In order to understand what motivates successful people, The Success Factor profiles them.Many people are interested in learning success strategies. But Ruth Gotian went searching for information.

Gotian, who serves as both the department’s chief learning officer and an assistant professor of education in anesthesiology at Weill Cornell Medicine, spoke with more than a hundred of the most accomplished people in the world, including Nobel Prize winners, Olympians, astronauts, and others. She distilled the qualities that fuel their success from these conversations and published them in her book The Success Factor: Developing the Mindset and Skillset for Peak Performance.

You interviewed people like astronauts, Olympic gold medalists, Nobel laureates, and other accomplished people for The Achievement Factor to learn how they attained their amazing success. What caught your eye?

Ruth Gotian: The fact that top achievers are lifelong learners impressed me the most, despite all of their accomplishments and honors. They enjoy learning new things in casual settings like lectures, podcasts, webinars, conversations, and, of course, from their mentors.

AC: What did you discover to be their commonalities?

RG: There are four mindsets that all top achievers share.

They have identified their core motivation and are fully committed to it. They don’t do it for the sake of getting bonuses, promotions, accolades, or other forms of external validation. They perform it out of passion. The medal is not the focus.

Second, they labor harder than anyone. They don’t necessarily work longer hours, but they do concentrate their energies on overcoming obstacles.

What is the approach I haven’t yet considered to get beyond this problem, they question themselves. After then, they are totally committed to making it happen.
Then they always return to the fundamentals. Later in their careers, they continue using the methods and strategies that helped them succeed. Even professional athletes still warm up like junior high school students. Even after receiving the Nobel Prize, scientists still create experiments. They don’t ever take a break. Finally, successful people continuously seek out connections that others haven’t yet noticed. They search for concepts both inside and outside of their sector.

Additionally, they surround themselves with a group of mentors who offer them insight, push their thinking, and inspire them to imagine greater.

There is a lot of discussion on the routines of great achievers, AC. But you discriminate between attitudes and habits. What do you make of that?

RG: We can’t always imitate other people’s routines. If you are a night owl who goes to bed at 3 am, waking up at 5 AM might not be the best habit for getting things done. What matters is how things are done and how you approach it. Thought patterns can be imitated, habits shouldn’t.

AC: Were these great achievers born with their traits and skills, or how do you think they acquired them?

They have inherent talent and skill, but they have also learned to bet big and put everything on the line. Consider Dr. Bob Lefkowitz, who was awarded the 2012 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Despite having medical training, he spent the Vietnam War at the NIH. What makes them so adept at handling pressure and the clutch? Can you provide our readers any advice? RG: For high achievers, every achievement, rejection, difficulty, or failure is recorded as data. They thrive on it since they are aware that it advances them toward their next objective. They need feedback because it will help them succeed, which is why they crave it. The strain is connected to internal motivation. If you are doing something because you love it, the pressure motivates you. It can drain you if you’re doing it because you think other people will criticize you and perhaps reward you for it. That’s challenging to maintain, especially under intense strain.

Additionally, the high achievers surround themselves with a group of mentors who keep them grounded and hold them responsible. When necessary, they make them take breaks. AC: Do you believe that networks play a crucial role in enabling people to accomplish extraordinary results? How, if so?

RG: We don’t know what we don’t know, and our network can introduce us to possibilities, people, and things we weren’t aware of. Every high achiever has a network that they draw upon over many years. It is essential. Every three months, Dr. Jon Cohen, the Executive Chairman of BioReference Labs, the third-largest Covid testing facility, contacts his network.

AC: You strongly believe in mentorship. Why is mentoring so crucial? How

Should individuals seek for the ideal mentor for them? AC: Do you believe that networks play a crucial role in enabling people to accomplish extraordinary results? How, if so?

RG: We don’t know what we don’t know, and our network can introduce us to possibilities, people, and things we weren’t aware of. Every high achiever has a network that they draw upon over many years. It is essential. Every three months, Dr. Jon Cohen, the Executive Chairman of BioReference Labs, the third-largest Covid testing facility, contacts his network.

You strongly believe in mentorship, AC. Why is mentoring so crucial? How do people go about choosing the best mentor for them?

Should individuals seek for the ideal mentor for them? AC: Do you believe that networks play a crucial role in enabling people to accomplish extraordinary results? How, if so?

RG: We don’t know what we don’t know, and our network can introduce us to possibilities, people, and things we weren’t aware of. Every high achiever has a network that they draw upon over many years. It is essential. Every three months, Dr. Jon Cohen, the Executive Chairman of BioReference Labs, the third-largest Covid testing facility, contacts his network.

You strongly believe in mentorship, AC. Why is mentoring so crucial? How do people go about choosing the best mentor for them?

Should individuals seek for the ideal mentor for them? AC: Do you believe that networks play a crucial role in enabling people to accomplish extraordinary results? How, if so?

RG: We don’t know what we don’t know, and our network can introduce us to possibilities, people, and things we weren’t aware of. Every high achiever has a network that they draw upon over many years. It is essential. Every three months, Dr. Jon Cohen, the Executive Chairman of BioReference Labs, the third-largest Covid testing facility, contacts his network.

You strongly believe in mentorship, AC. Why is mentoring so crucial? How do people go about choosing the best mentor for them?

In addition, I’ve made an effort to grow my network without accumulating user names or likes on social media. Instead, I’m trying to develop deep relationships with people I like, know, and trust. during mentoring, AC. What makes mentoring so important? How do people select the ideal mentor for them? AC: Please offer one piece of advise you have for people to use as they embark on their own successful journey.

When people ask me to sign their copies of my book, The Success Factor, I include two key lessons that I have discovered.

1. Take action; don’t just find something amusing.

My mentor, Dr. Bert Shapiro, told me this, and it was underlined by

When I asked Dr. Tony Fauci how he decides which projects to work on, he said.

2. You fear failing more than you fear not trying.

That encapsulates everything so well. You learn not to dread failure once you understand that it is information and will eventually bring you closer to your goal if you look for the lesson in it. Instead, failing to attempt becomes unacceptable.