"Greed is good. Embrace it. Love it. Live it. In fact, greed may be the one thing that can save us," writes Robert Pagliarini, a Hazel Dell native and best-selling author, on his blog.
That's familiar advice, at least for anyone who has seen "Wall Street," director Oliver Stone's cinematic tale of 1980s-era excess. But for Pagliarini, greed is less about the accumulation of money and more of a decision to "stop sacrificing your goals and dreams."
This is the theme of "The Other 8 Hours," published in January by St. Martin's Press, which looks to help readers make the most of the eight hours not spent sleeping or "selling to your employer," a focus that Pagliarini says has been his life philosophy and secret of his success.
Pagliarini spent much of his young life in Vancouver, where he attended Eisenhower Elementary, Jason Lee Middle School and Columbia River High School before majoring in psychology at Washington State University.
After graduation, Pagliarini decided to leave the rainy Pacific Northwest for the sunny skies of Los Angeles. Once in the Golden State, Pagliarini planned to continue his studies in psychology, but ended up getting a temporary position with a stock brokerage firm which he said left him "hooked."
leading him to a master's in financial services at UCLA.
Though he did change fields, Pagliarini says he still relies on the insights into human interaction he learned at WSU in his work in the financial sector. "Although I don't use my psychology degree, it actually is something I use every day, all day."
Pagliarini's "greed" led him to his position as president of Pacifica Wealth Advisors and led him to the decision to become a writer, which he says was an attempt to teach others about the lessons which garnered him success.
His first book, "The Six-Day Financial Makeover," released in 2007, focused on ways to deal with personal finances. It was eventually a New York Times bestseller and lead to Pagliarini's appearances on 20/20, Dr. Phil and Good Morning America.
"The Other 8 Hours," on bookshelves for two months, focuses instead on working towards one's own goals.
The first step, according to Pagliarini, is to make a list of tasks normally accomplished during one's off-hours and dividing them into four categories: Postpone, Eliminate, Reduce and Keep. He says this will free up time to work towards your goals, to shift from being a consumer to a creator or to someone who at least creates during their free time.
The book elaborates on these basic points over 299 pages, giving specific goals, such as becoming a writer or musician, and giving advice to readers on how to achieve them.
"55 percent of people are unhappy with their jobs," he said. "So do something when you aren't at work to make sure you are happy with your life."
