Les Brown – DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME (Powerful Motivational Video)
I wish I had not waited 14 years
somebody said if you want to lose
something lose money you can get that
back eight out of ten millionaires have
been financially bankrupt Walt Disney
filed bankruptcy seven times had two
nervous breakdowns but don’t lose time
there were 14 years I said on the
sideline 14 years I said I don’t have an
investor in me like Tony Robbins 14
years that said I don’t have an MBA or a
PhD it and I can compete with these guys
I have the complexion of rejection 14
years I silenced mice Wow and so I
regret that because there are some
people that maybe if that heard my voice
they would not have turned to drugs if
they’d heard my voice their lives would
have taken a different direction and I
can’t get those 14 years back that
haunts me and made I think that drives
me when I speak with such energy I’m
trying to make up for that time hmm but
I can
a time of great uncertainty and a time
of change that’s taking place around the
world at a time when people are feeling
a great deal of anxiety and fear and
reservations about the future at a time
when people are going to work and don’t
know whether or not they will have a job
when they get off and not necessarily
because of their performance but because
of what’s happening in the economy at a
time when there are challenges more so
than ever before in personal
relationships we look at what’s
happening in the crime level and what’s
happening with our youth that many times
I’m sure that we’ve all taken time just
to stop and reflect many times when we
hear what’s happening in the news or
read the newspapers where’s all of this
leading to what’s going on here and so I
think that now more than ever we must
begin to look at what are the things
that we can do that would put us on some
firm footing in life that will enable us
to do some things and and use some
powers that we have that many of us go
through life never ever discovering that
we have those things going for us and
part of that I believe is knowing what
it is your life work what is it that
gives your life a sense of meaning and
purpose because once you find that it
puts you in your power place see if you
know what your life work is I encourage
you to start working on it if you can’t
do it all at one time do just a little
bit of it and if you don’t know what it
is that you showed up to do if you don’t
know why you’re here I encourage you to
find out what your purpose is here what
is the meaning of your life what will be
different have you ever asked yourself
that question I’ve done that I remember
coming from a friends of my funeral and
I was reflecting on how much time I had
left
and I went for a walk in a park thinking
about this guy whose life was so
promising and I mean he wasn’t an oil
guy he was quite young in fact and I
thought about all of the things that he
said he was going to do and he never got
a chance to do those things and I start
thinking about my own life and how much
time I had left to do the things that I
would like to do and at that time I
wasn’t sure what my life purpose was
what my life’s work was I wasn’t sure
about it at that time and I thought
about it quite a lot I had some idea but
I wasn’t convinced that I don’t think I
felt worthy I didn’t believe that it
could be me to do this kind of work that
I’m doing right now and I say to you
that if you began to take a conscious
effort to find out what it is that
you’re supposed to do I say that it can
literally save your life I said that it
can literally save your life I was
telling a group of people of a study
that was conducted dr. Larry Darcy who
wrote a book called recovering the soul
he said human beings are the only living
species that has achieved the dubious
distinction of dying or having a stroke
or a heart attack on a certain day if
you ask most people what would you say
the primary cause of why people would
have a heart attack of stroke many
people say well because they smoked
cigarettes or because of high
cholesterol or because of stress or
because of obesity and all of those
things are contributing factors but
ladies and gentlemen more heart attacks
take place in this country on Monday
morning between 8:00 and 9:00 a.m.
that’s when the majority of people who
have their first heart attacks have them
85% of the American public according to
recent studies of going to jobs that
they hate working on jobs that do not
challenge them they get sick thinking
about going
migraine headaches after the Sunday
afternoon football game or 60 minutes
the anxiety begin to build and come
Monday morning they drop dead of a
broken heart
some of you ought to think about not
going to work on Monday think about that
people are literally dying to go to work
[Laughter]
because see when you go to a job and you
already know how far you can go you can
already see that proverbial glass
ceiling it’s like going to a movie when
you’ve gone in in the middle of the
movie and you’ve seen the inn and and
you sit there to afford to start all
over again but something is missing you
know what the outcome is going to be you
can’t get excited about going through
that movie all over again am I correct
see when you’re going someplace and you
already know how much you’re going to
make you already know how far you can go
you’re in a dead-end position it erodes
your self-esteem it lowers your sense of
yourself
it creates an inner turmoil
it creates an emptiness in you so I say
that your life is worth finding what it
is that you’re supposed to do and I’m
not saying quit your job I’m saying find
it and do just a little bit of it when I
wanted to become involved in speaking I
started just learning quotes listening
to other people’s tapes going to
seminars going to workshops asking other
people to help me just not working at it
just a little bit but do find out what
your work is and hold on to it and don’t
let your dream go don’t let it go see
and here’s something else I want you to
begin to look at why is it that most
people don’t pursue their dreams so
don’t do better than what they’re doing
if they’re capable of doing it I think
that many of us don’t go the next step
because we don’t know what to do yet and
I say that that the reason that we don’t
even explore the possibility of what to
do is because subconsciously we don’t
believe that it can happen for us and we
don’t believe that we deserve it so
here’s what I’m suggesting
how much time do you spend working on
you how much time do you spend every day
working on your dream in the last 90
days how many books have you read in the
last year what new skill or knowledge
have you acquired what kind of
investment have you made in you so I’m
saying that as you begin to look at
where you want to go if you want to make
it today and things are changing so fast
you have to literally run a standstill
I’m saying that you’ve got to make some
conscious effort to begin to work to
develop you here’s something else most
people are not living their dreams
because of fear ladies and gentlemen I
was in Columbus Ohio yesterday speaking
for a particular Ohio Department lady
named Karen who greeted me who organized
the event very talented very skillful
and she was talking about she wanted to
become involved in the consulting
business I say why aren’t you doing it I
said you have the abilities I said
you’re not here because they like you
you’re here because your doing the job
you’re making things happen and she came
up with all kind of ideas but finally
she said I guess I I can’t see myself
doing it I guess I’m afraid fear limited
vision and lack of self esteem is what
keep most people doing things they don’t
want to do I was flew from Columbus Ohio
to Denver Colorado to a major
communications company and the person
that taking up the airport told me about
the fact that the company is planning on
having a major downsizing and they
offered some of the employees there in
early retirement and some of them will
earn as much as $300,000 and they said
this is the last time that you can take
this offer if you don’t do it when we
have the downsizing you might be among
those who will lose their jobs and all
you will get is your severance pay and
only 50% of the people who were eligible
to take the $300,000 took it the others
were afraid to take a chance on the
selves the others couldn’t see
themselves beyond that company they
couldn’t see life after that company the
same reason that people stay in
relationships where their bills are
they’re unhappy or it’s unfulfilled they
can’t see themselves beyond that
relationship they can’t see themselves
enjoying life without that person they
think that this is all that they can do
the same reason that people get stuck at
a certain level in life they can’t see
things being better for them and they
think that this is it and this is all
they deserve this is all they’ve ever
seen has been passed on to them and they
think that this is it for them
oh no looking what dr. Blanton smiley
Blanton who is a colleague of dr. norman
vincent peale what he said about
theories that fear is the most subtle
and destructive of all human diseases
ladies and gentlemen fear kills dreams
fear kills hope fear put people in the
hospital fear can age you fear ladies
and gentlemen can hold you back from
doing something that you know within
yourself that you’re capable of doing
but it will paralyze you and it seem
like you’re in a hypnotic spell and I
ask you a question what is the benefit
what’s the benefit of allowing fear to
hold you back what’s the benefit of
giving up on yourself of not stepping
out on life and taking life on what is
the benefit for you what’s the plus in
that it’s one of the things I had to ask
myself so I didn’t want to make any
mistakes I wanted everybody to like me I
wanted to be perfect the first time I
did something it’s not going to happen
you’re going to make some mistakes
you’re gonna hurt some folks feelings
you’re gonna create some enemies
whenever you decide that you want to
begin to take life on you’ve got to ask
yourself how long am I going to allow
this to hold me back I like what Zig
Ziglar says he said fear is false
evidence appearing real
that is an illusion that we create in
our mind it is a state of mind that can
be changed so let’s look at how we can
begin to take some steps to restructure
that fear to begin to expand our visions
of ourselves to begin to increase our
self-esteem Webster said that
self-esteem means confidence and
satisfaction in oneself look at your
life right now whatever you’ve done up
to this point in time your life is
working whatever you have produced it
came out of you but as a result of the
kind of person that you have become it’s
a result of your choices it’s a result
of your consciousness now you have to
ask yourself are you satisfied with what
you have produced is this what you want
would you like for things to be better
than this do you believe that you
deserve better than this all right you
content this is it you don’t have to do
everything anything else but you aren’t
ready to resign yourself in life so well
I’m happy I’m not starving like the
people in Calcutta are you allowing
yourself to get off the hook like that
or do you believe somewhere in the back
of your mind or in your heart but
there’s some other great work for you to
do there’s something else
that light has for you and that’s why
you’re here how do we handle this fear
factor how do we increase our
self-esteem you have to begin to fortify
yourself how do we do that I believe
that you have to begin to consciously
monitor yours inner conversation and
start talking to yourself start building
yourself up sometimes the only good
things you will hear about you are the
things that you say to you
young lady that that was in the audience
this afternoon said to me I told myself
yesterday for the first time I’m proud
of me and she said I felt good about
that
so I’m saying learn to be your own
booster stop building yourself up start
encouraging yourself start saying I can
do this I can make this happen when I
started thinking about becoming the
speaker I said yes I can do this I can
make this happen when I start trying to
convince myself I can be a businessman
after flapping and failing and losing
thousands of dollars and feeling stupid
and dumb and having people take
advantage of me because of what I didn’t
know I had to talk to myself because
people say to me that I was done and
somewhere in the back of my mind I was
saying you’re right look at what I’ve
done I had to say no no no no no no no
less hey hey come on man get yourself
together you can handle this you just
haven’t figured it out yet it’s all
right this is your training period this
is the tuition you have to pay for what
you don’t know you can do this other
people have done it doesn’t take an
Einstein get you some people that can
teach you some stuff that you don’t know
get you some people that have done it
successfully and learn from them take
some seminars workshop
read some books on how to manage a
business change the way you see yourself
and begin to attend to the personal
details understand that nobody is going
to take care of your business better
than you and when I start changing that
kind of mindset of beating myself up
because of my mistakes and start looking
at the possibility of my doing better of
my making the adjustment that would
enable me to do what I want to do
successfully things begin to change
now saying stop beating up on yourself
you do do it I know you do it I’ve done
it it’s a natural inclination for us to
put ourselves down see we have born
negative I think in a negative
consciousness because we live in a
negative world so you don’t have to
teach children to lie their
leiodermatolide
did you wet in your pants no I did not
well what is that I don’t know you don’t
have to encourage kids to misbehave they
will do it by themselves you don’t have
to encourage them to do the wrong thing
they would do it automatically you have
to correct their behavior so I’m saying
that we have to work through the
challenges of life and learning how to
begin to work to fortify ourselves
repeat after me please I can live my
dream I can find my purpose in life and
live my purpose I deserved more for
myself I deserved more from life
check somebody’s hand on your right and
left and say you deserve more from life
too
here’s some other things ladies and
gentlemen begin to guard your mind
against negative programming like turn
off the television don’t watch the news
don’t watch it I think that more people
have a sense of hopelessness and anxiety
about life if you look at the news you
cannot feel good looking at the news
you’ll be scared to death you’re scared
to go to sleep I mean it turns your
power down you’ve got to be conscious of
that don’t pick up the newspaper and
read it no no I’ll just try this just
experiment with yourself now if your job
depends upon your knowing certain things
let somebody tell you just about those
things but stop filtering the stuff you
loud to come in your mind you know that
something is that so don’t let nobody
bring me no bad news I tell my staff
look here don’t tell me any bad news
while I’m on the road
let me handle it tomorrow I’m like
anybody tell me any bad news at night
before I go to sleep I can’t do anything
about it anyhow why let me go to sleep
with that on my consciousness no no a my
staff they know that say that let it
wait till tomorrow and I have a period
of time tell me bad news between 10
o’clock and 12 news after I prayed and
meditated and read my books I’m
fortified I’m ready to handle it I deal
with that I’m out of there and I’m going
on to something else so you’ve got to
guard the kinds of things that you put
in your mind see if you don’t program
your mind your mind will be programmed
because human beings are goal oriented
that’s why we die of broken hearts early
that’s why we’re running through life
too early grades we’re going through
life ladies and gentlemen and I think
that Henry David Thoreau stated that
most men live in quiet desperation most
of us go through life running scared
Larry Dee Angie who I think is gonna be
one of the greatest motivational
speakers around today told me a story a
true story of a friend of his that every
day when he came home from school when
he would get to a certain Block in his
neighborhood there was a neighborhood
dog that would chase him and that dog
would start after him barking bored he
would run just running from that dog
every day every day
well he just got tired of that
chased him everyday he said his dog come
around here dad I’m gonna take a brick a
stub and bust him in here so he was
walking home that day minding his own
business sure enough same area there was
that dog there the dogs start barking he
started running he saw a brick and he
stopped and picked up the brick and turn
around and the dog got close to him he
realized the dog didn’t have any teeth
[Laughter]
he said he put the brake down and said
get out of my way
and ladies and gentlemen all our lives
many of us go through life running from
things and ain’t got no teeth to do us
any harm
how much you’ve been afraid to do
something and then after you did it you
say whoa if I noted was this easy I
would have done it before haven’t you
ever had that experience raise your hand
absolutely so we created this in our
minds false evidence appearing real
we made it real in our minds that’s why
Churchill said there’s nothing to fear
but fear itself
that’s the destructive monster so turn
off things that can contribute to your
fear turn a deaf ear to people that all
they can do is talk about how negative
things are because they have bought into
the consciousness of the world start
attending workshops seminars listening
to tapes on a daily basis to begin to
recondition your mind to retrain your
thinking faith comes by what hearing and
hearing and hearing listen to things
that can empower you that can enable you
to create a new reality for yourself in
a new life for yourself you might appear
to be strange around most people you
know most people think you’re strange if
you’re happy today people say how you’re
doing I said better than good whoa
what’s wrong with him just go around
smiling and watch people look at this is
this a weird guy over here because most
people are smile watch him look at their
faces in the morning here we go another
Monday morning how you doing haven’t had
my coffee yet don’t ask me say these
people have not found their purpose in
life that’s why they are grumpy but
that’s why they’re miserable that’s why
they’re so negative they’re hurting and
they want to hurt other people so start
practicing using programs for your mind
seminars books workshops keep a journal
record your thoughts what’s happening
with you every day when you get up have
a journal near you I use a Jack Bolan
journal so that I can write down my
ideas I keep it by my bed so I can write
down my thoughts see ladies and
gentlemen we get three to four thoughts
a year that if we would act on those
thoughts
they could change our eyes don’t say
well I’ll remember that no write that
Thorpe down I got a thought today I
wrote down a friend of mine is in the
hospital his morale is low they’re
talking about amputating his foot he’s
got to feel very bad so I said you know
I’m gonna I’m not only am I going to see
him but I can’t be there with him all
exam I said I’m going to create a cake
for him that that he can listen to that
will – his level of morale we told him
the other night don’t go to surgery you
are depressed your energy level is down
no no tell him not now don’t do it now
in fact most doctors will have any sense
of awareness don’t perform surgery on
patients that in the state of fear but
don’t think they will make it they wait
till they’re in a different state of
mind so I said what about making tapes
for people that are facing physical
challenges I said that’s a good idea
see they’re ideas that can come to you
out of things that appear to be negative
I have a friend out of Chicago just met
it means 23 years old and this guy he
went financially bankrupt two years ago
ruined his credit
guess what he decided to do he found a
blessing in it he wanted to restore his
credit it was very challenging very
difficult and he realized that a lot of
other people during these particular
times of ruin their credit so now he
started a credit repair business last
year he earned over $100,000 helping
people to restore their credit I met a
young lady who attends this church that
she was at her father’s funeral and and
she was putting flowers on her father’s
grave and she looked around and saw the
other grave sites they did not look
well-groomed and they were not attended
to on a regular basis she start a
gravesite maintenance business out of
that tragedy something positive has come
out of it and now she’s earning more
money during that than on her present
job what idea are you sitting on right
your ideas down and then once you get
that idea take the lead hello take the
lead see a lot of people get the ideas
and just walk around with them have you
ever had an idea and all of us have you
looked around and somebody had that idea
and gone with it think you’re gonna be
going with my hospital idea forget that
buddy
we will be out there together Jack
take the lead since out of the universe
if you don’t take the plunge I guarantee
you somebody else will take the plunge
go into action and ladies and gentlemen
you will be surprised how things will
come together you’ll be surprised now
you’re going to have some difficult
challenges I can tell you that now be
aware of that things are not going to
work out exactly right for time they
will sometimes and that’s when life is
just playing a game with you I want you
to feel good and relaxed and then after
a while so okay the honeymoons over now
and then like we’ll come over then slap
your side to hear you say what you’re
doing out here well this is my dream
life is that right come over here a
minute oh oh you went to the seminar huh
came in I can tell you that but ladies
and gentlemen go into action with your
dream and don’t avoid where the fights
are get in the midst of the fight and
get some hickeys on your head get
knocked down so you can learn how to
fight so you can hold your position
see most people don’t get out in the
arena of life because they don’t want to
fight most people don’t get out there
because they don’t want to get knocked
down they don’t want to be dropped to
their knees but see you’re going to be
dropped worthy you on the field or where
they’re not just sitting on the
sidelines you’re going to be dropped so
at least get dropped for something don’t
get knocked down while you’re sitting
down
see that’s not most people of spectators
in life you don’t want to be a spectator
you want to get out in the field where
the action is and you will be amazed
after the struggle there will be a calm
period and things will begin to click
for you come out here with what you got
you don’t have enough money don’t worry
about it you’ve got the dream you got
the idea you don’t have enough resources
don’t worry about it you need some help
don’t worry about it you’ll get out here
in the arena someone will look at you
and become inspired and say hey can I
help you but if you’re sitting up on the
bleachers nobody is gonna ask you
anything you’ve got to get into the flow
of action Frances Hart called me from
Chicago she had been sitting on an idea
of a show that she wanted to produce for
10 years called mind-body connection
so someone saw me speaking in Chicago
and a sorority convention and said I saw
a guy that perhaps can host this show
for you who has energy and charisma she
called me she was so fired up I said
listen on the day that you want to do
that I’m speaking in Chicago I can do it
for you and I said by the way I met
somebody two weeks ago in Baltimore who
has an idea of the same type of show and
she’s doing it on radio why don’t you
call her and then she called me back who
else would you suggest I say well I know
Deepak Chopra
he wrote the book called quantum healing
and Bernie Siegel could you get his
number I tell you what I have a friend
named Jack bowling at the Church of the
day he knows how to get in touch with
him call him and he will give you the
numbers so you can get in touch with
Bernie Siegel that lady start calling
all around did not have the resources
but she had this
idea and breathe and she said the other
night when she came before the audience
that had gathered in the studio she said
I feel like I’ve been pregnant for 10
years and tonight you’re going to
witness a beautiful delivery and it was
she said I couldn’t believe less how
things began to happen how it all began
to come together and how many of you
ever start on some dream and you didn’t
have all your stuff together but you
just went out there with nothing but
faith and things begin to tap in for
your way she added you know what I’ve
talked about ladies and gentlemen
fans up there as proof the proof is
demonstrated it and if they can do it
you can do
[Music]
