About thirty years ago, I met a young student leader named Chris who joined the student
government association I was advising when I was working at the University of
Tampa. He was scary smart if not a little rough around the edges but I got a
clear glimpse that this was going to be a person of influence and impact!
Thirty years later my instincts were proven right but I never expected the
impact it would have on me!
You
see Chris has become a mover and shaker in the worlds of politics, mass media,
and philanthropy. We have been Facebook friends for some time but a couple of
weeks ago, he asked me if I would be a guest on a radio show he was producing.
I was floored! Why me? Clearly, he was much better connected than I was and
could have much more well know persons on the show. His response was humbling
to me. He told me that because I believed in and supported him so many years
ago, that he now wanted to help me because he was now in a position to do so.
He wanted to PAY IT BACKWARDS he
said. This got me thinking out loud about how meaningful that was for me and
how it can be a powerful practice we can all adopt to impact the lives of
others.
In his
outstanding book, Intentional Living, leadership expert John Maxwell talks about
just how powerful it is when we INTENTIONALLY add value to the lives of others.
He tells a great story about a helping a young person who was doing a school
project which involved passing along a blue ribbon to someone who had made a
significant contribution to their lives. The young leader had chosen John
because his content really helped them . . . that young leader wanted to PAY IT BACKWARDS! Of course, in typical
John Maxwell style, John not only took the ribbon, but he met with the young
person, invited them to appear on stage with him at an event where he was
speaking and added tremendous value to them!
The
point is this, how often are we waiting for others to do something for us? How
would your life be different if you were more focused on what you could do
for OTHERS as opposed to what they can do for you?
So how
do we do this? How can we develop this life-changing practice of PAYING IT BACKWARDS! Start with
answering three basic questions:
- What have you been GIVEN? What experiences, accomplishments, resources, etc. have you been given that make you UNIQUELY EQUIPPED to ADD VALUE to theirs?
- What do you have to GIVE? Everyone has been EQUIPPED with qualities, talents, skills, and attitudes that can have impact on others!
- What can you DO? Inventory what you KNOW you can do and then decide WHO or WHAT you can do it for.
In my case, Chris had access to a show called Finding Your Frequency (I really
like that concept!!) where he serves as the executive producer on the Voice
America internet network. He used his considerable talents and influence to
ask the on-air hosts add me as a guest. Finally, he decided that he wanted to
help me because he knew it could assist me to expand my message and reach to a
whole new audience. The result was he, along with the show’s hosts Jeff Spenard
and Ryan Treasure added tremendous value to me!
When we PAY IT BACKWARDS, it costs a price we WANT to pay!
David Roads
states “you were born with the ability to change someone's life - don't ever
waste it!” So, here’s a little homework. List 10 people in your life that
should make your Top 10 Gratitude List and then think about how you can
use your SUCCESS to help them! It can as simple as sending a nice card to a
former teacher or a special remembrance to an old friend. Now I am sure when
you do this, you are in no way expecting a return just like when I finally
learned how to invest in students and later working professionals, I never
expect them to return the favor. It’s just how I have chosen to operate. But when
we PAY IT BACKWARDS, it costs a price we WANT to pay!
For an
audio link to the actual Finding Your Frequency episode on
the Voice America, network please see the link below. The other guests
include nutrition coach Ken Ludwig and fitness expert Shemane Nugent, wife of
the iconic rock star, Ted Nugent.
As always if I can help you and the
people you associate with Get Better, Be Ready and LEAD OUT LOUD, I would
invite you to email me or to visit my website below and see if any of the
training or coaching experiences I offer can provide an impact! In fact, I am
launching a new SPEAK FOR IMPACT
training program that will help both novice and experienced leaders find their platform and increase
their communication skills! Also, as a bonus, if you go to my Out Loud
Strategies website (www.outloudinc.com) and enter your contact information, I will
send you a FREE guide to establishing a mentoring initiative program in your
organization! Such an initiative would be critical to add value to your
organization!
Yours in Leadership,
Bill Faulkner
Principal Consultant –
Out Loud Strategies
Independent Coach,
Speaker, and Trainer with the John Maxwell Team TM
Email = bill@outloudinc.com
For more information on
the John Maxwell Team, please visit
No comments:
Post a Comment