530: Your Magic Key with Sharon Lechter

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Welcome to the show. This is Jason Hartman, your host. Every 10th episode we do something kind of special, kind of different. What we do is we go off topic. So regardless of which show it is on the Hartman Media Network, whether it be one of the financial shows, economics, real estate, investing, travel, longevity, all of the other topics that we have, every 10th episode we go off topic and we explore something of general interest, something of general life, success, value. And so many of our listeners around the world in 164 countries have absolutely loved our 10th episode shows. So that's what we're gonna do today. And let's go ahead and get to our guest with a special 10th episode show. And of course, on the next episode we'll be back to our regular programming. Here we go. It's my pleasure to welcome Sharon Lechter back to the show. She's been on several times before over the years. She's the former CEO of Rich dad and Pay youy First. She's an entrepreneur, number one New York Times best selling author, international best selling author, philanthropist, international speaker, mentor, licensed CPA and chartered global management accountant. She's the author of several books including her newest Success and Something Greater, your Magic Key. Sharon, welcome back. How are you?

I am delighted. Thank you so much, Jason. Always thrilled to be with you.

It's good to have you on again. And you're coming to us from Phoenix, right?

I am, yes. It's starting to cool down. It's down to 105.

Well, it's a dry heat. Yes, I lived there for six years and liked it quite a bit. First of all, before we dive into your new book, Sharon, and maybe you can just hold it up for us for those on video.

Absolutely.

Good stuff. Tell us about some of your other books because I didn't mention all of the titles and Your work with Robert Kiyosaki and such.

Well, right. Robert and I became partners. We wrote Rich dad, poor dad and 14 others in that series. We were partnered for 10 years and certainly it created quite the global success because I think it was the right message at the right time. It was kind of a viral marketing success even before the Internet. Then when I left rich dad in 2007 was when the Napoleon Hill foundation reached out and said, we'd love to have your support. So my last four books have been in cooperation with the Napoleon Hill Foundation. So it's been just an incredible journey and huge opportunity to help reinvigorate the teachings of Napoleon Hill. And Success Is Something Greater is my fourth book with the foundation, very newly.

Released is Napoleon Hill. Would you sort of consider him kind of the original self help author for the first kind of prosperity guru?

There's no doubt about it. He released Think and Grow rich back in 1937, but it was his life's work. He spent 25 years charged with that responsibility by Andrew Carnegie, the richest man in the world at the time. He said, I have all the these rich friends and I think we have things in common. And so he really charged Napoleon Hill with. He introduced him to all of these rich people and at that time they were all men and said, I want you to create the thesis of success. And that's what he did. And Think and Grow Rich. That's why it's still as applicable today as it was in 1937, because it's not one man's philosophy. It was the commonalities of all of these people and how they created success in their life.

Yeah, good stuff. Well, success in something greater sort of expands that definition of success beyond economics, right?

Oh, it does. My first book with the foundation, Three Feet From Gold, we wrote back in 2008, 2009, and that was when we were in the middle of an economic crisis and we wanted to talk to people how they survived those valleys. And so we talk about perseverance. And the Three Feet From Gold is kind of like you're right there having faith in yourself and what you're doing. And so what we wanted to do this time, which is 10 later, is we wanted to really share with people that success means different things to different people. We have never before published content from Napoleon Hill himself. But we also interview and share the stories of close to 20 successful entrepreneurs. Every one of them followed a different path. Every one of them had a different secret sauce or magic key that they used create success in their life. But Also that success, they went beyond that and did something and something greater. And that's the title. And what we're honored about is that was actually the title that Napoleon Hill was going to use for his last book before he died, and he was never able to use it. So the foundation reached out to me and said, sharon, we'd like you to use this title, and it's Perfect Success and something Greater.

Fantastic. So how many people were profiled in the book?

We have just under 20 people where we talk to them about their successes and they're from all different walks of life. John Asser, of course, is very.

He's been on the show. Yeah.

Yes, yes. And then we also have Bob Bondurant, who's a very famous race car driver. Rita Davenport, who led Arbonne from 100 million to a billion in sales and revenue. We have, you know, John Asworth, the one who created the golf apparel company.

And we have got men and women.

Yeah, yes, yes. Lisa Copeland, who was one of the top women in automotive. So every one of them has a unique story. The founders of Barefoot Wines. And each one of them, you know, one found a gap in the market and went after it. One of them, you know, Bob Bondurant says, know the track. Do your due diligence. You know, even though he was one of the top rated drivers, he would still go in early and drive the track. Always pay attention to where you're going. Always have your eye on where you want to be.

Okay. So looking at some of those, you know, thoughts become things. Find your purpose. Set a goal, Overcome obstacles. Find the gap. Power of asking. Be a visionary. Surround yourself with good people, you know, and just kind of. I won't say them all, but, you know, constant forward motion. Walter o'. Brien. That's a good one. Going the extra mile, being unstoppable, setting milestones. What do you want to share from these? You know, some of the highlights.

At the end of the day, any reader that reads the book, you know, they might find a chapter that they. Yeah, I already did that. I've done that. Or they might. The next one might actually hit you between the eyes and you'll see if they can do it. So can I. The best way to learn something is by feeling it. And so through telling stories and sharing the success stories of others, people can relate to it more, and it makes it easier to take that action, to take that step in your own life.

Yeah, because it's more relatable to them. Right. So in terms of the types of success and Success meaning more than, you know, what the world views, financial success. Tell us about some of the other types of success, if you would, that you profile in the book.

From my perspective, success is how you feel about yourself when you look in the mirror. So we have people in the book that were basically, their success was created financially through a business and allowed them to create foundations, to give back, and to make a different world. Cynthia Kersey created the Unstoppable Foundation. She shares that story. She's now changing entire communities in Africa by bringing in not just education, not just money, but understanding how they can be sustainable and create ecosystems and build entire universities so that she's really changing the face and the dynamics in Africa. And she shares that story. And so it gives people the idea, the concepts of things that they can do in their own life, in their own communities, to make an impact.

Okay, good. So is that the only sort of definition of success? I like what you said about how you feel about yourself, you know, because we really are the ultimate arbiter of what success means. You know, you can be poor and successful, you can be rich and miserable, anything in between. A lot of permutations. Is that the only sort of key marker of success?

I guess I should say every one of these stories has a different marker of success for them. Obviously, Bob Mondarat was, you know, the number of wins he could get on the raceway, and obviously with that came money. But for him, it was, you know, becoming the best at what he was doing. Someone else's win is opening up an orphanage in Africa. Somebody else's win is becoming a billionaire. That's not mine. That's not my definition of success. You know, I believe in little wins every day. We can create a lifetime of success because successes can be small or large. It depends on what your goal is and what you're looking at. And if you create success just a little bit every single day, you're going to wake up and have created a large success.

Yeah, good. Good stuff. Okay, so other profiles or stories or any more details you want to share about any of them?

Well, my dear friend Fred Wagonholz is in the book and he. His story is a really unique one because he's an inventor, he's an innovator. He basically had the original patent for the jet Ski, and he sold it for $75,000 because he was about to lose his house, he couldn't pay his employees, and he was about to lose his marriage. And by selling that patent for $75,000, he was able to keep his House, pay his employees, and move on to the next. And so his secret sauce is make a deal so you can get to the next deal. So even in our interview with him, and I've known him for a long time, you learn things about people that you've known for a long time. Conversations. And he said, no, I never. You know, we said, don't you, don't you regret it?

Right. That's instantly what everybody will think. Yeah. What if.

Right. Had I held onto it, this billion dollar industry? He said, no. He said, because that allowed me to pay my employees, it allowed me to get to the next deal. And he went on and he invented the bucking Bronco that you see in bars. He invented the little car that was on Fantasy Island. And then with his connections and the people he knew in NASCAR, he started doing the little die cast cars for NASCAR. And he sold that company for well over two, I think $240 million years later. So he doesn't look back and regret selling that patent.

I'm really curious what the Jet Ski patent would be worth, though.

Yeah, exactly.

By the way, did he say what year did he sell that patent? I mean, that must be a lot older than I thought. Because the reason I can tell is when you talk about some of the inventions or things he did afterwards.

Right.

I'm looking at those points in time and the Jet Ski doesn't seem that old to me. You know, maybe more than, what, 35 years old or something, but I guess it's a lot older. Huh.

Well, and that probably. No, probably 20, 25 years ago. I could probably get. I don't have that exact date on the top of my head, but I know that he's done a lot since then. So he was in his new company 20 years ago that I know of. So the Jet Ski patent has got probably 30 years on it. Yeah. I mean, so that means it's no longer a valid patent today because the life of the patent has run out. But I'm sure they've made additional advances on that that have been able as well.

Yeah, yeah, really interesting. You know, that's an interesting point too. It's one that I've been pondering a lot lately, is that this old idea of never quit, you know, never give up, be persistent, be tenacious, and you'll win the game. Ultimately, the world will yield to your plan. Right. Rather than you yielding to the world's plan. But sometimes being a quitter is the right thing to do, isn't it?

Well, being persistent and never giving up are essential components to success. But there's also something in Think and Grow Rich called the Sixth Sense. And also being, you know, being aware the market may change something. You know, when we started the Rich Dad Company, we thought we were going to build that company globally through the 25 most powerful women in Forbes magazine. That was a colossal failure. You know, the world told us, no, we're going to build this through these companies that have distributors everywhere. And we had no idea. That was never even part of our original marketing plan. And so you do have course correction. And so that never give up is, like, in your original goal, maybe. But yes, there's definitely course correction along the time. Markets change, industries change, technology changes. And so you have to be aware on the front lines of what's happening in your market and be able to be nimble enough to make corrections and so that you can maximize your potential. But sometimes you're in an industry that just goes away and you got to pay attention. That never quit attitude can become, you know, foolhardiness. And you want to make sure you're constantly aware of the industry, the market, where you're going, and really having benchmarks along the way.

Yeah, good. Good point. Good point. Okay, Sharon, well, what else do you want to share? Maybe a question I haven't asked you.

Well, I'm absolutely excited about Success in Something Greater, as I said, is out this week and most of my career. I was releasing a new book every nine months to a year, Jason. And this is my first book in five years. And that's because six and a half years ago, I lost my youngest son.

So sorry.

Kind of put me in neutral.

Right, sure.

And I'm sure everybody watching and listening has had something that stopped them in their tracks. And so I really, a couple of years ago, thought about retiring, had a lot of pushback because I just wasn't getting the same zest. And so I kind of made the decision. Instead of retiring, I was going to refire. And so I have a movement called Play Big Movement. It's a private Facebook group. Anybody can join. It's free. Where I'm showing the things that I'm doing now to get back in the game. I turned 65 in January. There's a lot of Runway left. There's a lot more for all of us to do. And it's really through power of association, like you being so gracious having me on your show again. And so continuing to reach out and supporting other others create to create success in their life. We all have a lot more to do As I said. So I'm excited to be back on your show and I'm excited to be part of the play big movement and inviting people to come along with me. And the beginning is Success is Something Greater. I got another book coming out in the spring, so we're back in the game.

Is this the new book? Did you give the title the new book?

This is the Success and Something Greater.

Right. Is there another one, though?

The spring is going to be called Exit Rich, so we'll get scheduled back on your show for that.

Oh, Exit Rich, huh? Is that about selling business? Businesses?

Probably, yes. It's about building your business, the foundation and with the concept, the system so that you can get maximum profit when you sell it. And we've been picked up by Inc. Magazine's imprint for that one, so I'm excited about that. But that's. That's for April next year.

Sharon, you are just. You've been doing such innovative, great stuff for so many years. It's always great to hear. So keep up the good work and definitely can't wait to dig into the book myself and dive in. Give out your website.

Absolutely. Sharon Lecter L E C H T e r Sharon Lecter.com I'm Sharon Lechter on all social media accounts, so you can find me everywhere. And thank you so much. I appreciate your support.

It's good talking with you again. Thanks, Sharon.

Thank you.

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