This morning I keynoted a conference in Columbus Ohio for the Ohio Pupil Transportation. It was really very rewarding for me and certain the audience got a lot out of it. Besides the standing ovation, the hugs and accolades, I walk away with a revelation that I will never forget.
I was hired by a woman through a Speakers Bureau to keynote the conference. The woman's name is Sharon. Sharon introduced me. But you should be very mindful of what I'm about to share with you now. I was amazed and dumbfounded. To say the least, I was not prepared for happened to me.
Sharon went to the podium with my introduction. The moment she started reading the first sentence, she broke in the tears. From that point on, she kept crying and barely got through the introduction. I stood in the back of the room speechless and I was supposed to be the keynote speaker.
Up to that point, I was wondering why she was crying. Then she paused and said, "I knew she was going to be able to read the introduction without crying. This man changed my life three years ago."
She had seen me speak at the Oprah Land Hotel. And what I said resonated so well with her that she took immediate action to change her life. Now, this is not to brag about myself. It is rather to make this point...
With words we can change the world. Remember this: In the beginning was the word. We have to carefully choose what we say. Sometimes we may not be aware of the impact we are making on others. And part of the reason is because the impact is slow.
At the time when Sharon heard me, I was making a point in my speech about how some of the people in my tiny and impoverished village in Haiti used to tease me. Because I was so sick and deprived as a child, most of the people didn’t think I was going to survive. I remember I was six years old and I was fanning flies off my face and hardly breathing. A man came by to see the lady I was staying with.
The man told her that she was wasting her time me. And that I was not going to make it. Well, he was dead wrong. That was his prediction. God had a better plan. You see, there are people out there who will do or say anything to make you feel little about yourself. They will kiss you all over when you are around them. Then once you turn your back they begin to stab you.
I am sure you know some of those people. I am telling you, don’t let them get the best of you. Their predictions about you are out of pure jealousy. Do NOT internalize what they are saying about you. Besides, those people who don’t believe you are going to make it have never been there in the first place. Chances are if they have walked the path before, they would never try to discourage you.
Alright, that’s just a small segment of my entire speech. I covered many other points. In my book No Condition is Permanent (the title of the speech), I go into more details about how to create your own success.
