Success Filing: How to Feel More Success-FULL …
and FUL-Filled
What’s the difference?
FEELING SUCCESS-FULL comes as the result of your efforts. FUL-FILLMENT comes as the result of your leadership, because of what you’ve done to help others succeed. The contributions you’ve made to your family, organization and world.
What you mean by SUCCESS today will be different tomorrow, and in 10, 20 or 50 years. But sadly, by then, you may have forgotten how you got here … the daily steps you took. The unexpected obstacles you faced and what you did to get back on course … your course. Unfortunately, most people haven’t saved old birthday cards or appreciation letters, newspaper clippings, report cards, job evaluations or acknowledgments. Be sure to start now! I hope sharing My Success File will inspire you to create Your Success File, or find someone to do it for you. Teens are great at this! (Building it for you will change their lives too!)
Our Success Files will be different of course. We are different people with different dreams, living in different times and places! Success Filing is easy now. Today we take pictures on cellphones, have email and social media so we can find dates and refresh our memories. Chances are good you can find what you need in your computer or online. Or by reaching out to family and friends. Do you remember when? Do you have a picture of? Creating a website is an exciting way to build YOUR SUCCESS FILE, to save it, update it and share it! You can also use a notebook or computer file of course!
Why is SUCCESS FILING the First and Most Essential Success Skill?
Because Success Filing is about building, and rebuilding, the self-confidence you need to live your life and dreams. Here’s the bottom line …
When your Success File is FULL, you feel Success-FULL.
When it is LOW, you feel dependent and needy …
needing other people to acknowledge you.
But truth be told, other people are too busy, or they aren’t noticing, or they disagree.
When you were a child, your parents and teachers Success Filed for you. They gave you treats, stars, hugs, praise and permissions … or they didn’t, and you were frustrated. Either way, it’s time to take over that responsibility yourself … with your plans and dreams in mind, not theirs. My father wanted me to be an accountant, but I didn’t!
Success is a journey full of twists and turns, obstacles and opportunities.
March 2020 … Covid arrived and life suddenly changed.
My training program in Puerto Rico was cancelled, and they asked me to return my advance. Within days everyone else on my schedule had cancelled too.
It was shocking. Before Covid my work was face-to-face … in one-to-one sessions, meetings in large conference rooms and corporate auditoriums. I regularly traveled on planes. An open suitcase on the bench at the foot of my bed meant my dog Honey would sulk. She knew I was going away.
No more speaking to live audiences, no more travel, no more meeting with clients face-to-face. No more income. Cancer had just taken my husband Albert and my sister Fran. Thank heavens I was able to be at the hospital with them at the end. After Covid arrived, this wouldn't have been possible.
And I hadn’t fully recovered. In 2017, my home had been severely damaged by a tornado and a hurricane … on the same day. I was still waiting for the insurance money but had to pay for repairs up front. I was rebuilding my home and my life ... literally.
Pulled ahead by my commitment to teach The Technology of Success, I started exploring the virtual world. Learning new ways to communicate: Zoom, blogs, podcasts, social media. Making tech upgrades … new cameras, mics, lights. Hours spent in front of a computer screen. With people but alone. Even my dog Honey was depressed. No one was coming to see her either.
Taking deep breaths, I started putting the 10 Success Skills (I had discovered by shadowing Highly Successful People for 20 years.) to work… not just for my clients but for me. To rebuild my self-confidence. To find new ways to earn money and feel myself again. My new self.
And to share what I was learning with you, I wrote BLUR: CLEAR THE WAY AHEAD ... Even in The Worst of Times. And recorded it for Audible. I reached out to bloggers and influencers. Hired social media experts, learned the difference between podcasts and blogs (Blogs are written. Podcasts are audio.) Shared pictures on Flickr. And thought about how to deliver the 10 Success Skills worldwide … from my home.
Back to My Beginnings ….
I was born in New York City, grew up in Richmond, Virginia and studied at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts until my mother was hospitalized. Then I transferred to the University of Richmond so I could take care of my mom and two younger sisters. I worked hard at it all … home, school and a part time job at the VA … and graduated with Phi Beta Kappa, Psi Chi Psychology, and Ki Kappa Delta Education Honors. Complicated or not, family and education have always been important to me! My mother was beautiful and brilliant, but her needs for success and acknowledgment weren’t met so she drank. I wanted more.
In 1961 I married Don Collins. We met at the VA. Now he was doing an Army-funded residency at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Bethesda MD. So, I found a position nearby at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). I did research for Dr. David Rosenthal who was writing a groundbreaking book on the interplay of genetics and environment. The Genain Quadruplets, Basic Books 1963.
But after a year at NIH, I was frustrated. We were only studying ill and dysfunctional people. What more could we learn if we started studying healthy, Highly Successful People (HSPs) as well? When I proposed my research in one of our prestigious weekly conferences, my audience laughed … and laughed loud! Were they right that I was wrong? Or did they just not understand yet? In that “red-faced in front of my peers” moment, I vowed to spend my career pursing this research and I started making a list of HSPs I wanted to study. But how?
The Army was paying for Don’s Ph.D. program at the University of North Carolina, so we moved wherever they sent us. First, he was assigned to Walter Reed. Then to Fort Dix NJ where our beautiful daughter Cathy Lyn was born. When he was completing his thesis, we were thrilled to have Margaet Ann join us in Chapel Hill. Then there would be payback time … time where he worked for the Army.
While we were at Fort Dix, I commuted to Philadelphia to earn a master’s in design and a teaching certificate. Then when we moved to Jenkintown PA, with no research positions available nearby, I found a position teaching the Gifted Program at our daughters' school so I would have summers off and we’d have the same schedule. Sadly, a couple of years later, Don Collins and I divorced, and my girls and I moved out of the Victorian home I had redesigned and renovated which had just been featured in a full-page newspaper article. https://flic.kr/s/aHsiDpHRVu.
My research on HSPs was being delayed … until Fate stepped in. The principal of my school asked me to attend the World Game conference at the University of Massachusetts. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Game When I arrived, I literally bumped into Buckminster Fuller who was at the top of my “HSPs I Want to Study List.” Recognizing this unexpected opportunity, I told Bucky about my research and asked permission to shadow him for three months. (I’d learned early on that HSPs couldn’t tell me what made them successful so I would have to shadow them to find out.) Bucky replied with a smile, “I like you young woman. You’ve got spunk! I teach at the University of Pennsylvania and you teach in Jenkintown. There’s a train that runs between us. We can make this work!” And we did.
After three months, I outlined the 10 skills I’d seen Bucky using. And he responded, “Yes, I do use those skills. But doesn’t everyone?” No Bucky, that’s the point! Everyone doesn’t! But they’ll need to use them to meet their goals and live their dreams. Enthusiastic, he introduced me to other HPSs who introduced me to others. My research tree grew. And grew.
To supplement my teaching income, I designed unique homes and interiors and was spotlighted in Focus on Women in the Visuals Arts. Then Don Baker, a fellow teacher, and I opened a crafts gallery, The Shoeman and The Lady, in a large, old three-story house in downtown Jenkintown, and another major renovation began.
As I explored being single, I wrote two books … Becoming One Again: Divorce New Love and Life, calligraphy 1974, paperback 2014. And, The Me Book paperback 1983.
Planning ahead, I explored large group training programs … EST, Insight and Wilson Learning … and spent five years developing and testing formats for teaching the 1o Success Skills. In 1985, I launched The Technology of Success public seminar at the University of Miami Conference Center in the Hyatt Regency. I designed and mailed thousands of brochures and got one response … The City of Miami. And that was more than enough! Fortunately, my daughters were already in college, living on campus, and starting to work.
The Technology of Success caught on! PR departments started calling! “Susan, we don’t know what you taught our employees in your weekend seminar, but whatever it was, we want you to teach it to the rest of our team in house.” American Express, Ryder, FPL, Digital … within 10 years I had delivered 3,000 training sessions, built a thriving coaching practice, and started writing The Technology of Success Book Series.
1982-1995 Consultant to American Express. Trained executives, directors, managers and supervisors across the US.
1984 Facilitated Supervisor Readiness.
1991 Leadership Workshop Series SROC/Plantation FL. All VPS, directors, managers, supervisors and professionals.
1991-1992 Executive Team Development SROC. Strategized to develop the executive team. Taught 3 Gear Leadership.
1992 Performance Appraisal Training WROC/Phoenix.
1989-1990 Managing for Excellence. SROC, WROC and NROC/New York City. Two-day management skills for all VPs, directors, managers and supervisors.
1989 Advised on Reorganization of MSC. Workshops with supervisors and managers.
1982-1991 Facilitated One-Day Workshops for associates, managers and directors.
One-to-One Coaching with managers, directors, and VPs.
“These are the life skills that make us successful leaders.
Susan has given us a roadmap for staying the course.”
Susan Morris, VP Human Resources, American Express
April 1987 Selling: A New View for Florida Power & Light (FPL).
Nancy Zimmers and I collaborated with Wilson Learning to produce videos for Selling a New View. We facilitated training sessions across Florida and taught inhouse trainers to deliver and reinforce the program.
1987-1990 A Team Approach to Meeting Todays Customers’ Needs. All Florida customer contact personnel, supervisors and trainers.
Digital Equipment Regional Managers. Building high performance teams, change management, negotiation skills.
Ryder System Management training, Miami.
Public Service Clients Palm Beach Children’s Services Council, Sable Palm Youth Service Center, St. Francis Hospital, Jackson Memorial Hospital, Miami Fire and Rescue. Spoke on City Government Day in Hallandale and Coral Springs FL.
One-to-one coaching with executives from FPL, Citibank, ComputerVision Tokyo, Codina Bush Group, Pompeii International, Injection Footwear, and The City of Miami.
Pompeii Furniture 1995-96 “Y0ur management training sessions this year assisted us in pulling together both our old and new members into a team. Thanks for your support in developing the communication and leadership skills we so urgently need in this time of tremendous growth and expansion of sales.” Vivian Vega, GM/CFO
Injection Footwear Corporation 1995-96 “Your training sessions greatly assisted us in developing our management team. Your work created a new direction for our company.” Jacob Barrocas, Executive VP
The Technology of Success for Leaders, The City of Miami.
And I bought a sprawling “wreck of a house” in Biscayne Park FL, renovated it as money came in, added a sparkling Koi Pond and lush tropical foliage. https://flic.kr/s/aHsiDgsAMw
1990-92 Leadership Consultant to Seaside Florida. https://flic.kr/s/aHsmX1FboM A 120-person customer service organization engaged in town development and resort management. Seaside has received national and international recognition. https://viemagazine.com/article/the-seaside-institute/
In 1990 CEO Robert Davis won the Rome Architectural Prize for town development which would take him to Rome for nine months. I was the leadership consultant before, during and after he returned.
May 1990 to Feb 1991. Prepared the Seaside team for the absence of their CEO. Trained the management team to assume greater responsibility. Developed directors and facilitated selection of a general manager. Conducted one-one-one sessions with underachieving managers. Specified changes needed and methods for making them. Acted as CEO during CEOs stay in Rome. This new management structure will free Robert to move into new business development on his return.
Updated Robert on his return. Briefings and meetings. Discussed his feelings as his team became independent and decisive. Built confidence in them so he could turn over more responsibilities. Provided feedback on meetings and talks. Completed frequent walk throughs and acknowledged team accomplishments. Spent exciting hours discussing his Post-Rome Vision for Seaside.
Then in August of 1992, Hurricane Andrew blew apart our lives here in South Florida.
My corporate clients diverted training funds to assist employees whose homes and lives had been blown apart, so my scheduled programs were postponed.
But Hurricane Andrew gave me an unexpected gift … TIME.
So, I wrote Our Children Are Watching: 10 Skills for Leading the Next Generation to Success Barrytown 1995.
In 1996, Chinaberry published a powerful review
and Our Children Are Watching took off!
I was invited to teach the 10 Success Skills in schools and universities across the country … Montessori, Waldorf, Ponce de Leon Middle School, Miami Country Day School, University of Richmond, University of Miami, Florida International University, Smith College … and The Unity School in Delray and Ransom Everglades in Miami where my grandchildren went to school … to name a few.
CEOs begged me to teach parents and teachers The Technology of Success “so the next generation will be using them when we hire them!” So, I wrote Our Children Are Watching … 10 Skills for Leading the Next Generation to Success.
Chance and serendipity were at work again ...
I was invited to do an interview on WLYF Radio in Miami. The interviewer was Bobby Ellerbee, a top voice talent. www.imdb.com/name/nm11417041/ Afterward he called Stuart Gelles, Lou Dobb’s Administrator at CNN, to tell him about me.
“Quick-witted, full of stories, Susan’s depth of thought and knowledge make her not only a great guest but the epitome of success itself. She will leave you and your audience inspired and full of possibilities for a fulfilling future.”—Bobby Ellerbee, Creative, Director, WLYF Radio
Weeks later, on my way back from England, I had dinner at Mah’s Chinese Restaurant in New York with Lou and his team. It was an exciting evening! The next morning CNN scheduled me for an interview with Lou, but he was out sick that day and Valerie Morris interviewed me instead. So, Lou scheduled a second interview. In the hall afterward, he told me why … Susan, I wanted to interview you myself because I want you to teach my entire team The Technology of Success.”
And a new flow of connections emerged.
“Susan spent two decades studying successful people. Now she shares with others what she has learned about leadership and management.” Lou Dobbs, CNN
1997 to 2000 Consultant to CNNfn from and collaborated with large consulting firms in New York.
Arthur Andersen … Created a video training program and was Keynote Speaker at their national Leadership Conference.
“At Merrill Lynch, we strongly advocate the pursuit of personal and professional goals for our employees, especially during difficult economic times. Your message regarding the importance of achieving goals, both large and small, resonated with our employees and helped them to realize that success comes in many sizes.” Bryan C. Vielchr, Managing Director
“Susan Ford Collins is a consultant to the titans of industry,” Kerry Brock, Freedom Speaks, The Freedom Foundation. And advised on Y2K strategies for CNN.
“Susan Ford Collins is one of the most enthusiastic people I have ever interviewed. During her stories, I had to hold back from laughing and crying out loud—on camera. You see the passion in her eyes and hear the dedication in her voice. I didn't want to stop; she just motivates you to do more. As a result, our five-tape video series is a Telly Award winner.” Julia Bengis, Producer, Educational Management Group, division of Simon & Schuster. 2000
Taught The Technology of Success at the Princeton Montessori Teacher Training Center and spoke at graduation. 1996
“After your graduation address here, I had a call from a parent who was in the audience. He wants me to let you know that after hearing you talk about Success Filing, he went home and wrote his company’s top-selling ad: ‘On your master list of goals, you can check off “Own a Rolex.”—Ginny Cusack, Director, Montessori Teacher Training Center, NJ
Keynote Speaker for the American Montessori National Convention in Philadelphia. And National Association of Independent Schools Ford Fellows Retreat in Chicago. And spoke at Montessori and private schools across the country.
Speaker for Communities in Schools luncheon in Miami.
Spoke for The Parkinson Foundation in Boston, and wrote “Success, Hologramming and Health: New Approaches” for The Parkinson Report.
“Finally, we have a major-league success book written by a woman!”—Karin Klenke, Ph.D. Jepson School of Leadership Studies, The University of Richmond. Author of Women in Leadership.
“Our Children Are Watching is a book full of hope … a very valuable item.
—Michael Fitzsimmons, Producer of The Weekend Today Show
"Racing so fast, we've taken our mind off the prize: What makes life worth living. Susan Ford Collins remembers.”—Harriet Beinfield and Efrem Korngold, coauthors of the international-bestseller Between Heaven and Earth wrote poems for my birthday. In this one, Harriet dubbed me Jungle Mama … and it stuck. https://www.flickr.com/photos/jungle_mama/albums/
How did these poems happen? It was the magic of my friend Sharon Huff who secretly reached out to my friends and family to write something for my birthday. Then she bound their responses in a paisley, velvet-covered scrapbook I still treasure. On another birthday when I was going through a painful breakup, Sharon gave me Glamour Shots. And it took everything I had in me to put on pink feathers and smile for the camera! But thanks to Sharon’s generosity, I did! xxx
With 35-50% of first marriages ending in divorce, it’s time for something new …
Here I am with my daughters, Cathy and Margaret. So proud of them … as women and parents!
“Susan would stand in front of a room full of business executives, and what would the high-powered people in suits want to talk about? Parenting. Collins says … Parents are the first and most important leaders of all!”
South Florida Parenting Magazine
Ponce de Leon Middle School, The Technology of Success for students, parents and teachers. Presented in classrooms, faculty and staff meetings, for police and cafeteria workers and in assemblies. Program sponsored by Informed Families, Coral Gables, FL
The Technology of Success for Parents and Teachers, Miami Country Day School, Miami Shores FL
Princeton Montessori Training Center in Princeton, NJ. For 3 years, Susan trained teachers and spoke at graduations.
Keynote speaker American Montessori Society National Convention, Philadelphia PA.
Taught Montessori Teachers in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Hallandale, Nashville, Philadelphia, and Chapel Hill.
The Technology of Success Workshop for Waldorf Teachers.
The Technology of Success for students, teachers, parents and City Government in Boise, Idaho. Spoke at the District 8 PTA Conference and did radio and TV appearances.
“Nationally known speaker Susan Ford Collins has been the inspiring guest of over 200 television and radio shows. A master storyteller, she moves audiences to tears … and to action. — South Florida Women’s Business Conference
“Love is not enough. We have to know these skills. If we don’t, we can make mistakes
that will ruin our children’s lives.” — The Miami Herald
In 1989, I started writing The Joy of Success.
2003 The Joy of Success hardcover by William Morrow/HarperCollins Publishers.
The Joy of Success has been translated into 16 languages. Here are some covers from around the world …
When The Joy Success was translated into Chinese, I was invited to China and facilitated two-day training programs in Shanghai and Dalian. Below, see the red and gold banner over the entrance to the hotel. Sad to say I don’t read Chinese, so I didn’t know that the banner was announcing my Women in Leadership program until we were leaving and our host asked if I’d enjoyed the welcome banner! And then I did!
Excited readers and audiences spread the word …
I was invited to teach The Technology of Success at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
“Three-Gear Leadership is the jet fuel that can propel an organization to the next level of sustainable growth. The key question is how to know which gear is most effective at any time.”—Anita Brick, Director MBA Career Advancement,
University of Chicago Booth School of Business
I created My Success File program for elementary students and parents at the Miami Children’s Museum School. I talked to parents while students learned in classrooms. Lots of excited sharing on the way home in the car!
“The Joy of Cooking and The Joy of Sex. Now there's another classic. The Joy of Success reveals important recipes for success in love and work.”—Teresa Lee Oster, journalist and psychotherapist
Good evening. When I was asked to introduce our speaker I thought, “Hmmm, what words best describe this author and The Joy of Success? Let’s see …
Jack Canfield, author of Chicken Soup for the Soul, says, “I have been reading books on success for over 30 years. The Joy of Success is one of the most sophisticated and useful ones I have ever read. I highly recommend it.”
Dr. Christiane Northrup, author of Women’s Bodies, Women’s Wisdom says, “Finally a book about success written by a woman who has also raised children!”
Dylan Ford Rosenberg, Unity School 4B, says, “Better than the best.” Eliza Rosenberg, Unity School 1A, says, “Amazing and incredible.”
Our speaker tonight gives new meaning to the word storyteller. While the names have been changed to protect the innocent, we’re in more than a few of her stories. Unity School, please welcome my mother, Susan Ford Collins.”
In 2006, I was the Keynote Speaker for The National Grants Management Association in Washington D.C. And they gave me a heartwarming update!
I told my story about being laughed at at NIH early in my career. Afterward I was signing copies of The Joy of Success in the back of the room when a group of participants headed my way. Smiling they told me, “We are the team at NIH that manages grants, and we only wish we’d been there for you that day. That is exactly the kind of research we’re looking for now! Susan, your only problem was … you were ahead of your time!”
Keynote speaker for Smith College’s Redefining Success Women’s Leadership Conference Northampton MA. April 2016 https://flic.kr/s/aHskxNiwDn
“An educational, brilliant, and touching keynote! I am in gratitude to have witnessed it.” – Shelly LaValley Frugé, Smith College Redefining Success Women’s Leadership Conference
Facilitated two-day Joy of Success Seminar at the Woodhull Institute for Ethical Leadership Retreat Center upper New York state. The Wise Women’s Retreat. June 3-6, 2004
Afterward Cindi Cook, Program Director at Woodhull wrote, "I am still reeling from your presentation here at Woodhull. It was so, so wonderful, and you were one of the best, if not the best, speakers I have ever seen---and I really mean that!"
In 2004, I was invited to create a new course, The Freshman Experience (FEX101) at the University of Miami and I spoke to the Freshman Class with UM President, Donna Shalala, former US Secretary of Health and Human Resources. Students had read The Joy of Success over the summer so we had a lively conversation! Lots of questions and answers.
“This course creates opportunities for students to become self-managed, knowledgeable about others, to develop life skills and become an integral part of the campus community. Thank you.” Jan Willians-Eddleman, Director of Freshman Advising
In 2004, I Co-Founded The Strategic Forum South Florida, an organization of top CEOs. We meet once a month at Florida International University FIU in Miramar to learn what’s new in their industries and support each other’s goals. Currently I am a Board Member and Advisor to the Student Group. FIU business graduate students are invited to our meetings, and we have a session afterward so they can ask questions of our guests. Over the years we have given students scholarships and created connections for internships and jobs.
In 2006, I received the “Founders Award” at The Strategic Forum Annual Retreat, Cheeca Lodge, FL
Little did I know Success Has Gears was on the way.
Old connections renewed and recharged.
Shifting Gears: How YOU Can Succeed and Lead in the NEW Workplace Susan Ford Collins and Richard Israel. 1st Edition 2005. 2nd edition was retitled Success Has Gears: Using the Right Gear at the Right Time in Business and Life 2014
I met Richard Israel at a meeting in Coconut Grove in the early 1990s. He was teaching his ABCs of Selling around the world and working with Tony Buzan, the creator of Mind Mapping. When we reconnected in 2003, our conversations birthed a book about my 2nd Success Skill. In it, we present case studies so readers can more easily recognize the shifting points. We told Robert Morgan, CEO of Spherion Employment Solutions, about our new book and he wrote the Foreword.
In 2012, I wrote The Miracle Diet: Lose Weight, Gain Health: 10 Diet Skills with Celso Cukierkorn who lost 100 pounds and kept it off even though he was a Rabbi who offered food all the time! How did we meet? Sweating in a Bikram Yoga class taught by Dmitry Zhitov.
Exciting new clients and startups were coming my way …
Leadership Training and Executive Coaching for Anatomie Women’s Luxury Travel Apparel. Miami FL
“Savvy travelers know to pack smartly, opting for clothing that is wrinkle resistant and does not take up too much space in luggage. Changing to European fabrics and quality craftsmanship ensure luxurious and beautiful pieces. Anatomie checks all of those boxes.” Filip Boyen, CEO, Forbes Travel Guide
Technology of Success Training for Eberjey Intimates … Soft, stylish, pleasurable plant-based sleepwear. Miami FL. https://eberjey.com/
Training and Consulting for Dayton-Granger in Fort Lauderdale FL.
* Relive Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic suborbital flight with Dayton-Granger lightning protection.
https://youtu.be/ZPrB3WvnZpE?si=qEysqzqy8szhXwUy
Technology of Success training for Entrepreneurs Organization (EO) Florida International University, North Miami Beach FL. April 24, 2019
Leadership coaching and training for New Horizons Computer Learning Centers. And Florida School of Nursing and Technology (FVI) Arnie Girnum and Denyse Antunes and their teams. 2018-2024
Parenting Q&A … For the Love of Teenagers Summit.
How to Teach Success. Dmitry Zhitov interview for Russian TV.
Mantras of Success SpeakQNetwork interview.
Be Strong International Leadership Training, Coral Gables FL
“Our Children Are Watching is a book full of hope … a very valuable item.”
Michael Fitzsimmons, Producer, The Weekend Today Show
Faces and Voices of Cuba. A coffee table book with photos by Dmitry Zhitov, words and layout by Susan. 2023
Booksigning at Books & Books in Coral Gables. Chance and serendipity was working again … Dmitry was the Yoga teacher for the class where I met Celso Cukierkorn. .
Lifestyles Speaker Miami Book Fair International. Nov 8, 2003
Training Magazine: The Greatest Challenge Trainers and Leaders Face: Shifting Gears
American Management Association: Are You Sending Successful Employees to Competitors?
American Management Association: Why Do We Do What We’re Told Not to Do?
CEO Magazine: Brain Tips That Will Make You a More Powerful CEO
The Costco Connection … Success Steps: Are You Using All 10 Success Skills? Take the Quiz to Find Out.
Forbes Magazine: Leadership: Five Misconceptions Even Smart People Have About Success by Caroline Ceniza-Levine features Susan’s book The Joy of Success. Nov 15, 2015
Articles and Talks linked for easy access:
We're Stuck in a Success Crisis and It's Affecting Our Kids! Caroline Dowd-Higgins interviews (Audio)
Why Most People Can't Think Outside of the Box. Caroline Dowd-Higgins interviews (Audio)
7 Things Highly Successful People Do You Might Not Be Doing, Thrive Magazine
Today’s Honoree, The #1 Blog For Recognizing The Works of Others (wordpress.com) Susan Ford Collins: Success and Leadership Coach October 14, 2015
The Glass Hammer: Working Hard? How is the Teamwork at Home? Susan Ford Collins
McAlister & Payne Digital Magazine: 7 Things Highly Successful People Do You Might Not Be Doing.
Successful Meetings Magazine: Leadership Is Like Driving a Stick Shift. Gearing Up for Success
Women's Leadership Summit, Keynote Speaker and Panelist … Success and Leadership Have Gears, Florida International University. Video: Intros 07:31, vision 30:25 to 37:20, mentoring 52:38 to 54:37, passion 01:11:54 to 01:14:20
Fayette Woman: 10 things Highly Successful People Do
WorkingMomsAgainstGuilt: The Workplace Squeeze
Upstart Business Journal: Why Most People Can’t Think "Outside the Box"
Success, Hologramming and Health: New Approaches in The National Parkinson Report.
“3 Books Every Small Business Owner Should Read.”
Web.com Small Business Forum spotlights The Joy of Success.
The Joy of Success won Silver ELit Award.
In Business Magazine: We’re Stuck in a Success Crisis.
Business Breakfast Keynote Speaker Susan Ford Collins opened The Virginia Festival of the Book in Charlottesville VA Article in Charlottesville Business Journal by Jane Goodman. And in Daily Progress David Dadurka Mar 19, 2003
Barnes and Noble Jenkintown PA hosted Joy of Success talk and book signing April 6, 2003.
Afterward a participant asked if I would be willing to create a workshop for 911 Survivor Families. I was, and it was a life changing experience I’ll never forget.
Keynote Speaker MEGA-SUCCESS Conference with Mark Victor Hansen Miami FL. Oct 23-24, 2003
Jan 21-23, 2005 Keynote speaker Week-End du Millionaire for Haitian business leaders sponsored by Colas International, Hotel Montana. The Joy of Success was Colas International's Book of the Month.
Sun Sentinel: Here's How Workers Can Avoid Being Overwhelmed by Information
Miami Culinary Institute: Food for Success is Success Starts 6:17
Susan facilitated 2-day Women's Leadership Conferences in Shanghai and Qingdao, China 2006.
eWomen Network International Conference and Trade Show, Richardson Renaissance Hotel in Dallas TX Aug 1, 2003
Keynote Speaker for CondeNast’s Allure Magazine’s "View from the Top" Celebration,
4 Times Square. Apr 15, 2003
Created and facilitated Managing Information Overload (MIO) with Richard Israel for The Strategic Forum, Nova Southeastern University, University of Miami, and The Miami Herald. 2005
“To say you guys were a hit would be an understatement. When I returned to town, I asked my executive team, “How did it go?” Twenty minutes later, I was feeling sorry for myself for missing it. So, we invited you back to train me and all of the 125 of our management team. I just saw the feedback. I could not agree more. It was a terrific course.”
Jesus Diaz, Publisher, The Miami Herald
“I only wish I had learned this 30 years ago!” Blas Moros, former Director, Microsoft Latin America and Asia
“Before this seminar, I had taken many seminars. Each time I left them, I was euphoric. However, after the euphoria wore off, I was back to How do I accomplish what I want? The Technology of Success seminar gave me the means, day-by-day, to get what I want out of my professional commitments and my personal relationships. This seminar works!” Stephen Goldstein, Ph.D., Vice President for University Relations and Development, Nova University
Technology of Success for Students and Teachers at Ransom Everglades School, Miami FL
Facilitated Successful Weight Loss: It's Not Just What You Eat ... But What You Think! Kingsport TN with Dr. Rallie McAllister. A three-month physician-monitored highly successful weight loss program. Nov 21 to Feb 2, 2003
Chance and serendipity were at work again. How did Rallie and I meet? We sat next to each other on a plane! Later she read The Joy of Success and contacted me.
New Programs: Videos you might enjoy!
Introduction to Technology of Success, Dr. Jan Keating, Founder Stanford University Online High School, #1 online high school in US.
Mater Beach Academy Miami Beach FL
Mater Beach Academy Pilot Program Lunch
Mater Beach Academy Career Day 2025
CEO Circle and Miami Women Who Rock
Emily Zubizarreta CEO & Founder, Host of "SPOTLIGHT TV
CEO Circle Mastermind at Susan’s Home
CEO Circle Downtown Meeting with Susan Ford Collins
This is what’s in My Success File. Now what’s in yours? Why do I ask?
Here’s the bottom line:
When Your Success File is FULL, you feel Success-FULL.
When it is low, you feel dependent and needy.
Now that you know … you have a choice about how you feel!
SUCCESS FILING: HOW TO FEEL MORE SUCCESS-FULL …
AND FUL-FILLED
Enjoy My Success File. I built it for me, and I’m sharing it with you to help you build the self-confidence you’ll need to create your future … the one you want.
SOME HINTS AS YOU SUCCESS FILE:
Think about YOUR SUCCESSES at home, in school, exercise, sports, art, music, acting, dancing, sailing. Earning diplomas and licenses… your driver’s license or diver’s license? Getting a lease or mortgage. Your real estate license, medical license, marriage license. Or divorce papers. (Success is sometimes Deletion … cutting out something that doesn’t’ work for you, or others.) What successes have you had at healing and being healthy? What changes did you make?
What did you do to earn money as a teen? When did you get a job, promotion or bonus? Or find a new one? Or start a business? Or invest. (Success and leadership have gears. Success is different in each one. Skill 2.)
Were you ever laughed at? How did you deal with that? Did you stop … or keep going? Did others discover you were right after all? Or did you learn why you were wrong and make corrections? (These are all important as you build your Success File.)
Did your parents agree with the direction you wanted to go … with your goals and dreams? Or did they object, create obstacles and blocks? Did that mean you stopped sharing your dreams with them? Have you been able to close that gap, or is it still there? Who have you found to dream and celebrate your successes with you?
What parenting and family successes have you had? Children, yours and others? Siblings? Who helped you along the way? Who were your guides and mentors? Your teachers and coaches? The people who helped you clarify your course, make corrections and connections? And the ones you helped?
Who believes in your dreams with you now? Who are your Co-Dreamers and Collaborators? Your Teammates?
What are your top three dreams? Can you see yourself succeeding at them? What does that look, sound and feel like? Imagining the future you want is where you need to start. (See Skill 3: Hologramming)
Success Filing your life will be exciting because the truth is … you are far more Success-FULL than you realize! Tiny daily successes have accumulated into big ones. Old disappointments have transformed into successes. Chance and serendipity have brought unexpected opportunities. Your detailed dreams have empowered you to seize them … and will continue to from now on. Success Filing brings you The Joy of Success and Leadership!
