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am Zell, the late real‑estate magnate who amassed a fortune through distressed property acquisitions, explained on the March 2020 episode of “The Tim Ferriss Show” that retirement and vacations were never on his radar. He said he simply loved his work and avoided anything he didn’t enjoy. “I’ve always tried to do only what I want,” he told Ferriss. “I wake up every morning excited, never thinking, ‘I have to do this again.’ My life is about never doing what I don’t want and never being where I don’t want to be.”

    Zell preferred traveling to new places over traditional holidays because it kept him curious and learning. “The word ‘vacation’ feels foreign to me,” he said. “I’m not one to sit on a beach; I just want to see things.” He believed that entrepreneurship and risk‑taking demand deep curiosity and a passion for knowledge. He recalled a moment when he watched a video about a massive Freeport‑McMoRan copper mine and wanted to visit. At a conference, he told the CEO, “I just read about this incredible mine and I want to see it.” The CEO arranged a trip, and Zell flew into a jungle airport to tour the mine—an experience he said would stay with him forever. “Curiosity,” he said, “is the engine of discovery.”

    Zell also stressed the importance of independent thinking. “I’ve spent my life separating what others think is cool from what I know is different,” he said. By gathering knowledge, he avoided common pitfalls and didn’t follow the crowd. Yet he warned that too much information can overwhelm decision‑making. “You need to learn how to sort through it,” he advised, “distinguishing what matters from what doesn’t.”

    In short, Zell’s philosophy was simple: work you love, travel to learn, stay curious, think for yourself, and develop the skill to filter information. This mindset helped him build a real‑estate empire and remain a relentless learner throughout his career.