Success Advice
Wealth Is an Equal Opportunity Game

Popular myth today asserts the belief that CEOs are earning outrageous amounts. But that’s a narrow view. Let’s look at the facts.
It’s true that the best CEOs among us are making far more money today than they did 50 years ago. It’s a global market now, and opportunities are much larger for everyone today. In 2020, a CEO at one of the top 350 firms in the U.S. was paid on average $24.2 million, including all options that were redeemed in that year.
However, the best actors, musicians, and athletes earned more — much more. In 2021 the average pay for a top 10 actor was $29 million, a 10 top musician $230 million, and a top 50 athlete $280 million! The career choice and sacrifice required to become a top actor, musician, athlete, or entrepreneur in society leads to very few making it all the way. Nobody gets to the top for free. However, the opportunity is there for everyone.
It helps if your parents are already established. In sports, Brett Hull was Bobby Hull’s son, Stephen Curry is Dell Curry’s son, and Payton and Eli Manning were Archie Manning’s boys. It happens for actors, as well. Dakota Johnson’s parents were Don Johnson and Melanie Griffiths, Emilio Estevez and Charlie Sheen’s father is Martin Sheen, Angelina Jolie’s father is Jon Voight are both are Oscar winners. Music can also be a family business. Jakob Dylan followed his father’s footsteps, as did Carnie and Wendy Wilson, and Julian and Sean Lennon.
“Riches are not an end of life but an instrument of life.” – Henry Ward Beecher
You can see a pattern here. What we’re exposed to growing up can influence possibilities and opportunities for us as adults. My uncle was a physician and so are two of his children, and so, too, are some of their children. Many children follow in their parents’ footsteps, but it’s the exception, not the rule.
Most CEOs, entrepreneurs, actors, musicians and athletes who made it to the top didn’t come from a privileged family. In fact, coming from privilege can be a burden to the next generation. For a young adult aged 26 with upper-middle-class parents, the odds of being diagnosed with an addiction to drugs or alcohol are two-to-three times higher than national rates in the United States.
The truth is, anyone can grow up to be a millionaire or even a billionaire. In my native Canada, two-thirds of our millionaires are self-made. In fact, nearly half were either immigrants or first-generation Canadians. According to Forbes, 70 percent of the 400 wealthiest people in America made their money from scratch in their lifetime. In doing so, they created a lot of prosperity for those around them.
It’s also true for other people who have worked hard to parlay their talent to the top of their profession. Sean Combs is worth $885 million in 2021. Coming from Harlem, he first earned money to buy sneakers on a paper route. LeBron James lived with four generations of his family in a single home near downtown Akron. Now he’s worth $500 million. J.K. Rowling, now a billionaire, was raising a daughter on public assistance while writing the first Harry Potter book in 1994.
Who is helping to increase the wealth of these CEOs, athletes, actors, musicians and celebrities? You are — and you’re getting value in return. Every time you make a call on your iPhone, search for a place to eat on Google, post a picture of your dog on Instagram, watch the Super Bowl, or listen to a hit song on Spotify you’re enjoying the work of talented and hardworking people. You even helped the top 10 YouTubers average more than $30 million each in 2021.
It isn’t a crime to earn money in exchange for value. It’s everywhere in society, and what the wealthy earn helps the pie to grow, not shrink. On average, people were many times poorer in the past than we are today. If we compare the economic prosperity of every region today with any earlier times, we see that each is richer than ever before in its history.
The opportunity to become better at what you do exists for everyone. For a few, they’ll go all the way to becoming the best among us. We should celebrate the work and effort they put into their success, and celebrate, as well, how far we’ve come across all classes.
Coaching
Why Successful Leaders Are Great Coaches
A good coach helps uncover hidden talents, develop new skills, and align abilities with personal and professional goals.

Can there truly be a coach who doesn’t criticise?
Can there be a critic who doesn’t coach? (more…)
Mentor
How To Become A Great Mentor In The Digital Age: A Complete Guide
One of my teachers gave me a piece of advice that still sticks with me today

When I was 15 years old, I joined my school publication to become a student journalist. (more…)
Success Advice
How “I Have a Dream” Became the Most Powerful Speech in History
It’s a blueprint for how to speak truth with clarity, conviction, and compassion

On August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., and delivered what would become one of the most powerful speeches in history, “I Have a Dream.” (more…)
Change Your Mindset
How Top CEOs Solve Problems Differently To The Rest
To steer their organizations toward sustainable success, strategists and senior leaders must first become exceptional problem solvers

In today’s volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) world, challenges are not just inevitable, they are essential. For global organizations, challenges push leaders to unlock creativity, develop resilience, and pursue excellence. (more…)
-
Success Advice4 weeks ago
25 Leadership Lessons That Will Make You a Smarter, Stronger Leader
-
Success Advice3 weeks ago
The Real Reason Your Personal Brand Isn’t Working
-
Tech Start Ups3 weeks ago
Your Startup’s Greatest Risk May Be A Click, Not A Competitor
-
Life3 weeks ago
The Subtle Signs You’re Losing Yourself And How to Find Your Way Back
-
Change Your Mindset3 weeks ago
How Top CEOs Solve Problems Differently To The Rest
-
Success Advice2 weeks ago
How “I Have a Dream” Became the Most Powerful Speech in History
-
Life2 weeks ago
How Sports Quietly Build Kids’ Emotional Intelligence And Why It Matters for Life
-
Mentor2 weeks ago
How To Become A Great Mentor In The Digital Age: A Complete Guide