# The ABCs of Success by Bob Proctor: A Yearly Reset, Not a Deep Dive

> Source: [https://icharles.com/articles/the-abcs-of-success-by-bob-proctor-a-yearly-reset-not-a-deep-dive](https://icharles.com/articles/the-abcs-of-success-by-bob-proctor-a-yearly-reset-not-a-deep-dive) (canonical)
> Author: Chuck — iCharles, https://icharles.com
> Published: 2015-07-03 · Updated: 2026-07-07

## Why I picked this one up

I've been following Bob Proctor for years. The guy is a legend — not because of what he says, but because of how he lives it. He's in his 80s and has more energy than half the people I train with. So when I saw he had a book laying out the whole alphabet of success principles, from A to Z, I picked it up expecting exactly what I got: a review.

I'm not going to pretend this book rewired my brain. It didn't. If you've read his other work, or you've been in this space a while, nothing in here is going to explode your mind. But that's not a knock — it's the point of the book, and I think it's underrated.

## What it actually is

Each chapter is short. Action. Ambition. Attitude. Awareness. Change. Choice. Circumstances. Communication. Compensation. Confidence. Courage. Fear. Focus. Freedom. Goals. Gratitude. Literally A through Z, and he hits the single most important idea on each topic in just a few pages.

I read the whole thing in a day. That's not a criticism of the writing — it's just how it's built. It's designed to be flipped through, not studied.

## My one real criticism

He doesn't go deep on anything. He'll give you the core idea on fear, or courage, or gratitude, and then move on to the next letter. I wanted him to drill down instead of covering everything at a breadth. He's earned the right to go deep on any one of these — I just wish he had, at least on a few of them.

So here's how I'd use this book: if a specific chapter hits you — say, fear, or public speaking, or willpower — don't stop there. Go find the dedicated book on that exact topic and go deep. Use this as the map, not the destination.

## Why I'd still tell you to buy it

Here's the thing that matters more than the content: I use books like this as a reset, not a discovery tool. I don't need new information every time I open a book — I need old truths put back in front of me, because I forget them. That's not a weakness, that's just how attention works now.

Proctor closes the book with a stat that stuck with me: we get more mental stimulation in one week now — news, social media, email, TV, YouTube, ads, everything hitting our screens — than our Paleolithic ancestors got in their entire lifetime. With that much noise coming at you constantly, the fundamentals get buried fast. A book like this digs them back out.

That's how I'd frame this one:

- Not a book that teaches you something new
- A book you pick up once a year to remember what you already know
- A map to the deeper books you actually need, on whatever letter is hitting you hardest right now

## Who should read it

If you're new to this space, this is actually a solid entry point — you get a fast survey of every principle that matters, and you can figure out where to go deeper from there. If you're already deep into personal development, treat it like I did: a once-a-year gut check, read in an afternoon, to remind yourself of what you've let slip.

Either way, don't expect depth. Expect a mirror. And honestly, with how much is competing for your attention every single day, a mirror once a year isn't a bad investment.