Arnold Schwarzenegger said successful people see other people as 'resources' to help achieve their goals

• Arnold Schwarzenegger believes that successful people soak up useful information and see others as "resources."
• Using other people's acumen can help you achieve your goals, he said in an excerpt of a new book published by CNBC.
• He shared a story about learning a bodybuilding trick from Vince Gironda by being "curious."

Hollywood legend, businessman, and ex-California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger dropped some words of wisdom in an excerpt of his new book published by CNBC on Thursday, in which he said that successful people tend to see other people as "resources" to help them achieve their goals.

The 76-year-old has worn many hats over his lifetime including a distinguished career in bodybuilding, over 50 years as an actor in Hollywood, a stint as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 to 2011, and most recently Netflix's chief action officer.

Schwarzenegger has learned a thing or two about success over his varied career and advised readers that being "curious" and "a good listener" will make people more inclined to help them achieve their goals.

"When it comes down to it, people are resources," Schwarzenegger wrote in the excerpt from his new book, "Be Useful: Seven Tools for Life."

"But it's only when you learn to soak up what those people tell you — not just let it go in one ear, out the other — that you truly begin to make yourself useful to others and become a resource yourself."

Schwarzenegger gave a personal example in which he saw the bodybuilder Vince Gironda do side-lying tricep extensions at the gym and decided to try it out for himself.

"The exercise was so effective, I had to ask Vince about it: How did you come up with this exercise? Why does this work better than other similar movements? How should I best incorporate it into a workout?"

He explained: "By being curious, I showed humility and made myself an ally to Vince, which made it more likely that he might share other valuable training techniques."

The actor admitted that "most people aren't so lucky" when it comes to their position in life which is often affected by circumstances outside of their control. But they can change their mindset, he said.

"You can change by being curious and by being a sponge, and then using the knowledge you gain to craft a vision for yourself," he wrote.

Schwarzenegger recently complained that he doesn't want modern society to become a "generation of wimps," who lack mental resilience, on SiriusXM's "The Howard Stern Show."

"You have to learn to accept pain, misery, and discomfort — all of the things that you don't like," he said. "Because the more you experience the things you really don't like, the more you can grow, and the tougher you get, and the more you can handle."