Interview number eight with Robert Herjavec.
Photo: Courtesy Robert Herjavec
Justin Higgins: "Hi Robert, what life advice do you have for young adults?"
Robert Herjavec: "Hi Justin. Young adults - I don't even understand them half the time (I WILL figure out Snapchat one day!!) - but if I have to give them life advice ...
First, don't be afraid to make mistakes. Make some and then make even more! I've made every mistake in the book and with each one, I've learned something new. If you fail at something, stick with it because those kinds of lessons are truly invaluable.
Second, and perhaps the most important, be motivated without being entitled. Remember, the world owes you nothing but opportunity. Success won't just happen to you, you have to go out and create it for yourself. You have all of the resources you could possibly need at your finger tips. It won't come easy, and you'll make mistakes along the way, but you have to find a way to be resilient.
Look, I get it, it's hard and there is a lot of competition out there - lots of people trying to be more successful than you - but with a clear head and laser focus, you'll make your own path."
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Robert Herjavec is one of North America’s most recognizable business leaders. Born in Eastern Europe, he arrived to North America on a boat with his parents after escaping Communism in the former Yugoslavia. From delivering newspapers, and waiting tables, to launching a computer company from his basement, his drive to achieve has led him to the fulfillment of a better life for himself and his family.
A dynamic entrepreneur, Robert has built and sold several IT companies to major players such as AT&T. In 2003 Robert founded Herjavec Group, and it quickly became one of North America’s fastest growing technology companies. Today, Herjavec Group is recognized as a global leader in information security specializing in managed security services, compliance, incident response and remediation efforts for enterprise level organizations.
His inspiring books, Driven and The Will to Win, were simultaneously Top 10 Bestsellers that earned him the title of “Best Selling Author”. Robert has released his third book, You Don’t Have to Be a Shark: Creating Your Own Success published by St. Martin’s Press on May 17, 2016. Robert’s motivational business advice has received millions of impressions through TV, print, radio and digital media. He shares his expertise with other entrepreneurs each week as a leading Shark on ABC’s Emmy Award-winning hit Shark Tank. Robert recently placed 6th with partner Kym Johnson, competing for the mirror ball trophy on the popular show, Dancing with the Stars.
For the past several years, Robert has competed as Ferrari #007 for Herjavec Group Racing in the Ferrari Challenge North America Series, achieving multiple podiums and winning Rookie of The Year in 2011. To Robert, running a business is a lot like one of his greatest passions, racing cars. He believes, “You have to stay laser-focused when driving a car over 200 miles an hour, and the same approach is required when growing a business in today’s world of rapidly changing technology.”