When you have the opportunity to ask some of the most interesting people in the world about their lives, sometimes the most fascinating answers come from the simplest questions. The Thrive Questionnaire is an ongoing series that gives an intimate look inside the lives of some of the world’s most successful people.
Thrive Global: What’s the first thing you do when you get out of bed?
Loren Brill: Wash face, brush teeth, meditate sitting on my floor in my bedroom.
TG: What gives you energy?
LB: A great workout, followed by delicious & healthy food. Also nothing tops great times with family/friends.
TG: What’s your secret life hack?
LB: Feeling incredibly grateful to be alive, happy, healthy. With that mindset, I appreciate life so much I don’t want regrets and then there is no room for complaining, only doing.
TG: Name a book that changed your life.
LB: Steve Jobs’ biography. I was so inspired and didn’t feel crazy anymore!
TG: Tell us about your relationship with your phone. Does it sleep with you?
LB: It sleeps on my bedside table to the left of me. Although it’s like family, I think space is healthy for our relationship.
TG: How do you deal with email?
LB: I check and write emails at different times of the day, depending on my day. Some of my best emails I write are while still in bed when I get up in the morning (shhh), or on the subway in between meetings, or really late at night when my head clears and something clicks.
TG: You unexpectedly find 15 minutes in your day, what do you do with it?
LB: Jimmy Fallon. I love watching people enjoy life and clever humor.
TG: When was the last time you felt burned out and why?
LB: I felt burned out before I hired my team. I hustled my business for as long as possible, and as we started to grow fast, I realized how many people we needed immediately to handle the growth. I learned how important it is to not let yourself get burned out because then you aren’t your best self, and you can start hating the business you once loved if you let yourself get burned out.
TG: When was the last time you felt you failed and how did you overcome it?
LB: I feel I fail every day! I just try to learn from the day, acknowledge my strengths and work on my weaknesses. You get better through practice, so I just keep practicing until I get better.
TG: Share a quote that you love and that gives you strength or peace.
LB: “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take” (Wayne Gretzsky) and “What would you do if you weren’t afraid?” Those both kick me in the butt, inspiring me to go for my biggest dreams.
Loren Brill is the founder and CEO of Sweet Loren’s, a delicious, clean cookie dough company on a mission to change the way America bakes.