Ep 91 - The Billion Dollar Woman: How Sara Blakely, CEO of Spanx, Set Huge Goals

In today's episode, you'll hear how Sara Blakely built a billion dollar company from five thousand dollars cash. We'll explore thinking big, setting huge goals, and having a vision to carry you through challenges, even though, others may laugh at your idea. You'll hear creativity tips gleaned from the classic film, Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, and we'll end with a goal challenge for you that will give your life direction and momentum.   


Podcast Outline:

1:00 Sara Blakely, CEO, Spanx Goalsetting 

Sara set a goal of having her company be worth $20 million dollars back in 2000. She recently sold the majority stake of her company for $1.2 billion dollars. She has a wonderfully unique and authentic presence in many of her television interviews. She’s quite an inspiration for any entrepreneur.


4:26 Learn from Successes Productivity Tip

You’ve been told to learn from your mistakes but can you learn from your successes, too? Absolutely! Here are four questions you can ask after each success to foster more and more successes in your life.


5:16 Famous Pep Talk

Journey’s mega-hit, Don’t Stop Believing, got its start as a pep talk from father to son. Hear the fascinating story of how this 80s Rochelles anthem was created.


7:18 Elizabeth Holmes - Theranos, CEO

Elizabeth Holmes, CEO of Theranos, showed immense promise. So much so that she received hundreds of millions of investment money to build her company. 


8:49 Willy Wonka Vision and Creativity

You’ll hear many examples of creativity and inspiration from this segment on Willy Wonka. Maybe you’ll be inspired to hang up a golden ticket in your work area to keep you on tract with your vision for your life. 


15:49 Roles & Goals Self-Development Challenge

Here’s a challenge that will help you gain clarity and direction to your busy life. Identify your 15-20 roles. There are 4 types of roles: mind/body/spirit, giving/receiving, personal & professional. And for each role you’re invited to brainstorm a few goals for each role. 

There are 5 types of goals: 

Action - ex/ I meditate for 20 minutes 

I Am / I Have - ex/ I’m a world-class problem solver

Deadline - By 12/31, I’m scuba certified

Skys-the-Limit - ex/ I took a ride in Air Force One and went in the presidential motorcade

Combo - 

ex/ 

I’m a professional speaker ((I Am / I Have)

I make 20 phone calls to book speaking gigs

By 4/1, I presented at the AMTA national conference


Referenced links:

Sara Blakely: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_SCthQ226hM

Game of Thrones: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXpHvhjUzAI&t=295s


Scott Snow is a productivity expert, speaker, podcaster, and life coach. He is the founder of Think Like a Musician, whose purpose is to help you learn the time management skills you need to be joyful, productive, & fulfilled in all areas of life. He teaches a unique and innovative approach to managing your crazy, busy life. It's a musician's approach to time management and work-life balance. Call 774-230-3928 now to customize a training for your organization or to inquire about coaching availability.