If you are like me, you can either take your success advice from your mediocre Uncle Bud, or you can listen to the real pro's and see what they have to say.

Well, recently I had the pleasure of hearing Bernie Marcus, co-founder of The Home Depot, and currently a philanthropic leader, tell of his success and advise those who aspire to his wealth and considerable respect.

Mind you, he wasn't bragging. He doesn't have to. I've just always been a strong admirer of his and have closely watched his path to the billionaire's club since the '80's. (Yep, I'm that old and then some!)

I'd like to share with you his greatest tips and see how they can be applied in your work and even personal life to contribute to YOUR success, as well. He had four main pieces of advice:

1. Be able to react to what the customer tells you. Mr. Marcus said that after they started The Home Depot, he would walk the floors of his stores and ask questions such as, "How do you like this product?" and "Would you buy this again?" Based on his customers answers, he then responded to either firing a supplier, making a change to the inventory, or displaying the product differently.

2. Surround yourself with people better than you. I know when I worked in the corporate world, that was always my philosophy whenever I was hiring staff, including sales talent. My colleagues thought I was nuts, but it's always the best way to get the talent to succeed. Mr. Marcus emphasized that there are three main characteristics that these employees need to have: Focus, involvement, and a true passion for what they do. After which, he emphasized that management would nurture, reward and "enthuse" them. The rest takes care of itself.

3. Getting your message across through effective communication by living it every day. He said that clear, consistent, and understandable communication that is expressed emotionally and passionately drives leaders and talent in the organization.

4. Have a sustainable plan with the right infrastructure in place. He spent a great deal of time discussing this topic and even gave us all a catchphrase: "Tell me about that ONE moment in your business life that might have brought you down." Mr. Marcus emphasized that all successful businesspeople experience a defining moment where adversity could have destroyed them. He went on to say that you must absorb pain, frustration and then recover using courage, clear thinking, and the ability to understand and admit to the error. After which, you must have the ability to move on from the defining moment instead of blaming. Lastly the ability to bounce back is critical to success because the failure can't become your life.

So there you have it. Advice from a billionaire. What are you doing to see that you are successful? Email us and let us know your special tips at: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . We look forward to hearing from you!

(c)Renee Walkup, 678 587-9911, www.salespeak.com