An Interview with World50 Founder Rick Smith
Take us back to when YOU were starting World50.
I had co-authored a bestselling book on careers, and have been laid off by the firm I wrote the book for. I was exploring “normal” options, but began testing out the idea for the business. The customers took over.
What's the best way to gain experience and expertise?
YOU need to try many different things. There is little substitute for diving in and getting your hands dirty. The goal with all this is to better understand YOUR strengths and passions. (Go to the free online tool at http://www.primarycolorassessment.com to find out). Once discovered – steer in that direction.
What's the best way to manage my career?
That's a pretty broad questions. The two top things that come to mind are follow YOUR own unique strengths and passions, and set YOUR own definition of success – life on YOUR own terms.
How does one get out of a career rut?
First step – Get YOUR confidence back. Careers are like weather patterns – we all get rained on sometimes. Second, Find Ways to Steer Toward things YOU Love Doing and are good at. Over time, YOUR performance will take off and YOU will win.
How important is my Rolodex?
Networks are extremely important, but not necessarily your rolodex. The most important are those YOU are really close to – those YOU have gone out of YOUR way to help, and those who would do the same for YOU. Build these authentic relationships.
Do you think that passion is something that you can develop over time or is it just something that's innate in that some people have it and some people don't?
Everyone is passionate about something. In the workplace, what I am talking about are the types of activities, the types of challenges that really engage YOU. And, the good news is YOU can find those specific challenges in many different career paths.
What was a key turning point in your life and how did you deal with it?
I don't know if there was really one. In fact, I would say that there were really four major setbacks in my career that shaped things. They all led to significant major positive events. And they left me with the confidence that the worse it looks, the better the outcome is likely to be.
Tell us YOUR best LEAP moment.
It all started for me after I had just launched my new business. From my very first discussion with a real customer, developing our first logo, etc., I knew this what I was meant to be doing. I was leveraging my strengths and passions for the very first time, and it was as if gravity itself had been suspended. Find that unique role in your life, and follow where it carries YOU.
Who are YOUR personal heroes?
Lincoln. Silvia Lagnado (Dove Real Beauty Campaign). Janet Hanson (85 Broads). Many many more. It's not hard to find people who are living heroic lives.
What are YOU hungry for?
Actually, dinner! I had to skip lunch to work out!
About Rick Smith
Rick Smith is the bestselling author of The Leap: How 3 Simple Changes Can Propel Your Career from Good to Great (Portfolio), and the author of the popular blog, RickSmith.me. He is the co-author of the Wall Street Journal and Business Week bestseller The 5 Patterns of Extraordinary Careers, which has been sold into 13 languages and remains one of the top-selling professional career books of all time.
Rick is the creator of the Primary Color Assessment, which has received more than 100,000 pageviews since July, 2009.
He is the founding CEO of World 50, cited as one of the world’s most influential senior executive networking companies.
A leading commentator on careers and professional and personal success, Rick has been featured by more than 50 media outlets, including CNN, Time, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, The New York Times, Harvard Business Review, Sirius Satellite Radio, Financial Times, Bloomberg, Forbes, Fortune and Chief Executive.
Rick has amassed an incredible and eclectic personal Rolodex, having worked or collaborated with dozens of world, business and cultural icons, including: Bono, Alan Greenspan, Robert Redford, Francis Ford Coppola, Magic Johnson, Lance Armstrong, Larry Bossidy, Martha Stewart, Jon Stewart, Norman Schwarzkopf, Senators Robert Dole and George Mictchell, Steven Colbert, Russell Simmons, Sir John Major and many others.
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