The goal of the “Top 1%er” interview series is to break down the qualities of people who excel and to show that you can be successful and achieve personal greatness from any starting point in your life. The interview series will look at people from all different careers and industries. Some names will be familiar and others may not. The purpose is to understand and borrow from the “best practices” of winners to develop a roadmap to your TOP 1%. We will share a new story every two weeks.
Our guest this week is Jenn Lim, the CEO and Chief Happiness Officer of Delivering Happiness, a company she and Tony Hsieh (CEO of Zappos) co-created to inspire happiness in work, community, and everyday life. In 2005, she created the first Culture Book for Zappos. In 2009, Zappos was sold to Amazon.com in a deal valued at $1.2 billion on the day of closing, and in 2011, Zappos was #6 on Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list. The Culture Book has become a global symbol of how companies can successfully create cultures based on happiness and be profitable at the same time. In 2010, Jenn led the launch and management of Tony’s first book, Delivering Happiness, which hit #1 on numerous bestseller lists (including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today). Today, she’s dedicated to growing the social venture of Delivering Happiness to “Inspire, Be Inspired, and Create Happiness,” day by day.
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ALISSA FINERMAN: 1. What’s the most important strength you possess that allows you to be successful in your role?
JENN LIM: I am genuinely interested in people – what they do, who they are, and why they do the things they do.
2. Tell me about some of the daily thoughts that inspire you to keep going?
JL: 10 years ago, I came to a point in my life where I knew every decision had to be based on something I felt was meaningful and worthwhile. That happened because my greatest fear happened – a loved one (my dad) died. As a result, I don’t have to remind myself of what keeps me going every day – people mean everything to me and the Delivering Happiness movement that continues to grow.
3. How do you prepare for an important project in your life?
JL: I research, go by gut, apply lessons learned in the past, and take a step knowing that I’ve done all I can to get it done right.
4. How do you record and move forward on your goals?
JL: My most exciting adventure this year was just announced at SXSW last week:
6. What are some of the toughest challenges you have overcome?
JL: My dad dying made me rethink what I needed to change because everything we know could end tomorrow. Also, getting laid off made me rethink what money, title, and status meant.
7. What do the top performers do differently to excel?
JL: They are:
* passionate
* have a higher purpose
* always themselves
The “Top 1%er” interview series is presented by Alissa Finerman, a life coach, speaker, and author of the book, “Living in Your Top 1%: Nine Essential Rituals to Achieve Your Ultimate Life Goals” which is available on Amazon.com. She has an MBA from the Wharton School and a BA from the University of California, Berkeley. To learn more please visit, www.AlissaFinerman.com or Facebook.
Citadel Interview with Richard Stevens
Click the play arrow below for a short clip of the interview
[audio:http://alissafinerman.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/alissa-finerman-CEO-citadel-4.11.mp3|titles=Alissa Finerman talks with Richard Stevens from Citadel] (Alissa discusses being the CEO of YOU INC.)
[audio:http://alissafinerman.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/alissa-finerman-define-top-1-citadel-4.11.mp3|titles=Alissa Finerman defines top 1% moments ] (Alissa defines Living in Your Top 1%)
[audio:http://alissafinerman.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/alissa-finerman-mindset-citadel-4.11.mp3|titles=Alissa Finerman talks with Richard Stevens from Citadel Radio] (Alissa discusses mindset as a choice)
Alissa talks with The Brynn Project
Click the play arrow below to listen to the interview
[audio:http://alissafinerman.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Alissa-Finerman-the-Brynn-Project-41911.mp3|titles=Alissa Finerman talks to The Brynn Project ]
To listen 1) Click on the red link above and scroll down to “Show Date” on left column of March 17, 2011. 2) Click on right hand column “listen” 3) New window pops up and interview will start (my interview begins at 30 minutes)
ARTICLES/INTERVIEWS
Huffington Post shares some insights on Living in Your Top 1%. Read article
Blogcritics.org shares an insightful and authentic review of my book, Living in Your Top 1%. Read review
Alan Caruba has been reviewing books for the past five decades (yes five). He was kind enough to give Living in Your Top 1% a positive review. My book is highlighted under the Advice, advice, advice section. Read review (April 2011)
Note: This blog is a re-post of a guest blog I did for Virgin.com.
“A man without a goal is like a ship without a rudder.”- Thomas Carlyle
In 1995, Andre Agassi became the No. 1 tennis player in the world. When reporters asked him how he felt, he told them: “I’m happy about the ranking, it feels good to be the best that I can be.” But in reality, it was a lie. That was what he expected to feel. What he really felt was empty and unsatisfied. How could this be?
In his book, Open, Agassi goes on to say that he needed a new goal: “The problem, all this time, is that I’ve had the wrong goals. I never really wanted to be number one, that was just something others wanted for me – I wanted to win the French Open.” He later shares that his most meaningful moments were using the prize money from winning tennis tournaments to fund his charter schools to help kids in need. That’s when his life changed (and when he met Steffi Graf).
What about you? Are you still pursuing goals that others want for you or goals you think you should do? Throughout my coaching work, I’ve seen the importance of goals. I’ve also realized that people who make more money, have fancier titles, or additional education do not necessarily set more meaningful or effective goals. So if you are an aspiring entrepreneur, teacher, writer, athlete, mom, artist, or business owner, you can use goals to go as far as you want and reach your greatest potential.
My goal is to help you simplify the process. Let’s get a few things out on the table:
1. No goals = Leaving your potential on the table
2. Vague goals = Leaving your potential on the table
3. Goals without action = Leaving your potential on the table
By the way, there is tons of research to suggest that setting and achieving goals leads to a happier and more fulfilling life. I won’t bore you with the details but you can reference the books, The How of Happiness, Creating Your Best Life, and my new book Living In Your Top 1%.
The bottom line: Goals + Choices + Commitment = Your Results
Here are five strategies to get you rolling:
1. Write Down Your Goals
You’re probably like so many people who like to keep everything in their mind instead of on paper. Let me tell you a little secret about these folks – they are the same people who rarely follow through on their goals.
When you write down your goals, you start to see where you want to go and it’s easier to make decisions because you have a destination. Consider taking 15 minutes to write down your goals in each part of your life (i.e. Career, Relationships, Healthy Living, Fun & Creativity, Finances, and Personal Growth).
2. Craft Clear-Cut Goals That Add Meaning to Your Life
Many of us think vague goals are our friends but actually they just derail us in our mission. If you’re planning to get better at golf, be a better leader, or stretch more in the new year, you will need to be much more specific.
Say your goal out loud and honestly ask yourself if it’s clear what you are trying to do. It’s also helpful to share your goal(s) with a trusted friend. Once you have a clear goal, you need to double check that it’s something you really care about.
Many goals are clear. The question is will you feel a sense of accomplishment and meaning when you achieve the goal? If not, it’s not the right goal. For example, you may have a very clear goal to be the market leader in your business. But if you really want to be connected to your daughter and coach her soccer team then achieving your business goal may or may not leave you feeling fulfilled.
Examples of vague to specific goals:
1. Get in shape = does this mean lower your blood pressure, have consistent energy throughout the day, lose 15 pounds by your college reunion, or run your first 5k race?
2. Build my business = do you mean open a second store, increase revenue by 20%, or hire five new employees?
3. Spend more time with friends = do you mean have dinner once a week or schedule a four-day ski trip?
3. Pursue a Goal that is a Tier One Priority
Your tier one goals are the ones that will make the biggest impact in your life. They are the most important goals. They are not necessarily the goals that help you make the most money or get you promoted but rather the goals that add a deeper sense of fulfillment to your life.
You probably have many things that are important in your life. Write down all of your goals above and then check the ones that are most important to you. Perhaps you want to finish your degree, get out of debt, or change jobs. Whatever is meaningful to you is what you need to pursue.
4. Take Small Steps
Once you have a great goal, break it down into small steps. Too many people think the goal setting process is over once you declare your goal–that’s when the fun starts.
Train your mind to take one small step a day and you will make amazing progress. It’s a process, not magic. We don’t have control over many things in life but you do have control over setting a great goal. Why give up this option for no reason? There’s no excuse to leave your potential on the table because you did not even try. Please don’t let this year pass you by, step up to the plate and see what you can do. Small steps = big results.
5. Set a Target Date
This is a tough one but it needs to be done. Just saying that you are going to write a book or lose weight is not really saying anything. Does that mean you are going to write a book in the next five years or lose weight sometime in your lifetime?
If you just started working at a new company, it’s probably not realistic to say that you will be promoted tomorrow but it might be reasonable to set a goal to be promoted within six months or a year. You will have to decide what’s doable given everything else going on in your life. Either way, it’s helpful to have a date that you are working toward.
TOP 1% SUMMARY: One of the best ways to take yourself to the next level is to embrace the practice of goal setting. If you’re going to put yourself on the line, you might as well use your time and efforts wisely. Having clear-cut goals that excite you and add meaning to your life is one of the best ways to excel in your passion of choice. Now is the time to move into your top 1%.
Alissa is a life coach, speaker, and author of “Living in Your Top 1%: Nine Essential Rituals to Achieve Your Ultimate Life Goals” available on Amazon.com. She works with individuals and organizations to help them think bigger, redefine what’s possible, and get results. Alissa has an MBA from the Wharton School and a BA from the University of California, Berkeley. To learn more, please visit www.AlissaFinerman.com or www.facebook.com/alissafinermantop1.
The goal of the “Top 1%er” interview series is to break down the qualities of people who excel and to show that you can be successful and achieve personal greatness from any starting point in your life. The interview series will look at people from all different careers and industries. Some names will be familiar and others may not. The purpose is to understand and borrow from the “best practices” of winners to develop a roadmap to your TOP 1%. We will share a new story every two weeks.
This week’s guest is Glenn Yago, Ph.D. Glenn is the executive director of financial research at the Milken Institute and a leading authority on financial innovations, capital markets, emerging markets, and environmental finance. His research and projects have contributed to policy innovations fostering the democratization of capital to underserved markets and entrepreneurs in the U.S. and worldwide. He has co-authored five books.
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Glenn has a very thoughtful approach and is amazingly humble given all that he has accomplished and contributed to the world. We spoke earlier this month about Living in Your Top 1% and the qualities that help people excel.
ALISSA FINERMAN: 1. What’s the most important strength you possess that helps you to be successful in your role?
GLENN YAGO: I think my core strengths are my ability to keep a sense of humor in difficult times, be tenacious, and never take myself too seriously. I always feel that I can do better and that I’m a work in progress.
2. Tell me about some of the daily thoughts that inspire you to keep going?
GY: I say gratitude every morning. It’s a saying that was inspired by my grandfather and helps to ground me for the day and remind me how fortunate I am.
3. How do you prepare for a new or important project in your life?
GY: I start reading and learning everything I can and then find out who the experts are in that area and talk to them. I make an effort to leave any preconceived notions behind of how I think the problem can be solved and go into something with an open mind.
4. What small steps did you take to get started?
GY: When I was a young researcher, I sent in my work to the top newspapers. All the people around me told me my work would never get accepted and that I shouldn’t approach the best papers. My first piece was accepted which gave me tremendous confidence. Since that time, I’ve had other articles rejected but it never stops me from reaching a little higher.
I’ve always taken small steps to make sure I am working with people who inspire me and who share similar values and interests. When I was getting started, I opted to work on projects that had an impact and added meaning to society.
5. How do you record and move forward on your goals?
GY: I always write down my goals in a notebook that I have and make an effort to focus on quality goals that excite me rather than pure quantity. For example, one meaningful goal is to co-author a book each year that focuses on innovations and solutions for social and economic global issues.
6. What keeps you motivated each day?
GY: Changing practices or the way people think about an issue. For example, one important project focuses on making our need/dependence on oil obsolete. That’s exciting!
7. What are some of the toughest challenges you have overcome?
GY: My biggest issue is stepping through fear in a new situation and pushing myself to do things that might intimidate me. I always try to expose myself to new situations and step into the unknown. The process doesn’t necessarily get easier but with each mini-win, I build confidence.
8. What do the top performers do differently to excel?
GY: The key is to stay humble and to avoid categorical thinking. You need to understand the big picture, the broader implications of an idea, and simultaneously be able to identify the key details to make it work. If you can get out of the weeds and ask yourself why am I doing this, you will have the best chance of moving forward. I’ve also found it invaluable to be able to work through problems/issues and to build relationships along the way.
The “top 1%er” interview series is presented by Alissa Finerman, a life coach, speaker, and author of the book, “Living in Your Top 1%: Nine Essential Rituals to Achieve Your Ultimate Life Goals” which is available on Amazon.com. She has an MBA from the Wharton School and a BA from the University of California, Berkeley. To learn more please visit, www.AlissaFinerman.com or Facebook. To learn more about Glenn Yago, visit the Milken Institute.
TOP 1%er INTERVIEW SERIES with Jonathan Simons, MD by Alissa Finerman
The goal of the “Top 1%er” interview series is to break down the qualities of people who excel and to show that you can be successful and achieve personal greatness from any starting point in your life. The interview series will look at people from all different careers and industries. Some names will be familiar and others may not. The purpose is to understand and borrow from the “best practices” of winners to develop a roadmap to your TOP 1%. We will share a new story every two weeks.
This week’s guest is JONATHAN W. SIMONS, MD, President and CEO of the Prostate Cancer Foundation (www.pcf.org). Dr. Simons is an internationally recognized physician-scientist, oncologist and acclaimed investigator in prostate cancer research. He is the Founding Director of the Winship Cancer Institute at Emory University in Atlanta. Dr. Simons received a BA from Princeton University and an MD from The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Started in 1993, PCF is the leading philanthropic organization funding and accelerating research globally to cure prostate cancer. The U.S. death rate from this disease has dropped nearly 40% from what was once projected.
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Dr. Simons is an amazing person who is deeply passionate about making a difference in the world. We spoke earlier this month about Living in Your Top 1% and the qualities that help people excel. He is a big believer that passion, combined with small steps and consistency, pave the way for big things.
ALISSA FINERMAN: 1. What’s the most important strength you possess that helps you to be successful in your role?
JONATHAN SIMONS: I think one of my strengths is being able to convey my vision for success and break down the key components to my team. I also make an effort to focus on solutions, make decisions when needed, and empower others to do their job.
2. Tell me about some of the daily thoughts that inspire you to keep going?
JS: As an oncologist, I realize that having a day of health is a privilege and a gift. I have a morning ritual to help ground me for the day that takes about five minutes and includes saying gratitude and a short meditation. Before going to sleep, I always try to think about an interesting idea in science or medicine rather than think about problems.
3. How do you prepare for a new or important project in your life?
JS: My first step is always to define the issue or project. Next, I bring together a team of the best people who won’t always agree on a solution. We will have several team meetings until we can visualize a solution to take action on.
4. How do you record and move forward on your goals?
I am a big goal setter. I have a dedicated goal setting journal where I write down all of my goals in different areas of my life. I then look at my goal notebook on the 1st Sunday of each month to see what needs to be revised.
5. What keeps you motivated each day?
JS: I’m fortunate to say that I’ve always followed my passion and interests which are science, medicine, and helping others. I’ve been able to combine a career with what I love to do.
6. What are some of the toughest challenges you have overcome?
JS: My biggest professional challenge on a daily basis is to channel and prioritize my multiple interests. To do this, I focus on top tier priorities which change frequently. On a personal basis, the death of my father during medical school was a very difficult time. I wanted to help my mom through the grieving process and to excel in school, which was a challenge. I started meditating during this time to calm my mind and gain greater clarity.
7. What do the top performers do differently to excel?
JS: The people who I see excel find a special bliss in doing something or making a contribution at a world-class level. This “bliss” will be different for each one of us. If something is worth doing, you might as well give it all you’ve got. I think it’s important to find something that truly excites you. Then follow that up with consistency and small steps to make progress. The last piece of the puzzle is to train your mind to focus on solutions and see the success that you want to bring into your life. It’s a process! Not everything has to go from zero to sixty in less than a second.
“Follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.” ~ Joseph Campbell
The “top 1%er” interview series is presented by Alissa Finerman, a life coach, speaker, and author of the book, “Living in Your Top 1%: Nine Essential Rituals to Achieve Your Ultimate Life Goals” which is available on Amazon.com. She has an MBA from the Wharton School and a BA from the University of California, Berkeley. To learn more please visit, www.AlissaFinerman.com or Facebook. To learn more about the Prostate Cancer Foundation, please visit www.pcf.org.
