By Dan Walsh at The Book Centre, Wexford
In his new hardback, The Game of Life & How to Win it, Enniscorthy-born Ivan Yates draws on his remarkable career in politics, business and broadcasting to offer a direct guide to success, fulfilment and overcoming setbacks.
The Wexford launch took place last night (Friday) in the Book Centre, Wexford, before a large attendance. In his address, Yates believes that “success isn’t down to luck, it’s about strategy, preparation and the courage to step outside your comfort zone.”
In an excerpt from the book, Ivan states; “Anyone who knows me understands that I am a talker, but over the years and while meeting people from all walks of life, I have trained myself to listen.
“My job as a Fine Gael TD in Enniscorthy provided me with a degree in listening, as people flowed through my door with their problems and concerns.
“It was during the 1980s, and unemployment was at an all-time high. Many local businesses were closing down, leaving people on unemployment benefit with with no prospects of work elsewhere.
“All I could do was listen, nod and commiserate, urge them to avail of all the benefits they were entitled to and send them on their way,” he states.
Yates’ book should be read by anybody with an interest in going through life with its’ do’s and don’ts, and has some interesting quotes like this ones under the heading; What is a true friend?
A good friend is genuinely interested in you as a person, not as a contact or a useful acquaintance; will turn up for the tough times, like illness, difficulty, pain and not just for fun events; and isn’t jealous of your success and achievements in life.
Ivan has dedicated the book to his five grandchildren, Beth, Freya and Mia Stewart, and Sean and Anna Yates, all under seven years old, and writes; “I hope that some fragment of wisdom contained in this book might help them in the decades ahead, when they encounter lives travels.”
Ivan Yates is an Irish broadcaster, author, businessman and Fine Gael politician who represented Wexford constituency in Dáil Éireann from 1981 to 2002.
During his political career, he served as Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry from 1994 until 1997, and after leaving politics he became a prominent media figure and businessman.
His previous publication was Full On; A Memoir published in 2014 at a time when he co-presented Newstalk FM’s breakfast show with Chris Donoghue, who presided at last night’s Wexford launch.
The Game of Life and & How to Win it by Ivan Yates, 385 pages, hardback, no illustrations, published by Gill Books, Dublin, €24.99, available at all good bookshops. ISBN 9781804583456.
WexfordLocal.com 