It's Not Rocket Science: 7 Game-Changing Traits for Uncommon Success - Softcover

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Mary Spio is a lifelong game changer. Born in Syracuse, New York, to Ghanaian parents, she had humble beginnings growing up Ghana, West Africa; Mary didn’t see her first computer until she was seventeen. Yet she became a deep space engineer, designing and launching communication satellites. At Boeing, she helped pioneer digital technology that redefined how major motion pictures are distributed to movie theaters throughout the world. From there, she focused on her passion for matchmaking and founded One2One.com, a specialty media company dedicated to resources for singles. Mary also founded Gen2Media (now Vidaroo) an emerging leader in the digital media industry. Leveraging the power of online video, search and social media, Mary’s companies provide engaging user experiences for consumers and delivers quantifiable results for some of the most iconic brands, high profile entertainers and events in the world, including Microsoft Xbox, WalMart, Toyota, Coca Cola, Justin Timberlake, Will Smith, Britney Spears and The Billboard Awards Show. She is currently CEO of Next Galaxy Media.

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INTRODUCTION

There is no passion to be found playing small—in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.

- NELSON MANDELA -

We are in a time in history like no other—an extraordinary moment when technology has given us amazing opportunities. What used to be the domain of only the privileged and connected is now accessible to all of us. Regardless of race, gender, education, age or circumstance, we all have access to the tools and resources needed to create the lifestyle that we desire. We live in a time when you can embrace your difference, do what you love and follow your passion. My own life is a testament to these times and just one example of the possibilities that abound for anyone with a dream and the willingness to work hard to achieve it.

By way of introduction, I am Mary A. Spio—deep space engineer, Internet entrepreneur, Game Changer. I will be your guide on this incredible journey beyond your wildest dreams. Imagine a life with no limits. That is our destination. Through examples, observations and hard-won insights, I will help you to crystallize your path, to pursue your dreams until they become reality, encouraging you to reach your full potential. How can I be so confident? I have traveled this path a few times with remarkable success.

Once a shoeless African child, I have had the opportunity to sell technology to companies such as Boeing, to sit at the table with leaders of some of the world’s biggest companies and even to change the movie industry. Who does that? Game Changers do that! Game Changers are the ones who are bold enough and brash enough to believe we can achieve our dreams and change the world in the process.

As a U.S. speaker and unofficial ambassador of innovation, I connect with thousands of people and see firsthand the pain and frustration they are experiencing in a rapidly and ever-changing world. I see it everywhere I go—from Job Corps seminars to the most prestigious university symposiums and business conferences. It is perhaps an underestimate that 50 percent of college graduates will not find jobs, and the majority of people are doing jobs they don’t enjoy. These figures reflect not just an American phenomenon, but a global one. People see the world changing around them. They are experiencing a sense of lack in a time of plenty and are desperate to learn how to create the future they desire.

This book is a manifesto for reversing this situation, empowering readers to find their true passion and purpose—and challenging each one to make a big difference by changing something for the better. In the past, you were told to get a good job and work toward retirement. The new dream is achieving happiness in your own way—creating a lifestyle of freedom by defining success your way and doing meaningful, satisfying work. It’s about purpose, not position. It’s about creating your own game rather than simply accepting what someone else believes is possible for you.

This book is my offering to the Game Changer “tribe”—all of us who not only dream of a better tomorrow, but who are committed to doing what it takes to create it. I wrote this book to be a catalyst for change. I hope to be that catalyst for you to pursue your dreams, to move to the next level and to find the best possible use for your talents and skills. I believe that when each of us pursues the highest and best use of our unique gifts, we can change our lives, change our communities and even change the world. My motto is: “When you share your light, you live in a brighter world.” Through this book, I hope to help you find and light your spark so that you can make our world even brighter.

Being an entrepreneur is a pure exercise in self-mastery. It has tested and validated things I can now say I know to be true. This book is a collection of the discoveries, persuasions and resources that guided me in my journey. It is my playbook for a purposeful life. This is not a book about obtaining material wealth or about fearlessness and mindless rebellion. It is neither trendy nor sexy, just my truth and the guiding principles that have helped me find solace and more joy than I often feel deserving of.

The currency for change is not money, youth or education. The currency for great change is applied knowledge. Knowledge is not genetically encoded. Anyone and everyone can acquire the knowledge necessary to change their lives. Becoming a Game Changer and achieving uncommon success isn’t rocket science. My aim is to share with you the knowledge and practical insights I’ve gained, as well as firsthand wisdom, guidance and experience from people who are living their life’s passion while contributing in meaningful ways to their families, communities and the world at large.

To be a real Game Changer, you need both cheerleaders and coaches. No team ever won on cheers alone. This book attempts to be coach as well as cheerleader. It aims to tell you the things you may not want to hear and to be that voice telling you to “suck it up” and “give me ten more” when things get tough. It’s also a playbook by a coach who is also an athlete—someone who has been in the game for a long time (and has the scars to prove it) and continues to be in the game on a daily basis.

This book is your starting point. So get ready to journey to the unknown, take risks, break boundaries, speak out, set new standards and achieve the meaningful success you’ve dreamed of. Get ready to change the game.

GAME CHANGERS

The people who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world are the ones who do.

- APPLE INC. -

I come from very humble beginnings. As a child, I ran around barefoot, looking like a poster child for Feed the Children, playing with my only toy—a stick. I didn’t see my first computer until I was seventeen. Yet within a decade, I was working on a NASA Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) project and, shortly after, designing and launching satellites into space as a deep space scientist. By age twenty-nine, I was head of a satellite communications team that pioneered digital cinema technology that changed the motion picture industry. Since then, I’ve launched an award-winning magazine, despite the fact that I don’t have a degree in journalism or any publishing industry experience. I’ve also founded two multimillion-dollar companies and worked with clients such as Microsoft Xbox and the Coca-Cola Company.

When people hear what I’ve been able to do, they assume I have some kind of special skills, maybe an extra twist on my DNA, massive frontal lobes in my brain or perhaps influential friends who pulled a few strings. That couldn’t be further from the truth. What I have achieved is a testament to the opportunities and possibilities that abound for those who have a dream, are willing to work tirelessly and are crazy enough to believe they can change their corner of the world. So just how did I go from being a hungry child growing up in Ghana, West Africa, to deep space engineer, entrepreneur and Game Changer?

THE GAME CHANGER TRIBE

I’ve never had any true mentors, so I’ve had to rely on myself and learn from afar by watching others. When I came to the United States at age sixteen, I was completely on my own in a foreign country. In search of success, I started looking for successful people to model. I began by studying the actions of innovating pioneers like Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey, George Lucas and many other dreamers who possessed the heroic courage to do what their heart desired. Before long, a pattern emerged—their successes were traceable to distinct actions and attributes. These became the...