Forbes Facts
As readers of my books and these weekly columns already know, I’m a huge fan of Steve Forbes both personally and professionally. We have been friends for a number of years. He featured me in one of his books, has written the forward to several of my books, and he has appeared in a cameo role as himself in one of my movies based upon my novel The Lamp. Steve Forbes is quite simply one of the leading voices of capitalism, free enterprise, and success in the world today.
If you admire anything I have ever said or written, the genesis of those thoughts probably date back to my parents. Steve Forbes had the benefit of learning from his father Malcolm Forbes. Malcolm Forbes said, “Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are.” All of us tend to downplay the things around us that are routine and familiar. I have met people who live on 5th Avenue in New York City, near the beach in Maui, Hawaii, or in view of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. These people become so familiar with their surroundings that they forget how magnificent the world around them can be.
We all tend to look at our own talents, abilities, and accomplishments as mundane or ordinary. That which is ordinary to us can be magnificent to others. Painting to Picasso or Leonardo da Vinci was simply a day at work. Singing to Luciano Pavarotti or Frank Sinatra was simply doing their job. Governing to Ronald Reagan, FDR, or Winston Churchill was a part of their daily routine. We need to learn to look at ourselves as others see us. While we don’t want to get an overinflated opinion of ourselves, we certainly don’t want to discount our value, talent, and the contribution we can make to the world.
I am part of an accountability group as well as a mastermind group. In both of these settings, we often take a few moments to verbalize the positive traits and unique characteristics of the other members of the group. On a regular basis, I am introduced to crowds of people before I speak at arena events or on virtual platforms. Listening to someone recount my background, history, and accomplishments makes me feel better about who I am and challenges me to live up to that standard and build upon it in the future.
If we are committed to being better tomorrow than we are today, that growth, development, and improvement begins with understanding how great we already are.
As you go through your day today, value who you are and celebrate who you can be.
Today’s the day!