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B I R M I N G H A M

 

E

verything about Barry 
Franklin screams super-
achiever. He is the direc-
tor of Preventative Cardiology 
and Cardiac Rehabilitation for 
Beaumont Health and a pro-
fessor of internal medicine at 
Oakland University’s William 
Beaumont School of Medicine. 
He received bachelor’s, master’s 
and Ph.D. degrees from Kent 
State, University of Michigan 
and Penn State University. 
 Franklin has been honored 
with a laundry list of awards, 
served on expert panels, writ-
ten or edited more than 700 
publications (including 27 
books); and his career moti-
vating people to make lifestyle 
changes to prevent or halt 
heart disease has saved or pro-

longed countless lives. 
So, what does a person like 
that do in his “spare time?” He 
studies uber-successful people 
and organizations, of course. 
“Superachievers are people 

who are highly productive, 
they love what they do, and 
they make a difference in 
people’s lives. It’s as simple 
as that,” Franklin explains. 
“These people all feel to a 
large extent that they make 
their own luck in life. They 
take 100% responsibility for 
their outcomes, and they 
focus on serving others.”
Franklin, 74, of West 

Bloomfield, began 
analyzing these 
exceptionally suc-
cessful people in his 
late 20s. He says it 
started as an explo-
ration of how to be 
and do better.
“I came to the 
sobering realiza-
tion that 11 years of 
college hadn’t prepared me 
for the real world of work,” 
Franklin says. “I realized I 
lacked many skills, including 
understanding the importance 
of preparation, goal setting, 
persistence, interpersonal 
skills, communications skills 
and more.”
So, he scoured the world’s 
literature and began inter-

Barry Franklin uncovers the secrets 
of highly successful people in his 
new book, GPS for Success.

Here’s How to Be 
a ‘Superachiever’

ROBIN SCHWARTZ CONTRIBUTING WRITER

36 | AUGUST 11 • 2022 

Barry Franklin

Livingston County-based Cleary University 
announced that Douglas Stein, Ph.D., CPA, 
CMA, CGMA, has been named the new pro-
vost and executive vice president of Cleary. 
He will provide leadership and guidance over 
the academic curriculum, retention, university 
policies. 

The JCRC/AJC announced the hiring of Sam 
Dubin as its new assistant director. In addition 
to working with the media and politicians, 
Dubin will focus his efforts on many of the 
principles the organization stands for — advo-
cating for Israel, fighting antisemitism, advo-
cating for local, state, national and internation-
al legislative priorities, and building relation-
ships with communities and groups in the Metro Detroit area.

On June 1, attorney Stuart A. Sklar 
began his one-year term as the 70th 
president of the Michigan Association 
for Justice (MAJ). Sklar, a managing 
shareholder at Fabian, Sklar, King 
& Liss, P.C. in Farmington Hills, rep-
resents homeowners, business owners 
and other policyholders in property 
insurance claims as well as injured 
victims of fires and explosions. “MAJ members not only 
bring extremely important issues to light, but also pro-
vide a confident voice to those who would otherwise be 
overlooked,” Sklar said. He joined MAJ in 1991 and has 
served as an officer for the past four years.