Alex Rodriguez

Alex Rodriguez on How to Reinvent Yourself

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A-Rod admits his life and career have been anything but perfect.

Despite signing with Major League Baseball at 17 and having contracts worth more than $450 million throughout his career, former New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez says he has made a "very healthy list of mistakes" along the way.

"I mean so many," Rodriguez tells CNBC Make It.

In 2009, Rodriguez admitted having used performance-enhancing drugs from 2001 to 2003, which later got him suspended for the 2014 season. He has also been criticized for poor sportsmanship.

Rodriguez says most he made most of his mistakes when he surrounded himself with the "wrong people."

"I'm a firm believer that you're an average of the five people that you surround yourself with the most," he says.

But today, Rodriguez, 45, is thriving and his company A-Rod Corp's investment portfolio is valued at more than $1 billion, according to the company's website.

So what's Rodriguez's best advice about reinventing yourself?

"I think so many people spend so much time doing, and I think taking a step back and really trying to architect the next one, three or five years of your life" is important, he says.

"Number one, make sure that you have a passion for whatever you're going to do. There's nothing that can replace that," he says.

Secondly, he says, you should seek a mentor and a boss that you really admire. "Someone that is going to help you and someone that has your back and someone that is going to teach you how to win," he says.

Rodriguez credits his success and transformation to his mentors, who include billionaire Warren Buffett and before he passed away in 2010, New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner.

"I spent thousands of hours collectively just picking their brains and talking about best practices and actually being in the boardroom, winning and losing and learning," he says. "If it wasn't for my incredible mentors, I wouldn't be here today."

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