Great Lessons Begin Early

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Great Lessons Begin Early

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Let me share a quick story about how simple childhood conversation made an impact on the life I lead today.

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600 Words; formatted to 65 Characters per Line Distribution Date and Time: Fri Apr 28 11:59:05 EDT 2006

Written By: Motivational Speaker Gregory Scott Reid Copyright: 2006 Contact Email: GregReid@AlwaysGood.com

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Great Lessons Begin Early Copyright © 2006 Motivational Speaker Gregory Scott Reid Author of "The Millionaire Mentor" www.motivational-speaker-gregory-scott-reid.com

Let me share a quick story about how simple childhood conversation made an impact on the life I lead today.

During a recent radio interview, the host asked where I came up with the lessons I shared in my latest book, Positive Impact. My response surprised even me as I recalled the answer. You see, I was very fortunate to have grown up with a wonderful role model. Even when I was a child, my Mother spoke to me on a mature level, taught me lessons that have lasted and have impacted the lives of numerous people within my circle.

For example, I share a lesson in Positive Impact that came from a car ride when I was about 12 years old. My mom was telling a story about something that had happened at her workplace when I piped in and said something along the lines of, "I would never do that if that was me." An eerie silence filled the car. It was an uncomfortable moment, and then my mom turned toward me and said these words: "Pop quiz. Say you have some very important people coming into your business to close a major deal with you and your organization. Now, the place is a mess because the cleaning people never showed up and the office and bathroom need a major overhaul. Quick! What would you do? Would you: (1) Call the janitors office and yell at them for not doing their job? (2) Change the meeting place because the office is just too messy to deal with? Or (3) clean it yourself?"

My response was short and simple: "I'd change the location AND yell at the cleaning crew. After all, I'm the boss, right? Cleaning toilets is NOT my job!"

My Mom turned toward me and lowered her head with a look of disappointment, shaking it from side to side as she responded in a quiet tone, "That's a shame. You'll never be a leader then."

"What?" I belted. "You said I already WAS the leader. You said I was the boss."

"No," she whispered. "As a leader, you would be willing to do anything and everything necessary to create success for yourself and others, no matter what, even if it meant cleaning an office. Real leaders are willing to chip in and help in any circumstance. Funny thing," she continued. "If you were that kind of a leader, more than likely you would never have to worry about situations like this because others would want to help you look good."

Even at that young age, I remember having one of those "Aha" moments when things seemed so clear.

In my adult years, I remember staying at work after hours one day to clean up a bit and do a little wall painting. A couple of employees came up behind me and asked, "Why are you doing that? Shouldn't you hire someone to do that stuff?" Suddenly, the student became the teacher as I shared the same story with them that my mom had shared with me. Hours went by as they stayed behind to help me deck out the office that night, never asking for a thing in return. One of those people became his own boss, and now has a company of his own. I often wonder how many people he's told this story to, along with the other great advice my mom shared with me over the years.

Well, Mom, for myself and the others whom your wisdom has affected, I want to say thank you, I love you, and whatever you do,

Keep Smilin'!

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Gregory Scott Reid, #1 best selling author The Millionaire Mentor, Positive Impact, and co-author Wake up... Live the life you Love www.motivational-speaker-gregory-scott-reid.com