What does it really take to reach — and stay in — the top 1% of your field? Legendary speaker and bestselling author Jim Cathcart shares the exact mindset, daily habits, and career strategy that took him from “likable ordinary guy” to National Speakers Association President, Professional Speakers Hall of Fame inductee, Sales & Marketing Hall of Fame (London), and author of 27 books including The Acorn Principle, Relationship Selling, and Mentor Minutes: How to Reach the Top 1% of Any Field.

In this eye-opening conversation, Jim unpacks the idea that changed his life: one extra focused hour a day for five years can make you a national expert — if you pick a narrow lane and stay the course. He explains how to transform fear of public speaking by reframing it as fear of judgment, why selling is “helping people for pay,” and how to build authority step by step until opportunities find you. You’ll hear the full-circle story of Earl Nightingale — from inspiring Jim on the radio to Nightingale-Conant selling Jim’s program a decade later — plus practical ways to design a career that compounds for decades.

You’ll learn:

The “Hour-a-Day” approach to becoming a recognized expert
How niching hard accelerates credibility and demand
A simple reframe to eliminate public-speaking anxiety
The difference between vendor thinking and solution thinking in sales
How to architect a career that consistently creates serendipity
What Jim teaches in his Certified Professional Expert (CPE) mentorship

Resources & Mentions:

Jim’s site: Cathcart.com
Free download: What to Do When You’re the Speaker → BookCathcart.com
Books: The Acorn Principle, Relationship Selling, Mentor Minutes

Jim Cathcart: Founder & CEO of Cathcart Institute

Website: https://cathcart.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cathcartinstitute/

X: https://x.com/jimcathcart

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jimcathcart

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JimCathcartvideos/videos

#SmallBusinessPivots #JimCathcart #CathcartInstitute #Mindset #PersonalDevelopment #CertifiedProfessionalExpert #Top1Percent #MentorMinutes #RelationshipSelling #NationalSpeakersAssociation #NSA #TheAcornPrinciple #PublicSpeaking #SalesTips #ExpertPositioning #AuthorityBuilding #BusinessGrowth #Entrepreneurship #MichaelDMorrison #BOSS #BusinessLoans #BusinessCoaching #OklahomaCity #GetSerious

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The Acorn Principle

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