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I thank my two daughters, Julia and Leah, for thoughtfully editing every chapter of this book and for being my inspiration and the joy of my life.

I thank Bill for wholeheartedly supporting my efforts to write this book, as well as every effort that I’ve undertaken since the day we met.

I thank my late parents, Cecilia and Enrico, and grandmother, Maria, for the sacrifices they made to create a better life for their children and grandchildren.

I thank my sister, Sandi, who, while I was teaching out of the country many years ago, flew out to Michigan to save Halloween for my daughters after my youngest daughter tearfully declared, “There will be no Halloween without Mom.” Sandi and her husband Wayne have come through many times for my daughters and have gotten me out of trouble more times than I can count.

I thank my sister Laura and her husband Cory for their parties that bring out the best in everyone.

I thank Liam McGehee Marley for helping me with some of the early research for this book. His enthusiasm and wisdom added significant value to the book.

I thank my colleagues in the Management and Organizations Department, the Ross School of Business, and the University of Michigan for providing me with more support and encouragement than I ever thought possible in a workplace.

I thank the students and executives who have shared their dreams with me and given me the privilege of working with and learning from them.

I thank the many researchers who made this book possible because their research provides a strong foundation that enables people to build successful, happy, and healthy lives.

I thank Professors George Siedel, Wally Hopp, and Gautam Kaul for enthusiastically encouraging me to create my online Coursera course about the Science of Success, as well as Dave Malicke and Alex Hancook at the University of Michigan Office of Academic Innovation for turning my ideas into the final version of the course. The Coursera course, based on this book, would not have seen the light of day without their unflagging support and technical expertise.

I thank Cat Woods ( http://www.linkedin.com/in/catwoods1 ) not only for her indispensable editing, but for her candid feedback on the content of the book. She challenged me to clarify my thinking, my voice, and my purpose while writing a research-based book.

I thank John Siedel at Van Rye Publishing for his patience, professionalism, and vision. A publisher extraordinaire and a pleasure to work with, John encouraged me to turn a set of loose ideas into a cohesive and impactful story.