Richard St. John: Secrets of success in 8 words, 3 minutes

Why do people succeed? Because they're smart? Or lucky? How about: Neither. Richard St. John compacts more than a decade of research into an unmissable 3-minute slideshow on the real secrets of success. (Hint: Passion, persistence, and pushy mothers help.) Inspired by a chance encounter with a high school student who asked him how to become a success, St. John interviewed more than 500 successful people, then distilled what they told him into eight simple principles.

Why you should listen to him:

Richard St. John knew how he had found success -- through his marketing company, the St. John Group, which boasted clients like Nortel and BlackBerry/Research in Motion. But he couldn't get away from the question: Why him? He thinks of himself as an average guy, not talented at school, not terribly handsome or particularly lucky. So he spent more than a decade interviewing 500 people he defines as successful -- from architect Frank Gehry to non-celebrities successful in their own lives.

The resulting book, Spike's Guide to Success: Stupid, Ugly, Unlucky and RICH, has spawned a new avenue of success for St. John as a motivational speaker and talk-show star.