Below is a long list of amazing speakers/authors/teachers who have impacted my life in a profound and positive way. I invite you to read about them, visit their websites, and take advantage of their incredible work:

Richard Carlson (http://www.dontsweat.com)
Richard was the mega best-selling author of the Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff series of books. His book, Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff and It’s All Small Stuff, is one of my favorite books. Reading this book on the way to spring training in 1998 was one of the initial inspirations for my own work. Richard passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on December 13, 2006.  He was a dear friend and and my mentor.  I miss him every day and I am grateful for his impact on me personally and the difference he made for the planet.  His work lives on through his wife, Kris, his books, his website, and his message. He was an amazing man who truly “walked his talk.”

Debbie Ford (http://www.debbieford.com)
Debbie is the author of the best-selling book Dark Side of the Light Chasers, among others. Her books and her work are incredibly powerful. Michelle and I took her Shadow Process workshop in San Diego and it was life-altering!

Marianne Williamson (http://www.marianne.com)
Marianne is one of the most amazingly powerful speakers/teachers I have ever encountered. She has written many books on spirituality, personal growth, and politics. She has become a friend and mentor for Michelle and me. Through the amazing work she is doing to bring spirituality and politics together, Michelle and I have gotten very involved with the Peace Alliance, an organization she originally founded, and the historic Department of Peace campaign (www.thepeacealliance.org)

SARK (http://www.planetsark.com)
SARK is a wonderfully creative and magical author who teaches all of us to slow down, love ourselves, be creative, and to stay in bed longer! I love her books, her posters, and her message. She is a dear friend, a mentor, and someone I admire a great deal. Her best-selling book Succulent Wild Woman and her most recent Making Your Creative Dreams Come True are two of my very favorites.

Dan Millman (http://www.danmillman.com)
Dan Millman wrote a book called The Way of the Peaceful Warrior about 25 years ago. This incredible book has impacted the lives of so many people, mine included. Dan writes about deep and meaningful spiritual truths in a way that is easy to understand and put into practice.

Rich Fettke (http://www.fettke.com)
Rich is one of the top success coaches in America. He is a great speaker and the author of Extreme Success, a powerful and practical guide that teaches us how to succeed without struggle. Rich is a great friend and someone I am honored to know. He continues to teach me so much in my life and with my business. The wisdom and insights he teaches in his keynotes, seminars, coaching sessions, and in his book are so powerful and useful in every area of life.

Fred Luskin (http://www.learningtoforgive.com)
Fred is the Founder and Director of the Stanford Forgiveness Project and the author of Forgive For Good, an incredible book on the power (mental, emotional, and physiological) of forgiveness. Fred’s work is profound and so important. He continues to teach me and I am grateful for his friendship, mentorship, and guidance.

Wayne Dyer (http://www.drwaynedyer.com)
Wayne Dyer is one of the most well-known spiritual teachers of our time. His books, tapes, and lectures have reached millions of people over the past 30 years. I love his work, his message, and his approach. I especially love his book The Wisdom of the Ages and Manifest Your Destiny.

Rich and Yvonne Dutra-St. John (http://www.challengeday.org)
Rich and Yvonne are the founders of Challenge Day, an incredible organization that delivers day-long, transformational seminars to middle school and high school students across the country. They are the founders of the BE the CHANGE movement and are in the process of writing their first book – Be the Change. They are two of the most inspiring teachers and human beings I have ever met and they are role models for Michelle and me in the way they live their lives, do their work, and interact with one another as a couple.

Lee Glickstein 
Lee is the founder of Speaking Circles International (http://www.speakingcircles.com). He is a speaker, teacher, coach, and the author of Be Heard Now, an incredibly powerful book about “transformational” speaking. Lee has been a great coach, mentor, and friend who has taught me so much about being myself, owning my power, and being present as I speak. His book and his work are incredibly powerful.

Don Miguel Ruiz (http://www.miguelruiz.com)
Don is the author of The Four Agreements, one of my favorite books of all time.  He is a spiritual teacher and a Toltec elder. His writing, teaching, and workshops are filled with deep, ancient, spiritual wisdom, coupled with modern day practicality.  I love his work!

John Gray (http://www.marsvenus.com)
John is the mega best selling author of Men are From Mars, Women are From Venus, one of the top-selling books of all time.  He is an expert in man/woman dynamics and relationships and has been teaching and counseling people for 25 plus years.  Recently he has been focusing on health, diet, and brain chemistry.  He has some new and fascinating material on the different between the male and female brain.  Michelle and I love John and his work.

Rabbi Michael Lerner (http://www.tikkun.org)
Rabbi Lerner is an amazing spiritual teacher and peace advocate.  His organization Tikkun is all about spiritual progressiveness and inclusion.  He is an author, a Rabbi, and a great speaker.  His book The Left Hand of God is groundbreaking.  He talks about how people of different faiths can come together and learn from one another.  He also talks about how the political"left" has lost its power and connection with people due to a lack of spiritual awareness.  He is wonderful and powerful!

Lynne Twist (http://www.soulofmoney.org)
Lynne is one of the most amazing people I know. She is an author, speaker, and expert in money, abundance, and fundraising. She and her husband are the co-founders of The Pachamama Alliance, an incredible organization whose mission is to preserve the Earth's tropical rainforests by empowering the indigenous people who are its natural custodians and to contribute to the creation of a new global vision of equity and sustainability for all. In addition she wrote a great book called The Soul of Money.  Her work about money and fundraising is life-altering.  She is very powerful and inspiring.

Patrick Lencioni (http://www.tablegroup.com)
Pat is an author, speaker, and teamwork consultant who wrote the national best-seller The Five Dysfunctions of a Team.  His books are all written as "fables" with powerful lessons and learnings that apply to business and life.  He is an expert in leadership and teamwork.  He is great and has positively impacted many, many people and teams. 

Chris Andersonn (http://www.christopherandersonn.com)
Chris is an amazing counselor, author, and spiritual teacher (although he may not refer to himself that way). I met Chris when I was 20 years old (my Junior year at Stanford). He helped me through one of the most difficult times of my life and has been one of the biggest and most amazing influences on my life and spiritual growth. So much of what I know and what I teach comes from the sessions I have had with Chris over the years. We continue to work together and he continues to teach me things about myself and about life that blow me away. For many years Chris worked with athletes, helping them deal with the emotional and mental aspects of sports. He wrote an incredible book for athletes and their parents called Will You Still Love Me if I Don’t Win. This book is very powerful and is perfect for young athletes and parents, and for people of all ages – athlete or not.

Lazaris (http://www.lazaris.com)
Lazaris is a channeled entity, a spiritual teacher. Lazaris is probably the most incredible teacher I have ever encountered. Lazaris’ work has impacted every area of my life. The wisdom and techniques I have learned from Lazaris are literally “out of this world.” I am grateful to have Lazaris as a teacher and friend on my journey.

Theo Androus (http://www.theoandrous.com)
Theo is one of the most dynamic, charismatic, and hilarious speakers and human beings I have ever met.  A true renaissance man, Theo is a motivator, a sales expert, a brilliant real estate investor and much more.  He can make you laugh, make you cry, make you think, and inspire you to do and be more than you ever thought you could. His story of overcoming adversity and taking risks is incredible, entertaining, and life-altering. 

Louise Hay (http://www.louisehay.com)
Louise Hay has been speaking, writing, and teaching people about health, healing, and meta-physics for over 30 years. She is incredible and is the founder of the publishing and event company Hay House, which I love.  Her book, You Can Heal Your Life, is one of my favorites and it was ground-breaking material in the mind-body connection realm when it first came out about 20 years ago. 

Matthew and Terces Engelhart (http://www.withthecurrent.com)
Matthew and Terces are two of the most incredible people on the planet and their love for one another is amazing.  They are the owners of Cafe Gratitude and the creators of The Abounding River board game, workshop, and workbook.  Their work is all about abundance and gratitude and it is magical.  They have been dear friends, mentors, and teachers for both Michelle and me for a number of years.  Through their incredible cafes, powerful workshops, and amazing book and board game they have touched the lives and hearts of so many people in a positive way.

Robert Kiyosaki (http://www.richdad.com)
Robert Kiyosaki's revolutionary book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad, has had a major impact on me, my life, and how I relate to money and wealth. He is a great speaker, teacher, and author who has helped millions of people transform their relationship to money and wealth creation. 

David Deida (http://www.bluetruth.org)
David Deida writes books, speaks, and leads workshops on male/female dynamics, relationships, masculine/feminine energy, and sexuality. His work is phenomenal and on the cutting edge. Michelle and I have gained so much from his books, tapes, and lectures. I especially love his book The Way of the Superior Man.

Abraham-Hicks (http://www.abraham-hicks.com)
Abraham is another channeled entity and spiritual teacher. Abraham teaches the “laws of attraction.”  Abraham’s work and teachings about these laws are life-altering.

Byron Katie (http://www.thework.org)
Byron Katie is an author and teacher who teaches what she calls “the work.” Her “work” is extremely powerful and it helps people work through just about anything that gets in their way in life. I love her “work.”

Carolyn Myss (http://www.myss.com)
Carolyn Myss is a medical intuitive who writes, speaks, and teaches about “energy anatomy.” She is a cutting-edge thinker who has changed the way I think about my body, my health, and my energy. Her book Why People Don’t Heal was something I encountered (on tape) almost 10 years ago and it changed my life and my outlook significantly.

Tony Robbins (http://www.tonyrobbins.com)
Tony is one of the best-known motivational speakers in the world. His books, tape programs, infomercials, and seminars have impacted millions of people around the world. I have done Tony’s 30-day Personal Power II program. This program impacted many areas of my life in a positive way. He is good...really good!

Susan Page (http://www.susanpage.com)
Susan is an expert in relationships and has written a number of books about that topic. In addition, she wrote a wonderful book called, The Shortest Distance Between You and a Published Book. I used this book to write my first book proposal and it was such an incredible tool. Susan has become a friend and mentor…we are fellow members of the National Speakers Association. She is great and her work (both on relationships and publishing) is phenomenal.

Mark Scharenbroich (http://www.markthespeaker.com)
Mark is one of the best speakers I have ever seen. He is hilarious, authentic, present, heart-felt, down-to-earth, and powerful. He is an incredible story-teller and has a way of impacting an audience of people that is just about second-to-none. He and I are fellow members of the National Speakers Association. Mark has been speaking to young people all over the country for the past 25 years and is now impacting people’s lives within corporations and associations. I have learned so much from him! He is one of the most talented speakers I have ever met and he is an incredible man. He and his wife Susan are a model of parents and a married couple that Michelle and I admire and aspire to be. Check him out.

Mariah Burton Nelson (http://www.mariahburtonnelson.com)
Mariah is an awesome speaker and author. She is a fellow former Stanford student-athlete. She played basketball at Stanford (class of 1978) in an era before women’s sports were taken as seriously as they are today. She has been a significant figure in the women’s sports movement across the country and she speaks to groups of student-athletes and organizations about using the skills and the qualities of athletes in everyday life, school, and/or business. Her most recent book is called We are All Athletes. She is an amazing speaker and an incredible woman.

Eric Saperston (http://www.journeyproductions.com)
Eric is a filmmaker, speaker, and creative-dude-extraordinaire. Eric traveled across the US (with his dog and some friends) for a few years in his VW bus on what he called "The Journey." Along the way he interviewed some pretty amazing people (Jimmy Carter, Jerry Garcia, Ann Richards, Billy Crystal, Dan Millman, and more). From this incredible trip, Eric made a feature length film (The Journey) and created a production company called Journey Productions. Now, Eric speaks to groups all across the country and is currently in the process of creating other films and TV shows that inspire people to live their dreams and be themselves. He is a great friend and a true inspiration to me…not to mention an incredible speaker and funny guy!