Work Smarts

Award-winning Bloomberg television host Betty Liu compiles the wisdom of the world's best CEOs into a fun, insightful, and practical guide for success.

Betty Liu is famous the world over for asking the tough questions of today’s most successful people—and for her uncanny ability to get straight answers where others have failed. As an award-winning financial journalist and Bloomberg Television anchor, Betty has sat down with billionaires, CEOs, politicians, and celebrities to get their views from the top.

Now, in Work Smarts, Betty helps you get to the top by distilling the wisdom of some of the most prominent CEOs in the country. Warren Buffett, Jamie Dimon, Elon Musk, Sam Zell, John Chambers, Anne Mulcahy, and many more spill the beans on what it really takes to be successful, giving practical, “from the street” advice on how to get ahead in your career.

Packed with candid, often humorous, revelations from leaders in the world of finance, technology, retail, telecom, entertainment, and more, Work Smarts delivers priceless guidance on:

• How to really network
• The importance of being likable
• What your boss is thinking when you ask for a raise
• Winning every negotiation
• Bouncing back from a firing or layoff
• Thinking like a true entrepreneur
• The secret skill every successful person needs
• Overcoming fear
• Being a standout job candidate
• Knowing what’s holding you back
• Knowing what can propel you forward
• Why sometimes being good at your job just isn’t enough

Combining the trademark, hands-on approach of one of today’s most respected financial journalists with the wisdom of the world’s most successful business leaders, Work Smarts is a gold mine of real-world insight and advice on how to get ahead in business and forge a career that maximizes all your best talents and skills.

Introduction ix

Part One: If I Knew This Before, I’d Be a Millionaire . . .

Chapter 1: The Company of One 3

Chapter 2: Why the Q Factor Is So Important 25

Chapter 3: How to Network 35

Chapter 4: Asking for a Raise 49

Chapter 5: The Art of Negotiation 67

Part Two: The Three Fs: Fear, Finances, and Flow

Chapter 6: Fear 81

Chapter 7: Finances 95

Chapter 8: Flow 109

Part Three: Postcards from the C-Suite

Chapter 9: What It’s Really Like to Be a CEO 117

Chapter 10: Sound Off : The Most Annoying . . . 145

Part Four: Things I’ve Learned

Chapter 11: You Can’t Really Be Good at Everything . . . and That’s OK! 151

Chapter 12: Five Tips for Life 159

Bibliography 175

About the Author 179

Index 181

Betty Liu is Editor-at-Large for Bloomberg Television and the host of In the Loop with Betty Liu, a daily morning program providing the most comprehensive coverage of the headlines and major events set to shape the business day ahead. She also hosts In the Loop At the Half with Betty Liu on Bloomberg Radio, airing weekdays at noon, and is an ABC News contributor. An award-winning business journalist, Betty regularly interviews influential business, political, and media leaders such as Warren Buffett, Carlos Slim, Lloyd Blankfein, Les Moonves, Indra Nooyi, and many others. Before joining Bloomberg Television, Betty was an anchor for CNBC Asia, based in Hong Kong. Prior to that, she was the Atlanta-based correspondent for the Financial Times. Earlier in her career, Betty was the Taiwan bureau chief for Dow Jones Newswires—the youngest ever in Asia—and a Hong Kong–based regional correspondent for the newswire. Betty is also coauthor of Age Smart: Discovering the Fountain of Youth at Midlife and Beyond, published in 2006. For more information on Betty, go to www.betty-liu.com.

BETTY LIU is famous the world over for asking the tough questions of today's most successful people—and for her uncanny ability to get straight answers where others have failed. As an award-winning financial journalist and Bloomberg Television anchor, Betty has sat down with billionaires, CEOs, politicians, and celebrities to get their views from the top.

Now, in Work Smarts, Betty helps you get to the top by distilling the wisdom of some of the most prominent CEOs in the country. Warren Buffett, Jamie Dimon, Elon Musk, Sam Zell, John Chambers, Anne Mulcahy, and many more spill the beans on what it really takes to be successful, giving practical, "from the street" advice on how to get ahead in your career.

Whether you're just starting out in your career, bouncing back from a setback, angling to move up to the C-suite, or thinking about striking out on your own to pursue your dream, Work Smarts is a powerful source of insight, ideas, and inspiration you simply cannot afford to be without.

Packed with candid, often humorous, revelations from leaders in the world of finance, technology,retail, telecom, entertainment, and more, Work Smarts delivers priceless guidance on:

• How to really network
• The importance of being likable
• What your boss is thinking when you ask for a raise
• Winning every negotiation
• Bouncing back from a firing or layoff
• Thinking like a true entrepreneur
• The secret skill every successful person needs
• Overcoming fear
• Balancing kids and career
• Being a standout job candidate
• Knowing what's holding you back
• Knowing what can propel you forward
• Why sometimes being good at your job just isn't enough

And you'll even discover what the beverage of choice is among a majority of CEOs! (Hint: It's carbonated and has zero calories.)

Combining the trademark, hands-on approach of one of today's most respected financial journalists with the wisdom of the world's most successful business leaders, Work Smarts is a gold mine of real-world insight and advice on how to get ahead in business and forge a career that maximizes all your best talents and skills.