Mark Victor Hansen is the world’s No. 1 author, having sold 500 million copies of a little book series he co-wrote, called Chicken Soup for the Soul. I’m thrilled to say that he is also this week’s guest on Chiseled.

As a keynote speaker, author, publisher, and philanthropist, Mark is the guy whose face appears next to the words “determination” and “energy” in the dictionary. He started out being mentored in grad school by architect and inventor R. Buckminster Fuller, but after having gone bankrupt trying to sell geodesic domes in the 1970s, he asked God what he was meant to do. He says God told him to decide, and he came up with the answer.

“I want to talk to people who care about things that matter that would make a life-transformative difference in their life,” he said.

Not knowing where to start, Mark went to speak to visionary real estate coach Chip Collins. Collins encouraged Mark to go sell his sales techniques to insurance agencies. So, Mark did. He self-published his first book, Stand Up, Speak Out, and Win, and took the book with him to all his appointments. In his first year, he sold 20,000 books for $10 apiece. Things grew from there.

“I went from being bankrupt, which I was … and now I’m selling. I’m making money and I’m having fun.”

By 1988, Mark was earning $1 million a year selling books on the speaking circuit. Then he met Jack Canfield. Operating in the same circles, Mark says Jack approached him one day and told him he was going to put 65 of Mark’s stories in a book. Mark told him that wasn’t going to happen unless they worked together. From there, the partnership was born.

“Jack tells the story a little bit different but one of those two stories is somewhere near true,” he joked.

It took several years and more than 100 attempts at finding a title before Chicken Soup for the Soul was released. As you know, it went gangbusters. Since then, Mark has authored or co-authored more than 300 books. He has been the most frequent best-selling author on USA Today’s books list, and he made the Guinness Book of World Records for his prolific sales. 

“Your imagination creates your reality,” he said. “You can set outrageous goals if you really commit and have the courage to commit at a cellular level.”

With his limitless energy and dedication to serving others, Mark says he is never going to retire. And that’s great for the rest of us because he has many stories to tell, lessons to share, and new authors to publish. You’re going to be blown away by this week’s episode of Chiseled .