"Bernie Palmatier's Grunch and other fabulous characters have performed a miracle. They have wrestled with some difficult principles of life and success, and simplified them so that anyone can understand them...and use them. Wise men have been trying to do the same for centuries." - Og Mandino, Author/Lecturer Og Mandino's inspired book "The Greatest Salesman in the World" and the benefits of the Ten Scrolls contained therein not only changed my life, I have often stated they may, indeed, have SAVED my life. As a life-long manic-depressive I had lived with three different "moods" -- normalcy, depression and mania -- one of which resulted in the occasional and then intense flirtation with suicide. It was only with the benefit of the 20/20 vision of hindsight that I came to realize what it was that kept me going, kept me persisting with my life. Given that realization I determined that I should "systematize" what it was that Og Mandino had formulated and shared in his wonderful book. That system became what I now call "Attitude Control" I determined that if that self-help system could stabilize a diagnosed bi-polar then it would likely be beneficial to "normal" people. Needless to say, due to the stigma surrounding mental illness, one of the most difficult aspects of creating my book was the fact that I would likely be required to confess something I had kept secret for many years -- my own battle with manic-depression. It was only as I drove toward one of my very first radio talk show appearances that the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson motivated me to mention my illness: "Show me a man who was saved from nothing and I'll show you a man who wasnt' saved." It was only then that I was able to speak openly of my affliction. Since the first 2000 copies of the original hardcover print version of my first saw the light of day one of the primary comments I get closely approximates what Mr. Mandino said, "Your book, "The Grunch Who Ate The Bottom Line!", is one of the simplest and yet most powerful ways of getting a self-help message across." Therefore, it is now my hope that through the advent of this exciting new medium for sharing the written word that my story and my system might be a positive influence on all people who have attitude challenges. So whether I impact my readers with the elements of "Attitude Control" or simply inspire people to become more aware of and involved in Self-help, Inspirational, Motivational Psychology then I will consider my goal achieved. For I believe that seeing one's glass as half-full or half-empty is a choice. Seeing one's life and the world as heavenly or as a hell is also a choice. The choice as to which will derive the greatest happiness, peace of mind and spirit and ultimately the greatest good for humanity is, to me, obvious. Creating a mindset that makes that choice relatively automatic will take time and effort. However, a great book says: "The beginning of wisdom is fear (awe) of the Lord". It is my contention that the beginning of the commitment necessary to get control over our attitudes is fear of experiencing what can happen when our attitudes are out of control. At my seminars and speeches and interviews I have stated that what I suggest may not work for you; but, if so, then find something that will. It can mean all the difference to your life and the lives of those you love the most.
About the Author: Bernie Palmatier was born. He lived his formative years in a "war project" near Cleveland, Ohio. Therefore, he cannot be blamed for growing up a "project kid," and a fan of the baseball Indians and the football Browns. He started his career in direct sales with a division of the Reader's Digest while a pre-med student at THE Ohio State University. Several years as a life and health insurance salesman in El Paso, Texas made him a lover of Mexican food, and gave him an appreciation for both la corrida (bullfights-a misnomer), and the motto "manana" (the Spanish word for "tomorrow," which explains the paucity of ulcers in that country). He then joined a division of Management Recruiters International (MRI) of Dallas called Sales Consultants, where he filled 15 fee-paid positions in a single month, and achieved the honor of National Recruiter of the Year. He was promoted to Department Head, Asst. Manager, and Manager of the Dallas office. It was there that Bernie learned and became committed to the art of persuasion by telephone. He started his first business venture in Cleveland, and has been involved in start-ups in everything from men's hair care to restaurants to retail stores, to initiating one of the very first Telemarketing Service Bureaus in the U.S. After moving his business to Dayton, he ultimately evolved to consulting and training in the art of Tele-Selling, developing a seminar program called "Secrets of Telemarketing" that he has presented all over the country, as well as served as an Adjunct Professor at several colleges and universities. While providing attitude assistance to his staff of TSR's (Telemarketing Sales/Service Representatives), he first developed his "Attitude Control Program." Since there is no career in the world that requires exposure to such a high incidence of rejection, Bernie found that burnout is truly the bane of the Tele-Sales function, and that prevention of that condition is the only solution to high turnover. (Other seminars that Bernie provides include: "Secrets of TM Supervison," "Humor As A Stress/Success Management Tool," and "Humor for Seniors.") Bernie felt there needed to be a simple method for raising awareness of the power of Self-Help Psychology. That gave birth to The Grunch Who Ate The Bottom Line!, now making it possible to share the message with people throughout the world cost effectively, along with Bernie's motivational system "Attitude Control."