Modern Achievement: Timeless Lessons for Aspiring Leaders with Asheesh Advani

Win Monday with Paul Epstein

They say the path to leadership is a straightforward climb up the corporate ladder, but is it really that simple? In today’s ever-changing career landscape, aspiring leaders must navigate a more complex route to success. How do you adapt to this evolving terrain while finding genuine fulfillment and purpose?

In this episode, Paul engages in a thought-provoking conversation with Asheesh Advani, an accomplished entrepreneur, investor, author, and the CEO of Junior Achievement Worldwide. Asheesh shares insights from his newly launched book, "Modern Achievement," which offers a fresh perspective on timeless lessons for aspiring leaders" Asheesh shares his journey and insights on personal growth, emphasizing the importance of adaptability in today’s dynamic job market. He introduces the "Fixed, Flexible, Freestyle" framework, which balances global consistency with local empowerment. The conversation highlights the significance of aligning personal and organizational goals, creating happiness milestones, and building self-confidence. Asheesh's practical advice encourages listeners to embrace challenges and view them as opportunities for growth, ultimately redefining success in their careers.

Tune in to discover actionable strategies for personal and professional development, learn how to align your goals for greater fulfillment, and gain practical tools to build self-confidence in your career.

Key Takeaways

• Emotions and experiences surrounding the book launch.
• The evolving nature of careers and the importance of adaptability in achieving personal and professional goals.
• The concept of "ready-made purpose" and its impact on young individuals exploring their career paths.
• Importance of values alignment between personal goals and organizational goals for job satisfaction.
• Practical strategies for assessing workplace culture, such as job shadowing and internships.
• The "Fixed, Flexible, Freestyle" framework for balancing global consistency with local empowerment in education.
• Emphasis on creating milestones of happiness and reframing failures as growth opportunities.
• Encouragement to take initiative and communicate effectively to support others' goals and foster collaboration.

In This Episode:

• (03) Introduction of Asheesh Advani
• (01:23) Book launch day emotions
• (03:20) Purpose of writing "Modern Achievement"
• (04:35) Changing nature of career goals
• (06:26) Creating happiness milestones
• (07:00) Reframing failures
• (10:08) Building self-confidence
• (13:55) Fixed flexible freestyle framework
• (18:05) Understanding career transitions
• (19:00) Purpose vs. ready-made purpose
• (21:15) Aligning goals for energy
• (22:00) Personal vs. collective goals
• (24:00) The hero's exercise
• (27:02) Job shadowing for values alignment
• (30:58) Creating protected time
• (32:46) Getting involved with Junior Achievement
• (34:39) Winning Monday momentum
• (35:13) Making others' goals your own
• (35:27) Tactical steps to align goals
• (35:46) Asking about goals
• (36:02) The importance of asking
• (36:10) Closing thoughts

Notable Quotes

• [00:07:00] “Success is moving from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm. In 'Modern Achievement,' we redefine that quote to life as moving from mess to mess with no loss of confidence.” - Asheesh Advani
• [00:20:23] “At some point, I discovered the thing which gives me a lot of energy and passion is educating others. That really wasn't true in my 20s and 30s at all.” - Asheesh Advani
• [00:23:15] “I had a very specific conversation with the head of one of the divisions of the firm and I said, 'Could I be an entrepreneur in residence here?'” - Asheesh Advani
• [00:32:19] “We need to normalize it and make it totally fine that because of an organizational change, there's a layoff, and we have to be able to go from role to role and make that reputationally okay, economically okay.” - Asheesh Advani
• [00:36:10] “If you do not ask, you will not know their goals. And if you don't know other people's goals that are near and dear to your heart, then how could you possibly help them in achieving those goals?” - Paul

Our Guest

Asheesh Advani is a lifelong social innovator and has led JA Worldwide since 2015, earning recognition as one of the world’s top ten impactful NGOs. An alumnus of JA, he recalls its influence on his entrepreneurial journey, including leading two startups to acquisition—Virgin Money and Interactive Advisors. He authored books on business finance and co-wrote *Modern Achievement* with Marshall Goldsmith. Asheesh, a YPO member and WEF stewardship board member, has received accolades including the Tony Hsieh Award and YPO Global Social Impact Award. He holds degrees from Wharton and Oxford.

Resource & Links

Win Monday Community (join here)

• Win Monday Community

Paul Epstein

• Paul's Confidence Quiz
• Paul's Website
• Paul's LinkedIn to Connect
• Paul's Instagram to Follow

Asheesh Advani

• https://www.jaworldwide.org/
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/asheeshadvani/

Mentioned

• Better Decisions Faster by Paul Epstein
• Modern Achievement by Asheesh Advani
• The Future of Jobs Report by the World Economic Forum
• Design the Life You Love by AYSE BIRSEL