they should love their job. And you'd be amazed at how many reasons collectively they will come up why they should love their job, or the company, or the place of work or anything. So that's what I tell people, first they have to love the job. And then once they decide they love the job, then they'll start finding reasons to love their job.
  
  I also tell people to find a mentor, because I'm big on people having mentors. A mentor is a person who will help you ask the right questions. And when you have trouble loving your job and you have a very good mentor, the mentor will start asking questions about you, about the job, about work, and will help you put things in perspective. 
   

"A quick guide to everything a geek should know" -- Guy Kawasaki  www.guykawasaki.com

Section Two
“The Outer Game”

No person is an island. Life is a contact sport. The outer game covers a few topics to win in a highly-interdependent world.

• Leverage: I'm very big on leverage, mainly because if we don't have the right leverage it is very hard to scale -- in other words, if you're trying to do everything on your own, then it's very hard to scale, because there are only 24 hours a day, and there is only one person -- you. Whenever you want to get something done, the first question that comes into your mind is how can I get this done, but here is the problem: when you pose that question to yourself -- how can I get this done? -- there is an implicit thinking that you have to be the actor to get this done. So I want to turn it around and say, "What is the right configuration of all of the available resources for me to accomplish this in the most optimum fashion?" Now immediately if you try to answer this, you will look for all resources (and you are one of those resources, of course, but you will also look for resources outside of yourself to get something outside). That's almost like a paradigm shift for people, because many times people want to get things done by themselves -- they feel that they're the best people to do it think it's too hard to go and explain it to someone else. And they can't predict how well the other people will do, and they trust only themselves. But if they do it by themselves, scalability becomes a real issue, because they can pursue goals but not very big goals, not very big dreams -- because you need a lot of help if you want to achieve some big dreams. So in this chapter, called "Leverage," I explain where people can start looking for resources and help to form a configuration to achieve their dreams.
  

• Likeability: People who are very successful technologically almost think of likeability as an entitlement -- people should like them because they are so smart. But I have observed time and again that likeability is not an entitlement, it's something you have to work for. It does not come automatically, and just because somebody is so smart we don't start liking them. If they're very smart but have a rotten attitude they're definitely not likeable, and in fact might be fired because they become such an irritant to the organization. So in my book I discuss how to check your likeability factor, and how to increase it, and what you should do so that you double your likeability factor in the next year. In a nutshell, it's all about what a person does when he or she meets another person? What is the impression that Fred makes on Jack? And at the end of the conversation what does Jack feel about himself after Fred leaves the interaction. That's the big thing. It's not about how brilliant Fred was, it's about what did he make Jack feel about himself. Did he lift him up? Or did he bring him down? What's the feeling that Jack got out of the interaction? And it may not even be a face-to-face interaction, it can be e-mail, it can be anything. Whenever you interact with another person, what do you leave behind?

• Listen:   I don't think anyone doubts that listening is very, very important, but actually only a very small percentage of people can really practice careful listening, because it's just so hard to do. The reason is that listening is an activity that can be done with very limited brain work, and there is so much brain power left waiting; there's no way I can talk as fast as you can process what I'm saying. So listening is very hard work, because it requires so much discipline and concentration. So what should someone do to listen well? First, they should know what are the right questions to ask in a conversation -- that's the first thing because if they don't know how to ask the right questions, there is a tendency to fill the silence by saying just anything. So in the process, the person starts thinking about what will I say rather than that if they start thinking what will I ask next? Because when you're trying to say something there is a lot of self-consciousness. You want to be right, you want to make a good impression. There are lots of things going on that will take away some of your time from listening.
  
  Second point relates to your attitude in a conversation. If you go in with the curiosity of a child, the inquisitiveness of a student into a conversation, listening becomes easy.
  
  
• Lead: I'll give just two things to take away, because there are so many books on leadership. The first one is to be ready to fill in the blank -- and every organization will have some blanks, some gaps, where somewhere there is something is going wrong or someplace where you need to step up; if you are always on the lookout for those blanks, not to complain but to fill them, that itself is the first step towards leadership. And the second one is that everyone in his or her life will get several leadership moments, though these leadership moments won't come packaged as leadership moments. But he or she will have to be ready for this moment, because it's there to be recognized and grabbed and held on to. But because such moments do not come as clearly labeled packages, it's so easy to miss them. So always be ready for them and seize on them when you have the chance. Doing that will distinguish you from the crowd and make you into a recognized leader.

"A consultant builds multiple bridges: with himself, with his team and with his clients, to reach defined goals. Beyond Code is all about what it takes to build these bridges: listening to others, building a credible personal brand, building lasting relationships with clients and your team, building your learning curve, building leadership, sensibly bold strategy and unwavering commitment. This Beyond the obvious book is an investment in yourself." -- S. Ramadorai, CEO and MD of Tata Consultancy Services www.tcs.com

The Practice
“The Accountability Exercises”

We all know that the biggest problem is not getting the knowledge but it is putting the knowledge into practice. At the end of each exercise, there is a one sheet accountability exercise to ground the learning from the chapter. All in all, there are 9 such exercises for each chapter.

• Learn. 
  
• Laugh. 
• Look
• Leave a lasting impression
  
• Love
  
• Leverage
  
• Likeability
  
• Listen and 
  
• Lead
  

"Rajesh has captured the essence of what makes a true professional in any industry in Beyond Code. It's not about technical expertise, though that's helpful, and it's not about good networking, though that's important too. A true professional - a great consultant – is someone who is a great person, and Rajesh explains just how you can go from good to great consultant in this slim, engaging book. Recommended for anyone who wants to take their career and life to the next level." -- Dave Taylor www.intuitive.com

 Still Have Questions? Let Me See If I Can Help!

1.       "Why did you write Beyond Code?"
   

2. “Isn’t this just like any other business book?”

3. “How long does it take to read this book?”

4.  “The book has a lot of interactive exercises. One of the common themes is that you encourage readers to get help from someone else to complete the exercises. What is the reason behind this?"

5. “Do you have a guarantee?”

1.“Why did you write Beyond Code?”

Over the last few years, I lived in five different countries and have been associated with probably hundreds of technology professionals. I have also watched the careers of many of these people. A handful of them succeeded beyond imagination but a large majority of people were “stuck” after ten to fifteen years into their careers.

Many of those who were “stuck” attributed their situation to several external factors such as economy, mergers, technological paradigm shifts, outsourcing, offshoring etc. It was a rude shock for many. Those who succeeded though defied gravity and kept moving up. When I closely observed (and talked to) many of these smart people, it was evident that they had a different set of “standard practices” as compared to the commodity crowd.

I started documenting those practices that helped these superstars distinguish themselves. After about ten years of collecting nuggets of insights and inspirational stories, I decided to put them into the book “Beyond Code: Learn to distinguish yourself in 9 simple steps” 

2.“Isn’t this just like any other business book?"

Not really. This is a book primarily targeted at knowledge workers written by a knowledge worker.  There are no abstract theories or concepts - most of the material is based on experiences from across the globe.

·         you will learn ways to win over yourself (the inner game)

·         you will learn ways to win in an inter-connected world (the outer game)

·         you will work through exercises to ground the learning from the chapters

·         you will have access to a companion blog where there are literally hundreds of articles where you can continue your learning

·         you can join the "Life Beyond Code" mailing list to be part of the crowd with similar interests.

3.“How long does it take to read this book?”

It all depends. From what I have heard so far. It should take you about 3-6 hours to read the book. However, it will take longer to complete the exercises and get the most out of this book.

4.“The book has a lot of interactive exercises. One of the common themes is that you encourage readers to get help from someone else to complete the exercises. What is the reason behind this?”

Let me give some background to why I came with a partnering strategy for completing the exercises.

Many people ask me if there is one thing that they can learn quickly that can make a significant impact on their lives. We all know that there are no shortcuts to success. However, at the risk of "over simplifying", let me make a statement:

    "One simple thing that you can learn easily and that can make a significant impact on your lives is - working hard to keep the promises you make to yourself"

Think about the above statement – many times it's easier to keep promises that we make to others than to keep promises that we make to ourselves. In fact, many of the promises that we make to ourselves is not known to anybody else. Something like "I will finish reading this book by the end of the week" is known only to yourself. Weeks pass by and the book is not complete yet. Nobody knows that you made a promise to yourself and you feel a bit guilty for not keeping the promise but you are smart enough to justify why you were not able to keep your promise. Most often, the justifications for not keeping the promises to yourself are more compelling than the promises themselves.

On a lighter note, you can afford to NOT keep your promises to yourself because you can't fire yourself. If you fire yourself where will you go?

You can fix this – make small promises to yourself and try to keep them. Keep doing this until it becomes a habit. It should become your second nature to keep the promises you make for yourself.

The other simple strategy therefore is to partner with a friend and share the promises that you make for yourself with this friend. Ask for his help to hold you accountable for these promises. I have seen that this always produces better results.all depends. 

5.“Do you have a guarantee?”

Yes and No. Yes, I know that if you apply the principles in the book and work through the exercises, you can see a positive impact on your life - ACTUALLY very quickly. No - because I don't know what is your commitment to yourself. If you are a skeptic and are planning to read the book just for fun, you will get some returns but not quite the ones that you expect.

"While using a simple, and easy to understand style, Rajesh has done a super job to give the readers powerful and practical suggestions to improve their effectiveness. For practicing consultants and professionals the book provides an excellent refresher course and a handy guide for future assignments. Young professionals who are getting ready to manage large projects would also greatly benefit from the book." -- Rajesh Hukku, Chairman, i-flex solutions www.iflexsolutions.com

I Want You To Get A Great Deal So Expect OVERDELIVERY
(Because YOU'RE Gonna Get It!!!!)

Yup, not only are you going to get a hard-cover copy of "Beyond Code: Learn to disgintuish yourself in 9 simple steps" (foreword by Tom Peters) but also these bonuses to make this extra-special. All you have to do is to send the order receipt email dated between July 1, 2006 to July 31, 2006 to "beyondcode at foresightplus dot com"

"Beyond Code" Bonuses

	Cool Friend Interview with Tom Peters Company Format: Audio (26 Minutes) Rajesh Setty is intereviewed by Erik Hansen of Tom Peters Company. You will get to hear the highlights of the book in a Q&A format. Release date: Shipping now!
	Rajesh Setty Radio Interview Format: Audio (26 Minutes) Sridhar Krishnan, noted entrepreneur in Silicon Valley interviews Rajesh Setty on the topics covered in the book and beyond. Release date: Shipping now!
	Life Beyond Networking Format: eBook (About 30 pages) The best way to network is to stop networking... and start building relationships - long-term relationships. Rajesh Setty explains a simple approach called "Delta P Delta T" to super-charge your relationship building efforts. Release date: August 2006
	How to Outsource-Proof Your Job Format: eBook (About 20 pages) If you are doing involved in commodity work, your job is at threat - sooner or later it will migrate to a location where the labor is cheaper or it makes sense for the company for scaling reasons. Drawn from the same themes outlined in the eBook, this will provide a short refresher and remind you that YOU have to do something to Outsource-Proof Your Job. Release date: September 2006

"Beyond Code is not just great for software consultants – it is great for ALL consultants!" Marshall Goldsmith http://www.marshallgoldsmithlibrary.com/

I know you are busy with your work and I refuse to waste your time.

In fact, I’d like to be completely honest with you.  The world is moving at a breathtaking speed. They say change is the only thing that is constant. That statement may have to change. In the new world, change at breathtaking speed is the only thing that is constant.  The fact that you have made it until here shows that you are committed to make a significant change in your life. I look forward to seeing you in journey of living a life beyond code!

Warmly,

Rajesh Setty

“Beyond Code” is not just a book. It is an invitation to a new journey - yes, an invitation to live a life beyond code. Remember, the only way to reach a new destination is to take a new road. Click here to buy the book and start the journey!

(There is a method…a process…a formula. I think I know what it is and I’m ready to hand you the keys to the gold mine…without the hype!)

What Others Say About "Beyond Code" 

Although this is my seventh book, this is my first book in the United States. I am happy with hundreds of emails that I have recieved and the great reviews in the press and the blogs out there. Here are some statements that I have picked:

“Through personal examples, insights gained from his experience, and simple exercises, Setty shows how to listen to others, how to build bridges, how to create bold strategies, and how to build a personal brand. Even though this book is directed at IT professionals, it has advice that will benefit anyone."

-- Jennifer G. Cuthbertson, In her review of the book at Business Book Review, www.businessbookreview.com

“Stand out” is this book’s message. The people who ARE on the radar screen are the most secure – not only from a career standpoint, but also from their internal compass

-- Jim Pawlak, Nationally syndicated reviewer. His review of the book was featured in a number of newspapers including Dallas Morning News.

“There's no mystery why Tom Peters endorsed Rajesh Setty's newest book, Beyond Code. This simple step-by-step method provides a clear path to distinguish yourself in the workplace but continues to incorporate your entire lifestyle. His understanding of the impact of first impressions and the power of listening is nothing short of impressive.”

-- Diana Rohini La Vigne, Reviewer, Book Ideas. www.bookideas.com