In this three‑minute motivational talk, Bryan Cressey shares the core principle that positivity is the primary driver of personal and professional success. He outlines four ways positivity works—generating energy, shaping belief, creating enthusiasm, and removing self‑imposed limits—then illustrates the concept with his own vision‑driven venture, the Above and Beyond addiction‑treatment center, which earned a national award within six years. Cressey cites research linking positive outlooks to longer life spans and to success, arguing that happiness precedes achievement. He concludes by inviting listeners to explore his book Be a Winner, which expands on these ideas, and a brief speaker bio highlights his background as a co‑founder of multiple successful private‑equity firms.
Chapters
I'm Bryan Cressey. 3 minutes to liftoff for your life. I'm going to share secrets I've learned that create success. 10 years ago, I began compiling these for my 3 daughters, and now I want everyone to benefit from these. When your life improves, our world improves, and I love that. So, How do you make your life take off? How do you succeed? Here's how. Positivity creates success. It's proven. Positivity helps your relationships, your health, and business success. How does it do that? In 4 ways. First, positivity creates energy, like the nuclear reactions on our sun that give all our energy. Positivity creates actions for teams and individuals. Secondly, positivity convinces your mind something is going to happen. And when you believe something is going to happen, it's far more likely to happen. Third, positivity creates enthusiasm. It inspires people. And when teams are inspired, other great people want to join that team. The fourth thing positivity does Is remember, unfortunately, most people put limitations on what they think they can achieve. People think, I should be realistic in what I might accomplish. Well, that's all wrong. When it comes to creating visions, there are no limitations. Let that go. I believe the number one reason I've been successful is I simply set higher targets than anybody else. And great people are attracted to great visions. They turn those visions into adventures, and everyone likes to be part of an adventure, accomplishing something difficult. Here's an example. I decided I wanted to create the best addiction treatment in America for the future, and I wanted to bring that best treatment to those that would benefit the most— the poor and the homeless. The center I opened on Chicago's West Side called Above and Beyond last year received the award for the best program in the nation, and the award was from the National Association of Addiction Treatment Professionals. Above and Beyond is only 6 years old. How could that happen in 6 years? Sounds impossible, right? But the vision attracted great people who made it happen. They made it happen. They made it an adventure, and it happened. I didn't make it happen. They did. But you know what really did? Positivity. Positivity became an adventure to create the vision and allowed them to accomplish what seems impossible. Now, what if you don't use positivity in your life? Well, your life is going to be less successful. It's going to be less fun. Oh, and one other thing, your life's going to be shorter. There's research from a university showing that people that live the longest, when they were younger, had more positive beliefs and feelings about life. Another 2005 study shows that happiness creates success, not vice versa. Success does not create happiness. Happiness creates success. So positivity can be your magic power. Positivity can be the rocket fuel that launches your life. If you want to know other ways to bring more joy and success into your life, explore my new book, Be a Winner, which contains hundreds of things I've learned to help myself succeed, and I want to share with you so you can too. Thank you.
Bryan Cressey, co-founder of 4 of the most successful private equity firms in the United States, is one of the country's greatest investors. He's an innovative builder of companies and leadership talent, and he wants to help you become financially successful, personally fulfilled, and enthusiastic about life.
