This week on LEVELUP in 5 with Gary Mauris, Gary sits down with entrepreneur, author, and mindset powerhouse Barb Stegemann.

With a background in philosophy and a passion for purpose-driven business, Barb shares the two books that have profoundly shaped how she thinks about resilience, self-belief, and building a life by design.

In this thoughtful and inspiring conversation, Gary asks: Is there one book everyone should read?

Barb’s answer? There are two—and both are transformational.

🎯 What You’ll Learn in This Video

• Learn From Everything — Especially the Hard Stuff: Barb highlights Meditations by Marcus Aurelius as a must-read. The core idea? You can learn from anyone and anything—good bosses, bad bosses, painful experiences, and personal failures. When you reflect deeply, you extract wisdom from hardship. The past stops haunting you once you claim the lesson. As Barb says, the beginning is always today.

• Write Your Own Meditations: Inspired by Stoic philosophy, Barb believes in actively creating your own reflections. When you put lessons into words, you confront truths you may have avoided. That clarity allows you to release regret, anxiety, or guilt—and move forward with strength.

• Your Mind Believes What You Tell It: Her second essential read is Psycho-Cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz. The premise is powerful: your brain does not know the difference between imagination and reality. What you consistently visualize, your body begins to accept as possible.

• The 28-Day Visualization Practice: Barb calls it a “spiritual business plan.” Spend 15–30 minutes a day for 28 days vividly imagining your life as if it’s already happening—your wins, your impact, your growth. See it like a movie. When done consistently, everything begins to move into alignment. Self-belief turns into action. Action turns into results.

• Perspective Changes Everything: When Barb faces uncertainty, she volunteers. Serving others pulls her out of her own stress and reframes challenges. It’s a reminder that clarity often comes when we step outside ourselves.

• Protect Your Self-Belief: Talent without belief is wasted potential. Whether it’s you—or someone you care about—negative self-talk can quietly limit greatness. Guard your mindset. Feed it empowering inputs. Reinforce possibility daily.

Gary Mauris, Co-Founder & CEO of Dominion Lending Centres, closes with a powerful reminder: your results are shaped by your habits—but your habits are shaped by your beliefs.

👉 Ready to LEVELUP? Learn how top performers use reflection, visualization, and self-belief to create unstoppable momentum—in just 5 minutes. Let’s go!