SECRETS of SELF STARTERS 48 Amazing Stories to Ignite the Self-Starter in YOU! Dr. Julie Miller Book Publishers Network P.O. Box 2256 Bothell • WA • 98041 Ph • 425-483-3040 www.bookpublishersnetwork.com Copyright © 2011 by Julie Miller Graphic clipart © 2011 Jupiterimages Corporation All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in, or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the publisher. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Printed in the United States of America LCCN 2010934499 Soft bound: ISBN13 978-1-935359-51-7 ISBN10 1-935359-51-7 Hard bound: ISBN13 978-1-935359-61-6 ISBN10 1-935359-61-4 Editor: Lori Zue Cover Designer: Laura Zugzda Typographer: Stephanie Martindale o my beloved husband who continues to give me love, patience Tand support. You gave up work on your novel to be there for me. To the legacy of self-starters in my life: my grandfathers, my father, my husband, my brother and my four children. o the self-starters profiled in this book. Without their willingness Tto open their hearts, their homes and their lives, this book would not have been possible. Some were colleagues, a few were friends, the majority were strangers—until now. I am humbled at their generosity, their wisdom and the incredible journeys they shared with me. They have my profound gratitude and immeasurable admiration. CONteNts ACKNOWleDGEMENts xi INtrODUctiON xiii ONE VISION INSPIRES POSSIBILITIES SUsaN CAMerer Living Her Dream to House the Homeless 3 JacK CANfielD Combining Vision With Action 7 SUNNY KOBE COOK Visionary Sleeps Well With Self-Built Empire 11 MicHael DAVie Telling Stories That Need to Be Told 15 StePHANie HIMONIDis Dream It, Then Do It 19 DEBra FacKTOR LEPOre Soaring High With a Clear End Goal 23 JON ROBertsON Vision and Discipline: An Unbeatable Pair 27 KEYNOtes 31 TWO PERSEVERANCE TRUMPS ADVERSITY NANC Y AOsse Y Global Aid Rooted in Iowa 35 DAVID LOaiZA Flying in the Face of Obstacles 39 Secrets of Self-Starters DAVE SABEY Pocket Change and Mega-Deals 43 GEOffreY StacK Tenacity Increases the Odds 47 KEYNOtes 51 THREE PASSION IGNITES ENERGY JOHN CAMPBell An Accidental Self-Starter 55 AleX ANDer L. CAPPellO Passion Is a Requirement 59 KatHY CaseY Passion You Can Taste 63 DAYNA GOLDfiNE Following Her Bliss 67 ROB UKROPINA Passionate About Others’ Passions 71 KEYNOtes 75 FOUR SEIZING OPPORTUNITY CAPITALIZES ON CHANCE Gale BENSUsseN The Art of the Possible 79 VicKI GUNValsON A Real Housewife Who Is Really Extraordinary 83 WING LAM When Opportunity Knocks, Wing Answers 87 vi Contents JeffreY KENDall SAPP A True Leader, From Locker Room to War Room 91 KEYNOtes 95 FIVE SELF-MOTIVATION DRIVES PROGRESS JIM Ellis Cutting a Wide Swath of Experience 99 Pat HADEN A Life Well-Played With Plenty of Time on the Clock 103 QUY “Q” NGUYEN Answering The Big ‘Why?’ Question 107 PatricK Pascal Enterprising From Day One 111 ArleN “ARNie” I. PreNtice Kissing Frogs Leads to Great Success 115 MIKala RAHN Compelled to Work in No Man’s Land 119 PEPPer SCHWartZ Relationship Guru and Sex Expert 123 LOU Tice Change Your Thinking; Change Your Life 127 KEYNOtes 131 SIX CREATIVITY SPARKS SOLUTIONS RON D. BarBarO Overcoming Obstacles With ‘Creosity’ 135 vii Secrets of Self-Starters HeleN CHOU Breaking the Mold 139 LOri PAPPas New Models to Fix Old Problems 143 LANA StaHeli Medical Books and Marital Affairs 147 JONatHAN TODD Pulling Rabbits Out of Hats Takes Discipline 151 KEYNOtes 155 SEVEN RISK-TAKING REAPS REWARDS PHYllis CAMPBell Risk-Taking is Actually More Like . Ready, Fire, Aim! 155 TOM DOUGlas Not Relying on His Alarm Clock 163 JONI Earl From Public Assistance to Public Service 167 Jeff SMULYAN Taking Risks and Enjoying the Consequences 171 KENT STOWell AND FraNcia RUssell Ignoring the Naysayers; Taking the Risk 175 KEYNOtes 181 EIGHT POSITIVE THINKING ATTRACTS POSSIBILITIES GLOria BURGess Creating Yes Out of No 185 viii Contents ILONA EUROPA Great Success Comes From Never Giving Up 189 DAN Geller A Positivist Behind the Camera 193 MEGAN KarcH Transforming Lives, Thanks to a Fair Start 197 GINNY RUffNer Never Say Never 201 KEYNOtes 205 NINE COMPASSI ON ENRICHES SUCCESS ROBerta DiaZ BriNTON The Memory Maven 209 JareD GreeNBerG Fighting a Global Problem Close to Home 213 RicarDO SANCHEZ He LEAPs to Help Latino Students 217 PHil M. SMart, SENIOR Giving His Third Eight to Help the Hurting 221 BOB WalsH Creating Goodwill Around the Globe 225 KEYNOtes 229 Self-Starter CONtact INFORMatiON 231 KEYFacts ABOUT OUR AMAZING Self-Starters 237 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 245 Get StarteD! 247 ix ACKNOWleDGEMENts he suggestions, encouragement and good counsel received from Tthe following people were priceless: Big Thinking Women of Seattle, Creativity Circle, JoAnn Burgess, Dr. Lynda Falkenstein, Phyllis Grand, Barbara Hinck, Lorraine Howell, Dr. Peggy Jacobson, Dr. Mary Lynne Derrington, Rebecca Lyman, Dr. John Morford, Tammy Peniston and Dr. Carol Winkler. Special acknowledgements Lori Zue, my amazing editor. You made my words sing and the stories shine. Julie Hollinger Pascal, for her critical and artistic eye with my book cover. Dr. Lee Smith, for her editing and guidance in creating the KeyNotes at the end of each chapter. Desi Goodwin, your assistance in getting this book completed is beyond, beyond. Tammy Pinkston, thank you for your flexibility and timeliness in completing the interview transcriptions. INtrODUctiON n both my business and personal life, I’ve met many phenomenal Ipeople who have changed the world—or at least their corner of it. The majority of them were not born with a silver spoon in their mouth, so how is it they’ve achieved amazing things when so many other people in similar situations haven’t? Clearly, they possess attitudes and traits that have helped propel them to the top of their game—and nine traits, in particular, bubbled to the top when I interviewed the people featured in this book. What I also discovered is they are not so different from you and me, except they took action. Basically, they started. They used their own combina- tion of attitude and a winning trait—their traititude—to move forward. Whether or not you consider yourself a self-starter at this point, this book will inspire, motivate and empower you. I am passing on the wisdom of real people who found that spark. The people profiled in this book figured out what would work for them. Their stories act as exemplars so you can achieve your dreams, your goals. As you read, perhaps you will feel affirmed and say,I’m on my way! You may discover a trait or an attitude you need to develop to lead a fulfilling life. If so, develop your owntraititude . Draw on tools and skills you already have to reach the next level and ignite the self-starter in you. Maybe you say to yourself: Why would I want to be a self-starter? I’m pretty happy where I am. It’s the “pretty happy” part that can wear you down. I am not suggesting you drop everything and launch your own mini-conglomerate or a new non-profit. I’m saying to look at the current circumstances of your work life and find out what really motivates you. That’s where you want to be, where you want to focus Secrets of Self-Starters and excel. That’s where your potential is utilized towards the goals you want to achieve and the life you want to lead. What would ignite your traititude so you can express your true gifts and reach—or go beyond—your potential? How will you get what you want out of life? No worries if you don’t have an immediate answer, although I bet you’ll have several ideas by the time you finish this book. Every one of these amazing people faced trials, tribulations and failure, as well as success. But all of them went for it—damn the tor- pedoes and full speed ahead. Some were motivated by passion, recognition, self-expression; others were driven by their dreams. A few came from privileged backgrounds; most pulled themselves up by their bootstraps. Some experienced very rugged childhoods; others did not. Some were highly educated; others were not. Some were first-generation Americans; others were not. You will find in this book people from all walks of life, all ages and ethnici- ties. They all have one thing in common: they’re self-starters. THE PROFILES THE INtraPreNEUrs, THE ENtrePreNEUrs AND THE AcaDEMiciaNS, THE BIG Hearts AND THE PUBlic Ser VANts I divided the people I interviewed into three groups. First were the intrapreneurs—those who succeeded within corporations. They saw opportunities and worthwhile risks, and they rose to the occa- sion, most often not waiting for permission. The second group was the entrepreneurs. They ignited their own self-starter sparks but not without spending some time honing their skill sets and absorbing everything they could before striking out on their own. The third group consists of those who work in the worlds of academia, non-profit or public service. They managed to shine in environments where status quo and safety dominate. xiv Introduction HERE’S WHAT YOU CAN LEARN The nine traits presented in this book reside in these self-starters in different ways. Like you, all were born with innate talents and, for some, it was simply a matter of uncovering those gifts and combin- ing them with motivation. Other self-starters describe how they used rocky experiences to help clarify a vision or fuel an inner drive.