Sometimes you need a pep talk. Sometimes you need a kick in the butt. This is a little bit of both, for me, at least. When you work for yourself, it seems like the work is often feast or famine. But it's not just the work itself, it's the intrinsic motivation and energy needed, too. In this episode of the Secret to My Success, Shelby Skrhak sits down with author Danny Rubin to discuss the ups and downs of working for yourself and how to keep going when it seems like nothing is happening. Shelby reveals her own shortcomings and shares how this interview got her going again. 

There's a fundamental difference between joy and happiness and it starts with purpose, says Menlo CEO Rich Sheridan. He is author of Chief Joy Officer: How Great Leaders Elevate Human Energy and Eliminate Fear. His first book is Joy, Inc. about building Ann Arbor-based Menlo Innovations.

Here's what I don't understand. Why is it that something we will all go through, and experience is so taboo to talk about and so foreign to us: death. In today's episode, we sit down with noted death and hospice author Barbara Karnes to discuss why we're so uncomfortable with the topic, misconceptions about hospice, and what happens in the months, weeks, days, and hours before death. Plus I share my experience helping take care of my grandmother, who passed away recently.

The Secret to My Success is back next week with new episodes, but here's a small taste of what's to come. Host Shelby Skrhak discusses why she's been absent on the podcast and shares her grandmother's eulogy, explaining how caretaking has opened her eyes to something new. Then on Feb. 26, hear her interview with prolific author on death and dying Barbara Karnes. 

When things are going well, we have full faith in our ability to thrive—to kick ass and take names, so to speak. But when things are bad, when every turn it seems like there's some new obstacle to punch us in the gut, that's when we have to rely on mental strength, literally mental muscle, to get us through hard times.

Here are 4 of the best takeaways or lessons I've learned from my guests on The Secret to My Success.

Lesson #1: You have the incredible power to help others, even when you think you can barely help yourself.

Lesson #2: When you go through difficult times, you have the unique ability to come out better from it.

Lesson #3: The most successful people aren't Type A personalities—they're Type R.

Lesson #4: We have to practice mindful self-mastery. Basically, how to take control of that powerful mind of ours.

You've probably heard of the 1950's classic self-help book The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale, but Dr. Lindsey Mitchell, founder of Houston-based The Pave Group says a different take on the classic is a better fit for today's top athletes and performers. In this episode, we discuss the concept of neutral thinking or fact-based thinking to frame both high-stress and everyday situations. 

Want to change your behavior? Change your habits. Sure, that's good advice, but how do you change your habits? One percent at a time. On this episode of the Secret to My Success, I talk to best-selling author James Clear, author of Atomic Habits: An Easy and Proven Way to Build Good Habits and Break Bad Ones. He'll share the four elements of habits, the four steps of behavior change, and why peer pressure can be good—it just depends on your peers. 

If you suffer from the Sunday Scaries, psychology Karlyn Borysenko has some strategies to help you cope. In this episode, we discuss her new book Zen Your Work: Create Your Ideal Work Experience Through Mindful Self-Mastery, which explores solutions for dealing with difficult workplaces, be it a bad boss or difficult co-worker. But here's the catch— to zen your workplace, you have to be able to admit your role in all of this. Borysenko calls this mindful self-mastery, and it's essential to improving your worklife. 

On this week's episode we sit down with Donald Kelly, "The Sales Evangelist," but there's no preaching here. Kelly gives practical advice for anyone who doesn't consider themselves a salesperson and shares the techniques that the experts use.

When you think of Southwest Airlines, you think about the wacky antics of its flight attendants or the fun they exude as a culture. On the show today, we're talking to one of the women largely responsible for that world-class culture at Southwest, Ginger Hardage former Southwest Airlines SVP of Culture and Communications. Ginger's secret to success— the ability to build up people, recognize their strengths and build a culture from it.