A single piece of advice can change a life, and it has changed my life on several occasions. Over the years, I've developed a deep appreciation for learning from people wiser and more experienced than me. So ten years ago, I made a simple promise to myself: whenever I met someone prominent, I would ask them for their best advice. It always seemed more worthwhile than asking for a selfie.
If I Could Tell You Just One Thing... It spans the full spectrum of human experience and emotion, from Simon Cowell's at one end, to Lili Ebert's, an Auschwitz survivor, at the other. In between, you'll find precious wisdom from presidents and stars, entrepreneurs and entertainers, celebrities and survivors. From people who've made it big and people who've endured incredible hardship, from those who've risen to the top of their game, and from people who've witnessed the worst that human beings can do to each other.
When I ask people for their best advice, I encourage them to consider what they consider most important. I ask the same question of everyone: Given all your experience, everything you know now, and everything you've learned, if you could give just one piece of advice, what would it be? There's something about asking people to get behind just one nugget of wisdom that makes them think harder, dig deeper, and be more honest in their answers, and it's led to some extraordinary responses. The material is diverse and wide-ranging, encompassing everything from achieving success to dealing with failure, from finding love to having a better life, from getting the best out of people to being mistreated. There's bound to be something in this collection that speaks to everyone.
Most people, when asked for advice, are happy to offer it. This willingness to help is a manifestation of the best part of human nature. It costs nothing, can be shared infinitely, and will continue indefinitely. I hope this is the first of many books. There are countless amazing people on this planet, and this first collection captures only the insights of a fraction of them. There are infinite stories to tell and wisdom to gain.