What are the secrets to success? Fortunately, someone has done the work to answer this question for us. Richard St. John, a self-described average guy, achieved success doing what he loved but found he couldn’t really explain how he did it. After setting out to discover the secrets behind successful people, he shares what he found to be the 8 big things that lead to success.

In this Ted talk, he boils down 7 years of research and 500 interviews with exceptionally successful people into a three-minute talk. After gathering wisdom from individuals in a wide variety of fields, St. John identified the common traits successful people share. His analysis of millions of words of research culminates in 8 invaluable lessons gleaned from those who know.