Terry Beech has found success in politics, academia and business by refusing to do things by the book.
At just 18, he was elected to city council in Nanaimo. He later started a non-profit with his brother (Twinbro.com) and a business (Hiretheworld.com) out of his dorm room while studying for an MBA.
Some were quick to predict that his ideas wouldn’t work, Beech recalls. But in each case, he proved them wrong.
“Make sure you set goals and make sure that you’re aiming high – and not just high, but probably try to go beyond your comfort zone,” he said.
“It’s been my experience that people are humble about their own abilities by default, but … a single individual is mostly more capable of achieving far beyond what they think they’re personally capable of.”
Looking back, Beech says his ability to ignore the naysayers and achieve big dreams can be traced back to a childhood struggle with severe asthma. He was hospitalized repeatedly and had to carry an inhaler with him everywhere he went.
As an 11-year-old, he decided to do his own research to see whether his doctors were wrong when they told him he would always struggle with the severe condition.
“I just couldn’t see myself living this life where I was tied to this medication,” he said.
Beech recalls doing his own research at the library, going to seminars and reading about asthma, and then doing exercises to increase his lung capacity.
“It took five or six years, but I haven’t actually carried an inhaler with me since I was 16,” he said.
“If I had just listened to the doctor, I would have been struggling with very severe asthma to this day.”
On setting and achieving goals | “I usually follow the same process for everything I want to do. Figure out what you want to do, set your goals, aim high and then get all the information. Become an expert on whatever it is you’re trying to focus on. Become the expert on whatever problem you’re trying to solve, and then surround yourself with the best and brightest people you can find."
Has a work or life challenge taught you a key career lesson? Contact Jen St. Denis at [email protected].
