“So, Larry, are you an expert? How do we know you are telling us the truth? Aren’t you just trying to sell us a book?”
Someone sent me this question in an email recently. I actually appreciated his straightforward question. There are so many people out there trying to sell books by claiming to be experts. I’ll bet you are as sick of them as I am. So I appreciate a little skepticism. Let me answer this question for all of you:
Am I an expert? Absolutely! However, I am not an expert at leadership, though I have led many successful organizations. I have led some into stardom and one into bankruptcy. Which did I learn the most from? The one I led into bankruptcy. I am not an expert at customer service. I have delivered both kinds of service: great and horrible. And I recognize it when I get both, too! I am certainly not an expert at selling, though I have been an award winning salesperson. I am not an expert at money or financial success, though I have gone from bankruptcy to multi-millionaire. I am certainly not an expert at relationships. I have screwed up many of them. I have messed up in my marriage and with my kids numerous times.
All I am really an expert at is being stupid and learning from it. In fact, I could be the poster child for stupidity. The key is that I learn from my stupidity. I pay attention to my mistakes. I have become an expert at not making the same mistake twice, and learning from every stupid thing I have ever done. And I have become pretty good at communicating it. I am not pretending to be something I am not, and I am not saying I am better than any of the others who write the books and give the speeches. I do make more mistakes before noon than most people will make in a month. But I do my best to learn from every stupid mistake I make. And I am upfront about it all. So if you want to learn from an honest guy who has spent most of his life making mistakes and learning from them, give my stuff a try. I know my stuff works – I have used every piece of advice I give.
I want to say thank you. This comment doesn’t necessarily pertain to this blog, but I just wanted to leave one, somewhere!
At Barnes and Noble, studying, I walked passed a stand on the way to the bathroom, and saw your book, You’re Broke Because You Want To Be. Your title enticed me. I picked it up on the way back to my table, and proceeded to read the whole thing, from start to finish, before I went to sleep that night. I’ve called myself a financial retard several times, and being a 27 year old single mother, it’s about time I take responsibility for myself. I’ve not much of an action plan yet, but the words you speak in your book ring so true, and are just what I need to light the fire under my a$$ to start figuring things out. I ‘d also like to put my nose in the books you recommend to provide myself with more tools and exercises to bettering my overall situation.
I’ve got a lot of digging to do, but with your advice, I hope to see the light at the end of the tunnel within the year. I’m glad you went through what you did, so that you can rightfully help others to do the same. Thanks so much Mr. Winget, for being the “Pitbull of Personal Development” that you are!
Sincerely, Stephanie
Larry,
I read your book “You’re Broke Because You Want To Be” I have also read many other financial so called self help books. I am 44 and I don’t have a thing to show for years of hard work both ex husbands managed to get everything. Now I am taking some sage advice given to me by some old women I was raised by and you mentioned in your book and getting off my butt and helping myself.
Larry you are an expert at what you say because you have already lived it. You are just saying what everyone else is scared to say!