Business is a human enterprise, driven and determined by people.

In business, we often say that your best customers are the customers you have now. In other words, your most successful sales leads come from the selling you've already done.

You won't build relationships unless you let your guard down

At every stage of my career, I sought out the most influential people around me and asked for their help and guidance.

People who instinctively establish a strong network of relationships have always created great businesses.

Ultimately, everyone has to ask himself or herself how they're going to fail. We all do, you know, so let's get that out of the way. The choice isn't between success and failure; it's between choosing risk and striving for greatness, or risking nothing and being certain of mediocrity.

Our careers aren't paths so much as landscapes that are navigated. We're free agents, entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs -- each with our own unique brand.