Easy Steps to Success™

WELCOME!

Welcome! This website provides free and easy lessons on how to succeed with People, Work, and Money.

And, because you need good communication skills and knowledge of your rights to succeed, I also provide some basic lessons in English and Law, from time to time.

I hope you learn a lot from here and tell all your friends about it. That’s what this website is all about: learning and sharing lessons and tips about how to succeed in life!

For a complete list of all articles, by month and year, go to ALL ARTICLES. If you want access to the latest articles without always having to return to this website, you can either “Subscribe via RSS” or “Subscribe via Email” (see sidebar at left). Both are free. Just click on the words in the sidebar and follow the instructions.

A LITTLE ABOUT ME

Hi! My name is Shanel Yang, and I started this website to share the Easy Steps to Success that I have distilled after trial and error since 1971, when I came to the U.S. from South Korea with my parents and three younger sisters.

My parents had no education, had no marketable skills, knew no English, and had only $50 when we landed at LAX with absolutely no idea how we would survive in this new country. The responsibilities were divided between my parents and me like this: They earned as much money as they could with odd jobs, like janitorial work in a church, dishwashing in a restaurant, and sewing in a downtown sweatshop, while I learned as much as I could about how to do everything else in this country and, in turn, had to teach it to the entire family.

All of that responsibility from such an early age left me with a lifelong desire to help others similarly in need of all the important lessons I had to learn to help my family survive—and eventually thrive—in this great country. I went to UCLA Law School and practiced law for 10 years in and around downtown Los Angeles. Now, I have begun my second career as a writer to provide self help advice to help others succeed in their lives. My formula is People, Work, and Money. And, for immigrants who are struggling now, as my family once did, I add English and Law.

I believe that success in life can be simple if you focus on people first, work second, and money third. To simplify it further, if you have great relationships—especially the most important one, which is with yourself—the rest will naturally follow. Dare to be awesome! Strive to be your own greatest hero!

USE THIS WEBSITE

HOME:

This is the HOME page. Here, you will find an explanation of the mission of this website, information about me, how to use this website, a way to contact me via email, and a way to show your support for this website by making a donation.

BLOG:

On the BLOG page, you will find the latest article from the PEOPLE, WORK, or MONEY categories. Or, they can be special notices to viewers, from time to time.

PEOPLE:

The PEOPLE category is where you will learn how to deal with HIGH-MAINTENANCE PERSONALITIES, such as Backstabbers, Control Freaks, Critics, Sponges, Wet Blankets, Martyrs, Chameleons, Workhorses, Cold Shoulders, Gossips, and Flirts. It’s also where you will learn HOW TO FIND YOUR SOUL MATE and THE MEANING OF LIFE. And, the greatest self help book about people skills ever written, HOW TO WIN FRIENDS AND INFLUENCE PEOPLE, is summarized here. Finally, a more personal article I wrote called 10 THINGS I WISH MOM TAUGHT ME is here, too.

WORK:

The WORK category is where you will learn about different occupations from the INTERVIEWS WITH series, including the Policeman and Fireman, Professional Baseball Player, Professional Hockey Player, Receptionist, Telemarketer, Stockbroker, TV Commercials Producer, President of a Giant Corporation and Business Consultant, Young Founder and CEO of Four Corporations, Inventor, Entrepreneur, and Factory Owner, Housewife, and Prostitute. A more basic article WHAT JOBS ARE THERE? provides a brief description of additional occupations.

Whatever occupation you choose, you will want to know HOW TO FILL OUT JOB APPLICATIONS and HOW TO ACE JOB INTERVIEWS. Then, once you get your job, you can advance quickly if you apply the professional coaching tips in the SUCCESS IN THE CORPORATE WORLD series, which starts with an eye-opening Self Test.

MONEY:

The MONEY category is where you will find a summary of the greatest get rich quick book ever written THINK AND GROW RICH. You will also find a modern-day application of the 13 Steps to Get Rich taught in that book in HOW TO BE A BILLIONAIRE IN 10 STEPS. If you feel conflicted about money, read GREED v. DESIRE. The result of studies about how people get rich today is summed up in MILLIONAIRES v. BILLIONAIRES. Finally, I share some personal insights in HOW DAD TURNED $50 INTO $1.2 MILLION and 10 THINGS I WISH DAD TAUGHT ME.

MONEY LESSONS FOR NICE PEOPLE is a very practical series of articles about how to transform the way you think and act so that you can get live the life you want instead of settling for the life you now have. This series, like the companion “Success in the Corporate World” series, also starts with a revealing Self Test.

ENGLISH:

The ENGLISH category is where you will find the old SCHOOLHOUSE ROCK videos that teach the basic parts of speech, such as Nouns, Verbs, Adjectives, Adverbs, Conjunctions, Interjections, and Prepositions with fun singalong tunes. They also teach early American history and government, such as how laws are made, how the British colonists became Americans, the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution, the American War of Independence, the Declaration of Independence, the great cultural mix resulting from immigration, and the expansion of the U.S.A. into the West.

There are also regular lessons in how to speak English like Americans do today: Greetings and Goodbyes, How to Share Ideas and Opinions, How to Ask for Directions, Differences Among the Words “Like,” “Love,” and “Hate,” How to Say Sorry, How to Leave Voicemail Messages, Rule Questions Not to Ask in America, American Dinner Parties, How to Order Drinks, and How to Ask for a Date. Finally, there are also useful lessons about American culture and holidays such as Holiday Greetings and Christmas Carols, New Year’s Resolutions, and Valentine’s Day.

Finally, the POP MUSIC ENGLISH series teaches English language and Western culture through the lyrics from the bestselling pop singles from the 1960s to the 2000s, featuring hit songs by the Beatles, Captain and Tennille, Abba, Samantha Sang, Irene Cara, Spandau Ballet, Madonna, Pink, and Black Eyed Peas.

LAW:

The LAW category is where you will find information about basic laws that affect your daily life. For example, your duties as a pet owner, how to protect yourself from most lawsuits, your rights as a tenant and duties as a landlord, how to act at car accidents, when a car acccident is no one’s fault, how to prepare for a deposition, secrets even therapists must tell, what is sexual harassment, when you can sue for a broken promise, and what is a binding arbitration.

MAKE A DONATION

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CONTACT ME

Please feel free to email me with your comments, suggestions, or requests by using the form below. If you do email me, I will send you a free copy of my eBook.