Lucky for us, there isn’t a whole lot going on in the world these days, so this week’s How Success Happens podcast guest had all the time in the world to sit down and chat and relax.
That, of course, is not true, but we got her anyway! The very busy Dana Perino hosts two daily programs on Fox News Channel (America’s Newsroom and The Five), mentors people around the country, and writes leadership books, all in her nonexistent spare time.
Her new book, I Wish Someone Had Told Me, is out now, and she joined us to share her career advice to anyone chasing a dream, her evolving definition of success, and the one habit she wishes she could break. You can listen to the entire episode here or on your platform of choice, and read highlights below, which have been edited for length and clarity.
I love the title of your new book, and I have to wonder if it refers to wishing someone had warned you the first time you sat down next to Greg Gutfeld 11 years ago.
More on Greg Gutfeld later! One of the things about this new book that I like is this connection to my mom. My previous book, Everything Will Be Okay, was specific to young women. I sent it to my mom before it came out, and she said, “Wow, I wish someone had told me these things.” So that’s a reference to my mom, who came into the workforce after college in 1965. Those women paved the way for the rest of us. They were pioneers in the workforce.
So what made you decide to write this book?
I do a lot of mentoring. And I realized that the advice I’ve been talking to mentees about over the years has evolved. So now it’s not, “What should I study in college?” It’s “How can I get the promotion?” “How do I deal with my finances?” “How do I start to plan for retirement?” So I knew I needed to do a refreshed, updated mentoring book, but I also knew that I absolutely did not have all the answers. So I went to all sorts of friends and colleagues, people I’ve known through my whole life, from my college roommate to people like Greg Gutfeld, who is hilarious but also has terrific and wise advice.
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How do you define success? And has it evolved over the years?
I grew up in Wyoming and Colorado, and I don’t come from money, I don’t come from politics. I did have ambition. I wanted to achieve things. And I worried away my twenties. And one of my great hopes is for people who we would listen to this podcast or if they’re willing to read the book, is that they would realize that if you are an educated American, you’ve already won life’s great lottery. So then you get to decide what you want to do with that. Initially, my measure of success was, “Can I pay my bills?” And then it becomes, “Can I help people?” And then it’s about finding serenity, with a continued desire to learn and be curious. And be grateful.
What piece of advice really stands out to you?
My very favorite piece of advice in this book is that choosing to be loved is not a career-limiting decision. Almost all of the people I mentor ask me, “How I can meet someone?” or some of them have long-distance relationships, but they don’t wanna leave their job. I get that. But I truly believe that it doesn’t have to be a career-limiting decision if you decide that you want to be with this person. I served as the White House Press Secretary in the George W. Bush administration, and left Capitol Hill to go and live with my husband in England. That didn’t ruin my career. In fact, so much of what I’ve accomplished is because I had Peter to help me. So I would just want to stress to people that take the leap.
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What is a habit you are grateful to have, and one you wish you could ditch?
I am very good at waking up and being ready to go immediately. I have no problem. I don’t need coffee. I wish I could break my phone habit. I have recently developed a thumb injury from scrolling on my phone so much. So that’s a habit I would like to break!
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About How Success Happens
Each episode of How Success Happens shares the inspiring, entertaining, and unexpected journeys that influential leaders in business, the arts, and sports traveled on their way to becoming household names. It’s a reminder that behind every big-time career, there is a person who persisted in the face of self-doubt, failure, and anything else that got thrown in their way.
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