Re-Think Your Success Idols
By leadership author and keynote speaker Ross Shafer
I’m Ross Shafer and I want to thank you for finding the Relevant Leaders Club where each week I post videos to help you grow your business and your career. Today I want you to rethink who you take inspiration from. Too often we look at the rich or famous on TV and think I WANT THAT LIFE but I have no idea how to get there? IT’s not magic. It’s not connections. It’s about drive. Desire. It’s rejection and never giving up. And right about now I know you’re saying BLAH, BLAH, BLAH, I’ve heard this all before, Ross. Well, here’s a story you haven’t heard.
This is my friend, Richard Peterson. Richard Peterson is a savant street musician. If you’ve ever seen the Tom Cruise movie RAIN MAN, you know that Dustin Hoffman’s character “Raymond” was an autistic savant who had an almost super human memory. Richard is like that. If you tell Richard your birthday, he can tell you what day of the week you were born. Richard’s mind can also somehow separate his motor skills. He can actually play the trumpet and the piano at the same time… it’s his job. Richard makes money by collecting donations for playing his trumpet outside Seattle Seahawk and Seattle Mariners games. But, don’t pity Richard Peterson just because he plays his music for coins in a bucket. He is not homeless. Richard has stashed several hundred thousand dollars in various bank accounts. To date, he has recorded six full albums of his music. The Stone Temple Pilots licensed one of his songs for their second album. Pretty good for a guy who’s upbringing was sheer horror. Richard was bounced between a half dozen foster homes and kicked out of the fifth grade because the teacher said he was too loud and disruptive. He’s been on his own since he was 12. There were no companies who would hire him so he created his own enterprise. Richard is such an interesting person that he became the subject of a feature film documentary titled, “Big City Dick.”- Richard has so many supportive fans that the movie starred Oscar® winner Jeff Bridges, several radio and TV personalities, and yours truly. By any standards, the under-educated and socially awkward Richard Peterson is a roaring success. Six record albums, a motion picture about his life, no debt, and a collection of famous friends and fans.
In all the time I’ve known Richard Peterson, I have never heard him complain about his background or not being able to accomplish his dreams. He makes no excuses and he blames no one. The point is this – instead of looking for inspiration from somebody on television, which of course is somebody you don’t know – why not be inspired by your hometown heroes who have achieved greatness, despite their disadvantages and hardships. Watch THEIR drive and perseverance. Get to know THOSE people. Study their work habits to get things done. And don’t dismiss the person who doesn’t look rich and famous. There are a lot of millionaires who live next door… they just don’t brag about it.
If you liked what you heard here, please subscribe and leave a comment down below so the rest of our community can learn from your experience. We have other videos for you to watch and I’d encourage you to get our free e-book THE RELEVANT LEADERS GUIDE here.
Click the button below to watch the video.