Credit: Source: www.jennifercohen.com

Let wellness and fitness entrepreneur Jennifer Cohen be your “entrepreneurial and motivational” trainer.

Jennifer Cohen’s varied business and career accomplishments—Hot5 fitness app creator, TEDx talk speaker (“The Secret to Getting Anything You Want in Life”), podcaster (“Habits & Hustle”), best-selling author (“Strong is the New Skinny,” “Bigger, Better Bolder: Live the Life You Want, Not the One You Get”), Instagram influencer (660K+ followers), to name just a few—point to a very clear mission: inspiring people to recognize their potential and achieve success.

In a fireside chat with Richard Baker, real estate mogul and executive chairman of Saks Global, at a recent bootcamp, Cohen unveiled her top tips to achieving success. While particularly relevant for entrepreneurs, her fitness and life credos can be applied to anyone striving to be their best self. 

Fitness Is a Microcosm for Life  

“Take fitness seriously because the habits you build are very transferable to the rest of the world: discipline, patience, doing hard things daily. These are all exceptionally important for an entrepreneur.” 

Showing Up is Half the Battle

“Nothing happens on your couch watching Netflix. You have to make it happen just by showing up. I created a fitness app called Hot5 and it got acquired by Weight Watchers. But I met my co-founder/CEO because I was somewhere I didn’t initially want to go. I was in San Francisco and randomly walked out of a building at the right time. I didn’t even want to go on that trip but I took the shot. Make the effort. It increases your chances and you never know where it leads.” 

Make the Attempt

“Success isn’t all about talent, but rather hard work. I refer to the 10% target concept. You have to make 10 attempts to get what you most want. Almost 97% of people don’t even make one attempt. And 99.9% don’t make a second attempt. It’s about making that attempt.”

Know Your Non-Negotiables

“Do what you say and say what you do. If you say you’re going to wake up at 7 a.m., do it. Don’t negotiate with yourself in the morning. I have a very strict morning routine and it’s not about vanity, but rather about priming my brain for success. If I exercise and sweat in the morning, I’m much more energetic and focused. If I need to go somewhere within 2 miles, I walk. Non negotiable.” 

Successful People Believe in Themselves…

“I’ve had very successful people on my podcast, from Mark Cuban to Jack Dorsey. One throughline is they all believe in themselves just a little bit more. And they get good at failure.” 

…and Aren’t Afraid to Fail

“Failure is inevitable. I like to say I have a masters in failing but a PhD in getting back up. Are you able to get back up and keep going? Being desensitized to the feeling of failure is the most underrated skill and hack.” 

Be Bold

“I believe being bold is more important than being intelligent. If you’re bold, you just shoot. Take a shot. Don’t overthink things, otherwise you can get paralyzed. It’s all a volume game; you have to stay action oriented and keep on making those shots.” 

Practice ‘As If’

“Learning Spanish? You don’t take one class, you have to practice. Same with being bold. You have to practice and act “as if” [something is already true or possible]. Put in the work.”

A Dream Isn’t a Goal

“The difference between a goal and a dream? Goals have steps in place. Start doing something small that you wouldn’t otherwise do, then work your way up like a ladder.” 

Everyone Knows Someone Who Knows Someone

“When I was 21, I wanted to work for the NBA. I’m Canadian and pounded and pounded the phones to get to the owner of the Toronto Raptors. You don’t need to know the right person. Everyone is a conduit. I eventually got a job there and became the youngest salesperson.” 

Build Soft Skills to Survive AI

“With AI, people are so afraid of losing their job, but now is the chance to shine with your soft skills—empathy, curiosity, compassion, ability to listen. Leadership comes from soft skills, today and especially tomorrow as we go deeper into AI. For one-on-one jobs like sales that involve a human being, you have to be likable.” 

Critical Thinking is a Lost Art

“AI has leveled the playing field. Everyone can be ‘competent enough,’ but critical thinking is a lost art as the most basic things become commoditized. If ChatGPT is saving you hours a day, are you using that time to hone your critical thinking? Are you reading more books? Sharpening your brain? Buy back your time. Don’t doomscroll.”