Ask Altucher

Years ago, James wrote an article for CNBC and stated, “Apple will be the trillion- dollar market cap company”.   Everyone laughed…   But it looks like he’s going to be right.   And today he’ll give you his thoughts on the next trillion-dollar company.   The not yet public company, James believes this company will easily hit a trillion dollars in revenue because they solve a problem we all have; people who need something can connect with people who provide that something .   This company provides the logistics to make all this happen.   The company is…. Uber. They hook up those people who need something with those who can provide it.   Plus, Claudia thinks she knows the one right after that…   Listen here and see if you agree.  

Choosing yourself doesn't mean you're not going to be working any longer. As a matter of fact, Claudia mentions that since she's chosen herself, she's never worked harder in her life.   What it does mean is you don't have to go through the gatekeepers to get things done.   A boss can't fire you, a publisher can't reject you, and no one can stop you from creating wealth and abundance.   Many people still think there's stability in the 9 to 6 job, but they're being fooled. There's much less stability when you're relying on someone else.   Go ahead, give it a try, choose yourself, don't worry about what any one else is doing, and see what happens...

James and Claudia are just back from interviewing Tony Robbins live at his home in Palm Beach, FL and Claudia wants to know the Top 3 Things James took away from the interview.   ·         Lousy questions lead to lousy answers.   ·         Be a servant to many.   ·         The Tony Robbins Method.     James explains what these are, how important they really are, and why these rose to the top of his list.

Today, we're mixing it up a bit. Robbie Abed, author of the book and CTO of Technori, pestered James for four years trying to pin him down to "have coffee together."   James thought he was going to call Robbie's bluff by saying, "Yeah, sure, just drive up to my town eighty miles north of Manhattan and meet me there at 12:10."   Well, Robbie called his bluff and showed up.   So James and Claudia invited Robbie back to their house, turned on the mics, and recorded today's Ask Altucher.   Robbie has about 250 "coffees" a year with people.   He has used these meetings to create a huge network of people helping people. He knows them all and he has used this to create a business-development company.   Relationships take a long time to build. It took Robbie four years to finally connect with James and I think this is going to lead to something much bigger.

Everyone is allocated a certain amount of energy per day.   Today, James and Claudia talk about how you can "hack" your peak energy. This trick will help you be your most efficient.   For most people, about two to four hours after you wake up are your peak hours, but this is determined by your healthy practices. Healthy eating, getting a good night's sleep, and healthy breathing are very important.   Claudia and James talk about some breathing exercises she teaches. If you're interested in learning more from "The Master," click here.   Use your peak hours to take care of the most important work… the work you love.  

Picking a great business partner is the most important decision you can make. Great partners are critical.   It's like a marriage. There's a contract and an obligation to spend a lot of time together.   Business life is intense...   You have to have good chemistry; you have to really trust the person or you're setting yourself up for failure.     In our second segment, James shares with Claudia his ideas about the big trends coming over the next century.

Today's question is a tough one and it's from one of our listeners who texted in this question to 203-512-2161.   To paraphrase, his start-up failed, he was in a divorce, he was in a car accident and when he reported it to the police, his license was suspended because he hadn't paid a speeding ticket.   He's incredibly stressed and wondering how to deal with it.   As James recounts, almost the exact same thing has happen to him.   First off, you're not alone...   "Tomorrow is not dictated by yesterday, but tomorrow will be dictated by what you do today."   Take a deep breath, pause, and try to get healthy. Get a good night's sleep, start exercising, and be grateful.   Try to improve just 1% a day – the compounding effect with be amazing.   Then, James tells us what he read recently while he was traveling back and forth from his recent TedX talk in San Diego.   Here's James' latest reading list:   by Pico Iyer   by Jim Gaffigan   by Priceonomics   by Denis Johnson     by David Benioff

Luck... it has been written about for years. Today James tackles both sides... what is luck and why did this person ask this question?   Was Mark Cuban lucky? Who knows? But if you know the back story of Mark's rise to success you'll understand how much work went into his success.   When he made his first few million, he didn't quit. He leveraged his success and "got lucky" again.   And although he's a billionaire (a few times over), he still has not quit. Just tune into Shark Tank and you'll see why he has been so consistently "lucky."

Have you created what you think is the next big idea, but you're afraid to tell anybody because you're afraid they'll steal your idea?   What should you do next?    Should you send it to LinkedIn, Google, or Zappos? And will they just steal it?   James says, "just send it to them." If they use it, that means your idea was good and it won't be the last good idea you ever have. But that's how you get in.     Give your ideas away for free. You'll be repaid a hundred times over.

 Are you an aspiring artist? Have you always wanted to be an actor, a director or a producer?   If so, what’s the best city to launch your career, N.Y., L.A?    Today James and Claudia discuss why neither of those are good choices.    Claudia offers great insight here.  Asking what city should I start in is the wrong question. The right question should be, what scene should I shoot today.   Make the city come to you.    No matter what you’re aspiring to be…   The only good choice is to Choose Yourself  

  Some days there's nothing better than a great feel-good story. It just makes you feel good inside.     If you listen to today's episode, you'll know what I mean... 

James and Claudia are relaxing in sunny San Diego today and decided to take the show outside to enjoy the weather and recharge.   If you've listened to James for a while now, you'll know that one of his keys is to keep healthy. He's practicing what he preaches.   Today's question is about being alone.   Yes, it's not an easy place to be, but no matter how bad it seems, there's hope. See if you can figure out how to help other people. Go volunteer, give ideas to others, become a go-giver.   Helping others will help you up off the floor.

Today we’re doing something a bit different… James is has a question about an industry he really doesn’t know anything about—selling cars. So, he decides to call up the expert to learn more about his 10 step program to “closing the deal.” Enter, Leonard Kim, car salesman, author and Quora contributor. This show is longer than usual but we wanted to make sure we didn’t miss anything. After listening we’d like your opinion. Do car salesman get a bad rap or are his sales techniques pretty much what you thought went on behind the scenes?   Leave a comment at  and let us know!

Warning… This episode is a bit explicit and may not be suitable for young children…   If you work for a company, there's a strong chance you don't have a good relationship with your boss.     James decides to put a different spin on this question. Instead of focusing on the problem, his advice is to do the opposite... You don't want to miss his counterintuitive perspective.

A listener asks James how he can be more grateful. It all starts with the “Daily Practice.” James believes being grateful is like a muscle that needs to be flexed daily.    The critical component to becoming grateful is to stop complaining or comparing yourself to others.    Claudia adds to the conversation. She exercises her gratitude muscle by letting it compound itself throughout the day. 

Today's Ask Altucher is a difficult one. A listener asks James advice on whether or not he should leave his alcoholic wife and children.    James lays out a few options he thinks will help. He believes the first course of action to take is to temporarily remove him from the situation.    Claudia, on the other hand, has some strong advice for the listener based upon things she has been through in the past. You don't want to miss what Claudia has to say.

Today's question is one you might be familiar with. A listener asks James for advice on how he can quit texting his ex-girlfriend.   James believes the first step is to focus on the "Daily Practice." By taking care of your spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical self, you'll be able to calm the uncontrollable desire to stop a bad behavior.   Claudia also has a specific suggestion for this listener. It's one you might use if you find yourself in the same position as this listener.   You'll also hear James' three-step plan on how to break bad habits.

Today's question comes from a text that was sent to James' cell phone, 203-512-2161. And it's one that James identifies with well.   A listener asks for advice on how to make new friends as an introvert.   James believes the first step is to break self-defining labels. He then presents a challenging exercise for anyone that's up for meeting strangers.     He also tells listeners a great place anyone can go to meet new people. 

Every week for an hour on Twitter, James hosts a Q&A where he answers any and all questions from his followers.   One of the most frequent questions James receives is, "How do I generate website traffic?"   Although James has mastered the art and science of generating traffic for his blog, he decides to answer this question by taking it one step further. On this episode of Ask Altucher, James invites a special guest who has "written the book" on how to create habit-forming products.     Tune in and you'll learn the true key to generating website traffic.

Maybe you've been recently laid off or finally decided to quit your job to choose yourself…  and now you need some cash quick.   Today, Claudia ask James, "You've just been fired from your job and you need $1,000 a week. Go."   Right off the top of his head, you can hear James create a business.     He and Claudia role play and she's tough on him, but he's on top of his game and fires back with great answers.