Episode 123: Winning at Business and Life with Andrea Wilson Woods

This is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast, where business leaders share their insights. It is 6 questions in 7 minutes because successful business leaders are busy and rarely have more time to spare. So let's get to it. Question number 1: In a few sentences, please tell me who you are and what you do.

I am a writer who loves to tell stories. I'm a patient advocate who founded the nonprofit Blue Fairy, the Adrienne Wilson Liver Cancer Association, and I'm the CEO and co-founder of Cancer University, a health tech startup. And last fall, my bestselling and award-winning book, Better Off Bald: A Life in 147 Days, was published. And it's a medical memoir about raising and losing my sister to liver cancer.

Andrea, it's so great to have you on the show, and I'm really touched with the work that you're doing. Really is special for me to be able to interview you. Question number 2: What's the best thing about working in your industry?

I love what I do. I mean, whenever I get frustrated or have a really bad day, I remember my purpose and why I do what I do. And addition— in addition to my sister, I've had 5 other family members die from 5 different kinds of cancer: liver, lung, breast, bone, head and neck. And I am just on this mission to change cancer care in this country.

And I can hear the passion in your voice with you. That's so— I'm— yeah. Wow. Question number 3. I have a fictitious book with all the answers for business. What chapter would you think most companies should read?

Okay. This is my favorite question, by the way. Persist and pivot. Calvin Coolidge said, "Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not, genius will not, education will not." And I'm proof. I am not the most talented person in the world. I have a high IQ, but I'm not a genius. I went to grad school, but I am not the most educated person I know, but I am the most persistent. However, if something isn't working in your business, you do have to be prepared to pivot. So persist and pivot.

I love that. It's so, it's so powerful and simple in the same way. So thank you for sharing that. Question number 4, other than the generic work harder, have a great attitude and care for customers, what advice or insight would you give to other business leaders?

Respect your time because once your time is gone, you never get it back. So don't let anyone or anything interfere with what is the most productive time of day for you? And also chunk your time. So I do my best to only have meetings on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoons. And of course there are exceptions occasionally, but for the most part, I really protect my mornings because that's when I'm the most creative and most productive.

Mm-hmm, I think that's really insightful. And so when you're doing the Monday, Wednesday, and Friday are those meetings, the time that you're protecting, are you blocking that out in your calendar as well as for me time or think time or however you want to phrase it?

100%.

Mm-hmm. Oh, good. No, I thought you were gonna expand upon that.

No, no, no, just 100%. I mean, you have to guard that time. You have to.

Absolutely, because then, you know, the worst part about it is, is that if you don't, then all of a sudden, what are you? You're behind. And now when you don't have enough time guess what? The stress comes in. I would assume that's, that's what— where you're getting at with this.

Yeah, absolutely. I used to do meetings 5 days a week, and I realized that was too many as well.

Mm-hmm, totally agree. Question number 5: What other business leader like yourself would you like to acknowledge and be on my podcast?

I recommend Richard Luftig. I may be mispronouncing his last name. He's a managing partner at Castle Place placement, and they are actually helping Cancer U with raising our seed round. And I promise he's very comfortable on camera.

I'll reach out to him. Thank you for that referral. And the 6th question: please tell me about your first job.

My first job outside of babysitting, which I started doing when I was 9 years old, was I was a cashier at Arby's during high school. I made a whopping $3.50 an hour, and I worked weeknights, I worked weekends. I came home smelling like roast beef. It was horrible. But I also really hustled and looked for other opportunities to make money. So one year I created a gambling pool for the Iron Bowl football game. You know, the chart with the 100 boxes. So I made money off that. I would go to the local arcade and for $20 you could get $25 worth of tokens. So I would do that and sell the tokens back to the kids and, and do that about 4 times and make $20 an hour. So I was always looking for really creative ways to make more money on my own.

I love that. Just shows how you can be, and, and it really shows the creativity that we have as kids that, that can really work if we just put our minds to it.

Absolutely. Yeah, I would describe myself as both persistent and resourceful.

Love it. Oh my goodness. So Andrea, thank you so much for being on the show. How could people find you?

Well, I actually have a special gift for your listeners. So if they go to cancer.university, we are between our beta and about to launch our pilot. So it's a great time. And if you are a newly diagnosed cancer patient or caregiver of a cancer patient, you can apply for free lifetime membership. And when you get to that part where you would normally pay, you just click I have a coupon code and put in Professor Pete, all one word, all caps, and you'll get a free lifetime membership.

Wonderful. I'll make sure to put that also in the posting if you're— if it's okay with you.

Absolutely.

Okay. Well, thank you for that. And this is Professor Pete Alexander with the Winning at Business and Life podcast. For more insights and ideas, please go to LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, or iTunes and search for the Winning at Business and Life podcast. Thanks for listening.