"Books celebrating the successes of today's leaders are commonplace, however with 'Nobodies to Somebodies', Peter has focused on the all-important beginnings of careers. This is a valuable resource for anyone unsure of what comes next."
- Brad Anderson, CEO, Best Buy
"I love the idea behind this book. Successful people often want to tell their stories, and young people want to hear them!"
- Ann Richards, Former Governor of Texas
"When I started my career, I never thought I'd end up founding a company like Reebok. But those early years were really important to my development. I'm glad a book like this focuses on the stories of those early years."
- Paul Fireman, Founder and CEO, Reebok
"'Nobodies to Somebodies' is an inspiring look at people who have succeeded in ways measured not in dollars, but in visions and deeds that positively impact our world. I was pleased to be included among the leaders Peter interviewed. I hope the book moves readers to realize the potential for success and for good that lies within us all."
- Millard Fuller, Founder and President, Habitat for Humanity International
"I hope that Peter Han's humanization of so many of today's 'somebodies' will provide encouragement and inspiration to the somebodies of tomorrow."
- Bill Phillips, Nobel Prize winner in physics
"There were times early in my career that I definitely felt like I was choosing the path less traveled. It's very important for the next generation of leaders - whether they're in business, law, medicine, non-profits, or the arts - to understand their options, and to make informed and impassioned decisions about their life's work. Peter's book does a great job sharing what my generation learned along the way."
- Ron Sargent, CEO, Staples
"This is a fantastic resource for all those who are seeking to lead a life with purpose, and to maximize their personal impact on the world."
- Wendy Kopp, Founder and President, Teach for America
"When I was a young lawyer starting my career, I looked up to leaders who went before me. Peter's book helps young people today do the same thing - It's a great read!"
- Mickey Kantor, Secretary of Commerce, Clinton Administration
"Choices have consequences. The choices young people make early on shape everything that follows, and a book guiding and defining those choices is long overdue. Don't miss this one."
- Steve Odland, Chairman, President, and CEO, AutoZone
"Talking to Peter about this book brought back many memories for me. Those years right after college when I was in graduate school were important ones. Like anyone else, I nursed dreams, felt pressure, and had to make big choices. This is the guide I wish I'd had then!"
- Daniel DiMicco, CEO, Nucor
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Introduction
"On one hand, I'm old enough to joke that I remember when Bono was just another rock star, the lead singer for U2 and not some globe-trotting activist trying to solve Third World debt and AIDS. On the other hand, I'm young enough to be moved by Bono's idealism and continued hustle. I remember watching him once on Oprah. In the delightful cadence of his Irish brogue, Bono told Oprah and her audience a great story. Back in his native Ireland, Bono said, people look up at the so-called rich folks' houses up in the big hills, and they shake their fists to curse the injustices and exploitation that enabled such wealth. By contrast, Bono said, in this country, even today, we look up at the hills - and dream of being there ourselves. I'll get there someday, we say.
While not all dreams are held by Americans, and not all dreams center on material possessions, Bono was right. Aspiration continues to animate us. The issue confronting young people today is not whether we have aspirations and goals, but rather how to identify the best ones, and how to achieve them in a noisy and distraction-filled world."
Lesson 3:
Pay the Rent First, Conquer the World Later
"In the spring of 1973, when Daniel DiMicco was a senior at Brown University, big headlines dominated the newspapers and nightly news. The Vietnam War, high gas prices triggered by an OPEC squeeze, and the early twinklings of a scandal called Watergate all intruded on the nation's consciousness. DiMicco, though, had his own urgent questions and concerns as he prepared to finish his undergraduate years. Where would he go? What would he do? Who would he become? Letters from graduate schools and prospective employers would give the first hints about his path, and he was eager to learn them.
Today the CEO of the country's largest steel producer, Nucor, DiMicco was at the time undecided even about whether to go into business or engineering. He did eventually choose to earn a master's degree in engineering from Penn, and the program at Penn would lead in turn to a job as a research metallurgist, and onto his career in the steel industry. At the time, though, this path was anything but clear.
The first thing I looked at when I got accepted at Columbia and a few other business schools, and I got accepted at a few engineering schools - I looked at the business schools' letters, and they said, 'We'll be happy to loan you $5000 for the school year.' And I looked at the engineering schools' letters, and they said, 'We'll be happy to give you a full scholarship plus a stipend of $333/month, plus books.' I looked at that, and being that I didn't have a really strong focus just yet, I thought, 'Let me go to the engineering schools.' This may sound like a crazy way to make a decision, but that's how I did it!"
Lesson 4:
Don't Let Old Plans Get in the Way of New Opportunities - or Luck
"[Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Alan] Miller recalled, 'My first beat was covering zoning meetings, the police blotter and other developments in the suburb of Colonie, [New York], where the Times Union was located. When I began [my editor] Harry told me: 'One day you will cover Moscow better than anyone else because today you've covered Colonie better than anyone.'
Therein lay a profound lesson. The confidence to achieve great things springs from successful achievement of smaller tasks. Confidence is a delicate thing, after all. Even for the most accomplished leaders, it can be fleeting, difficult to maintain in the face of the world's indifference or worse, outright rejection. It's critically important to success, yet elusive - particularly for people just starting their careers. Leaders aren't the exception, as we saw in the last chapter. They didn't start their first jobs magically blessed by the belief that they could achieve anything."
Lesson 7:
Become the Big Fish by Mastering the Small Pond
"I've always thought that one should be prepared to take risks, and not be confined in some totally predictable way. There are extraordinary opportunities out there, and look for them, and try to take them! You're going to fail sometimes."
- Carol Bellamy, Executive Director, UNICEF
Closing Thoughts
"[S]ince that winter day on which this project hatched almost a year and a half ago, there have been some encouraging signs. I've taken a respite from startup life to return to the corporate environment, doing work that I enjoy with colleagues that I respect. The friend and former colleague with whom I was having lunch that day remains at the software company which licensed our technology. He has great hopes for its contribution to a growing niche of the Internet industry. Recently, he even lured another friend of ours away from a comfortable but overly safe job, into that same company and its wild winds of entrepreneurial work. And it's not just them. All around, like blooming signs of spring after the long winter of the last few years' economic recession, I see people my age working hard, devoting themselves to their goals, searching for their big breaks, and enjoying the ride all the way. I see a whole lot of Nobodies looking to become Somebodies. It excites me."
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