# NASCAR Hall of Famer Jimmie Johnson Says Small Habits, Not Talent, Explain His Success > Seven-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson tells Gen Z that showing up 10 minutes early and shining your shoes matter more than raw talent in a crowded field, according to Fortune. - Source: Money Standard - Canonical URL: https://moneystandard.co.uk/article/jimmie-johnson-says-small-habits-not-talent-explain-his-success - Author: Money Standard Newsroom - Section: Business - Published: 2026-08-23T12:54:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-08-23T12:54:00.000Z - Tags: Career Advice --- Jimmie Johnson built one of the most decorated careers in NASCAR history, a seven time Cup Series champion with 83 wins including the Daytona 500 and a spot in the sport's Hall of Fame, and his advice to Gen Z has little to do with raw talent, according to Fortune. Since stepping back from full time racing in 2020, Johnson has moved into team ownership and built a net worth estimated above $150 million, but the habits he points to as most responsible for his success are small, unglamorous ones. Chief among them is showing up early. Johnson said being 10 minutes early for a meeting is what counts as on time in his book, a habit he credits with helping him stand out and leave a lasting impression across his career, in a sport and a business world both crowded with competitors chasing the same opportunities. He traces part of that mindset to an early, blunt lesson. While trying to join a golf club, the head of the membership committee criticized his appearance and told him to shine his shoes, adding simply that people notice. Johnson said he adopted the habit permanently from that point on, treating personal presentation as a genuine differentiator in a competitive field rather than a superficial concern. As he put it, the small things matter and help you cut through the fray in a very congested space. Johnson's own path started far from NASCAR's spotlight. Raised in a working class family in a California trailer park, he started dirt biking at age five and skipped college entirely to chase professional racing. His parents set one rule that stuck with him: if they were not having fun first, they were not doing it, a philosophy he has carried into how he thinks about work more broadly. Even with that track record, Johnson does not pretend to have work life balance figured out. He admitted he is failing at it right now, juggling team ownership responsibilities with plans for one final Daytona 500 appearance in 2027, a reminder that even someone built around discipline and small habits still finds the balance itself the hardest part to nail down. --- Originally published by Money Standard. Free to cite with attribution and a link to https://moneystandard.co.uk/article/jimmie-johnson-says-small-habits-not-talent-explain-his-success.