Today we’d like to introduce you to Will Everett.
Hi Will, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I’m a product of a single mother born in the south side of Chicago. Since I was a child my life has been a full throttle journey full of highs, lows, and everything in between. Looking back over my life thus far I recognize that I’ve had quite the story. From attending 5 different elementary schools, 3 different middle schools, and 2 different high schools; to attending Harvard and ultimately graduating from both Morehouse College and North Carolina A&T; to having a corporate career at the likes of Goldman Sachs, Deloitte, and now Accenture, I somehow managed to accomplish things that I don’t even know if I ever set out to or dreamt of. The only thing I ever really knew I wanted to do was help others. Reading and writing were always outlets for me but I never saw them as tools to help until a few years ago. I was sitting with my then girlfriend (and now wife) on a flight to Cape Town in December of 2023 and I just began to write like I normally do. I didn’t know it then, but by the time we landed in Africa I had written the initial manuscript of The KPIs of Life. People ask me how long it took me to write it and I always say that it “only took 14 hours and a few years”, because after that initial draft I spent about a whole year just re-reading and critiquing it. I would change a sentence here, change a paragraph there, and that cycle went on week by week until the end of 2024. At that time I decided “Will, you’ve gotta stop trying to make something perfect”. That’s when the real work began. For the first quarter of 2025 I worked on actually getting it published (and that’s a whole different story entirely). I designed a cover, thought of a title, and spent countless hours shopping it around. After Q1 I decided to just self publish and as I undertook that journey I spent time doing speaking engagements centered around the book. My goal was to not only help others, but also to make sure that what I wrote in 2023 was something that could sort of stand the test of time. Fast forward to the second half of 2025 and I’d finally done the “work” to create and publish The KPIs of Life: A Perspective for Success! That turned into me being a speaker and life coach in addition to my day job.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I don’t want to act like my journey to publishing The KPIs of Life was some feat of curing cancer or solving real issues in life. This was a labor of love and altruism. I simply wanted to put something good in the world to help others and anything worth doing is never smooth, but it is always worth it!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about The KPIs of Life?
The KPIs of Life isn’t just words within margins, it’s a principled approach to living out a fulfilling life. It’s an approach that is pragmatic, but ambitious; and objective, yet nuanced. Most of all, though, it is something that I believe we can all achieve. Throughout my career I’ve always been the “only one of me” – the only African American male; the youngest; the one with the most unassuming, and sometimes seemingly irrelevant, background. Yet I’ve still achieved sustained success. Though, I never set out to be different, what separates me is the reality that I know what it is to be the valuable anomaly because I have thrived as such my whole life. So for all of the folks who were counted out, who don’t feel they are qualified, who battle with imposters syndrome and survivor’s remorse – I am no different, I just learned how to persevere. So in a way you can say that I found my passion for helping others achieve more than they may have once believed through selfish means. I had to be come what I needed and only then did I realize that I’m not the only one who needed that. Realizing that I could and actually making it my objective to help others is what I am most proud of.
I get inspired by meeting and speaking to aspiring and younger professionals who are trying to figure out this thing called life. I feel empowered by being something real that they can look to as a mark to achieve and exceed. I believe that’s what I’m known for – just being an everyday person who made good things happen through his everyday outlook on life.
Beyond the book and speaking engagements where I get to share empowering stories and perspectives, The KPIs of Life is also a career and life coaching platform dedicated to bringing real value to others. Through coaching and mentoring my aim is to be a sound board and sponsor for those navigating corporate America and real life. In my decade long career in corporate America so far I’ve helped over 500 young adults find jobs at Fortune 500 companies and helped dozens reach milestone promotions. I genuinely believe that we can all live fulfilling lives in this lifetime with the right perspective on life and The KPIs of Life was created to provide and instill that perspective.
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
The most important lesson I’ve learned along my journey is that we are who we choose to be. Just because you grew up one way doesn’t mean you have to stay that way. Just because you don’t have the “credentials” doesn’t necessarily mean you are not qualified to try. I’m simply living proof that with a little bit of work, a great deal of perseverance, and a whole lot of faith you can do anything you set your mind to. I know it’s easier said than done, but that’s why I wrote The KPIs of Life – I wanted to provide both principled and tactical steps to get anyone moving in the right direction. I wanted the everyday person to realize that success is simply a byproduct of fulfillment and that both are achievable no matter where you are today.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.TheKPIsofLife.com
- Instagram: @TheKPIsofLife
- Facebook: Will Everett
- LinkedIn: https://www.LinkedIn.com/WillEverett6
