Robert Glazer: The Proven Decision-Making Framework High Achievers Use to Unlock Fulfillment | Leadership | E371

Summary

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Young and Profiting Podcast with Hala Taha

Episode 371: Robert Glazer – The Proven Decision-Making Framework High Achievers Use to Unlock Fulfillment
Date: October 13, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Hala Taha welcomes back Robert Glazer—founder of Acceleration Partners, bestselling author, and creator of the Friday Forward newsletter—to discuss the core concepts behind his new book, The Compass Within. Together, they explore how high achievers can use values-based decision making to redefine fulfillment, avoid common entrepreneurial pitfalls, and build organizations that scale with authenticity. Through actionable frameworks, personal stories, and insightful “True North” scenarios, the episode breaks down how clear, deeply-held values function as a leadership and life compass—and why these principles often require trade-offs in the short term for lasting impact and profit.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Power of Core Values as a Life Compass

• Definition & Importance:

  • Glazer explains core values as the “non-negotiable principles that guide your behavior and decisions.” (03:10)
  • Values are intrinsic, show up across all areas of life, and are clarifying—they help make tough choices clearer.
  • “Your core values are the non-negotiable principles that guide your behavior and decisions.” – Robert Glazer [03:10]

• Short-Term Sacrifice, Long-Term Gain:

  • Making values-based decisions often comes with short-term costs, but yields better outcomes in the long run.
  • “A lot of values decisions may cost you something in the short term, but it’s almost always the right decision in the long run.” – Robert Glazer [02:54]

2. Getting Specific: Articulating Values

• One-word values (e.g., “integrity,” “family”) are too vague; specificity is actionable.
• Glazer encourages people to articulate values with phrases:
  • Instead of “integrity,” use “my words match my actions.”
  • Instead of “family,” clarify how it influences behavior (“always show up for loved ones”).
• “If you want to make a decision based on a core value, it’s got to be worded in a way that you can say, I did that or I didn’t do that.” – Robert Glazer [07:49]

3. Purpose vs. Values & The ‘Three Climbs’ of Achievement

• Many are anxious about “finding their purpose,” but it’s easier to first clarify values.
• Values are like “pillars”; purpose is the “roof across them.”
• Distinction between three climbs:
  1. The climb others push you towards (expectations, e.g., “be a doctor”).
  2. The climb you pick for yourself—goal-driven but often unfulfilling when you reach the top.
  3. The climb that is fulfilling every day, anchored in values and the process, not just outcomes.
• “If you can figure out your values, they’re like the pillars and the purpose is the roof that sits across all of it.” – Robert Glazer [10:51]

4. Real-Life Decision-Making as a Leader

• Glazer stepped down as CEO of Acceleration Partners when the company’s evolution no longer fit his values or preferences—a difficult but necessary transition for identity and satisfaction as a founder.
• Emphasizes importance of a clean leadership hand-off and staying in an advisory role aligned with strengths.
• “Every time the company doubles, you have to decide, do I want to be that leader, that CEO?... I looked at it, I was like, I don’t really want to be the CEO at the next doubling.” – Robert Glazer [11:54]

5. High Achievers, Fulfillment, and the ‘Moving Goalpost’

• High achievers tend to keep moving the finish line, seeking satisfaction in “the chase” rather than fulfillment in alignment.
• Reference to a survey: people always want 30-40% more wealth, regardless of their starting point.
• “If you can’t figure out how to be happy in the moment or with what you have, it’s hard to believe that you’ll be happy at some arrival.” – Robert Glazer [18:38]

6. The Six Questions to Uncover Your Values

• Part of Glazer's values exercise:
  1. In what non-work environments are you highly engaged?
  2. Where did you do your best work and feel happiest?
  3. What would you want said in your eulogy?
  4. What behaviors in others make your blood boil?
  5. (Further questions available at robertglazer.com/6).
• Identifying what frustrates you about others likely reveals your own core values "by inversion."
• “The opposites are really good tests of what it is that we value.” – Robert Glazer [28:43]

7. Notable “True North Test” Scenarios

[30:43–36:07]

• Hala poses life/leadership challenges; Robert demonstrates using values as a filter:
  • Investor pressure to chase “AI hype” at the expense of your vision: Use long-term orientation and “find a better way” rather than short-term trends.
  • Choosing between a keynote and a family event: Decide based on pre-established, non-negotiable family promises (e.g., never miss birthdays).
  • Ghostwriter for bestseller status: Refuses, citing “respectful authenticity.”
  • “It’s gonna be really hard as an entrepreneur to build a company that you don’t believe in. It’s hard enough when you do believe in it.” – Robert Glazer [32:12]

8. Iconic Business Stories of Values in Action

• Yvon Chouinard (founder of Patagonia) giving up 80% of revenue to protect the environment, leading to greater long-term success.
• Dick’s Sporting Goods raising age for gun sales and stopping sales of certain weapons, defying Wall Street worries, and increasing stock valuation long-term.
• CVS dropping $2B in cigarette sales to align with “health” brand, ultimately thriving.

9. Values and Profitability

• Values-based decisions might cause short-term financial loss but drive loyalty, retention, and culture, ultimately making companies stronger.
• “I think values decisions cost you more in the short term…But I think you gain ultimately in the long run if you’re willing to sustain that short term hit.” – Robert Glazer [38:44]

10. Company Vs. Personal Values

• Company values should be explicit behaviors the company rewards (often what's rewarded vs. what's “stated”).
• Cultural misalignment in work, community, or relationships is a major predictor of dissatisfaction.

11. Relationships and Alignment

• Deep compatibility in relationships, community, and job is key to long-term happiness and success.
• Values form in formative years, and serious divergence in values (not activities or personalities) in partnerships leads to long-term friction.

12. Leadership, Authenticity & Scaling

• Glazer was voted a top CEO because his leadership style is consistent with stated values—it’s not to please everyone, but to be authentic so the right people align.
• Leaders need to communicate values openly, accept it won’t be for everyone, and hire or part ways accordingly.
• “At some point, I just got comfortable being who I was and not trying to be anyone else.” – Robert Glazer [45:20]

13. Innovative People Practices

[53:24–55:38]

• “Open Transition Program”: Replacing secretive two-week notice periods with honest offboarding, offering two to three months for open job transitions—beneficial for company, clients, and employees.
• Quarterly two-day offsites for leadership: Reflect, plan, and strategize outside the daily grind—a must for high-growth teams.

14. Networking & Relationships as Value-Driven Practice

[56:02–58:16]

• Reference to Keith Ferrazzi’s Never Eat Alone and Dale Carnegie’s How To Win Friends and Influence People.
• Give 3x to your network for every ask; make helpful, mutually beneficial introductions.
• “The problem with networking...you hear from the person you haven’t heard from in nine years...because they need a job. That’s not great networking.” – Robert Glazer [56:17]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Short-term vs. Long-term:
  • “A lot of values decisions may cost you something in the short term, but it’s almost always the right decision in the long run.” – Robert Glazer [02:54]
• On Authenticity as a Leader:
  • “At some point, I just got comfortable being who I was and not trying to be anyone else.” – Robert Glazer [45:20]
• On Specificity in Values:
  • “If you want to make a decision based on a core value, it’s got to be worded in a way that you can say, ‘I did that’ or ‘I didn’t do that.’” – Robert Glazer [07:49]
• On Clarity & Fulfillment:
  • “If you can’t figure out how to be happy in the moment or with what you have, it’s hard to believe that you’ll be happy at some arrival.” – Robert Glazer [18:38]
• On Networking:
  • “The problem with networking...you hear from the person you haven’t heard from in nine years...because they need a job. That’s not great networking.” – Robert Glazer [56:17]
• On Playing the Long Game:
  • “If you’re looking for long term happiness and profitability, then think about decisions in the context of...how will I feel about this decision in 10 days, 10 months, 10 years?” – Robert Glazer [59:07]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:54] Core values and decision making
• [05:45] What does the “compass within” mean?
• [06:44] Glazer’s turning point: Leadership training and values discovery
• [07:49] Getting specific with values (not one-word answers)
• [11:31] Stepping down as CEO: Identity, purpose, and alignment
• [16:28] High achievers, fulfillment, and the moving goalpost
• [20:03] Robert’s current “climb” and five-year impact goal
• [25:13] The six questions to uncover your values (robertglazer.com/6)
• [30:43] “True North Test” – values in decision scenarios
• [36:14] Business stories: Patagonia, Dick’s Sporting Goods, and values-based profitability
• [38:44] Short-term pain, long-term gain: How values fuel profit
• [40:01] The link between personal and company values
• [45:20] Leadership style, culture, and being voted a top CEO
• [53:24] Open Transition Program for offboarding
• [55:05] Quarterly leadership offsites
• [56:02] Value-driven networking & building your “network node”
• [58:34] Robert’s actionable daily habit for profitability
• [59:07] The secret to profiting in life: Playing the long game

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Actionable Takeaways

• Define Your Values With Precision: Go beyond single-word statements—clarify what values look like in action for you (e.g., “I always show up for my friends and family.”)
• Use Values as Your Decision Filter: In tough moments, ask which value is getting triggered and what choice aligns for the long term.
• Audit Company Values and Behaviors: Ensure your organization’s stated values match what’s being rewarded.
• Reassess Relationships and Work Environments: If your core values conflict with your “big three” (relationship, job, community), long-term fulfillment will be elusive.
• Network as a Giver: Invest in your network by connecting and giving, not by taking; play the long game for mutually beneficial relationships.
• Implement Honest Offboarding: Consider open transitions for outgoing talent to improve morale, service, and culture.
• Morning Routine for Profitability: Start your day with intentional work on three key goals before noon.

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Resources Mentioned

• Book: The Compass Within
• Newsletter: Friday Forward by Robert Glazer
• 6 Values Questions Download: robertglazer.com/6
• Networking Books:
  • Never Eat Alone by Keith Ferrazzi
  • How To Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie

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Conclusion

Robert Glazer’s interview is a masterclass in values-focused leadership—with real-world strategies for entrepreneurs and high achievers to find clarity, improve culture, and sustain profit without losing themselves in the hustle. By rooting life and business in articulated, actionable values, it’s possible to unlock both fulfillment and long-term growth.

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Listen, Learn, Profit, and let your values be your compass — both in business and in life.

Transcript

[Hala Taha]

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[Robert Glazer]

A lot of values decisions may cost you something in the short term, but it's almost always the right decision in the long run.

[Hala Taha]

Robert Glaser, founder of the award winning marketing agency Acceleration Partners and a bestselling author who has inspired millions with his work.

[Robert Glazer]

I think your core values are the non negotiable principles that guide your behavior and decisions.

[Hala Taha]

How do you think about purpose and values?

[Robert Glazer]

Some people, they're really stressed to figure out their purpose. If you can figure out your values, they're like the pillars and the purpose is kind of like the roof that sits across all of it. I went on like a three or six month journey to figure out my core values and when I had that definitive list, I started making a lot of changes in my personal life and in my business.

[Hala Taha]

You actually stepped down as CEO of Acceleration Partners. How did that play into how you felt about purpose?

[Robert Glazer]

Every time the company doubles, you have to decide, do I want to be that leader, that CEO? And if you do, when it comes.

[Hala Taha]

To values, how can it actually make your company more profitable?

[Robert Glazer]

I think if you really can connect to your values, you can.

[Hala Taha]

What's up Yap gang? Welcome back to another exciting episode of Young and Profiting. Our guest today is Robert Glaser. He's the founder of the award winning marketing agency Acceleration Partners. He's the voice behind the global newsletter the Friday Forward and he's a bestselling author who has inspired millions with his work. Robert is back on YAP for the second time to talk about his brand new book, the Compass within, which just came out. In it, he shows us how to uncover our core values and use them as a compass to guide the biggest decisions in our lives. Our from career moves to relationships to the way that we lead. You'll learn why high achievers often stumble when they ignore their values, how alignment creates clarity and fulfillment, and why saying no in the short term can lead to greater success in the long run. And if you want more conversations like this to Help you stay aligned and keep growing in your business. Hit that follow and subscribe button so you can keep on listening, learning and profiting. Robert, welcome to Young and Profiting Podcast.

[Robert Glazer]

Good to see you.

[Hala Taha]

I am so looking forward to this conversation. I love being able to interview my clients and my friends. I feel like it makes for such a genuine conversation. And this is the second time that you're on yap, so welcome back to the show.

[Robert Glazer]

Thanks. I'm glad I made the cut. I'm sure it's hard to get back. Always hard to get back.

[Hala Taha]

Well, of course I would have you back. You've got so much wisdom to share. So you've got this new book and it's called the Compass within, and I thought that was a really powerful metaphor. So talk to us about what that actually means. What is the definition of a compass to you?

[Robert Glazer]

I've been doing work with people on this concept of core values for a while, and it was one of the things that made the biggest change in my life. And I think we have these rules and we have these things we should follow. I think the problem for most of us is we don't actually know what they are or we know kind of when we've made a mistake. So I like to say it's not super helpful if you hit the electric fence and you get electrocuted and you're like, oh, I shouldn't have done that. Having done a lot of this work on core values, and I think the compass within is how do we figure out what it is that's most important to us so we can make decisions about what directions to go into and not to go into. And I think a lot of people, like I said, they have a sense of their values, but they can't articulate them. And if they can do that, that really is the compass.

[Hala Taha]

Take us back to a moment that you can remember where your compass was really something you had to check in with. What was a moment that you realized you really needed values and you really needed to use your values to guide your decision making.

[Robert Glazer]

The origin story of this to me was in about 2013, I was at a leadership training right as I was building my company. And I thought it was going to be a lot about how to lead externally, but really it was two days of who are you and what do you value? And you need to figure that out first. And I got a sense that I was very values oriented, but I couldn't articulate what they were. I probably said similar things that I hear people say now. Like integrity and family and things that are one word that aren't very helpful. So I went on like a three or six month journey to like figure out my core values. And when I had that definitive list, I started making a lot of changes in my personal life and in my business and doubling down on certain things and get ridding other things. And when I was speaking, I think it was about three years ago, someone was reading my bio at the event and I chuckled because I realized that every single thing they read from that bio was after that 2013 event.

[Hala Taha]

So you just mentioned people have these one word values. And I interview a lot of people on the podcast and they're always like, family, fun, fitness, everything's one word. What does a good value sound like?

[Robert Glazer]

Let's start with what a value is, I think, because then it helps. So I think your core values are the non negotiable principles that guide your behavior and decisions. So it's important to understand they're intrinsic, not aspirational. They reflect who you are and probably who you've always been. They're consistent, they show up in all areas of your life, your relationship, personal decisions, and they're clarifying. They help you make better decisions. So the problem with these one word values like integrity is it's really what's below integrity. If I've heard 10 different people tell me 10 different versions of integrity, and I'm sure it's more. But when I really ask them, what does integrity mean to you? And they're like, your words should match your actions. Like, that's a lot more specific. And if you want to make a decision based on a core value, it's got to be worded in a way that you can say, I did that or I didn't do that or I can make it a decision. Same with family. Family. I'm like, okay, well how does that help you as a leader? How does that help you with your friends? But when you ask someone, what does family mean to you? And they means you always show up, I'm like, oh, okay, now I understand probably how that impacts with your friends and otherwise. So the problem with these one words is if you really want ones that are actionable can help you with decision making, One word isn't going to do that.

[Hala Taha]

Something that I always think about or that I actually teach is when it comes to your personal brand online, you also need to understand your values because that will help you with your messaging. The way that you communicate, how you respond to DMs, how you respond to comments and especially if something goes wrong online, how you actually respond in the way in which that you respond. So values for me not only transcend real life, but also like online life and the position that you want to put yourself in the digital world, well.

[Robert Glazer]

That'S a key point. I think one of the biggest problems with society today, people, particularly with digital, is that people are willing to show up digitally and do things and say things that they would not do in person. And if you want congruence and you want to feel good about yourself and what you do, you should be consistent. So I agree with you. When I did a branding exercise, my core values, they'll sound different. I mean, they're find a better way and share it, which is why I'm here today. Health and vitality, self reliance, respectful authenticity and long term orientation. And so, yeah, when I did a personal branding exercise, those were very close in there. And when people write me after my newsletter and they are very upset about something and they want to talk about it, I totally lean into that respectful authenticity and I respond to them. And so I can point to a lot of things I've done in my business. My whole two weeks notice book was very much a respectful authenticity thing by my kids and self reliance. So, yeah, if you want to be happy and engaged, you want to live in congruence with these things. And I think online has made it way too easy for us. There's stuff we say online that we would never say to someone's face if we were sitting down in a conversation.

[Hala Taha]

Totally. Now, when it comes to values, how are they integrated with your purpose in life? How do you think about purpose and values?

[Robert Glazer]

A lot of people want to figure out their purpose. So my purpose is to share ideas that help people in organizations grow. That's what I figured out. I really enjoy. I think that if you can figure out your values, they're like the pillars and the purpose is the roof that sits across all of it. Some people, they're really stressed to figure out their purpose. It's like, show me what you value and the things that you want to do. And then it's easier to sort of look at an overarching purpose that sits across that. But I think it's almost easier to help figure out the values piece before the core purpose thing.

[Hala Taha]

So in my research, I didn't know this up until today. You actually stepped down as CEO of Acceleration Partners, is that right?

[Robert Glazer]

I did. I stepped down almost four years ago now.

[Hala Taha]

How did that play into how you felt about purpose? And did you have any issues with identity. We've got a lot of entrepreneurs turning in. And even I contemplate sometimes should I step down from CEO? And what was the reasoning behind that, the thought process behind that? And how did you overcome any sort of identity issues you had after that?

[Robert Glazer]

That's a great question. And I have been with so many entrepreneurs that have struggled through this and I feel like I tried to learn from all of them beforehand, but it was still not easy. We brought on a growth partner for our business. I for years had been the R and D department, I think like a lot of founders were. But at that point we were a 250 person company. We were growing. I had a number two. Every time the company doubles, you're growing a business. You haven't done this for the first time. Everybody. Every time it doubles, you have to decide, do I want to be that leader, that CEO? And if you do, there's a whole bunch of stuff you need to learn and get better at and otherwise. And I had made that decision at 10 million and 20 million and 40 million. And I looked at it, I was like, I don't really want to be the CEO at the next doubling. It's not the stuff that I love to do. I like the creating and the ideas. And this is about managing a lot of people and the day to day operations. So I had started my, you know, I like to say my lifeboat with a lot of the personal brand and the speaking and writing and something I felt like I knew I could go into. And I also had a transition period. We worked on it for about a year or two and I went from five days a week with the business down to three the next year and down to one. Even with that, there was some struggles. Even though my brain was like, I want this. My body didn't adjust. It had been running a hundred miles an hour for 10 years. And it was like, all right, where's the juice? You know, So I had to work through that. But yeah, a lot of people really struggle. There are a lot of people who sell their business or step out or otherwise who are super depressed because their identity was really wrapped up in their business. Because look, for a lot of people too, that business was the first thing that started to pay you back and give you the A's that you never got in school. A lot of entrepreneurs were not great students and people that start businesses. So it becomes hard when you have to decouple that from you and it's an intentional process that you have to go through.

[Hala Taha]

Was your CEO, somebody who had equity in the business or is this somebody that you specifically hired? Or was it more of like a homegrown employee that you then appointed to CEO?

[Robert Glazer]

Yeah, he was my number two. He was the president of the company and we had worked together for 10 years. So I knew him and he knew the culture and he was doing a lot of this job. Anyway, that's the thing. As the job kept growing, I was like, I don't want more people. They'll report to you. Right. And at some point I had to look around and be like, look, not having a team and working on all the new stuff is not really CEO of a 300 person company. That's the stuff that he was good at and the stuff that he liked to do. But yeah, it's hard. And the problem with strivers is they get to a goal and they barely celebrate for five minutes and then start figuring out whatever the next one will be. So Arthur Brooks wrote a great book called From Strength to Strength. And I think it's really helpful to start thinking about how you think about success in the present and yourself in the present and how you make those transitions.

[Hala Taha]

Well, I'm sorry to keep digging on this. I'm just personally curious, how does decision making work? You're the founder. What's your title now? And do you get to call the shots still? Ultimately, no.

[Robert Glazer]

So I'm executive chairman. And when I gave up the CEO role, I moved on to the board. I've done a lot of things wrong. I think this is one that I did pretty well, which is I stopped going to the meetings. Look, I've been the CEO for 10 or 12 years. If you're in those meetings and you have the new CEO, they're going to like, is this what you really want? Are you sure? So in that transition year going down from five to three, I would still go to the off site with the team, but I would come to the dinner and I would get out of the planning session. So this is something if people want to do, you really can't be half pregnant on. And they said to me, am I talking to you as a board member or am I talking to you as sort of a team member? And so at some point I had to be like, look, I'm the board member. So the stuff that I stay involved with outside of my board and exec chair duties are I still run the new employee culture onboarding. I run leadership training classes, I coach people individually. I do a lot of stuff that helps build the team, but that doesn't mean I'm not responsible for operational decisions.

[Hala Taha]

So helpful. I feel like I just got like a masterclass of how I'm going to step down as CEO on Call Me.

[Robert Glazer]

When you're ready, we'll have a glass of wine.

[Hala Taha]

I've got like four years or five years left in me, you know. Okay, so you interviewed a lot of high achievers. You've got an amazing podcast called Elevate. You're in the YAP Media podcast network. You're always talking to high achievers. You are super connected and you've got so many high achieving friends. What are some challenges that you see with these high achievers, especially when it comes to their values?

[Robert Glazer]

A lot of values decisions are going to cost you something. It may cost you something in the short term. It can be hard to make that decision, but it's almost always the right decision in the long run. I think double clicking on something I said earlier. The biggest problem is that high achievers start getting their satisfaction from chasing something. Can they keep getting it? And they realize, huh, not as satisfying as I thought it would be. And I think if you really can connect to your values, you can think a little bit about your work more in terms of instead of it being a destination. How do I pick a climb that I'm super excited about that climb every day, if I climbed it for an hour, I call it the third climb or eight hours. It's hard, I'm sweating a little bit and I'm working. But it's got a great view and I'm enjoying it the whole time. And I'm not doing it just to get somewhere. This is the work that I love to do and I want to do. And I'm not thinking that the destination is going to provide all of the rewards. And I think again, if you're trying to figure out what that is, you really would be able to make to rattle off your values and say, these are the things that I would enjoy if I could figure out how to orient my work about fulfilling these things each day, that I would enjoy the climb and I wouldn't have to make it as much about the destination. Again, there are a lot of depressed, successful looking people out there. It's like the world's smallest violin, but they don't realize, like a lot of these people, they just don't know how to turn it off and they don't have as much fulfillment as you would think.

[Hala Taha]

So you're really getting at the core of high achievers not knowing when enough is the goalpost is always moving back and moving back. And I think you give this data point pretty often in terms of really wealthy people always say they'll have enough money when they have about 40% more wealth.

[Robert Glazer]

They asked people with a million dollars and $100 million in net worth what was enough, and basically that was the answer. It was always 30 to 40% more than whatever they had, which, again, just tells you that people say it's not about the money, but it always felt like more would make them happy. And clearly the people with more still felt that more would make them happy.

[Hala Taha]

I mean, 30, 40% sounds good to me. You know, I'll take it.

[Robert Glazer]

But then when you have it, you're going to just say, yeah, but that's good. If you can't figure out how to be happy in the moment or with what you have, it's hard to believe that you'll be happy at some arrival.

[Hala Taha]

Yeah. So back to you've got to pick. What journey do you actually want to be on, not where do you want to land?

[Robert Glazer]

Yeah. I call it the three climbs. So I think for a lot of people, we hear about the first mountain, the second mountain, I'm not sure it's the mountain as much as the climb. The first climb is you kind of got bullied onto this climb by family or otherwise, and they said, look, you got to be a doctor or a lawyer or something. And you went and you got good at it, and you hated every minute of it, and you hated the top. The second climb is what we were talking about that I think most of us have been on, or a lot of us have been on that listen to your show, which is, no, I chose this. I wanted it, and I liked most of the days climbing. There was some good and there were some bad, but, like, I really thought the top would make the whole climb worth it. And you get there and you're like, it kind of wasn't right. And that's where that third climb is, where it just stops. As much being about the ascension and more about enjoying the climb. And you can make plenty of money on that, and you can have a lot of fulfillment in that. It's just you're changing your orientation from. It's this delayed gratification that I'm working for. It's always great to have goals to. I want to do this thing every day, and I want the process to be fun.

[Hala Taha]

What's your climb right now? What climb are you on?

[Robert Glazer]

I'm on this climb with this book. I've set financial goals I've set growth goals over the year. My goal for the next five years is to help a million people figure out their core values. I have seen how powerful this work is for people. I've watched what it's unlocked. I've had some incredible discussions leading up to this launch and vulnerable moments with podcast hosts like you and talking about stuff where people are like, oh, that's why I do that. And every time I see one of those, I'm like, that's awesome. And it's super rewarding. So my goal is this impact goal of how do I help a million people unlock their values in the next five years?

[Hala Taha]

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[Robert Glazer]

We'll talk through a couple of them, but people are always jotting to write them down. So if you go to robertglazer.com 6s I X I just have them all there with a video of me doing it if you're interested. So they start with simple ones. The book is a parable we should mention. So it's actually a story where you watch this character Jimmy go through the struggle. He's having some relationship issues and some work issues and deciding where to live and sort of figuring out his values. Had him reconcile each of those. And he's coached by a mentor in the book through this. Both you'll watch this happen and then you're told specifically the questions and how to go through them. But this would start the process, which is in what non work environments are you highly engaged? So outside of work, what are the things that you do that light you up, time flies, makes you happy? And then similarly, where did you do your best work and where were you happiest? And that's it could be. I worked for hala. But what's more interesting in those notes is I worked for HALA on a small team of people who were chasing big things and we all had a lot of independence and I got to do what I wanted to do every day. It's more important that you understand what that environment looked like. Then we get into the negative questions. I'll do this test with you. I've done it in a few interviews and it's always really interesting. So we had a deep one, like what would you want said about you and your eulogy? A lot of people, how they want to be remembered is about what's important to them. But as we talk about the core validator, maybe a little later, which is the thing that screens, is this a good core value? One of the tests of a core value, because it really doesn't feel good when it's violated. And so a good way to test it out is to look at the opposite. And so this question tries to reverse engineer that. So this question says, what are the qualities in other people that you really struggle with the most? And frustrate so I'll ask you that because it's always interesting.

[Hala Taha]

What.

[Robert Glazer]

What's the stuff that makes your blood boil that people do either behaviorally or how they act?

[Hala Taha]

I really can't stand people who are not loyal. I really don't like selfish people who don't think about others or who only think of themselves, who have malicious intentions. Or maybe it's not even malicious, but just selfish intentions all the time. People who don't better themselves. Victim mentalities. Or sometimes I see people who are like 30, 40 years old and I don't understand how they don't have a career, they haven't been able to maintain a job or something like this that I wouldn't say like it's my pet peeve, but it's something that I would never want to be like.

[Robert Glazer]

So I think you and I share maybe some crossover and a value there. Because I would say a very similar thing. And I told you one of my values is find a better way and share it. You should figure out how to get better, how to improve. And I work with your company. You guys are constant tinkerers. It's in your DNA. Like, how do we make it better? How do we improve it? What's the new thing we can do? But I told you, I also have that value of self reliance. My villain at the party is the person who's telling me about their woes and the world is happening to them and they're not doing anything about it. And their trust fund payment didn't come in on time. It's like kryptonite to me. Right. So there's loyalty for you. Trust at the end of the day, is that people you can trust?

[Hala Taha]

Yeah, it's somebody who I know, like whether it's a closed door or whatever, they've got my back, whether they're in front of me or not with me. And I don't know, just loyal, essentially. Just not selfish. Also thinks of others and not just themselves.

[Robert Glazer]

Right. So you probably have a couple core values in there with you spit out a bunch, which is great. So they're probably different core values. You probably have one about getting better and improving. That's probably a core thing for you. Probably have one about being someone who's trustworthy or loyal. You know, in situations you may even have another one about thinking about the group or the team or someone. Last week he said, it's not about you. That was his core value. And he's like, I can't. If I walk into a room and the person's you know, he's like, I'm using that in my company, I'm using that in my thing. Like, it's not about you, it's about us. So the opposites are really good tests of what it is that we value. And if we had some time and you work through that, it's interesting to have those words on the positive side because you can start to think about that and you could be like, you know, in my interviewing, like, I want to ask some better questions about, okay, I've seen you, you've jumped around jobs every year. Tell me about, why did you leave those jobs. And it just, what you start hearing is, you know, I deserve better. I didn't get a raise. You'd sense that this is not a person who's really loyal and connected.

[Hala Taha]

Talk to us about your own values. I think you were mentioning them earlier, but tell us slowly what your values are.

[Robert Glazer]

Sure. So I have five, and the dominant one is find a better way and share it. I've been doing that since I was very young. Health and vitality, which has also been elevated for me after some health stuff that I was explaining actually happened after I stepped down after CEO, self reliance, respectful authenticity and long term orientation. So again, again, for me in the long term thing, I really can't stand people who are trying to make a buck off the crypto scheme of today and are don't care who gets screwed today. I'm always focused on how's this going to work out in the long term. I mean, I met my wife When I was 17, we got married later. But generally I have a long term orientation. And so again, that can clash with someone who's, oh, there is no tomorrow, let's just focus on today.

[Hala Taha]

So I want to play a game called the True North Test. All right, so basically I'm going to rattle off a scenario and you're going to tell me what value you would use to help make that decision and maybe how you'd think through the scenario.

[Robert Glazer]

Okay, first, I love this. Second of all, it's the perfect demonstration of trying to use it as a decision maker. So go ahead. Cool.

[Hala Taha]

An investor is pressuring you to pivot toward AI hype, but it pulls you off your mission.

[Robert Glazer]

Like I said, the interesting thing about these decisions is they can cost you. Right. So if I do not believe that is the right decision for the long term, certain mind, and I don't think it's the better choice, I'm probably going to push back on that because I know that this is the Hot thing of the week. But. But is it the hot thing of tomorrow? And it doesn't match with my vision. Now, the investor may own the majority of the business. They may own a minority of the business. It may cost me the investor. Right. It may have to lead to a discussion where I have to find someone to get this investor out because they don't believe in my mission. It's gonna be really hard as an entrepreneur to build a company that you don't believe in. Right. It's hard enough when you do believe in it and everything goes wrong in a given day. It's really hard if you don't believe in it. So I'm just not good about being excited about something that I don't believe in. And honestly, with AI, I'm always like, hey, if it can make it better, let's look at it. But I'm a middle list. I'm not a maximalist. I use ChatGPT every day if you're not learning these things. But there's also some data coming out on the trillions of dollars that have been spent versus the like $12 billion in revenue that has been raised, that it's not hitting every business model the same way.

[Hala Taha]

Yeah, I've heard that feedback too. I've heard that a lot of the hype around AI is the people who need money to keep getting investors are overstating what AI can really do, when in reality it hasn't changed as much as they thought it would when it first launched.

[Robert Glazer]

A lot of companies fired people and have hired people back after that. Yeah.

[Hala Taha]

What do you mean fired people and hired people back?

[Robert Glazer]

There were some companies that did massive layoffs in customer support and whatever because they thought they were going to automate it all with AI and it made a mess and they ended up hiring back the customer support team. I've seen a few high profile cases.

[Hala Taha]

Oh, wow. Okay, next one. You're offered a keynote at a global event that could change your career, but it means you're going to miss a big event for your daughter.

[Robert Glazer]

So I had two of these. I had one that probably did change the trajectory of our company. And it was like a fifth grade graduation. And, you know, kids have a graduation like every year now and I decided to miss it. And maybe I was a little selfish at the time, but that decision got us our first marquee client and probably led to 10 others over the next few years. But I made one solid promise, which was through all three of my kids, who are all now teenagers, but was I was Never going to miss a birthday. So I never missed a birthday. And that was sort of a hard and fast rule around that. But those things are challenging. And I did cancel a speech that someone got. I thought I was going to be able to leave on the morning of my son's birthday and my wife actually called me out on it and she's like, look, now you're getting slippery slope. Now you're like getting home in the morning of his birthday. What if you don't get home? And so she called me to the mat on that and I stayed with that.

[Hala Taha]

I think it's important to value those types of things, value family, of course, but also you've got to be realistic in terms of the opportunities that come along in your career. And if they're really once in a lifetime career opportunity is, it might actually be more important than, to your point, like a kid's graduation, if it happens 20 times, you know, so.

[Robert Glazer]

So if I look at my long term orientation and finding a better way, I would have been like, look, this is setting us up for the long term. The problem is not to be morbid. You never know when you're going to die, right? And so you could miss something and that could be your last event. But at the same time, kids have a gazillion events these these days, right. And so if you're going to be at every one of them. My kids are teenagers now and they can travel. And I made a lot of sacrifices 10 and 15 years ago that give me a lot of flexibility to do stuff with them. Now, had I died 10 years ago, then maybe they'd be like, well, my dad had to work a lot and stuff, but I feel like now I can do things with them and they want to go somewhere. So, perfect example. My daughter, I always challenge them to do new things and she's running a 10k for the first time at school. And I said, okay, I'm going to come down. She said, do you want to come down and watch? I said, I'll come down and run it with you. So I'm getting on the plane on a weekday, I'm running it with her, and then I'm flying home. And most people would think that's crazy, but that's something that's fun for me to do with her. And we're training together over text.

[Hala Taha]

That's super cute. Okay, next one. A publisher promises you best seller status if you use a ghostwriter, but you feel that it's not in alignment with your authenticity.

[Robert Glazer]

Authenticity is really important to Me, that one I would not do. I have had arguments with publishers and agents, not over that, but on this book won't land with people. And I'm like, this is the book I want to write. This is what I want to say. So I can't remember ever writing something because someone told me it was better for the market. I would not feel good about that. And so I had no problem saying no to that one.

[Hala Taha]

Tell us about a scenario in real life that you've come across where somebody really had to use their values to navigate a decision.

[Robert Glazer]

So one I heard recently was there was a guy named Yvonne Chouinard who was from, I think, Norway, and he was a entrepreneur. And so one of the first outdoor entrepreneurs, like, 60 or 70 years ago. And he was a big climber. And he invented this climbing, I think it's called, like a pivot that you could put into a rock and nail it into a rock and basically hike. And it totally changed hiking. And everyone all over the world was into him, and he was going out hiking and seeing his invention in the real world. He was seeing all these holes in the rocks and all this permanent damage. And he loved the environment, and this pained him personally. And it was. His father said, you do the right thing or you take care of the environment. It was just a core value of his. This product was like 80% of his revenue. He decided to stop selling it, pushed himself to innovate a totally different system that would wedge in and didn't go into the rocks. Yvon Chouinard is actually the founder of Patagonia.

[Hala Taha]

Oh, wow.

[Robert Glazer]

And that ended up being the launch point of Patagonia. And look, Patagonia might not have been what it was if he had kept selling the product that destroyed the environment rather than helped it.

[Hala Taha]

Oh, my gosh. I love that story. And I know they just got into food. I recently bought Patagonia crackers. I was like, these guys are just taking over the world.

[Robert Glazer]

Yeah. And you remember when they closed on Black Friday, they encouraged people not to buy stuff years ago and to bring your old stuff in and they would sew it up. That's living your values. There's another one I really like where the CEO of Dick's Sporting Goods. So I think it was about 10 years ago, and there was a school shooting. And what the CEO found that the shooter had bought guns and ammunitions from his store. And while it wasn't actually used in the shooting, he was incredibly shaken up by it. And he said, my dad always told me, you take care of those in the community that you live in. Very close to the line. It was something like that. And so Dick's basically decided to bump up the age to 21 in the store, stop selling automatic weapons and a whole bunch of stuff. And all the analysts and stuff told them they were going to lose hundreds of millions of dollars. And basically a month later the Stock was up $500 million more. And 10 years later it was up 10x. And he is just like, we just have to do this. And the company in the long run was better off for it.

[Hala Taha]

Yeah, why don't we touch on that further? What is the profitability when it comes to values? How can it actually make your company more profitable?

[Robert Glazer]

We gave up our biggest customer years ago because they violated one of our core values of embrace relationship. They made our team miserable, they made everyone miserable. And we just decided we're not going to renew the contract. And I think we had so much turnover on that team and I think it bought us a ton of credibility with our team and helped our culture. I think values decisions cost you more in the short term. Usually there's an upfront cost because it's easier to do what's easier, right in the short term. But I think you gain ultimately in the long run if you're willing to sustain that short term. Hit CVS also years ago when they rebranded as CVS Health, they stopped selling cigarettes. They lost $2 billion a year, but they were like, look, we can't rebrand to CVS Health and sell cigarettes. And CVS did fine over the next couple of years. They started all these new categories and selling other stuff. So I think it's the people who are just weaker in the moment and not willing to give up anything. There's another story of a founders who are willing to give up their entire company rather than have politics going on and work all day long. They said that we're not going to have politics and their company is thriving years later. But they were like, look, we were willing to like go home and shut it down. It was not the type of company we wanted to work in.

[Hala Taha]

How do you think about personal values versus company values?

[Robert Glazer]

So they have to connect. So a person should try to figure out their individual values, which is the framework that I'm giving to them in the compass within, and then they can try to match it up against companies. But a personal values fully reflect me, myself and I. A company's values reflect things that they want the company to have. And if you're 10 people, it's like what is the best pieces of all of us? And behaviors, they're behaviors that you want to reinforce. But I will say that as someone who does work on company values and stuff too, 98% of it is BS and crap. So I'm also fully aware that integrity and respect. The company has values, which is the behaviors it's rewarding. The question is, are those the same things that it's saying? So you might have to take a bigger look to what the company values. But I think it's really helpful for people to be like, oh, I really love this company. It really does align to my values. I'm a finder better way person and it's all about improvement. Or this company doesn't align to my values at all. And in that case, as I say in the book with the big three, if your relationship, your community, or your job don't align with your values, it's a very low chance of success in the long term.

[Hala Taha]

That was literally going to be my next question. Why are those big three choices so important?

[Robert Glazer]

Look, if values can help in decision making, I think those are the three of the biggest decisions you make in life. And hopefully you don't make them all of them way too many times. I think on the relationship side, my wife and I are different people, different personality. This isn't about being the same, different activities, but around the big stuff and our kids and what we want for our family and where we want to live and how we're always on the same page. I think some people may have the opposite. You know, they might see a lot of compatibility and activities and otherwise, but around the big things, they're not. And we didn't talk about this earlier about where values come from, because this is important to this part. They generally forge during childhood or formative experiences of your life, and they come from things that you are doubling down from or that were painful and that you were running away from. So in a relationship, when you bring these things to it and they're really that deep, as an adult, it's really hard to move away from it. So I was telling a story recently. Let's imagine a couple is married. And this is based on not a real couple, but two real stories. So one had a parent who was given a year to live when they were younger and then ended up living seven or eight years. So for them there was like never a tomorrow. So they had decided at a young age, you live for today, there's never a tomorrow. That was sort of how they lived. Another grew up in a family that always spent all its money and gambled and they never focused on tomorrow in a different way. And so that kid really developed the thing of look, you save and you take care of yourself and you don't make frivolous short term decisions. Well, if those two get married and one wants to live for today every day and what they do and the other wants to plan for tomorrow, that's hard. And you can work around that if that's one of four values. But imagine if we did a similar scenario with three or four values and these people are together and they have the opposite orientation on each one. That's like a Mac operating system and a PC operating system trying to run the same software. I'm not saying it can't be done, but that's really hard. At the end of the day, do.

[Hala Taha]

You think you need alignment with politics and faith when it comes to relationships?

[Robert Glazer]

I think politics has become a little bit weaponized, unfortunately. I think the birth rate in our country is going to decline precipitously because if you read it, it's like the women are all going liberal and the boys. So if people can't figure out, first of all, if you're a market dynamics person, you want to be a liberal boy or a conservative girl from a marketplace standpoint. But I actually think politics has become a form of tribalism and there's some stuff going on in politics where people just doing things that don't make sense or saying things that are just not consistent or incongruous because they're in a team sport. I think if you can peel out some of this stuff and say, what is my actual value? So if your value is we treat all people with decency, then you don't get pulled into a group who says, yeah, yeah, but we should treat these people terribly because they're horrible. That is a tribalistic thing, not a value thing. So I think our politics has become very tribalistic. You have conservatives that aren't acting very conservative about things and you have progressives that aren't acting very progressive about certain things. So I don't think politics is a showstopper. I think some of those beliefs that sit behind that could be fundamental, but I think it's always like maybe someone whose faith and not faith might even be more important than which faith. Right. It's complicated, but I think they run bored of the person's personal operating system. For you, if you have someone that's disloyal, all those other stuff doesn't matter. Right? That's going to Be the showstopper. People have a loyalty or trust thing. It's like, if you cheat on them, there's no coming back from that. That's probably like almost a more relevant thing than some political stuff.

[Hala Taha]

Let's move on to leadership and culture. So you were actually voted one of the top CEOs on Glassdoor, which is absolutely amazing. What is it about your leadership? Because from my understanding, your team actually had to vote for that, right? Or what was it based on?

[Robert Glazer]

Yeah, I think it was team voting. And look, the thing about, I think, using your core values to understand your authentic leadership style is that whatever that is, it may not be for everyone. And I think eventually I just got comfortable in saying what I believed and saying, like, look, if you work on my team again, find a better way and share it. We are going to work on making things better. If you don't like that, you like Steady State and doing the same thing every day, you don't want to be on my team. But I feel like I always supported people. I was respectful for them. When it didn't work out, I would have a direct conversation with them. I tried to help make people better. That's my North Star. But at some point, I just got comfortable being who I was and not trying to be anyone else. And like, universities are an interesting example. Right. I'm looking at schools tomorrow for my youngest, and there's like, you know, big city schools and they have a value proposition, and then there's rural liberal arts schools. And you could love one of those schools and probably hate the other one because it just doesn't work for you. What those schools don't do is to pretend to be the opposite. I think too many leaders try to say stuff that appeals to everyone or everyone would want to hear, and they're trying to be everyone's friend rather than saying the stuff that they really believe. And they can stand by and is consistent and understand that that's not for someone. Some people may want a company that's super political and competitive, and others may not. So. But I think that is ultimately about understanding your authentic leadership style. And Jim Collins talks about Level 5 leadership, the highest level. I think that's very much understanding your values and saying, if I'm hala. Look, loyalty is important to me. There are a lot of things I can put up with on my team, but disloyalty isn't one of them, and you should know that. And if someone has a problem with that, they'll go work on a different team.

[Hala Taha]

It's so true. There's, like, employees that are just super loyal and I'll make sure that they always have a job because they've been loyal to me. I'll put them in whatever job they're going to thrive in no matter how big my company grows. But is that the wrong mentality to have? Do you feel like you should not keep employees on just because they're loyal?

[Robert Glazer]

You don't want loyalty but bad behavior. There's good loyalty and bad loyalty. Bad loyalty is I tell you to go do something illegal and you do it. I assume part of loyalty for you is you do what you say you're going to do. You're trustworthy, you follow up, you're reliable. That's all part of that. If you actually broke that down, I think it's more honest to let people know that and that that's something you really value in people. And I'm sure you're finding it. And some people don't care about that. You probably don't want the people working at YAP who want a job for a year and then want a job hop and use it as a resume builder. So I'd be chasing them away before they came to my company. And I would be saying, this is not the place to come to get a title bump and then leave. And it won't serve you very well. Other places don't care.

[Hala Taha]

I'll be more clear because there's been situations with me and my business partner because we have different values on this.

[Robert Glazer]

Yeah.

[Hala Taha]

Where like, I actually let go of one of my employees who I had for, like five years because he really pushed me to do it because he felt like she wasn't good enough for the job anymore. But I was being loyal to her because she's been loyal to me. And to this day, I'm like, I think I made a mistake and I shouldn't have let her go. And I still feel that way.

[Robert Glazer]

My definition of weaknesses are strengths overused. So you're probably going to do some things to a fault. You know, the struggle for you is going to be when people aren't doing the job well anymore. But they've really been good soldiers. I think that's common. I struggle sometimes where the team. I'm trying to make everything better, that I'm overwhelming at everyone and I'm not making anything better. But look at this point in our life, it's fully baked. And if we had a lot of time when I got into that, I probably find a story from your childhood or where someone was incredibly loyal to you and it made all the difference. Or someone was really disloyal or broke your trust and that's why it's so important to you. And I think it's just understanding that it's part of your operating system. It's gotten you through life. It's what you're good at. Anything we're good at has an Achilles heel to it, and that's probably the case in that one.

[Hala Taha]

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[Robert Glazer]

We ironically and it was really tied. I it's funny because you do these things by accident and then you figure out your values and you realize why to my respectful authenticity we changed how people left our company. I was like this whole process of people saying they have doctor's appointments and two weeks notice seems crazy to me. And this ended up being my TED Talk. Could we like have an open transition program and have more honest and open discussions with people? And they were like look, I think this isn't working out. I want to do something different. We say okay great, you can work here for a few more months and go get another job. Because I always felt like the leaving part wasn't consistent but the type of culture we wanted to build and I think actually having that policy made it safer to come work at our business. It made us able to have more buy in and do stuff.

[Hala Taha]

Can you explain if people aren't giving two weeks notice what did you actually implement?

[Robert Glazer]

It was called an open transition program. So you could opt into it or we could have a discussion about opting into it and they would get two to three months to keep doing their current job and go look for a new job. And we do it with, with totally open discussions so that leaving wasn't this taboo thing. And look, we're in a client service business like you were and the number one thing that pisses off clients in a client service business is their account manager leaving suddenly. And sometimes you don't recover. Right. So we were like, look, we would much rather have HALA here half time while we start sliding in Ben and getting Ben on the account and recruiting Ben and having her here in some form and keep that consistency for the client even if she's looking for a new job. And we do that. And so we just felt like it was better for our clients and it was better for the team.

[Hala Taha]

That's really, really smart. You were about to say something else.

[Robert Glazer]

Oh yeah, the tactical one. We did quarterly two day off sites for all of our high growth years. I think that 90 day period for a team to opt out of the day to day leadership team, go off site. The first day was always a recap of the quarter. What did we do well? What did we not do well? And the second day was planning for the next quarter. I just think that if you're a high growth organization that is a necessary discipline. We used to do one days and once we did two days, I don't know how we ever did one day. But you get off the hamster wheel and you get a chance to discuss the business and plan for the next 90 days.

[Hala Taha]

Okay, my last question to you before we close out the interview is about relationships. One thing that I've noticed is that you seem to know so many amazing people. You know, you've referred a lot of people to me. It just seems like a lot of people come to you for advice and you've got a really great network. So what are one or two tips you can give to other entrepreneurs in terms of being the node of their network like you are?

[Robert Glazer]

Yeah, I got a lot of my networking DNA from Keith Ferrazi's book Never Eat Alone. And I think also you know my try to get my kids to read how to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie. The title makes it sound so cheap, easy, but the advice is so deep. And so I focus on mutually beneficial outcomes for other people. The problem with networking, and I'm sure you've seen this hollow, you hear from the person you haven't heard from in nine years. Can we meet? Can we catch up? And it's because they need a job, right? That's not great networking. And that's how a lot of people use their network. So I'm always listening for opportunities. For one thing I need from my network, I probably put three gives into it. I think it's kind of a giver's gain thing. I think if you're putting people together genuinely that, you know, both, not one wants to sell something to the other, but when someone says to me, LinkedIn just dumped us from our podcast, I'm pretty sure that if I send them to you, you're, you know, and say, this new podcast is looking for a new home, you're going to want to talk to them. They're not trying to sell you anything. If someone says, I'm looking for a lawyer, oh, I know that lawyer. A lot of people make referrals with someone trying to sell something to the other person. You're like, robert, Steve really wanted to talk to you, you know, and Steve's trying to sell me something that's not a helpful networking thing, that's doing a favor for Steve by exposing someone in your network. So really it's that simple. I try to connect with people a lot, talk to them when there's no agenda and I'm listening. And when people need something, I take the time to write a good introduction and introduce to people, and I do that all the time. And when you launch a book and you have to call in every favor you've ever had for the last 10 years, people will help you if you've helped them.

[Hala Taha]

If you help people without having any sort of intention, you end up building these really rich relationships that down the line, those people will help you when you probably don't even like, least expect it. Like, I value relationships so much in that way, probably over value relationships where I always just try to go above and beyond for any of my relationships, especially like really high quality relationships, knowing that at some point that will come back to me.

[Robert Glazer]

There's your loyalty, core value again. You're basically just describing it.

[Hala Taha]

So I end my show with two questions that I ask all my guests. The first one is, what is one actionable thing our young and profits can do today to become more profitable tomorrow?

[Robert Glazer]

We lose a lot of days at the beginning of the day by playing defense. So if you wake up in the morning, don't turn on your phone, have a morning routine, pick the three things that if you accomplished them today would get you towards your goals and make sure you did them for noon and before your day gets totally out of control. And you do that for a quarter, that's 90 things. I think you'll see a material difference in your goals.

[Hala Taha]

And what would you say is the secret to profiting in life? So having a successful life across business, family and just having a successful life.

[Robert Glazer]

I think it's playing the long game. There's a lot of things that you can do in the short term that just are going to cost you or aren't going to work out. So I think if you're looking for long term happiness and profitability, then think about decisions in the context of someone once said, how will I feel about this decision in 10 days, 10 months, 10 years? I think that's a great orientation.

[Hala Taha]

Robert, this has been such an awesome interview. I've really, really loved this conversation. I feel like we went really deep and I think our listeners got a lot of value out of it. Where can everybody learn more about you and everything that you do?

[Robert Glazer]

Sure. New book is out, I think the week we're running this and I have the course that actually started the book, which is the core values course. I'm giving it away for free during launch week. So if you go to compass-within.com you can both buy the book and then there's a form right there to put your receipt in and we'll send you the course. All of my other stuff is@robert glaser.com including Friday Forward, which is my newsletter. And if you go to slash6, we talked about those six questions. If you're interested in taking a few pieces of paper and writing down the answers and seeing what comes up for you.

[Hala Taha]

Okay, now I have to ask you another question that I wanted to ask you. So I'm like obsessed with growing my newsletter and I feel like everybody is Give me your top two ways that you grow your newsletter in 2025.

[Robert Glazer]

It's getting a lot harder, but I think that it's mostly through sharing I found. So people tell me they share it through the company or otherwise. So I think thinking of your context in the newsletter of how can someone forward this to someone else? And then how do you have a message where, hey, if someone forward this to you, here's how you subscribe and join. I think that's how I get the majority of my new signups.

[Hala Taha]

Oh, so good. Okay, well, we're going to stick all the links that you mentioned. We'll make it super Easy. We'll stick them in the show notes. People can just go find them to take the quiz to find all your channels. Robert, thank you so much for joining us on Young and Profiting podcast.

[Robert Glazer]

Thank you very much.

[Hala Taha]

Well guys, Robert offered up such a wealth of great insights on on how to use values as a compass in life and business. He reminded us that real turning points come when you stop chasing external validation and start making decisions anchored in what actually matters most to you. One big lesson was around defining values with precision. Words like integrity or family. They sound nice, but they're too vague to guide real choices. Instead, Robert encouraged us to dig deeper. Maybe integrity means your words always match your actions or family means you always show up. When values are clear and specific, they become practical tools for decision making every single day. Another important takeaway is that values based decisions often cost something upfront, but reward you tenfold in the long run. Choosing alignment over convenience may feel hard in the moment, but it builds credibility, trust, and lasting fulfillment. And finally, Robert showed us that authentic leadership comes from leaning into your values instead of trying to be everything to everyone. That's how you build culture, scale with integrity, and stay true to yourself through every transition. So take this with you. Yeah fam, your values are not abstract ideas. They're your operating system. When you know them and live by them, every choice gets clearer and every relationship gets stronger and your success feels deeply meaningful. Thanks for tuning in to this episode of Young and Profiting. If you enjoyed the show and took something valuable away, we'd be so grateful if you dropped us a comment on YouTube or left us a five star review on Spotify, Apple and Castbox or wherever you listen to the show. Your support helps us reach even more people with empowering content. If you prefer to watch your podcast, I would love if you hopped over to our YouTube channel. Just search Young and Profiting, hit that subscribe button and engage with the community. And if you want to connect with me personally, you can find me on Instagram at Yap with Hala or LinkedIn. Just search for my name. It's Hala Taha. Of course. I got to give a big thanks to our amazing YAP listeners. Until next time, this is your host, Halataha, AKA the podcast Princess, signing off.