CNN Money has an excellent articles where they interview 22 people from political leaders, company executives, investors, entrepreneurs, and even a chef, asking them to share the best advice they ever got. Below is a summary of their answers:
- “Keep it Simple” – Tiger Woods
- “Show, don’t tell” – Jim Sinegal
- “Do what you love” – Mort Zuckerman
- “Empower a subordinate” – Lloyd Blankfein
- “Push beyond your comfort zone” – Mohamed El-Erian
- “Ignore conventional wisdom” – David Axelrod
- “Trust your instincts” – Tory Burch
- “Read everything” – Jim Rogers
- “Be effective, not popular” – Scott Boras
- “Use failure to motivate yourself” – Mika Brzezinski
- “Focus on performance, not power” – Colin Powell
- “Take advice from smart people” – Shai Agassi
- “Make an impression” – Sukhinder Singh Cassidy
- “Hire a coach” – Eric Schmidt
- “Set realistic goals” – Meredith Whitney
- “Listen” – Lauren Zalaznick
- “Don’t talk shop” – Julian Robertson
- “Treat it like it’s yours” – Thomas Keller
- “Underpromise and overdeliver” – Robin Li
- “Don’t pursue titles and dollars” – Miles White
- “Self-doubt is normal” – Aaron Patzer
- “Be nice to people” – Niklas Savander
My favourite three from the list are “take advice from smart people”, “Keep it Simple”, and “Show, don’t tell.” Each of these three advices I have come to experience as being true wisdom and highly effective in a diversity of situations.
To read more about these advice, the context, and where they came from, see the original article: Best advice I ever got.
Drinking my medium roast coffee with sugar and cream and eating my uber expensive organic (or not?) blueberry muffin at Just Us Cafe on Barrinton Street. Editing my paper for a big conference, minding my own business, not bothering anyone.

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