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 Top Visionaries Who Changed the World
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 INTRODUCTION
 
 
 
 
 E
 
 verybody loves the story of an underdog, the poor immigrant who came from depressed, post-war Europe and shot to fame in the land of opportunity, the United States of America. Although it might make us green-eyed with envy, we also admire a renaissance man, someone who excels in a breadth of fields, rather than just one. These two things may explain, in part, why Arnold Schwarzenegger – world-famous bodybuilder, Hollywood movie star, Governor of California, and high profile environmental campaigner – holds such an enduring fascination for us.
 
 
 In every phase of his life, in every business and profession that he has entered, Schwarzenegger has excelled. He has obtained the highest of office, won world titles, made hundreds of millions of dollars, and married for 25 years into one of the most influential political families in America, the Kennedys. He counts among his closest friends billionaire investors and presidents, rockstars, sport stars and film stars. When he writes a book, it shoots straight to the top of the best-seller list. When he makes a film, it is guaranteed to be a blockbuster. What is Schwarzenegger’s recipe for success, and how can we learn from him? Surely it can’t just be luck?
 
 
 We can assure you, it isn’t. Schwarzenegger is passionate, capable and committed. Success is not a one-off event; it is an ongoing endeavour, and Schwarzenegger has been working hard to achieve his dreams since he was a child.
 
 
 In this book, a biography of Schwarzenegger, we attempt to identify and express the 50 key lessons you can learn from this Austro-American icon. Right from his childhood in Austria, through his days living above a gym in London, and bricklaying to make money on arrival in the US, to his rise to become Governor of California, the wealthiest state in America, we are going to draw out the stories and issues which have made Schwarzenegger the man he is today. Each section is briefly analysed and summarised into a memorable, bite-sized point which you can mull over. If you want to go back and read about it in more detail, you can do, but these blue points are sufficient to imprint on your mind. If you remember them, think about how to apply them in your own life, and, most importantly, act upon them, you may not become one of the wealthiest, most famous and most influential figures in the US, but you will take a significant step in that direction.
 
 
 
 CHILDHOOD AND FAMILY
 
 
 
 
 1
 
 
 Progress in life depends on action. Learn from others, think about how to apply those lessons in your own life
 
 
 
 Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger was born on 30 July, 1947 in Thal, Austria. His father, Gustav Schwarzenegger, was an Austrian police chief and non-commissioned officer. He has served in the Austrian Army during the 1930s, and during the Second World War he saw action with Panzergruppe 4 in Belgium, France, Poland, Russia, and the Ukraine. Gustav Schwarzenegger was a member of the Nazi Party, having applied voluntarily to join in 1938, but in spite of quite detailed research into various European archives, no one has unearthed any links to war crimes or the SS. His service record was, it would appear, completely clean.
 
 
 Gustav Schwarzenegger married Schwarzenegger’s mother, a war widow named Aurelia Jadrny, just after the war in October 1945. Their first son, Meinard, was born in 1946, and Arnold followed a year later. Post-war Austria was economically deprived and depressing, and though hard working, the Schwarzeneggers were poor.
 
 
 The Schwarzeneggers were a conservative Catholic family, and discipline was considered to be very important: Schwarzenegger recalls being beaten as a child for his misdemeanours, and his brother was certainly their father’s favourite child. Schwarzenegger certainly suffered as a result. In a 2004 interview with
 
 Fortune
 
 magazine, Schwarzenegger stated:
 
 
 My hair was pulled. I was hit with belts. So was the kid next door. It was just the way it was. Many of the children I’ve seen were broken by their parents, which was the German-Austrian mentality. They didn’t want to create an individual. It was all about conforming. I was one who did not conform, and whose will could not be broken. Therefore, I became a rebel. Every time I got hit, and every time someone said, ‘you can’t do this,’ I said, ‘this is not going to be for much longer, because I’m going to move out of here. I want to be rich. I want to be somebody.
 
 
 
 2
 
 
 Ambition starts in childhood, and is often born out of suffering.
 
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 Schwarzenegger was closer to his mother, though she was still a disciplinarian and made sure that her two sons sat through mass every Sunday morning. His father was a keen sportsman and music lover, and he instilled in both of his children an appreciation of both physical fitness and the arts.
 
 
 At school, Schwarzenegger was a mediocre student, but described by his teachers as, “cheerful, good-humoured and exuberant.” He was a keen footballer, and it was his football coach who first took him to a gym. Although his father wanted him to follow in his footsteps and become a police officer, and his mother had it in mind that her son would go to trade school, Schwarzenegger knew right from the age of 14 that he wanted to be a bodybuilder. It offered the chance of a more glamorous life, and an escape from Austria to the US, a land which seemed to be paved with gold.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 I knew I was a winner back in the late 60s. I knew I was destined for great things. People will say that kind of thinking is totally immodest. I agree. Modesty is not a word that applies to me in any way — I hope it never will.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 3
 
 
 In determining success, personality, attitude and commitment are more important factors than academic achievement.
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger’s brother, Meinard, was killed in a drink driving accident in 1971, when Schwarzenegger was in his early 20s. Though the two brothers had never been close — their father’s unfounded belief that Schwarzenegger was not his biological son had no doubt created the rift between them — Schwarzenegger felt a sense of responsibility towards his brother’s fiancee and three-year old son. In a later interview with his then girlfriend, Barbara Baker, she said that Schwarzenegger never spoke of his brother’s death, and when his father died a year later, he informed her about it completely without emotion. He did, however, pay for his nephew’s education, and later helped him to emigrate to the US.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 I know why you cry, but it’s something I can never do.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger in
 
 Terminator 2: Judgement Day
 
 
 </div>
 
 
 MR. UNIVERSE
 
 
 
 
 4
 
 
 Blood creates bonds of obligation, if not of emotion.
 
 
 
 It was as a bodybuilder that Schwarzenegger first made a name for himself. In a few short years, he went from being a teenage nobody in Thai to an international sports star with money, fame and string of attractive women at his side.
 
 
 
 Early Training
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger officially took up weight training at the age of 15, though there is some debate as to whether he was in fact a little younger than this. His official biography claims, “At 14, he started an intensive training program with Dan Farmer, studied psychology at 15 (to learn more about the power of mind over body) and at 17, officially started his competitive career.”
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 Training gives us an outlet for suppressed energies created by stress and thus tones the spirit just as exercise conditions the body.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 It was at this time that Schwarzenegger met a former Mr. Austria, Kurt Marnul. Marnul inspired the teenager and also invited him to train seriously at his gym in Graz. Schwarzenegger was unusually dedicated: he broke into the local gym on weekends so that he could train even when it was shut, and felt physically sick if he missed a workout. When he wasn’t training, Schwarzenegger was in the cinema watching his bodybuilding idols — Reg Park, Steve Reeves and Johnny Weissmuller — on the big screen. By night he dreamed of becoming a bodybuilder, and by day he worked every hour to make that dream become a reality.
 
 
 
 5
 
 
 Success takes commitment.
 
 
 
 As an Austrian citizen, Schwarzenegger was required to complete a year’s military service at the age of 18. Although it was a physically active programme and with a great sense of camaraderie, this commitment interfered with his bodybuilding training, and so Schwarzenegger found it unacceptable. Schwarzenegger went AWOL from basic training in order to compete in the Junior Mr. Europe competition and, as he puts it, “Participating in the competition meant so much to me that I didn’t carefully think through the consequences.” When he returned to the army, he was punished with a week in military prison. It was, at least as far as he was concerned, a very small price to pay in order to achieve the next step in his plan.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 I eat green berets for breakfast… and I am very hungry!
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger in
 
 Commando
 
 
 </div>
 
 
 6
 
 
 Pursuing your dreams sometimes has unpleasant short-term consequences.
 
 
 
 Winning competitions in continental Europe did earned Schwarzenegger the chance to compete at the NABBA Mr. Universe competition. This was his way out of Austria and out of poverty. The teenage bodybuilder from Austria was about to become an international sporting star.
 
 
 
 Mr. Universe
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger flew to London for the 1966 NABBA Mr. Universe competition, and due to his determination and months of training, he excelled. He lacked the muscle definition of his older rival, Chester Yorton, though, and so unfortunately came in second place.
 
 
 Schwarzenegger did, however, catch the eye of judge Charles “Wag” Bennett, who saw the young man’s potential. Bennett invited the teenager to stay in his already crowded home above a gym in London’s Forest Gate, and he devised a training programme for him which focused on improving the muscle definition and power in his legs. This would remedy the apparent weakness which had let him down against Yorton. Whilst living in London, Schwarzenegger had the opportunity to learn a few words of English, which would be essential in the competition world, and also to meet his idol (and later mentor), Reg Park.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 The resistance that you fight physically in the gym and the resistance that you fight in life can only build a strong character.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 7
 
 
 You will not achieve your dreams on your own.
 
 
 
 Bennett’s investment and Schwarzenegger’s commitment paid off: in 1967 Schwarzenegger again entered the Mr Universe competition, and this time he won. He was just 20 years old, the youngest ever winner of the competition. He surprised the judges and the more experienced competitors, but it was a portend of things to come.
 
 
 
 8
 
 
 If at first you don't succeed, keep trying!
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger had dreamed of moving to the US since he was 10 years old: the American Dream which he had seen in the movies beckoned. In 1968, the opportunity to travel to the US finally arose. He emigrated to Los Angeles, training under Joe Weider at Gold’s Gym in Venice Beach, and won the Mr. Universe title a further three times.
 
 
 
 Mr. Olympia
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger was always very clear that he wanted to become the greatest bodybuilder in the world, and that meant not only winning Mr. Universe, but also Mr. Olympia. My. Olympia was set up so that former winners of Mr. Universe could continue competing and making money: it was a professional (rather than amateur) competition. His first attempt, in New York in 1969, was unsuccessful, but he went on to win the title seven times, the first of which he won when he was only 23. Only one person has ever broken this record of wins.
 
 
 
 9
 
 
 Set your ambitions sky high and don't settle for second best.
 
 
 
 The assumption was that 1975 would be Schwarzenegger’s last Mr. Olympia competition: he won convincingly against Lou Ferrigno, a feat which is detailed in the documentary
 
 Pumping Iron
 
 (see below). Schwarzenegger had a surprise up his sleeve, however. In 1980, Schwarzenegger was training for his role as Conan in
 
 Conan the Barbarian
 
 (see
 
 The Terminator).
 
 Running, riding and sword fighting, he felt that he was in the best shape of his life, and he decided that he wanted to win the Mr. Olympia title one last time. Hired to provide the television commentary for the competition when it was broadcast, he announced his intention to compete at the 11th hour, and won with just seven weeks of preparation. He then officially retired from bodybuilding competitions, going out on an indisputable high.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 I didn’t leave bodybuilding until I felt that I had gone as far as I could go. It will be the same with my film career. When I feel the time is right, I will then consider public service. I feel that the highest honor comes from serving people and your country.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 10
 
 
 Sometimes opportunities arise when you are not expecting them.
 
 
 
 
 Pumping Iron
 
 
 
 In 1977, Robert Fiore and George Butler released
 
 Pumping Iron,
 
 a docudrama they had directed about the 1975 IFBB Mr. Universe and Mr. Olympia competitions. Filmed during the 100 days running up to the competitions, and during the competitions themselves, the action focused on Schwarzenegger and his primary competitor, Lou Ferrigno.
 
 
 The 1975 competition was to be Schwarzenegger’s last: he had been a professional body builder for a decade, and had won the Mr. Olympia competition five years running. The documentary compared the two men’s training styles, personas and attitudes: it showed Schwarzenegger to be an aggressive extrovert who thrived on publicity and the attentions of beautiful women. There is a subtext of psychological warfare, and this is an area where Schwarzenegger is clearly in his element.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 The mind is the limit. As long as the mind can envision the fact that you can do something, you can do it as long as you really believe 100%.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 11
 
 
 Even in a physical arena, your mental preparation and attitude makes the difference between success and failure.
 
 
 
 
 Pumping Iron
 
 ran into financial difficulties during the final stages of production, and so was released two years late and only after Schwarzenegger had helped to raise the funds to complete it. The documentary was given a cinema release and proved unexpectedly popular: it brought the previously niche sport of bodybuilding to a national audience, resulting in a significant increase in gym usage; and the review tallying site Rotten Tomatoes reports that 22 out of the 23 press reviews for the film were positive.
 
 Pumping Iron
 
 was a commercial and critical success, and it was Schwarzenegger’s first real taste of the silver screen. His on-screen and off-screen rival, Ferrigno, also used the documentary to kickstart his own film career: he was cast as the title role in
 
 The Incredible Hulk,
 
 and continued to play such roles for the next 30 years.
 
 
 
 12
 
 
 Make use of the platforms given to you to catapult yourself onto greater things.
 
 
 
 
 Arnold Classic
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger was, and probably still is, the greatest ambassador which the sport of body building has ever had. In recognition of this fact, the International Federation of Body Buildings (IFBB) launched an annual competition, the IFBB Arnold Classic, which has run since 1989. It takes place at the same venue in Columbus, Ohio.
 
 
 Part of the Arnold Sports Festival (also named after Schwarzenegger), the competition has an overall prize but also several special awards: Best Poser; Most Muscular; the Fan’s Choice Award; and the Most Entertaining Routine. Competition in these subcategories is just as intense as for the main prize, though they are not held every year.
 
 
 
 Writing
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger published his first book,
 
 Arnold: The Education of a Bodybuilder,
 
 in 1977. A commercial success, the book was a combination of autobiography and weight training guide. Schwarzenegger clearly enjoyed the experience of writing, as he also signed up for English courses at Santa Monica College in California, and then graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Superior with a BA in international marketing of fitness and business administration.
 
 
 
 13
 
 
 Education is not just for school kids.
 
 
 
 It is his writing, in part, which has kept Schwarzenegger’s image at the forefront of the bodybuilding industry. For many years he wrote monthly columns for
 
 Muscle &amp; Fitness
 
 and
 
 Flex
 
 , work which caused some accusations of conflict of interest when he first became Governor of California (see
 
 Controversies and Challenges),
 
 and though his relinquished his editorial role as a result in 2005, he renewed his editorial contracts in 2013.
 
 
 
 14
 
 
 Don't ever burn your commercial bridges.
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger’s autobiography,
 
 Total Recall
 
 (a reference to one of his earlier films), was published in 2012. It is divided into three parts, focusing respectively on his bodybuilding, his film career, and his politics.
 
 
 
 TERMINATOR
 
 
 
 Using the international platform and celebrity which he had gained as Mr. Universe and Mr. Olympia, Schwarzenegger took the opportunity to launch his Hollywood career. Casting couch directors recognised his appeal to fans in the world of sport but also realised that his incredible physique made him the ultimate action hero.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 I just use my muscles as a conversation piece, like someone walking a cheetah down 42
 
 nd
 
 Street.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 15
 
 
 Identify your strengths and unique selling points, and actively promote them to others.
 
 
 
 Working at first under the pseudonym Arnold Strong, Schwarzenegger made his first action film,
 
 Hercules in New York
 
 , in the early 1970s. Still relatively new in the US, and speaking little English, his Austrian accent was so strong that his lines had to be dubbed in post-production to make them comprehensible to American audiences. The accent, the long and unpronounceable name, and his ‘weird’ body type appeared to be stumbling blocks to a successful film career, and Schwarzenegger was advised time and again to change them all, but he persisted.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 The worst thing I can be is the same as everybody else. I hate that.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 16
 
 
 Turn your quirks to your advantage, and don't be put off by the fact that you are different from those around you.
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger won a Golden Globe award from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for his portrayal of the male lead in
 
 Stay Hungry,
 
 and this raised his profile sufficiently that he was cast in the title role of
 
 Conan the Barbarian
 
 in 1982.
 
 Conan the Barbarian,
 
 with its adrenalin-fuelled fight scenes and sorcery, was box office gold, and Schwarzenegger hit the big time. It was an era of film making when heroes needed muscles and great physical presence. Schwarzenegger fitted the bill perfectly.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 You can scream at me, call me for a shoot at midnight, keep me waiting for hours — as long as what ends up on the screen is perfect.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 Schwarzenegger will not go down in Hollywood history as Conan, however, but as the Terminator, a cyborg assassin programmed to kill a woman whose yet-to-be-conceived son will one day save the world. A 1984 sci-fi thriller directed by James Cameron,
 
 Terminator
 
 was the first in a series of films, and Schwarzenegger played both heroes and villains. Films from the Terminator franchise were released in 1984, 1991 and 2003, and so Schwarzenegger had plenty of time to make other films in between.
 
 
 
 17
 
 
 It is always easier to launch a sequel (or an update) than an original product.
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger appeared in the lead role in some of the most famous action and fantasy films of the 1990s:
 
 Total Recall
 
 (1990),
 
 True Lies
 
 (1994),
 
 Batman &amp; Robin
 
 (1997), and
 
 End of Days
 
 (1999). He also began to branch out into comedy, and films such as
 
 Kindergarten Cop
 
 (1990),
 
 Junior
 
 (1994) and
 
 Jingle All The Way
 
 (1996) widened his appeal to new audiences.
 
 
 
 18
 
 
 Add variety to keep your offering fresh.
 
 
 
 After appearing in
 
 Around The World In 80 Days
 
 (2004), Schwarzenegger took a break from Hollywood to concentrate on his political career (see
 
 The Governator).
 
 It therefore came as some surprise to his political rivals (and possibly to his allies too) that he returned to the silver screen in 2010 with
 
 The Expendables
 
 , the story of a team of mercenaries tasked with killing a military dictator and rogue CIA operative. A sequel,
 
 The Expendables 2,
 
 was released in 2012, again featuring Schwarzenegger, and he also found time in his schedule to shoot
 
 The Last Stand
 
 (2013), a Western-cum-action movie where Schwarzenegger portrays a sheriff fighting a dangerous drug cartel leader.
 
 
 To date, Schwarzenegger’s films have grossed more than $3 billion at the box office. His heroic, high-profile roles on screen made him a household name and brought him both wealth and strong connections with America’s elite. Schwarzenegger capitalised on these significant assets to catapult himself into another, quite unexpected, period of his career.
 
 
 
 THE GOVERNATOR
 
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 I went from being the Terminator to being the Governator.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 The Governator is Schwarzenegger’s affectionate nickname, a compound created from his position as the Republican Governor of California, and the Terminator, his most famous on screen role. His successful political career began in the early 2000s, and he is now one of the most influential figures in US politics.
 
 
 
 19
 
 
 Your name is a key part of your brand.
 
 
 
 
 Political Affiliation
 
 
 
 Ever since his arrival in the US in the 1960s, Schwarzenegger has voted Republican, describing himself as fiscally conservative and socially moderate. When interviewed in 2002 about his political choices, he explained:
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 I came first of all from a socialistic country, which is Austria, and when I came over here in 1968 with the presidential elections coming up in November, I came over in October, I heard a lot of the press conferences from both of the candidates Humphrey and Nixon, and Humphrey was talking about more government is the solution, protectionism, and everything he said about government involvement sounded to me more like Social Democratic Party of Austrian socialism… Then when I heard Nixon talk about it, he said open up the borders, the consumers should be represented there ultimately and strengthen the military and get the government off our backs. I said to myself, what is this guy’s party affiliation? I didn’t know anything at that point. So I asked my friend, what is Nixon? He’s a Republican. And I said, I am a Republican. That’s how I became a Republican.
 
 </div>
 
 
 20
 
 
 People care what you think.
 
 
 
 
 President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger’s first direct forays into the sphere of US politics occurred in the early 1990s when he was asked to chair George H. W. Bush’s President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. As Chairman, he spent three years travelling to all 50 US states, promoting physical fitness to school children and lobbying the states’ governors to support fitness programmes in schools. Schwarzenegger travelled in his own plane, at his own expense, and had a furious work ethic, often meeting with three governors in a single day. His chief of staff, a retired marine called George Otott, recalls, “When he walked in, it wasn’t about the governor, it was about Arnold. He has what we in the military call a
 
 command presence
 
 . He becomes the number one attention-getter.”
 
 
 
 21
 
 
 Be the person in the room who everyone else wants to talk to.
 
 
 
 After President Clinton replaced Bush, Schwarzenegger took up a similar ambassadorial role as Chairman for the California Governor’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. At this time he drafted and sponsored his first piece of legislation, Proposition 49: the After School Education and Safety Program Act of 2002, which made state grants available for after-school programmes.
 
 
 
 2003 CALIFORNIA RECALL ELECTION
 
 
 
 
 22
 
 
 Commit your energy and effort to causes which you really believe in
 
 
 
 For a number of years, Schwarzenegger had been considering running for elected political office in the US and had discussed it widely with friends, allies, advisors and potential donors. His political ambitions were no secret. His chance came with the 2003 California recall election.
 
 
 At the time, Schwarzenegger was on tour, heavily promoting his latest film,
 
 Terminator 3.
 
 His mind was never far from politics, however, as his answer in a July 2003 interview with
 
 Esquire Magazine
 
 reveals: “Yes, I would love to be governor of California … If the state needs me, and if there’s no one I think is better, then I will run.”
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 If you yield only to a conqueror, then prepare to be conquered.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger in
 
 Red Sonja
 
 
 </div>
 
 
 23
 
 
 People don't like self-interest.
 
 
 
 A petition to recall the existing governor, Democrat Gray Davis, qualified for the ballot that summer, and, ever the showman, Schwarzenegger gave a statement saying that he would announce whether he was running or not during an episode of
 
 The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.
 
 The public and the press held their breath, but generally leaned towards the view that he would not run as his wife (a Kennedy and a Democrat supporter) was against it.
 
 
 It turns out that even Schwarzenegger wasn’t sure what he was going to do until the day of the announcement:
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 The recall happens and people are asking me, ‘What are you going to do?’ I thought about it but decided I wasn’t going to do it. I told Maria I wasn’t running. I told everyone I wasn’t running. I wasn’t running. I just thought, This will freak everyone out. It’ll be so funny. I’ll announce that I am running. I told Leno I was running. And two months later I was governor. What the fuck is that? All these people are asking me, ‘What’s your plan? Who’s on your staff?’ I didn’t have a plan. I didn’t have a staff. I wasn’t running until I went on Jay Leno.
 
 </div>
 
 He explained his reasoning to Leno thus: «The politicians are fiddling, fumbling and failing. The man that is failing the people more than anyone is Gray Davis. He is failing them terribly, and this is why he needs to be recalled and this is why I am going to run for governor of the state of California.”
 
 
 
 24
 
 
 Sometimes you have to take a risk and follow your gut.
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger had never previously held public office and his political views were largely unknown, but he was the best- known candidate standing. The national and international press picked up on his candidacy immediately, and the news was full of predictions about the “Governator”. Schwarzenegger played to his audience, giving them memorable one-liners borrowed from his most famous films, including, “I’ll be back” at the end of his first press conference. The press loved it. He recruited to his campaign team actor Rob Lowe, billionaire Warren Buffet, and George Schulz, a former aide to Presidents Nixon and Reagan.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 I speak directly to the people, and I know that the people of California want to have better leadership. They want to have great leadership. They want to have somebody that will represent them. And it doesn’t matter if you’re a Democrat or a Republican, young or old.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 25
 
 
 Visibility is often more important than experience.
 
 
 
 The recall election took place in October 2003. Gray Davis was removed from office, and 48.6% of voters chose Schwarzenegger to succeed him: he had 1.3 million more votes than his nearest competitor. When he was sworn into office alongside his wife and children, Schwarzenegger spoke briefly:
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 Today is a new day in California. I did not seek this office to do things the way they’ve always been done. What I care about is restoring your confidence in your government… This election was not about replacing one man. It was not replacing one party. It was about changing the entire political climate of our state.
 
 </div>
 
 
 GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA
 
 
 
 
 26
 
 
 Engage other people and bring them onside by speaking positively about the future and encouraging their faith in you.
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger faced a line up of critics waiting for him to fail: with the exception of Reagan, when had a Hollywood movie star previously been successful in politics? But Schwarzenegger had a great deal of popular support – his approval rating hit 65% by May 2004 – and was able to bring together politicians from both sides of the house. He took a pro-active approach to reform, repealing and introducing legislation from the very start. Voters saw him as a man of action and, as importantly, as a man of his word.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 Political courage is not political suicide.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 27
 
 
 You have a honeymoon period at the start of any new endeavour.
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger’s first responsibility on entering office was to address California’s pressing budgetary concerns, and to do this his developed and announced a three-point budget plan. This involved floating $15 billion in bonds, passing a constitutional amendment to limit spending, and overhauling workers’ compensation. Public support for the measures was at first luke warm, but Schwarzenegger campaigned energetically, and the requisite legislation passed. The International Bond Market reacted particularly favourably, uprating California’s projections by three points, and thus saving the state more than $20 billion in interest over the next decade.
 
 
 
 28
 
 
 Money makes the world go round.
 
 
 
 Throughout Schwarzenegger’s governorship, a number of issues have emerged time and again, and Schwarzenegger’s leadership has been a matter of much discussion. Amongst these, LGBT rights, the death penalty, and taxation have been most talked about.
 
 
 As the Republican governor of a largely left-leaning state, Schwarzenegger could have found himself in a difficult position regarding LGBT rights, but he has rightly made the law, not personal or party views, the deciding factor in campaigning and legislation. When in 2004, for example, Gavin Newsom, Mayor of San Francisco, ordered changes in certification to allow same-sex marriages, Schwarzenegger blocked the move, not because he opposed same-sex relationships but because the act was beyond the powers of the mayor. Reinforcing this position, he went on the same year to issue Executive Order S-6-04 („All state agencies, departments, boards, and commissions shall recruit, appoint, train, evaluate and promote state personnel on the basis of merit and fitness, without regard to age, race, ethnicity, color, ancestry, national origin, gender, marital status, sexual orientation, religion, disability or other non-job-related factors.”); sign into law the California Insurance Equality Act, which makes health insurance providers offer cover to employees’ registered domestic partners, regardless of their sex; approve the Omnibus Labor &amp; Employment Non-Discrimination Bill, which unified all state anti-discrimination codes; and signed SB 1193, the law which entitles the surviving spouse or designated beneficiary (including same sex partners) of a deceased serviceman or woman to a $10,000 death benefit.
 
 
 
 29
 
 
 A strong leader is able to balance ideology and pragmatism.
 
 
 
 The issue of the death penalty in California has been more problematic for Schwarzenegger. As governor, he has the right to grant clemency to convicted felons on death row, though doing so is in itself a controversial act. Though Schwarzenegger has granted clemency on a number of occasions, saving men from execution, there have been occasions when he chose not to: he denied a pardon to convicted murderers Kevin Cooper and Stanley Tookie Williams, for example, and both men were therefore executed.
 
 
 
 30
 
 
 In public office, your duty is to act in accordance with the law and with public sentiment, regardless of your own opinions and values.
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger’s economic and fiscal policies (as briefly discussed above) have, on occasions, brought him into conflict with the Californian legislature. Though in 2004 The Cato Institute, a libertarian policy research foundation, rated him #1 amongst US state governors for his taxation and spending policies, he’s often found it difficult to get budgets approved by the state legislature. When deadlock has occurred, Schwarzenegger has spoken critically of his opponents, comparing them to children in kindergarten.
 
 
 Schwarzenegger won his second term as governor in autumn 2005. It was the most expensive election in California’s history — the total election spending for both sides was in excess of $300 million — and it had not actually gone well for Schwarzenegger: he lost all four of the reform initiatives he had proposed at the ballot. He no longer had the political leverage he had enjoyed during his first term, and was forced to move towards the centre in order to get legislation through.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 Learned helplessness is the giving-up reaction, the quitting response that follows from the belief that whatever you do doesn’t matter.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 31
 
 
 Success does not come cheaply.
 
 
 
 In his second term as governor, Schwarzenegger focused on attracting investment into California to improve the state’s finances and the perceived standard of living of voters. In defiance of President George W. Bush’s moratorium on state funding for stem cell research, he allocated a further $150 million in funding, stimulating the nascent industry in California. He formed the Climate Action Board and worked with Democrats to agree a bill to agree the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (both in line with his role as an environmental campaigner), and he agreed to increase the minimum wage in California to $8.50 per hour. Such acts angered conservative Republicans but were popular with mainstream and left-leaning voters.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 And now, of course this is another thing I didn’t count on, that now as the governor of the state of California, I am selling California worldwide. You see that? Selling.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 32
 
 
 Political ideology and allegiances should be but guiding forces.
 
 
 
 The global economic crisis, beginning in 2009, hit California hard, and with a debt of $42 billion, Schwarzenegger struggled to fulfil his spending commitments. He suggested Proposition 1A to increase tax revenues to $16 billion, there were moves to replenish the California General Fund, and two Fridays a month were declared as furloughs: state employees could not come into work and were not paid.
 
 
 
 33
 
 
 Whether or not you succeed is not always within your control.
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger’s second term as governor ended in January 2011, and he was not eligible to seek re-election. He has, however, continued to have an active role in politics and debate.
 
 
 
 Environmental Campaigner
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger isn’t the most obvious choice to front the clean energy and sustainability campaigns in the US, but that is perhaps why he is so effective. Making use of his high-profile public position, his political influence and business ties, and possibly also the surprise factor that it is a Republican heavyweight using his voice to advocate for renewable energy, Schwarzenegger has become a key ally for environmentalists and reformers.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 The future is green energy, sustainability, renewable energy.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 34
 
 
 Use your public platform to add your voice to issues you care about.
 
 
 
 Typically mild mannered and conservative, Schwarzenegger opened a recent public statement with the line, “I don’t give a f**k if we agree about climate change.” By taking the debate away from the traditional front line between those who are concerned about the environmental and social impact of climate change, and those who believe global warming is a hoax, he went on to force both sides to identify points that they can agree on: 7 million people a year die from fossil fuel pollution, which is unacceptable; fossil fuels will not be the preferred energy sources of the future because they will run out; and given the choice between being stuck in a sealed room with an electric car and a diesel or petrol-fuelled car belching fumes, we would all opt for the former. To do otherwise would result in certain, painful death. These aren’t politically charged points, they are practical ones. Schwarzenegger advocates, in his own words, for, “a smarter, cleaner, healthier, more profitable energy future.”
 
 
 
 35
 
 
 Regardless of your politics, everyone has a responsibility to create a safer, healthier future for our planet.
 
 
 
 In 2010, Schwarzenegger founded R20 Regions of Climate Action, a non-profit organisation which works to promote and implement projects that produce economic and environmental benefits by reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, improve public health and create new, green jobs to strengthen local economies. Working in cooperation with the United Nations, R20 produces reports, brings regional governments together, and implements projects as diverse as LED street lighting in Brazil, waste management in Algeria, and solar bakeries in Burundi.
 
 
 In his personal life, Schwarzenegger appears to practise, at least part, what he preaches. He has adapted his two Hummers to run on hydrogen and biofuels, and installed solar panels to heat his house.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 I have a private plane. But I fly commercial when I go to environmental conferences.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 President Schwarzenegger?
 
 
 
 In her unofficial biography of Schwarzenegger, journalist Wendy Leigh quotes Schwarzenegger as saying, “I wanted to be part of the small percentage of people who were leaders, not the large mass of followers. I think it is because I saw leaders use 100% of their potential — I was always fascinated by people in control of other people.” Having married into a political family (his mother-in-law, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, was the sister of President John F. Kennedy), perhaps it is natural that Schwarzenegger should have the highest levels of political ambition. But could an Austrian bodybuilding film star actually become president of the United States of America?
 
 
 At first glance, the answer is no: currently only those born in the US are eligible to run for the presidency, as it outlined in Article II, Section 1, Clause V of the US constitution. Although
 
 The Simpsons Movie
 
 (2007) does show Schwarzenegger as the president, it is fantasy. A constitutional amendment would have to be passed (as was the case in the 1993 Sylvester Stallone film,
 
 Demolition Man
 
 ) for Schwarzenegger to be able to take the top job. Schwarzenegger has reportedly been lobbying legislators about a possible constitutional change, and if he were to file a legal challenge to the provision, some legal commentators believe the law suit could ultimately win him the right to run for office.
 
 
 
 36
 
 
 Just because something isn't possible now doesn't mean that it won't ever be possible.
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger’s support is considered highly valuable to candidates in the Republican primaries, in any case. He was close friends with both Rudy Guiliani and John McCain, the two main Republican contenders in the run up to the 2008 presidential elections, and thus remained publicly neutral until Giuliani dropped out of the race. McCain and Schwarzenegger shared concerns about the US economy and the environment.
 
 
 
 BUSINESS INTERESTS
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger made his first million before he was 30, and before he hit the big time in Hollywood. He is a serial entrepreneur, forward looking, organised and with exceptional marketing skills.
 
 
 
 37
 
 
 You don't have to pigeonhole yourself into any one field.
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger’s first business was brick building. He set up a company with Franco Columbu, another bodybuilder, and the combination of effective marketing and timing (the company was launched just before the 1971 San Fernando earthquake increased demand in the construction industry) brought them quickly into profit. They invested this money in turn in a mail order business selling fitness products and VHS training tapes.
 
 
 
 38
 
 
 No kind of business is too simple, or too humble. There is money to be made everywhere.
 
 
 
 Money from the mail order business, plus his bodybuilding competition winnings, were used to buy Schwarzenegger’s first apartment building. It cost Schwarzenegger $10,000 and gave him a taste for real estate investment. Along with fellow celebrity investors Bruce Willis, Demi Moore and Sylvester Stallone, he put money into Plant Hollywood (a competitor to Hard Rock Cafe) and also into shopping malls and residential developments. He took guidance from a raft of successful investors, including Donald Trump, Warren Buffett and Milton Friedman, and used his contacts to make inroads into the film, publishing and sports industries.
 
 
 
 39
 
 
 Take advice from people you admire, and learn from them.
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger’s business reputation and profile is such that he will replace Donald Trump as the host of the popular TV show,
 
 The Celebrity Apprentice.
 
 
 
 
 PHILANTHROPY AND OUTREACH
 
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 Help others and give something back. I guarantee you will discover that while public service improves the lives and the world around you, its greatest reward is the enrichment and new emanating it will bring your own life.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 Stop the Madness
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger made use of his public profile as early as the mid-1980s to campaign on issues he believes to be important. An early such project was
 
 Stop the Madness
 
 , an anti-drug music video endorsed by President Ronald Reagan and featuring a number of celebrities of the day, including Whitney Houston, David Hasselhoff, and La Toya Jackson. The video was broadcast for a six-month period in 1985 and ’86, and it sparked anti-drug campaigns in Europe, as well as being adopted for public service announcements in the US.
 
 
 
 The USC Schwarzenegger Institute
 
 
 
 Though Schwarzenegger is proud to call himself a Republican and to represent that political party in elections, he does not toe the party political line to the determinant of common sense. Indeed, Schwarzenegger is intelligent enough to realise that some of the challenges we face cannot be surmounted by partisan groups, and a long-term, co-ordinated effort from multiple parties is required. For this reason, he has founded, and dedicates significant time to, the USC Schwarzenegger Institute at the University of Southern California.
 
 
 
 40
 
 
 The biggest problems we face will only be solved if we work together.
 
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 I welcome and seek your ideas, but do not bring me small ideas; bring me big ideas to match our future.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 The USC Schwarzenegger Institute for State and Global Policy, to give it its full name, was founded to advance post-partisanship. It encourages political and business leaders, regardless of their political ideologies or affiliations, to work together to find the best solutions to benefit the wider population. A think tank and lobbying organisation of sorts, the institute draws upon the work of academics and entrepreneurs, business leaders and scientists, and seeks to influence public policy and debate.
 
 
 Schwarzenegger has laid down four guiding principles for the institute, which are:
 
 <ul>
 <li>
 Science and evidence have an important role to play in finding solutions;
 </li>
 <li>
 Local solutions are often the best means to solve global problems;
 </li>
 <li>
 Great innovation and great solutions rarely come from government, but rather from individuals, entrepreneurs, and the community;
 </li>
 <li>
 Future leaders, including students and young people, must help shape the solutions for our future.
 </li>
 </ul>
 
 Clean energy and the environment (see
 
 Environmental Campaigner
 
 ) is a key area of the institute’s work, but education, fiscal and economic policy, health and human wellness, and political reform are also of significant interest.
 
 
 
 After-School All-Stars
 
 
 
 The mission of the After School All-Stars (ASAS) is to provide comprehensive after-school programmes that keep school children safe and help them to succeed not only in the school environment, but also in life. Participants should be taught life skills to keep themselves safe and healthy, to graduate from high school and go on to college, to have fulfilled careers, and to be able to give something back to their communities.
 
 
 As it stands, ASA serves more than 72,000 at-risk youth from low-income families. The vast majority of these students are African America, hispanic or from ethnic minority groups, and 85% of them qualify for free lunches. Schwarzenegger sees the programme, and in particular its use of sport, as a way to give these students a senses of purpose and value, to teach them discipline and team work, and to instil in them aspiration.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 You know, nothing is more important that education, because nowhere are our stakes higher; our future depends on the quality of education of our children today.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 41
 
 
 The children of today are the decision makers and business leaders of tomorrow.
 
 
 
 
 Sport and Fitness Ambassador
 
 
 
 A pin up for small boys and teenagers around the world, Schwarzenegger has positioned himself as an ambassador for sport and physical fitness. In addition to the After School All-Stars (see above), he is active as a coach and international torch bearer for the Special Olympics (founded by his former mother-in-law, Eunice Kennedy Shriver), and also served terms as Chairman on George H. W. Bush’s President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports.
 
 
 
 WEALTH, AWARDS AND ACCOLADES
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger’s exact wealth is unknown: conservative estimates range from $100 million to $200 million, though his 2006 tax return has been used to produce an estimate as high as $800 million. The breadth of his investments, and the recent instability of international real estate prices, make an accurate figure hard to calculate. What we do know, however, is that Schwarzenegger doesn’t have to clip coupons: he spent $38 million of his own money on a Gulfstream jet in 1997, and took no salary whilst he was Governor of California as he was making more than enough elsewhere. Having more money in the bank doesn’t make him happier, as a 2003 interview in
 
 The Guardian
 
 reveals: “Money doesn’t make you happy. I now have $50 million, but I was just as happy when I had $48 million.”
 
 
 
 42
 
 
 After a certain point, you don't need to know how much you earn or how much you are worth.
 
 
 
 The awards and accolades given to Schwarzenegger are, as one might expect, as varied as his interests and experiences. In film, he received a Golden Globe Award in 1977 for
 
 Stay Hungry,
 
 and he has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The WWF declared him to be their Heavyweight Box Office Champion in 1999, and the WWE inducted Schwarzengger into their Hall of Fame in 2015. The Schwarzenegger Institute for State and Global Policy, the Arnold Sport Festival and Arnold’s Classic bodybuilding competition, and Arnold’s Run ski trail at Sun Valley are all named in his honour, and on the occasion of his 60
 
 th
 
 birthday, the mayor of Thal (Schwarzenegger’s birthplace in Austria) declared it to be “A Day for Arnold”.
 
 
 
 CONTROVERSIES AND CHALLENGES
 
 
 
 
 Citizenship
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger took US citizenship in September 1983, and normally this would have annulled his former citizenship (Austrian) as Austria does not permit dual citizenship. Schwarzenegger requested special permission, however, and was allowed to become a dual national. His subsequent actions as Governor of California have caused some controversy back in Austria.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 As long as I live, I will never forget that day 21 years ago when I raised my hand and took the oath of citizenship. Do you know how proud I was? I was so proud that I walked around with an American flag around my shoulders all day long.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 
 43
 
 
 Have pride in where you come from and where you live.
 
 
 
 Austria does not permit the death penalty, as the country outlawed the death penalty in 1968. A second piece of legislation, Article 33 of the Austrian Citizenship Act, states that, “A citizen, who is in the public service of a foreign country, shall be deprived of his citizenship, if he heavily damages the reputation or the interests of the Austrian Republic.” As Schwarzenegger has not always used his right as governor to grant clemency to prisoners on death row, Austrian MP Peter Pilz has demanded that his Austrian citizenship be revoked. Schwarzenegger’s support for the death penalty contravenes Protocol 13 of the European Convention of Human Rights and, Pilz argues, therefore damages the reputation of Austria. To date, the Austrian government has ignored Pilz’s demands.
 
 
 
 44
 
 
 If you become a public figure, expect to be challenged and held to account for your actions, even if you had no choice but to act in a certain way.
 
 
 
 
 Conflicts of Interest
 
 
 
 As a high-profile public figure with diverse business and personal interests, it should come as no surprise that Schwarzenegger has often been accused of having a conflict of interests. These allegations have been made both in regard to financial interests, but also that by spreading his time and energy too widely, he cannot possibly give his job as Governor of California (see
 
 The Governator)
 
 his full attention.
 
 
 The first major such accusations were made in summer 2005 when the press reported that Schwarzenegger continued to hold a position of executive editor for two American Media magazines. Schwarzenegger had a long association with he publications and continued to write regular bodybuilding columns. He announced that his salary from the work – $250,000 a year – would be donated to charity.
 
 
 
 45
 
 
 Philanthropy is a good way to detract attention when you are being criticised for something you have done wrong.
 
 
 
 More and more such arrangements came to light, however. The
 
 Los Angeles Times
 
 reported he had a consulting contract which would earn him $8 million over the next five years, and
 
 The New York Times
 
 revealed another arrangement with Weider Publications worth in excess of $1 million a year, plus phantom equity.
 
 
 Though not illegal, such relationships did call into question Schwarzenegger’s voting on policies regarding the advertising and sale of performance enhancing dietary supplements, the companies behind which often advertised in American Media publications. In 2005 the
 
 Washington Post
 
 also reported that American Media had paid $20,000 to actress Gigi Goyette not to discuss her affair with Schwarzenegger.
 
 
 
 Gropegate
 
 
 
 During his first campaign for governor, a number of allegations of sexual and personal misconduct were levied against Schwarzenegger. Though he admitted to having “behaved badly sometimes” and apologised to those involved, the accusations lingered.
 
 
 The first allegations date back to 1977 when Schwarzenegger gave an interview to
 
 Oui
 
 magazine. He discussed his sexual orgies and smoking cannabis, which he is also seen doing after winning Mr. Olympia in
 
 Pumping Iron.
 
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 Oh, you tho k you’re bad, huh? You’re a choirboy compared to me! A f*cking choirboy!
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger in
 
 End of Days
 
 
 </div>
 
 Six women have also alleged sexual assault and harassment, reports of which appeared in the
 
 Los Angeles Times
 
 in 2003. The accusations were all physical: three women claimed that Schwarzenegger had grabbed their breasts, and hence the scandal was dubbed “Gropegate”. The other women alleged Schwarzenegger had also touched them inappropriately. No prosecutions have ever been made, however, and the allegations do not seem to have had an adverse impact on Schwarzenegger’s career trajectory, or his standing with voters.
 
 
 
 46
 
 
 Think of the long-term impact of your actions so that you can mitigate any fall-out.
 
 
 
 
 Steroid Use
 
 
 
 Schwarzenegger has been unusually candid about his use of performance-enhancing anabolic steroids during his bodybuilding career. The drugs were not illegal at the time, and he described them as,”helpful to me in maintaining muscle size while on a strict diet in preparation for a contest. I did not use them for muscle growth, but rather for muscle maintenance when cutting up.”
 
 
 Although he has spoken about his drug use, Schwarzenegger has been rather more defensive when the topic is raised by others. In 1999, Dr William Heepe predicted his early death, stating that there was a link between his steroid use and later heart problems.
 
 The Globe
 
 , a US tabloid, made similar assertions, and Schwarzenegger sued both of them for libel. Heepe was forced to pay $10,000 in damages for libel by a German court, and the tabloid settled too.
 
 
 
 PERSONAL LIFE
 
 
 
 
 47
 
 
 Protect your reputation, image and business interests through whatever means are necessary.
 
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 The best activities for your health are pumping and humping.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 Schwarzenegger’s first love was Barbara Outland, an English teacher who he met in 1968, shortly after arriving in the US. Initially the couple got on well, and they lived together, but they were very different people, and not at all compatible: Schwarzenegger summarised the problem as, “Basically it came down to this: she was a well-balanced woman who wanted an ordinary, solid life, and I was not a well-balanced man, and hated the very idea of ordinary life.” Their love life was passionate but turbulent. Schwarzenegger has a number of affairs, and though at first Outland found him to be a joyful personality, totally charismatic, adventurous, and athletic, she later described him as “insufferable”.
 
 
 
 48
 
 
 The nature and values of two people must be in sync if they are to enjoy a mutually satisfying relationship.
 
 
 
 In 1977, Schwarzenegger attended a charity tennis match, where he was introduced to Maria Shriver by their mutual friend, Tom Brokaw. Although Schwarzenegger was in a relationship at the time with a Venice Beach hairdresser named Sue Moray, he was very much open to Shriver’s advances. She was, after all, the niece of former President John F. Kennedy, rich, well-connected, and beautiful.
 
 
 The couple married in April 1986 and had four children, Katherine, Christina, Patrick, and Christopher. Shriver worked throughout their marriage as a news anchor and was a popular First Lady of California after Schwarzenegger took office (see
 
 The Governator).
 
 Shriver championed the role of women in public life, encouraged community service, and in 2005 launched the WE Connect Program to give support to families who were struggling economically.
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 In our society, the women who break down barriers are those who ignore limits.
 
 
 – Arnold Schwarzenegger
 
 </div>
 
 In the mid 1990s, Schwarzenegger had an extra marital affair with a member of his household staff, Mildred Baena, and fathered her child. Schwarzenegger managed to keep the affair, and the child, secret for 14 years, but he was forced to confess when Shriver discovered the truth and confronted him. Shriver made a public statement that her husband’s admission was, “painful and heartbreaking,” and she asked for privacy.
 
 
 
 49
 
 
 Relationships of all kind – personal and professional – depend on trust.
 
 
 <div class="tbl">
 
 Consider that a divorce!
 
 
 – Arnold Scwarzenegger in
 
 Total Recall
 
 
 </div>
 
 Shriver filed for divorce in July 2011, citing irreconcilable differences. The divorce lawyers were hired before news of the affair was released to the public, and the financial details of the settlement were also laid out at this time. Custody of the two younger children is shared between Shriver and Schwarzenegger, who live near to one another, as does Baena and her son.
 
 
 
 CONCLUSION
 
 
 
 The length of Schwarzenegger’s career, and the breath of his activities, is quite mind boggling, and it can be too much to take in all at once. In a bid to understand the essential qualities of the man, and what has driven him to such lengths, it is therefore distilling his lessons down further into three over-arching points, and explaining them in this conclusion.
 
 
 
 1.
 
 
 You need to have drive to succeed
 
 
 
 People do not become successful by accident: making your goals a reality requires sustained effort, often over many years. Your state of mind – notably your focus, your determination and your persistence – are integral factors to whether or not you will achieve your goals. Schwarzenegger knew, right from childhood, that he wanted to achieve great things, and that through discipline and hard work he could make it happen. He has never lost sight of the fact that even when by luck opportunities do come his way, he must still be the driving force behind his career if he wants to succeed.
 
 
 
 2.
 
 
 Decide what you are going to do, and give it your all
 
 
 
 There is no point in making a half-arsed attempt at something. If it is worth your while doing, it is worth doing properly. If you focus your attention and effort, and put in the hours, you will achieve far more. This applies whether you are developing a skill (bodybuilding, acting, learning a foreign language), or trying to gain experience, contacts, or a promotion at work. Nobody remembers the guy who came second in the competition, or who lost the election. Give what you do 100%, and you then stand a far greater chance of making it to #1.
 
 
 
 3.
 
 
 Be open to opportunities, and capitalise on them
 
 
 
 When Schwarzenegger became Mr. Universe, he could never have foreseen that one day he would be Governor of California: he had never even been to the USA! What he did know, however, is that throughout your life, doors open to you, and they are not always the ones you are expecting. You have to keep your mind open to new ideas and possibilities, and make use of your existing platforms, skills, contacts and experiences to pursue them.
 
 
 
 50
 
 
 I'll be back! Terminator's most famous catch phrase reminds us that we can always reinvent ourselves, and that success is the result of repetition and persistence.
 
 
 
 There is no doubt that Arnold Schwarzenegger has more achievements to come, more surprises up his sleeve, and that he will continue to be a prominent figure in American politics, business, sport, and the entertainment industry for many years to come. Although he has had a number of hurdles to overcome in his life to date, and his personal and professional lives have not been without controversy, he remains a strong and, on the whole, positive role model for ambitious individuals in all walks of life.
 
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