By Business & Finance 
Johnny Ward, CEO and founder at Step4Ward Media, takes the Business & Finance 60-second challenge.
Q. What was your first job?
I’m a walking Irish cliché with this one: picking potatoes in the fields of county Down when I was 13 years old.
Backbreaking work but it taught me a few good lessons in life, that’s for sure.
Q. What would you regard as your greatest achievement to date?
Wow, never been asked that before.
Honestly, aside from my journey to every country in the world, it may well be being mortgage free in my 20s.
Financially, it’s not the best way to leverage your finances, but to know you have a roof over your head for life, when you work in an industry like blogging, is beautiful peace of mind.
Q. What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?
I wish I had some nugget of information that someone gave me, but I’ve never really had that kind of mentor in my life.
Q. If you could step into the shoes of one businessperson for the day, who would it be and why?
American entrepreneur Tim Ferriss perhaps. I’d love to see how he manages his time.
Q. In three words or less, how do you define success?
To be free.
Q. How do you motivate yourself and your staff?
For me, lifestyle comes first. I don’t have an office, nor do my staff; we all work our own hours from our laptops in various parts of the world.
I hope the trust I put in them means they don’t want to let me down. I expect a lot from people, and from myself, but I appreciate people when they try their best. That seems to be working okay.
Q. How do you relax?
Gym, Fifa on the PlayStation, Thai massage in Bangkok (where I kind of ‘live’).
Q. What’s your motto?
“We’ll never be as young as we are tonight.” – Chuck Palahniuk
Q. What are your aspirations for the future of your business?
I’d love to grow my charity, GiveBackGiveAway.com, into something huge. And I’m designing a course for my blog, OneStep4Ward.com, where people can copy my exact steps to get into the same position. I honestly believe when this course is done, it’s going to change so many people’s lives.
I don’t have an office, nor do my staff; we all work our own hours from our laptops in various parts of the world
JOHNNY BE GOOD
Born in Galway and raised in county Down, Johnny Ward’s wanderlust has led him to every country in the world (bar three).
After teaching English in far-flung locations, Ward soon started making money from travel blogging and now owns a growing portfolio of online travel/health/finance/lifestyle magazines and blogs.
He has hired a team of writers, programmers and graphic designers and has also set-up an education start-up in Hong Kong and started a small dentist marketing agency.
When not travelling, Ward is based in Thailand where he maintain a couple of investment properties.
