25 Successful People Who Can Surprisingly Change Life In 2018

2 Gabrielle Bernstein

Gabby Bernstein is a well accomplished author and has made quite a name for herself in the self-help genre. Her book, ‘The Universe Has Your Back’ was a #1 New York Times bestseller. She has also written another five bestsellers. She was on Oprah’s SuperSoul Sunday and deemed as the next gen thought leader. The New York Times has called her a new role model. She also hangs out of the Dr. Oz show as a guest. She even co-hosted an event with Deepak Chopra. The largest guided meditation was the event which was a Guiness World Record.

Gabby created the Miracle Membership which was the first monthly subscription style of this kind. She offers people valuable information and support to keep people moving forward with their spiritual practices. The most popular and well-known course is her flagship course called the Spirit Junkie Masterclass. It’s designed to help people live their true purpose and find the confidence within.

Gabrielle has been speaking to people internationally since 2004. She has appeared on Google, TEDxWomen, the Chopra Center, the Omega Institute and the Huffington Post to name a few. She is certified in Kundalini teaching, yoga, and meditation. If you need help with spiritual aspects that translate in realistic success, Gabby is your go to Guru.

3 Tom Brady

Tom Brady is a bit of twist on this list but he actually has become an inspiration to athletes and us regular folk. As the most accomplished quarterback of his generation, he created a self-help book called, ‘The TB12 Method: How to Achieve a Lifetime of Sustained Peak Performance.’

Of course we’re all pretty willing to take advice from someone who has proven that he can sustain peak performance. Tom Brady appeared live with Tony Robbins and it became clear that he is a natural motivator and strategist for life. In a way, he demystified what we think when it comes to the quarterback of a football team.

The book itself is best-selling and is a direct guide for athletic. However, if you can read between the lines, you will find that this book helps anyone who wants to achieve goals. His precepts are simple for getting energy levels up and keeping them up. He touches upon being intentional in order to get what you want from life. If you are highly motivated by motivational, hard-working people, you’ll get a lot out of Brady’s philosophy.

4 Tom Bilyeu

Tom Bilyeu co-founded Quest Nutrition which was a startup that is now worth over $1 billion. He is also the CEO and host of his show, “Impact Theory’ which touches upon creating, cultivation and monetizing mission=based companies. He looks to solve the challenges that companies face and helps them to be relevant in today’s culture.

His specific methods help people achieve great things in business and money matter. Bilyeu explains that it’s important to replace any criticism with a compliment when you talk with people. This is going to help your coworkers, partners and employees feel more comfortable around you.

It also helps build their self-esteem within the work place which is something you want because it makes people bolder. This helps make your business better. He also suggests using pressure to perform optimally. This will help you stay more focused instead of panicking.

5 Kimberly Bryant

Kimberly Bryant founded the Black Girls Code in 2011. She’s actually an electrical engineer and used her knowledge to create a digital technology and computer programming course for black girls aged 7-17. She looked to empower young girls to go forward with their tech passions.

Black Girls Code now has 12 chapters throughout the US. They host workshops, hackathons and even summer camps. Bryant released a biography in 2017 about her journey of developing Black Girls Code. The book, ‘Kimberly Bryant: Founder of Black Girls Code’ has received many awards and recognition.

6 Brene Brown

Brene Brown is an author and a public speaker. Her original profession was as a researcher. She has a Ph.D. and has spent endless amount of time studying the human condition. She looked at what courage looks like as well as worthiness, vulnerability and shame. Doing it through the eyes of a researcher makes it more compelling in many ways.

Her research, findings and conclusions have helped many look into their own strength and weaknesses. Her TEDx Talk on vulnerability is what catapulted her into major success. It is one of the top five most watched TED talks with over 30 million views.

Her new book, ‘Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone’ came out in 2017. She says in her book that true belonging is a spiritual practice where you belong to yourself. It is such a deep feeling that even when you’re with just you, you don’t feel alone. You are able to share your true self with the world. There is a lot of depth to the book so if you’re on a soul journey, this is a great guide-book to help you on your path.

7 Peter Diamandis

Peter Diamandis is known as a visionary and has a lot of success under his belt when it comes to entrepreneurial ventures. He has a Silicon Valley think tank called Singularity University. He also has a foundation called XPRIZE which is open to people who have big time breakthroughs that can help humanity. If you win, you get prizes.

The foundation is teaming up with IBM to offer a $5 million to the AI system that gives the best TED Talk. He helps people help other people and is assisting technology in moving forward. Diamandis is an engineer as well as a physician who studied at Harvard University.

He was named as one of the 50 greatest leaders by Forbes magazine. He attributes his mindset for his success saying that it’s important to live with a mindset of abundance. He is a great mentor to take along with you if you’re looking to improve your current life circumstance.

8 Brendon Burchard

Brendon Burchard is a motivator. He teaches people how to use digital and affiliate marketing to sell ‘information products’ that are best suited to each person’s knowledge. He hosts monthly live training sessions called SUCCESS Accelerator and helped to MC the first live event for SUCCESS.

His events, conferences, courses and book have been acclaimed as extremely impactful. His book, ‘High Performance Habits: How Extraordinary People Become That Way’ helps readers to aim high and perform well.

Burchard says it’s important to gain clarity and figure out what you want to be and do. Then you need to generate energy. He teaches you to maintain your focus and also your well-being. Raising the necessity is a tool he teaches and it helps people perform at a greater frequency. He also teaches you how to increase your productivity, develop influence (creating networks of support) and being courageous.

9 Tim Ferriss

Tim Ferriss has built himself up exponentially over the years. Not to say he hasn’t worked hard to get to where he is. He has earned th accolades. The New York Times describes Ferriss as a mix between Buddhist monk and Jack Welsh. His podcast is helpful for many different people but it all comes down to creating a better life. Health, success, and finances.

Ferriss will be involved in television doing an interview show. He is a best-selling author and his recent book “Tool of Titans” has been a chart topper, surpassing all the other books in its genre for success. It’s actually the first book based on a podcast that debuted no. 1 on the New York Times best-sellers list.

He also wrote, “Tribe of Mentors: Short Life Advice from the Best in the World.” Both of these books are based on the interviews Ferriss has done combined with his personal goals. If you’re looking for guidance to overhaul your life for next year, Ferriss is pretty fantastic guru.

10 John C. Maxwell

John C. Maxwell and the company named after him works to motivate and inspire corporate leaders. He challenges and equips organizations to be true leading and reach their potential. His company creates curriculum individually for any given company. He helps businesses of all sizes and industries.

The John C. Maxwell company assesses businesses and coaches people. There are on-site workshops designed to inspire people so they can see their true best selves and achieve maximum results. For those looking to obtain growth within themselves, John C. Maxwell has proven he can help.

There are plenty of challenges with any given company that includes issues with leadership, organization and cultural. John C. Maxwell has found solutions to all these problems. Empowerment through coaching, training, speakers and professionals help owners with their business. The owners receive the tools to then help their staff succeed in their job.

12 Jane McGonigal

Jane is the twin sister of Kelly McGonigal who is also on this list. She is a video game designer as well as author of the book, ‘SuperBetter: The Power of Living Gamefully.’ She has a Ph.D. As if all of this isn’t impressive or inspiring enough for women (any probably for men too), she create alternate reality game that help people make their lives better.

In her video games that she’s designed, Jane helps players cope with real-life problems. She directs games research and development at the institute for the future in Palo Alto.

This non-profit organization allows her to study how gaming can help us as opposed to hurt us. She did a 2010 TED Talk called, ‘Gaming Can Make a Better World’, which respectfully has over 4 million views.

13 Kelly McGonigal

Kelly McGonigal shared equal parts of success and compassion as her twin sister does. She is a Stanford University health psychologist and takes part in many lectures. She pretty much paved the way for the science-help that has become so helpful in everyday lives. She came up with the idea of taking research from psychology and neuroscience and using it to make lives better.

Her TED Talk went viral and has been viewed almost 15 million times. “How to Make Stress Your Friend” is one of the top 25 most popular TED Talks. She has written a helpful book about stress and how to deal with it called, “the Upside of Stress: Why Stress is Good for You, and How to Get Good at It.”

14 Shonda Rhimes

Shonda Rhimes is an inspiration in many ways. She is responsible for shows like Grey’s Anatomy and How to Get Away with Murder. She works hard and does her own thing, still managing to be highly successful without following the rules. She was recently the third black women inducted into the TV Hall of Fame.

Instead of staying comfortable at ABC, she left and went to develop show for Netflix. She received 3 million views on her TED Talk. It was based on her year of saying yes to everything. Her book “Year to Yes, How to Dance It Out, Stand in the Sun and Be Your Own Person” talks about how there really are no rules.

Thimes talks about how staying happy is really all you need. It comes from living the way you want. She teaches you how to hear your inner voice and heart and follow what it says. Her teachings promote finding your truth and expressing that out to the world. This is the recipe to her own success which is in in arguable.

15 Dave Ramsey

Dave Ramsey has a specific message that reaches millions annually. He is a radio host and author of five New York Times best-sellers. So what’s his main message? To live debit-free. He talks about changing habits. Sometimes even radical changes like not using credit cards at all.

His company is called Ramsey Solution and he has been running a popular radio call-in show for the past 25 years. His recommendations for running a business in today’s economy is to avoid debt.

He also recommends not borrowing money but instead grow your business organically. Make a list of your expenses from most important to least important. Practice being intentional with your spending. Be proud to give people jobs and helping the community through your business. It’s simple but practiced methods like this that make Ramey the go-to for financial solutions.

16 Mel Robbins

Mel Robbins guides people on making a fast decision before the ego comes in and talks you out of it. It’s a little more complex than that but this is the premise. Her book, ‘The 5 Second Rule’ saw huge popularity. This year, she released another book based on the same principles called, ‘The 5 Second Rules: transform Your Life, Work, and Confidence with Everyday Courage.

Robbins has cracked the code on helping people make fast decisions. This can help people live a life that is more true to what they’ve always wanted. She is a CNN commentator and motivational speaker that talks about getting past self-doubt.She sees self-doubt as a habit and behavior that can be overcome.

As this behavior of doubting oneself is a thinking pattern that you had to commit to be repeating self-defeating words, it can be undone. By understanding the anxiety and worry and self-doubt, you can break them. This is what Robbins has done. Looked into how these things formed. She can help you break those patterns in your life too with her powerful methods.

17 Tali Sharot

Tali Sharot has an interesting family heritage in that she is a descendant of Karl Marx, the German philosopher. She is an associate professor at the University London College within the experimental psychology department. She released a book this year called, ‘The Influential Mind, What the Brain Reveals About Our Power to Change Others.’

The book uses research that looked into the influence emotions play. Her TED Talk saw a few million views. It was about protecting ourselves from the dangers of optimism. She talked about how we should remain hopeful and benefit from what optimism can bring us. Her work has been published in the most eminent journals. She is able to describe evolutionary benefits of optimism as well as how it can be dangerous.

Experts have said that her work allows us to understand how to cope with our realities. It has helped us manage health, finance, policy, and even cyber security. She is one of the top females scientists in her country and has been designated as one of the most important female Israeli-born scientists in the modern age. Her books and publications can help individuals best understand how to live in the Tao of their optimism.

18 Tony Robbins

Tony Robbins has been consistently helping people overcome fears and challenges. He helps people find their personal power through actionable measure. He does seminars and writes self-help books. “I am not Your Guru” was a documentary on Robbins and how he hosts one of his seminars.

He comes from his own journey of desire, setbacks, lessons, and victory. He is now world-renowned for his seminars that help people with everything in their lives. Whether its finding love, becoming rich and successful, or just being generally more optimistic, Robbins has a course for you.

He has plenty of useful tips for anyone dealing with any situation in their life. His books, ‘Unlimited Power’ and ‘Awaken the Giant Within’ are highly motivational. The results you can expect through Robbins guidance is very action based. It’s not about dreaming to manifest. It’s about action. One of his secrets to happiness is progress.

19 Jen Sincero

It’s pretty inspiring when someone starts at Ground Zero and has to work themselves to wealth. That’s just what Sincero did so if you’re feeling destitute, you might want to get her book. Sincero has big debt and lived in a converted garage.

She became a best-selling author in 2013 which lead to becoming a speaker and a coach to help other people with their success. She has now helped people in the millions to change their lives. She has recently come out with a second book called, ‘You are a Badass at Making Money: Master the Mindset of Wealth.’

She talks about how we learn to be afraid. How when we were babies, we didn’t fuss about our appearance or how much money our parents had in their bank account. We learn to fear and we learn other negative thought processes that we associate with money. We see cash as hard to make and a part of something sinister or evil.

We feel guilty if we spend it on things we like. We feel good when we hoard it for a rainy day that will or won’t come. Sincero brings all of these aspects to light in her books in a very readable and way that is easy to relate to. It’s also pretty endearing that she went through her own battles to come to these conclusions. It worked for this rags to riches girl. If you practice what she’s preaching, it could create personal wealth for you in 2018 too.

20 Simon Sinek

Simon Sinek kind of came out of the woodwork and rocked us all with his Inside Quest interview. He talked about millennial in the workplace and the mindset of this generation. What he said was true and compelling and everyone was listening. He was speaking on behalf of the RAND Corporation.

This best-selling author understood enough about the companies who hire millennials and the millennial themselves to create a speech that was compelling for all parties involved. His speech about how millennials act in the workplace along with our dependence on smartphones got everyone thinking.

The video went viral and Sinek then followed up with paperback editions of his books that would be greatly helpful for any business who has millennials on their work team. He is excellent at explaining why some work dynamics work and others don’t.If you’re a business owner, and want harmony in your workplace for 2018, take some tips from Sinek.

21 David and Jonah Stillman

These two are father and son working on a common goal. They are still researching what Generation Z really like and what their preferred style of productivity will be. The fact that they are doing this research has resulted in a lot of interest for their studies. They have written, “Gen Z @ Work: How the Next Generation is Transforming the Workplace.’

They help us get to know the Gen Z generation by explaining a few things. Such as the fact that they are made for the YouEconomy. They are quite realistic as they were raised by the Gen Xers that were coping with 9/11 aftermath.

The whole trophy movement will have recoiled so Gen Z people will be aware that in life there are winners and losers. If you’re into interesting knowledge and philosophy about the future, you may find their writings interesting. Also, it could give you insight that helps your own business in a non-linear way in 2018.

22 Boyce Watkins

Boyce Watkins is the jack of many trades with a focus on empowering African-Americans. Leading by example, he is an author, political analyst, economist, and commentator on society. He was once a former assistant professor of finance and has found that financial independence is one of the most important things for getting black people social and spiritual independence.

He does a lot of public speaking and has also released many online courses and books. They focus mainly on investment and entrepreneurship for the black community. He doesn’t let his followers make excuses about being a victim due to their backgrounds. He challenges the whole black community to make changes through entrepreneurial efforts.

He echoes powerful messages from the past like Dr. Martin Luther Kings words. The coolest part is he turns it into something more modern. One of his tweets stated,

“I have a dream that one day owning Nike stock will matter more than owning a pair of Nike sneakers.”

23 Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey is a goddess of inspiration for many around the world. She is the biggest personality in the self-help sector in the history of America. She built an empire on helping people while also becoming extremely wealthy in the process. She still impacts people today although we don’t see her as much as we used to.

She says that definition of success for her was asking how she could be used in life. How wife might show her what her talents and gifts here. She asked the question and it answered. She uses it as her recipe to know where to go next. She believes that when you ask the question, life will answer it every time.

24 Manoush Zomorodi

Manoush has a popular podcast called, ‘Note to Self’ where she explores what it is to be human and what is shaping is today in our modern, digital world. Her recent book was released, called ‘Bored and Brilliant: How Spacing Out Can Unlock Your Most Productive and Creative Self.”

The premise of the book suggests that boredom can actually be helpful This is in reference to the constant stimuli we experience from scrolling through our devices. Zomorodi has found that when we get bored, we ignite a part in our brain that is the default mode.

Her TED Talk, ‘How Boredom Can Lead to Your Most Brilliant Ideas,’ goes into detail about what default mode does. It allows us to connect to our ideas and we solve problems that have been sitting ion the back burner. This is where we do our autobiographical planning which is where we look back at the bigger parts of our lives and create goals based on what we want. Why not explore how to best utilize those times of boredom in your life. You may just get exactly what you want in 2018 using her methods.

25 Ashley Zahabian

Ashley Zahabian is just 23 but she is making her imprint on the world of personal development. She is a survivor of anorexia and has since lectured for Rutgers University and became a financial analytics rep for Bloomberg in Manhattan. The TED Talk she took part in this year in Vancouver, British Columbia was based on brave actions.

She shared her battle with anorexia which could have taken her life. It took her four years to rehabilitate. She talked about how important it is to change automatic behaviors that require you to build your emotional intelligence. She talked about the strategies she came up with to help when she was feeling emotionally down.

Her story of overcoming challenge is different from others on this list. Zahabian and her lectures may serve as inspiration on how to deal with deeply disturbing aspects of your life. Sometimes success starts with getting out of the hole we’ve dug for ourselves. Many on this list were in bad places at one point in their life.

That’s partially what makes them so inspirational. So who will you follow as your inspiration in 2018 to make it the best year of your life?