WHAT I LEARNED FROM LES BROWN

Shoot for the moon and if you miss you will still be among the stars. — Les Brown

Yesterday I put on a podcast which happened to feature a talk from Les Brown. I hadn’t listened to Les in a while so I was keen to be reminded of some great thoughts on greatness, goals and dreams.” The quote above was mentioned and Les spoke about how he wrote that quote in school while he was struggling to learn.

If you haven’t followed or heard of Leslie, aka Les, he was marked as having learning disabilites. His teachers would say he wouldn’t amount to anything. When you have voices like that around you, it’s even more amazing this young man at the time had the courage to pen a quote like that.

And so I say to myself today, “Anthony, shoot for the moon and if you miss you will be among the stars.”

He went on to tell a story of how he first got into the disc jockey industry. Having no college education or prior training, he showed up to a radio station requesting a job. He was quickly declined. He showed up again and repeated this process three more times. He was swiftly declined three more times. Finally, the station manager told him to go and get coffee and that was his in-road to becoming a radio disc jockey.

He didn’t stop with just getting the job. He would not only run errands for all the DJ’s but he would also wash their cars (for free). He said, “provide more service than you get paid for.” This simple attitude catapulted him to his very own shot of being a DJ in Miami.

Last night at dinner we talked to the kids about earning money. I wanted them to understand how and why money is earned. At the end of the chat with them I said a quote that has stuck with me for years, “if you want to make money, solve problems. The more problems you solve, the more money you make. The bigger the problem, the bigger the paycheck.”

The kids are now thinking of ways to solve problems in and around our home. I’m confident they will come up with something.

Anyway, back to Les. What an inspirational guy. I hear his story, I hear his determination, I get jazzed up, I love it. But, even though I love it, I look at my life where I am and where I want to be and it seems galaxies apart. It seems impossible but that’s why these stories from Les are so impactful for me.

Les shared a few more stories about the people he was hanging out with. He mentioned one of his mentors told him to only spend time with “OQP,” which stands for — “only quality people.” He said those people will create your future life for you. Spend time with people who you want to be like and you will become them.

O, and preparation is a big deal. Be prepared for your opportunity. Les was prepared to be a radio DJ because he had practiced in his home and in his car. He may not have known how to work the buttons, but he knew how to capture the listeners ear. After working at the radio station for some time, his practice and skills matched together and he became a Miami DJ.

Just yesterday I was reminded again of being prepared for my opportunity. My opportunity to speak, to share and to inspire others. My daily habits of writing and starting a podcast is my preparation for what is to come. I believe when those opportunities come, I’ll be ready and will crush the opportunity.

Before I let you go, I want to leave you with some of my favorite Les Brown quotes. I mean the guy just sizzles when he speaks and I highly recommend you listen to some of his stuff.

If you fall, fall on your back. If you can look up, you can get up. Let your reason get you back up. — Les Brown

Too many of us are not living our dreams because we are living our fears. — Les Brown

Your ability to communicate is an important tool in your pursuit of your goals, whether it is with your family, your co-workers or your clients and customers. — Les Brown

Today, you expand or you are expendable. — Les Brown

You must remain focused on your journey to greatness. — Les Brown

I could go on and on about Les Brown but it seems my time is up. As you get into your day, know that greatness is inside of you. If someone like Les, with learning disabilities and adopted can make something of their life, know that you can. It just takes one step at a time.

Keep learning.