By Mariana Ashley.  Bill Bradley, retired NBA player, US Senator, and US presidential candidate, said "Ambition is the path to success.  Persistence is the vehicle you arrive in."  Any high-ability student knows the truth of this quote, as they have likely received accolades, awards, and praise for their efforts and ambitions.  But these students also know the darker side of ambition, the side known only by the few who walk that path and have seen its thorns and shadows.

Your life story, your knowledge, and your message—what you know from experience and want to share with the world—have greater importance and market value than you probably ever dreamed. You are here to make a difference in this world, and the best way to do that is to use your knowledge and experience (on any topic, in any industry) to help others succeed.

We're all experts at something. Everyone has their own abilities, skills, and unique life experiences that they can share with others. Why not make a business out of it? In the following interview, Brendon Burchard lays the groundwork for becoming an expert entrepreneur with advice from his New York Times bestseller, The Millionaire Messenger.

The first way of knowing you’re in your brilliance zone is that you feel deeply connected to the service you provide for others.  While it may appear to be “business as usual” - you know, in the core of your being, the power of the work you do.  And, you do it with gratitude for the opportunity to serve, while also experiencing tremendous JOY as you do so.

The voices are quite familiar. “Who do you think you are? You’re not an expert!" “It’s already been written. You’re not worthy of success.” OK. You get the picture, I don’t need to go on. These voices you hear rolling over and over again in your mind are debilitating. I know, because you’ve told me so and because I grappled with those same voices for years. So, I want to share with you what works for me – and what I believe will work for you – to help quiet these frustrating voices so you can believe in yourself.

Marketer and blogger Seth Godin defines a tribe as "a group of people connected to one another, connected to a leader, and connected to an idea."In the case of your tribe of just-right clients, you are the leader, responsible for giving them care and guidance. Not in a patronizing way, but to the extent that they depend on you to do good work and to lead them toward things that match their needs.You and your just-right clients are connected through your work, the way you market that work, and the sales conversations you have.

We don’t resist doing something new or different — in other words, we don’t resist change. We resist doing what we think is wrong. When you really get this distinction, you will understand something about human behavior that most psychologists and professionals in the training business still don’t understand... One example: “Yelling is the only way to get people to listen and do what you want.” That’s the belief that engenders the yelling. Given this belief, if you want to get someone to do something and they aren’t doing it, you have to yell to get results.