let me share with you a true story out
of my notebook of life number of years
ago got an incredible letter from a
gentleman in Toronto with a substantial
cheque in it he said my friend Steve
Walker is following the wrong road model
he’s working himself to death his
family’s falling apart
he’s his health is in danger and he’s
model himself out of his boss and he
trusts you and respects you if you will
give us one hour I will fly him to
Dallas and give you this cheque when you
love to have a friend like then I sent
the cheque back and I said come on down
Steve and I had quite a little talk and
in our talk I asked him why he had such
a role model of why did what about this
man that made him so completely
important in his life and he said well
he’s the most successful man I have ever
known and I said well Steve what do you
call success now it took several minutes
for him to go down the list but the
interesting thing is though they’re not
in the same order that I have put them
where they list him now these are the
eight things that he said he rarely
considered to be successful if a man was
happy and healthy and at least
reasonably prosperous and secure if he
had friends and peace of mind and good
family relationship and the hope that
future is going to be better he said I
consider that man is successful now I’m
gonna really encourage you to take some
notes right here and all I want you to
do and you’ll be the only one who will
see it somewhere right in my as I go
down the list right whether you get a
plus on that one or a minus on that one
you’ll be the only one to see it but it
might be an eye-opener you see most
people never dare to evaluate really
where they are and you don’t know where
you are before you can really determine
your chances of getting what you really
want out of life and so I said to Steve
I said I understand that your boss is
very important to you
you’re considered to be successful when
he finally got through
the identification as I said earlier
these were the eight things that he said
I think that’s important for success to
measure success
I said well seve let me ask you now as
far as Happy’s concerned tell me how
happy is your Bo’s
is it oh I don’t think he’s happy at all
I said why not he said well I’ve never
heard him laugh and he seldom smiles and
besides that he’s got ulcers I said well
don’t give him a plus or a minus he said
oh you give my – please grade yourself
as we go this is so important for you
then I said that also tells me something
about his health if he’s got those
ulcers do I give him a plus or minus he
said you give me – I said that also says
something Steve about his peace of mind
because you don’t get ulcers because of
what you eat but what’s eating you I
said that would give him a plus or minus
he said we give my – I said Steve I’ve
asked you one question about what
success is what balance is what’s
important to you one question and your
boss comes up with three minuses I said
tell me how prospers he is he said man
he’s got money running out of his ears
and he’s getting more every night I said
we give him a plus on that one don’t
wait he said we sure do I said how
secure is your boss he said well he’s as
secure as money can make you and I said
well Steve let me ask you did you read
where two billionaire brothers here in
Dallas went bankrupt I said how does
your boss get money did you read where
our race governor was worth a hundred
million dollars at one point he’s now
banged up how does your boss compare I
don’t have that kind of money now
understand Steve equated security with
corporate position and bucks in the bank
so I said well Steve let me ask you
would we give your boss a plus or a
minus or dislike’ question mark on that
he said let’s be generous and give him a
question mark I said how many friends
does your boss have I hope you’re
marking these for you how many friends
real friends do you does your boss out
he said I don’t think he’s got any I’m
not his friend I just haven’t had my
league I take it truly somewhat of a
jerk I said okay we give him a minus on
that
I said tell me about his family and he
said well his wife’s divorcing him
well that one’s easy to answer I said
how much hope does he have for the
future
he said well four I started talking to
you I thought he had a lot but right now
don’t think he’s got any why did that
statement come forth because for the
first time he had evaluated it that’s
what we need to evaluate where we are
are we investing our time properly using
our resources properly what will the end
results be well then I said to us Steve
when that was over we give him the –
there I said Steve of the eight things
that you consider marks of success he
gets one two three four five six – –is
he gets one plus and one question mark I
asked Steve a question I’m going to ask
you the same question Steve would you
swap places with your boss right now
knowing what you know he looked at me
kind of stunned he slowly rose to his
feet and said no would you just for a
moment let’s play a game let’s pretend
that your telephone rings tomorrow
morning and the voice on the other end
says John I’ve got some marvelous news
for you we’ve just won a trip to
Acapulco they’re gonna be four of us
that can go there only two of us my wife
and myself we leave it exactly eight
forty-five we’re going to stay on the
beach for days we will live in a
millionaire’s villa we will have
everything in our beck and call we will
live the life of luxury for four full
days now remember John we leave tomorrow
morning at 8:45 my only question is can
you be ready to go at 8:45 may I see the
hands of those who could in fact respond
and say yes
I could go just for a moment let’s
continue the game by saying you got the
telephone call you accept it then all of
a sudden it dawns on you hey I’ve got
some things to do as a matter of fact
I’ve got to do this and this and this
and this and this and as a matter of
fact you turn to your wife and say honey
I just don’t know whether or not we can
make it or not she says now hold a phone
John she whips out a sheet of paper she
says now what’s the first thing we got
to do what’s the second thing what’s the
third thing what’s the fourth thing what
the fifth thing
how many of you honest-to-goodness
believe that during the next 24 hours
you could get more done than you
normally get accomplished in three four
five six days would you hold up your
hands please here’s my question please
every day of your life
why don’t you in your own mind say
tomorrow I go to Acapulco if I get this
done today do you realize that if you
were to do that and schedule it and lay
it out that it would be just a matter of
weeks before you could in fact go to
Acapulco at any time that you wanted to
are anywhere else you want it to go I
was coming in on the plane yesterday
and I was sitting next to no boy and I
couldn’t help but notice he had his raw
his wedding ban on this finger now
looked at him for a moment I said friend
you got your wedding band on the wrong
finger he said yeah I married the wrong
I don’t know whether he did or not but I
am completely persuaded that most people
have the erroneous idea about what it
takes to be successful and then about
what success is and about what life is
and I would like to during these next
few minutes climb down right inside of
your mind I’d like to climb down in your
emotions I’m gonna motivate you I’m
gonna say some things to you that are
going to have an impact and you will in
fact not be the same when you get up
from your seats at the end of this
evening on your trip to Acapulco there
were several things involved first of
all you had a very specific goal say
could you had a time limit and third you
listed the obstacles the things you had
to do in order to get the trip to
Acapulco I’m gonna talk to you tonight
about goals their four basic reasons why
people do not have goals number one they
have not been sold now friends I’m flat
gonna sell you on why you got to have
them I didn’t say I wanted to I didn’t
say I was going to try to didn’t say I
hoped to our flat said I’m gonna sell
you on why you must have them the second
reason a lot of people don’t have goals
as they do not know how to set those
goals I’m gonna give you a basic formula
for setting those goals that will be
precise if you will follow it the third
reason a lot of people do not have goals
is they have fear you see there’s a
certain amount of risk involved when you
say the
I’m going to do even if you do not tell
anyone else when you set a goal there’s
a certain amount of risk involved then
the fourth reason a lot of people do not
have goals is because they have a poor
self-image if you do not think you
deserve success if you do not think you
deserve a bigger home to be a million
dollar producer to have an outstanding
mate
our beautiful well disciplined children
who are productive if you don’t think
you deserve them then you’ll do things
that will keep you from getting them
let’s look at number one let’s sell you
on the idea of having goals are they
important at Yale University in 1953
they did a study of the graduating
seniors they discovered that of the
graduating seniors only 3% of them had
definite predetermined written down
goals twenty years later they did
another survey of those seniors who had
graduated they discovered that the 3%
who had committed their goals to paper
had accomplished more than the 97% who
had not written them down what about you
personally if you got your goals laid
out are you a meaningful specific or are
you a wandering generality our goals
necessary I’m gonna say emphatically yes
can you imagine the chairman of the
board General Motors and somebody comes
to him and says how did you get to be
chairman of the board General Motors do
you really believe he said well I just
showed up for work and they started
promote men first thing here you know
Here I am chairman of the board General
Motors no I think you know that that is
not the way that it happened what about
you are you a wandering generality or
are you a meaningful specific how many
of you are in the world of selling would
you mind holding up your hands please
one of the major problems we have in the
world of selling
a lot of times the salesperson is out
selling and although they are out there
physically what they’re saying mentally
is I need to be home with the family and
then when they’re home with the family
physically they’re saying mentally I
ought to be out in the field selling and
so when they’re out in the field they’re
really back at home and when they’re
back at home they’re really out in the
field and ain’t never know where people
today complain of lack of time it’s not
lack of time that’s the problem it’s the
lack of direction are you wandering
generality or are you a meaningful
specific Howard Hill was part of the
greatest Archer who ever lived
he killed a cape buffalo with a bow and
arrow he killed a Bengal tiger with a
bow and arrow
he won 281 consecutive tournaments he
was never beaten in competition as a
youngster I have seen Howard Hill in
newsreels
from 50 feet draw dead aim and split the
center of that bullseye perfectly in the
center and yet he could take the next
arrow and literally split the first one
an amazing demonstration of skill and
yet I’m gonna look at you dead center
and say to you I could spend 20 minutes
with you and at the end of that 20
minutes dick I could have any man in
this audience or any woman in this
audience hitting the bullseye more
consistently than Howard Hill could have
on the best day he ever had provided we
blindfolded Howard Hill
and turned him around so it would not
know which direction he was facing and
you rather obviously laugh and say signa
that’s silly of course how could a man
hit a target he could not see that’s a
pretty good question here’s another one
how can you hit a target you do not have
have you got one
are you a wandering generality or are
you a meaningful specific are you going
to work tomorrow because that’s what you
did yesterday if that’s the reason
you’re going tomorrow you won’t be as
good tomorrow as you were yesterday
because you’re two days older and no
closer to the goal you do not have you
got to have those goals a lot of people
don’t have goals because of fear I want
to skip one and talk about this one just
for a moment I’ll be leaving on an
airplane tomorrow for Toledo Ohio now I
got sense enough to know that some of
those airplanes are coming down faster
than they’re going up it’s dangerous for
that plane to fly you see in the
newspapers where the ships leave the
harbor and you see where some of them
sink it’s dangerous for the ship to be
on the ocean you read where people lease
their homes and the lessee they people
who’ve rented the house they tear it up
it’s dangerous to let somebody move into
your house and yet the engineers tell me
that it’s more dangerous for that plane
to stay on the ground that it will rust
out faster than it will wear out up into
the heavens they tell me that that ship
will collect more barnacles in the
harbor and become unseaworthy faster
than it will sailing the high seas and
they tell me that that about house stays
empty that it will deteriorate faster
than if you do not have someone living
in that house besides planes are built
for flying ships are built for sailing
houses are built for living and man too
was built
or purpose he was designed for
accomplishment he’s engineered for
success he’s endowed with the seeds of
greatness and the greatest danger we as
human beings have is when we do not do
anything at oh stop a hundred young men
aged 25 on any Street USA follow them
until they’re 65 years old and of those
who are still living you will discover
that only five of them have succeeded
financially it’s almost as if they’d set
out in life to fail but I also believe
one of the reasons is most people don’t
understand this thing called money see I
think it’s all right to have money as
one of your goals occasionally I speak
to people and they say well I don’t want
to make a lot of money you know I
believe a man or a woman that would say
lot of people don’t have it because they
don’t understand it they talk about cold
hard cash
it’s neither cold nor hard it’s solved
feels good beautifully colored not one
says that redhead of mine over here ever
said to me wait a minute honey I got to
go change clothes because what I’m
wearing won’t go with what you’re
carrying as a matter of fact it goes
beautifully with it
there was no while I’ll have some of my
Christian friends they’ll adjust their
halos and save Zig how do you reconcile
all of that talk about money with
Christianity now say it’s easy
I believe God made the diamonds for his
[Applause]
I read my Bible and it tells me Jacob
was a millionaire Moses was a
millionaire Solomon of the richest man
who ever lived an old joke wouldn’t
qualified for the food stamp program if
you know what I mean
no money’s alright as a matter of fact
you cannot get too much money unless the
money gets you you know Solomon told us
in Ecclesiastes that he who seeks silver
will never be satisfied with silver now
if money becomes your God you got a
problem you’ll never have enough we know
thats true because in the last two years
five billionaires have died down in
Dallas somebody said I wonder how much
money Howard Hughes really left and
somebody else said he left it oh so if
anybody asked you how much you’re gonna
leave say same as Howard Hughes you’ll
be telling the truth now having said all
of that let me see if I can tie it back
together I believe and I’ll make this
statement 40 times in my book that you
can get everything in life you want if
you’ll just help enough other people get
what they want for example if you’re a
Salesman
if you’re selling a product that solves
a problem then you’re helping someone
else get what they want which is the
solution of the problem so you get what
you want and what you deserve if you’re
in management and your productivity and
the productivity of your people is
important to your income if you can
train enthuse inspire motivate your
people to be successful then your
rewards are going to be greater you can
get everything in life you won’t if you
will just help enough other people get
what they want see we can get what we
want if we can give you some thoughts or
some ideas or some motivation or some
stimulation if we can in fact leave you
something so that when you go home
tonight you will be a better man or a
better woman or a better boy or a better
girl then you will be more successful
tomorrow yes there’s danger in setting
goals but there’s infinitely more danger
in not setting them then a lot of people
do not know really how to set goals I’d
like to share it some length with you on
that I started writing this book I
started writing this book and I kind of
got excited about it I put in there some
words you can go where you want to go
you can do what you want to do you can
be like you want to be good man I wrote
those words and I said now Ziggler
that’s pretty good as a matter of fact I
got to talking to myself which is
perfectly all right it’s all right even
to answer but if you ever catch yourself
to the answer you got a problem well I
caught myself with a problem you know I
was saying huh because where I said you
can be like you want to be I look down
and there was a 41 inch waistline and
202 pounds of Ziggler and the thought
occurred to me that one of these days
that I might bump into some of you and I
could just imagine this conversation
taking place I could imagine you saying
Ziggler do you believe that stuff you’re
right I was gonna say uh huh then I was
gonna imagine you saying do you believe
all of it I was gonna say man yeah then
I could imagine you poking your finger
net 41 each waistline and saying Ziggler
do you really believe all of it and then
I was gonna have to say well you know us
office we do take a little literary
license every once in a while but I knew
I had to make a decision I either had to
take those words out of there you can be
like you want to be or I had to do
something about me not only that but my
boy was eight years old at the time and
I think every father ought to be able to
whip his children until they’re at least
12 and the rate I was going I wouldn’t
even gonna be able to catch mine but the
straw that broke the camel’s back was
when that red head of mine kept telling
me to hold my stomach in and I already
was so I went down to Cooper’s clinic
now Cooper is the guy who wrote the book
aerobics when you see somebody out
jogging you can rest assured that’s
Kenneth Cooper who had an influence on
him well it’s a five and half hour
examination
first thing they did was took two quarts
of my blood well it looked like two
quarts they feel so many bounds I
thought they were opening a branch of
the blood bank right there
then they dunk me in a tank of water
three times and the purpose was to
determine the percentage of body fat
that I had when I got through they told
me that I was 23 and 9/10 percent pure
lard then they put me on a treadmill and
you know on the treadmill the longer you
can walk the better your physical
condition
and the worst possible condition was
horrible well I was determined to get
out of horrible into just awful
and I made it by four seconds when it
was all over the young doctor dr. Martin
skinny young doctor run to the Boston
Marathon does the good things
call me in big smile on his face
optimistic a real PMA advocate probably
reads success unlimited on top of it
call me any with big old smiley said mr.
Ziegler we’ve got marvelous news for you
we’ve run these figures through the
computer and according to our computer
and we know it’s right you sir are not
overweight however he said according to
the computer you are exactly 5 and 1/2
inches too short and I said well doc
that’s pretty bad it and he said now
actually you’re in remarkably good
physical condition for 66 year old and I
said doc I’m 46 he said you’re in awful
shape soon as a matter of fact if you
were a building I’d condemn you and I
said well doc what can I do and he
whipped out a sheet of paper stick in my
book and by the time he got through
telling me what I couldn’t do I was kind
of like the little boy who asked his
daddy a question and his daddy said well
son why don’t you just ask your mother
little boy said dad I just didn’t want
to know that much about it I got home
and that redhead of mine said the honey
said you want to be out running all over
the neighborhood I suppose and I said
yep
well she said if I’m gonna have a 46
year old fat boy running all over the
place I’m gonna get you looking as good
as I can so she went down and bought me
a fancy running outfit and I’d already
gotten some fancy shoes when I did
something that was really ugly but I
hadn’t read and Landers at the time and
I’m gonna use that as my excuse although
I really knew better you know and says
that you should not steal pages out of
other folks magazines well there was a
page in one of the doctors magazines
advertising jockey shorts now I don’t
know if you folks in Minneapolis read
the jockey shorts or not but if you
don’t the next time you see one you
should at least look at the picture
you’ll find out in a hurry they don’t
put jockey shorts on fat boys at least
they don’t have a good year so I hung it
up in my bathroom and I said now there’s
my hero that’s the way I’m gonna look
well the next morning that alarm clock
sounded off and I hopped out of bed and
put that fancy running outfit on and hit
the front door and ran a block well but
the next day I did lots better I ran a
block and a mailbox then the next day I
was a block into mailboxes then a bokken
three and a block in four and a block in
fact one day I ran all the way around
the block came back in walked the whole
family up and said guess what dad has
done and one day then I ran a half a
mile then one day I ran a mile one day
around a mile and a half one day around
two miles started doing the situps only
ate the first day then 10 then 20 then
40 then 80 then 120 then 200 started
doing push-ups only six the first day
then eighth and 10 the 20 then 30 then
40 the day I do the GI push-up that just
means you push up in there and slap your
hands while you’re in the air I’ll tell
you it’s different from the others that
weight started coming down from 202 to
165 the waistline dropped from 41 to 34
oh I know a lot of people have said to
me yeah but I bet you were dieting
religiously which is partially true
now please understand I am NOT here to
try to talk you on to going on a diet
I’m here to talk to you about goals as a
matter of fact I talk about it as much
as I do because it involves every single
principle of goal-setting first of all
ladies and gentlemen my credibility was
at stake you see if I’m gonna write in
my book you can be like you want to be
if I’m going to stand up in front of you
and say you can be like you want to be
and I come waddling out at – OH – there
goes credibility if I get up here and
acknowledge Jesus Christ one moment and
tell you a dirty joke the next there is
no credibility see credibility is a
tremendously important thing that was
[Applause]
and the second thing that was my goal
you can’t reach somebody else’s goal
that’s reason I say don’t let me talk
you into going on a diet that’s serious
business if you want to lose weight you
start by going to your skinny doctor for
a thorough examination now if he’s not
skinny swap doctors see there’s
something missing from a credibility
point of view when a fat doctor tells
you you oughta lose weight get you a
skinny doctor and a thorough examination
that goal was mine you cannot reach
somebody else’s go
the third thing about that goal was the
fact that it involved a big goal if
you’re one for writing down phrases
please write this one down you see in
order for a goal to be effective it must
affect change and if it doesn’t affect
change then the probability of you
reaching the goal are pretty slim 37
pounds made a difference in me I run
into old friends all the time and they
say hey you’ve lost some weight there’s
a difference in order for it to be
effective it’s got to be big because
it’s the big goal that creates
excitement it forces you to reach in and
utilize that which is there and the next
thing about the goal although as a
practical matter it was an intermediate
goal I’m going to use it for
illustrative purposes as a long-range
one when I wrote this book I was
convinced it would sell I sent it to
three publishers they were convinced it
would not sell they roll me back said we
don’t think it’ll sell now when it got
to the fourth printing their row begins
and hey you know we think that thing’s
gonna sell but at first they said no I
believed
it would I believed also ladies and
gentlemen but it would sell well I was
enthusiastic about I did a lot of work
on it so I decided I was going to go
ahead and print the book myself and most
authors who print their own book they’re
generally print a thousand copies maybe
two thousand in rare cases five thousand
but I believe the next point about a
goal is tremendously important I believe
you’ve got to have commitment now made
that commitment I ordered 25,000 copies
for that initial printing can you
imagine me with 25,000 copies in my
warehouse saying that I weighed 165
pound because you see the first thing I
wrote in the book was that I weighed 165
pounds that I had a 34 inch waistline
and the day I wrote that I weighed 202
pounds can you imagine me stuck with a
warehouse full of books saying I weighed
165 and I could warden out and saying it
works I’d made a commitment you got to
have those long-range goals and the rule
is a simple one you go as far as you can
see and when you get there you’ll always
be able to see further the doctor told
me I had to lose 37 pounds now that was
specific see that’s another point about
goals it’s got to be specific you can
take the hardest days the world has ever
seen take the most powerful magnifying
glass you can buy in any store hold that
magnifying glass over a pile of
newspaper clippings on that hottest day
and you’ll never start a fire if you
keep the glass moving but the moment you
hold it still you harness the power of
the Sun you multiply it through the
glass and boom you’ve got a fire you
cannot make it as a wandering generality
you’ve got to have a very specific
target 37 pounds was a very specific
target my target date was 10 months down
the road
so I looked at the 37 pounds divided by
10 it came out three and seven tenths
pounds boy I got excited three and seven
10 pounds of month why anybody can do
that it’s easy as a matter of fact I was
so convinced that I could lose three and
seven tenths pounds in a month
but I didn’t even bother to get started
the first 28 days yeah greatest
labor-saving device ever invented was
tomorrow so the other point if you’re
gonna do anything you got to break it
into a daily basis and you got to get
started now I was raised out in a small
town in Mississippi Yazoo City
Mississippi now today there are a lot of
people that try to impress folks by
telling them they’re from Yazoo City but
I really am as a matter of curiosity how
many of you here today have never been
to Yazoo City Mississippi never been
okay I think everybody ought to have
something to look forward to when I was
a boy William next door to some rich
folks now know they were rich brother
burn because they had a cook I know they
were rich because the cook had something
to cook during the Depression that was a
sure sign of wealth and I was over there
for lunch one day as I tried to be most
every day and cook brought the biscuits
out no exaggeration those biscuits were
no thicker than this wristwatch now
looked at him for a moment I said Maude
what in the world happened to your
biscuits she red bag gave that big
old-timey life and said well I’ll tell
you about those biscuits she said they
squatted Tehran’s but she said they just
got cooked in the squad hey you know
anybody that gets cooked in the squad
you know anybody that’s really gonna do
something as soon as the kids get out of
school and then I’ll have more time to
do those things then the kids get out of
school and say well I didn’t realize it
but I got to take them everywhere
whether the kids get back in school then
I’ll really get busy kids get back in
school let’s say well we’ve got a
winning football team this year got to
support the team wait laughter football
season then I’ll really get busy
football seniors over they say well you
know it’s Thanksgiving and Christmas now
and New Year’s well after the holidays
then man I’m really gonna get busy after
the holidays they say well you know the
weather is just so bad and isn’t this
the worst winter we have ever had way
too the weather clears up a little bit
then I’ll get busy after the weather
clears up they say well you know this is
the first chance I’ve had to play a
little golf or go fishing will I get
that out of my system then they say well
it’s almost time for Easter wait laughs
to Easter Baptiste as they say well you
know it’s now almost time for the kids
to get out of school but that’s where we
came in was it it see the people who
wait for aunt Matilda to move out are
John to get on the day shift or for him
to swap in the old clunker or until we
get a new governor or a new
administration the people who wait for
external changes before they make an
internal decision will get cooked in the
squat every single time I can guarantee
you you’re gonna reach your goals you
got to make up your mind you do
something today you can’t do everything
at once
and if I were relate back to weight it’s
appalling to me to have somebody come up
who’s a hundred and fifty pounds
overweight and say they’re gonna lose it
in three months time friend it took you
40 years to put it on don’t take it off
like that I took mine off and kept it
off because I changed the thing that put
it on a habit ate too much
regularly I didn’t gain 37 pounds in one
weekend it is one more bite that done me
in it’s the little things I looked at
that weight and I realize that all I had
to do was lose one and nine-tenths
ounces a day and if I lose one in nine
ten ounces a day then yes I’m going to
lose that weight
ladies and gentlemen to the ounce and to
the day ten months I had lost exactly 37
pounds I had set the goal and I had
reached it now a lot of times people
come to me and they say sake tell me the
truth I’m always amused that people that
say tell me the truth they’re implying I
guess that have been lying up until then
tell me the truth now Zig how did you
feel about getting up in the morning and
going out there and doing that running
how’d you feel about it I’m gonna tell
you the truth I hated it man that alarm
clock could sound off you know and I’d
lay there for a minute I think to myself
Ziegler what’s a 46 year old fat boy
like you’re doing getting up running all
over the neighborhood your buddies are
sound asleep what are you trying to
prove and then I’d look down at that 41
inch waistline and I would say Ziegler
do you want to look like you or do you
want to look like the guy in the jockey
shorts well I didn’t want to look like
me no way so I’d get out of bed but just
cause I was running that didn’t mean I
had to like it man I’d get out there and
run Joe I don’t know what I’m trying to
I can like a teenager and everybody else
is sound asleep and Here I am doing a
food thing like this is crazy you know
and how if I go and don’t you think for
one minute I didn’t tell everybody about
it either friends relatives strangers
everybody I came in contact with I tell
him about that enormous sacrifice I was
making listen at one time at one time in
my life I could get up and make you a
speech and I could put a
and my voice and a pained expression on
my face
and I could say friends you gotta pay
the price oh what a bunch of baloney
that is Iran in the snow of Winnipeg
Canada Iran in the sands of Acapulco
literally Iran in the orange groves of
Florida I’ve run in the rain right here
in Minneapolis and then one day ladies
and gentlemen I was running in Portland
Oregon
beautiful day never forget it
about 78 degrees I was on Portland State
University campus it was about 12:30 or
1:00 o’clock I was scheduled to speak I
believe at 4:00 o’clock and I was out
running and as I was running on that
campus I looked around some of the kids
were laying on bike it’s reading some
were studying somewhere recording some
are just relaxing here comes old Ziggler
run and bottom you know sweat running
down my back sweat running down my legs
you know and for the first time that day
it dawned on me that I was not paying a
price for the first time that day later
gentlemen don’t owe me that I was having
the time of my life it dawned on me that
I was enjoying every single step that I
was taking today at age 50 I can run two
miles faster than 98% of the college
kids of America I’m stronger than I was
a quarter of a century ago I can do
things that I could not have dreamed of
doing just a few years ago I contend
that you do not pay the price for good
health you thoroughly enjoy the price
you pay the price
[Applause]
you pay the price for failure you pay
the price for a poor marriage you enjoy
the price of a good one you enjoy the
price of success you just look at the
people who’ve made it and the people who
have not made it I believe we’ve got to
change our vocabulary see this number I
don’t believe you pay the price I know
that you enjoy of the price and I
believe we need to change our vocabulary
I’m really talking about changing an
attitude am I not see that’s what we’re
talking about here at these PMI rallies
changing attitude we live basically in a
negative world an overweight person says
down the table and says everything I eat
turns to fat well that’s negative mother
sent your child off school and says now
don’t you get run over that’s negative
we live in a negative world and we
become part of what we are around did
you know that two-thirds of the medical
students acquire the symptoms of the
disease they study common cold we know
that if we get medical treatment that
the average life of a cold is a week if
we don’t get the medical treatment the
they don’t know what causes the cold
they don’t know what cures it but they
do know who gets it the odds are over
ten to one that when you get the cold
it’s because you’re emotionally
depressed
you’ve got stinking thinking which if it
continues long enough will lead to
hardening of the attitudes you become
part of what you’re in classic case you
take a southern boy or girl and send
them up north and in a matter of months
you’ve noticed it or you can take a
northern boy or a girl and send them
down south and in a matter of months
we’ll have them talking normally you
become part of what you’re around what
can we do well let me give you another
classic case reported in the July 1976
issue of Success Unlimited magazine in
Israel there were a large number of
immigrants from the Orient and a large
number of immigrants from Europe arrived
at about the same time they did an IQ
evaluation on both groups the average IQ
of the children from the Orient was 85
the average IQ of the children from
Europe was 105 on the surface it appears
that the European Jewish children were a
little smarter but they put all of these
kids together in the caboose where the
direction is positive where the input is
you can do it where the dedication is
complete where they build up the
motivation the drive the direction is
fantastic and four years later the
115 you can change you can grow the
greatest message I could ever give to
you is that one simple thing yes you can
grow I said with all of my heart I know
in my mind that man was designed for
accomplishment that he’s engineered for
success that he is endowed with the
seeds of greatness you can start from
where you are with what you’ve got and
so long as you build on a moral
foundation I believe you can get
anything you really want if you’ll just
help enough other people get what they
want
I’m gonna share a story with you I think
it’s the greatest story that I’ve heard
in my lifetime the story goes back
nearly 13 years I was speaking in Kansas
City and there I met a man his name is
burnin lofty he’s more than a friend
he’s a brother he’s in the audience
right over here
burned alive caked over stand up brother
burn burned alive chick told me this
story he said Zig when our son was born
our joy knew no bounds because we
already had our two daughters now we had
our son the family was complete but he
said it wasn’t long before we knew
something was wrong because his head
hung too limply on the right side of his
body but the family doctor said he would
outgrow it we knew better so we took him
to a specialist the specialist diagnosed
his condition as a reverse of clubs feet
and treated him for that but he said we
knew Ziggy it was more serious we took
him to one of Canada’s top specialists
and after an exhaustive examination the
specialist said this little boy is a
spastic he has cerebral palsy he’s never
gonna be able to walk or talk or count
to ten I’m gonna suggest that you put
him in an institution for his own good
and for the good of the quote normal
members of the family brother Byrne
looked at me he said you know Zig I’m
not a buyer I’m a seller I could not buy
the idea that my son was going to grow
up being a vegetable so we took him to
another doctor who told us the same
thing and then another and another and
yet another and another until 30 doctors
said there is no hope then the heard of
a dr. Pearlstein down in Chicago they
got an alternate appointment so that
when someone else cancelled they could
have that appointment because dr.
Pearlstein was booked two years in
advance and 11 days later a little boy
from Australia cancelled and they went
to Chicago dr. Pearlstein examined David
perhaps as no child has ever been
examined before and when he finished he
said this little boy is a spastic he has
cerebral
he’s never going to be able to walk or
talk or count to ten if you listen to
the prophets of doom but he said I want
you to know that I am NOT problem
conscious I am solution conscious and
yes I believe there is something that
can be done for this boy if you are
willing to do your part
well obviously burn any Lane logic said
doctor tell us what to do we will do
anything the doctor and the therapist
and the nurses spelled it out in my new
detail they said you’re gonna have to
push this little boy beyond all human
endurance then you’re gonna have to push
him some more you’d have to work him
until he falls then you’re gonna have to
pick him up and working some more you
got to understand that there is no
stopping point that if you ever stop he
goes back you got to understand that
there might be months and even years
when you will be unable to detect any
change but you got to stay with it and
one last thing don’t ever give him
therapy in the presence of another
victim of cerebral palsy because if he
sees them taking therapy he will
inadvertently pick up those awkward
movements you see we become part of what
we are around whether it’s moral or
immoral whether it’s good or bad stay
with it long enough and it’s going to
rub off on you the law sticks went home
it built a little gymnasium in the
basement of their home but hired a
physical therapist on their bodybuilder
it took him a lot of months but one day
David lopsy could move the length of his
own body it took him several years but
one day the therapist called Bernie home
and said I believe David is ready and
Bernie rushed home and David logic was
done in the basement and on a little mat
getting ready to do a push-up does that
little body started to rise into the air
the emotional and physical exertion was
so great there was that a dry inch of
skin on that little body
when he finished that one pushup mother
and dad little David and the sisters and
the therapist and everybody broke down
and shed those tears which so eloquently
say that happiness is not pleasure
happiness is victory the story ladies
and gentleman is even more remarkable
when we know that one of America’s
leading universities had examined this
little boy and said there’s no motor
connection to the right side of his body
he has no sense of balance he will have
extreme difficulty even being able to
walk and stand straight he’ll never be
able to swim or skate or ride a bicycle
on October the 23rd 1971 my wife and I
had the privilege of flying to Winnipeg
Canada to attend the bar mitzvah of
little David Lyfe – oh how I wish you
could have been there how wish the
television cameras of the world had been
clearly focused on what we saw as this
little boy walked to the front of the
synagogue tall and straight and strong I
wish you could have heard him as the
words heard those words that moved him
into the manhood of the faith of his
forefathers I wish you could have seen
what we saw knowing what we knew because
you see at that time he had done as many
as eleven hundred push-ups in a single
day you’d run as much as six miles
non-stop he was shooting golf in the
high 80s one of the best table tennis
players in Winnipeg Canada he had
entered as a seventh grader st. John’s
Ravens court school for boys where this
little boy who is never gonna be able to
count to ten did quite well in 9th grade
mathematics maybe where in 1974 he
qualified for an unrated $100,000
ordinary life insurance policies so far
as we know the first and only time this
has ever happened now tell you the story
of David lofty because it involves so
many of the principles in which I
believe it begins with the right
foundation
of honesty and character and faith and
loyalty and yes love
oh what a love story this one he is you
see every night this little boy used to
have to put his braces on and every
night he would say dad do we have to put
him on tonight or mom can’t we just
leave him off tonight or do we have to
put him so tight and you mothers and
fathers know what I speak of when you
have a little boy with tears running
down his cheeks
pleading don’t put them on tonight but
because they did love him so much they
did not listen to the tears of the
moment because they wanted to see the
laughter of a lifetime that ladies and
gentlemen really what love is all about
because you see so many of us as parents
are reluctant to do for the child what
is best for the child because we fear
that child in might with hold his love
from us not knowing that over the long
haul the best way to guarantee his love
is to demonstrate ours by acting in his
best interest I tell the story of David
logic because it involves so many of the
principles in which I believe they had a
beautiful relationship with others the
doctors and the nurses you see they all
had a part the therapists all had a
parts you don’t climb the high mountain
by yourself it is in conjunction with
others that we really accomplish the
major things in life that’s why I like
to tell the story of David lopsy because
it’s a story of cooperation I tell the
story because it’s a story of goals of
big goals of lifetime goals of monthly
goals weekly goals hourly goals even
ladies and gentlemen I tell the story of
David lousy because it involves so much
in attitude you talk about attitude this
boy since he was too small to carry it
used to have his own cassette player and
every day that little mine was spared
with the good that cleaned the pure the
powerful the positive message is over
and OH
over and over you can do it son you can
do it see we live in such a negative
world that unless we deliberately read
the good books daily unless we
deliberately regularly feed our minds
with those motivational recordings that
in essence remind us over and over in a
negative world that we ourselves can be
positive if we have the positive input
yes I tell the story of David laughing
because I believe it has so much to do
with one of those things that so many
times we as individuals have attendants
that overlook as a matter of curiosity
and I’m almost through of course you
know when us Baptists say finally that
don’t necessarily mean immediately that
just means we get enclosed but I tell
the story of David because it emphasizes
so many of the things in which I believe
I’m just curious how many of you had
already noticed this chrome-plated pomp
sitting here on the that’s amazing you
know I’ve noticed something when I get
aboard an aircraft with this pomp almost
without exception I’m the only passenger
that’s got one so I’ve got to assume by
believe
I believe this I believe that this pump
is going to sum up what I want to say
about life and what I want to say about
David loves you got a couple of good
friends down in South Alabama
their names are Bernard Haygood and
Jimmy Glynn they were out riding through
the South Alabama foothills one day and
they got a little bit thirsty they pull
behind this ole abandoned farmhouse
Bernard was driving he hopped out he ran
over to this old pump and he grabbed the
handle and he started the pump now just
as a matter of curiosity how many of you
good folks up here in the big city have
ever used one of these old water pump
hey that’s fantastic okay well it was
hot it was August no Bernard wanted to
drink of water now she’s been pumping a
couple of minutes he said Jimmy better
get that old bucket over there and dip
some water out of that Creek we’re gonna
have to prime the pump how many of you
know what I’m talking about when I say
you got a prime the pump well for you
non poppers that just means that you got
to put something in here before you can
get something out here see a lot of
people stand in front of the stove of
life and say stove now give me some heat
then I’ll put some wood in you a lot of
times the secretary says boss give me a
raise then I’ll start coming to work on
time so many times the student will say
teacher just give me a passing grade
this semester though my folks gonna tear
me up if I don’t have a passing grade
then next semester I’ll guarantee you
I’ll study can you imagine the farmers
saying Lord give me a crop this year and
I promise our plant next to you no it
doesn’t work that way
first of all you got to put something in
before you can get something out well Oh
Bernard wanted that drink of water I
mean it gets hot in South Alabama and he
was just uh pumping away and pumping
away you know and I’ll tell you that
sweat was beginning to come off up and
he said you know Jimmy I just don’t
believe us into water down there no
Jimmy said yet is Bernard you know in
South Alabama the wells are deep and
we’re glad they are because you see the
deeper the well the cooler the cleaner
the sweeter of the pure the better taste
in that
is and is it that the story of life
isn’t it true that that prospect that
you really have to work on the most when
you find that do make that sale isn’t it
true that that’s the one that really
gives you the most satisfaction isn’t
that the one isn’t it true ladies and
gentlemen that the boy or the girl who
was available to every Tom Dick and
Harry or Mary Sue and Jane come down the
pike those boys and those girls are not
the ones that make the kind of husband
you want in the kind of wife that you
want isn’t it true that the things in
life that have valued that you got to do
some pumping for well Oh Bernard man he
wanted that drink of water I mean by
then he was really working up a sweat
but you know there’s always that
question just how much pumping are you
willing to do just for a drink of water
and finally Oh Bernard just threw up his
hands you said Jimmy they’re just
sitting in the water down there Jimmy
said don’t stop but all right don’t stop
if you stop it goes all the way back
down and then you’ll have to start all
over and isn’t that true see there’s no
way you can look at that pump and say
yeah just two more strokes and I got it
because you might have to pump another
ten minutes there’s no way you can look
in the head of that prospect and say yep
just two more closes and I got him
because you know it might really take a
lot of pumping but this we know we know
that if we pump long enough and hard
enough and enthusiastically enough that
eventually the reward that follows the
effort will always bring forth the
reward and if you notice that once you
get it to pop in but then all you got to
do is just keep a little ease the steady
pressure on it and man you go get more
water then you know what to do
isn’t it true that when things are good
they get better and when they’re bad
they get worse
and it’s got nothing to do with what’s
going on out there it’s got everything
to do with what’s going on between your
ears you see your business is never good
or bad out there your business is good
right here between your own two ears and
if you’re thinking is thinking your
business is going to be in exactly the
same shape I tell the story of the pump
because that too says something about
David logic for one solid winner David
set the alarm caught one hour earlier
than any other member of the family the
wind chill in Winnipeg Canada hits as
much as 80 degrees below zero he put
those skates on he literally crawled out
to the frozen ice and it took him one
solid winter to learn how to stand later
he skated on the neighborhood hockey
team now tell the store later son
gentlemen because you see it wasn’t easy
but I think if you were to talk to David
lofty today he would tell you that you
do not pay the price for good health you
enjoy that prize now Teddy the story
because you see there today is a sequel
to the story I was speaking out in
Amarillo a young couple seated down on
the front row were visibly moved with
the story and they came to me and they
got the address of the doctor who had
taken dr. Pearlstein place on his death
and they went to Chicago and this doctor
examined their little girl whom they
said had cerebral palsy little girl was
about 18 months old and this doctor
examined their little baby girl very
careful and he said this little girl
does not have cerebral palsy it was a
misdiagnosis she was simply born
prematurely she has all of the symptoms
today of cerebral palsy because you have
been treating her for the disease and
she now has acquired all the symptoms
they started treating her as a normal
child beautiful and happy and moving
well today all you become part of what
you’re around the way we treat people
gets to be so tremendously important you
know folks I’ve had so many people to be
so nice to me in my lifetime I know that
for the first two and a half years I
sold I was almost a complete failure
a man named PC Merrill came along and
said in essence you can do it and he
made me believe it before the year was
over I was number two out of over 7,000
salespeople my whole life changed
because the man said to me you can do it
oh I wish I could look you in your own
eyes dead center and say you can do it
because you can I’m just convinced that
God wants you to make it believe in you
because you’re unique they’ve been over
10 billion people’s to live on the face
of this earth there’s never been another
you believe in your fellow human being
believe in what you’re doing the company
you represent the product you sell if
you’re a salesperson believe in our
great country it’s the greatest land on
the face of this earth and of infinitely
more importance than anything I or any
other speaker who will ever address you
will ever say believe in Almighty God
because if you do I’m gonna close not by
wishing you a good day I’m gonna close
by guaranteeing you a good forever and I truly will see you at the top
of my notebook of life number of years
ago got an incredible letter from a
gentleman in Toronto with a substantial
cheque in it he said my friend Steve
Walker is following the wrong road model
he’s working himself to death his
family’s falling apart
he’s his health is in danger and he’s
model himself out of his boss and he
trusts you and respects you if you will
give us one hour I will fly him to
Dallas and give you this cheque when you
love to have a friend like then I sent
the cheque back and I said come on down
Steve and I had quite a little talk and
in our talk I asked him why he had such
a role model of why did what about this
man that made him so completely
important in his life and he said well
he’s the most successful man I have ever
known and I said well Steve what do you
call success now it took several minutes
for him to go down the list but the
interesting thing is though they’re not
in the same order that I have put them
where they list him now these are the
eight things that he said he rarely
considered to be successful if a man was
happy and healthy and at least
reasonably prosperous and secure if he
had friends and peace of mind and good
family relationship and the hope that
future is going to be better he said I
consider that man is successful now I’m
gonna really encourage you to take some
notes right here and all I want you to
do and you’ll be the only one who will
see it somewhere right in my as I go
down the list right whether you get a
plus on that one or a minus on that one
you’ll be the only one to see it but it
might be an eye-opener you see most
people never dare to evaluate really
where they are and you don’t know where
you are before you can really determine
your chances of getting what you really
want out of life and so I said to Steve
I said I understand that your boss is
very important to you
you’re considered to be successful when
he finally got through
the identification as I said earlier
these were the eight things that he said
I think that’s important for success to
measure success
I said well seve let me ask you now as
far as Happy’s concerned tell me how
happy is your Bo’s
is it oh I don’t think he’s happy at all
I said why not he said well I’ve never
heard him laugh and he seldom smiles and
besides that he’s got ulcers I said well
don’t give him a plus or a minus he said
oh you give my – please grade yourself
as we go this is so important for you
then I said that also tells me something
about his health if he’s got those
ulcers do I give him a plus or minus he
said you give me – I said that also says
something Steve about his peace of mind
because you don’t get ulcers because of
what you eat but what’s eating you I
said that would give him a plus or minus
he said we give my – I said Steve I’ve
asked you one question about what
success is what balance is what’s
important to you one question and your
boss comes up with three minuses I said
tell me how prospers he is he said man
he’s got money running out of his ears
and he’s getting more every night I said
we give him a plus on that one don’t
wait he said we sure do I said how
secure is your boss he said well he’s as
secure as money can make you and I said
well Steve let me ask you did you read
where two billionaire brothers here in
Dallas went bankrupt I said how does
your boss get money did you read where
our race governor was worth a hundred
million dollars at one point he’s now
banged up how does your boss compare I
don’t have that kind of money now
understand Steve equated security with
corporate position and bucks in the bank
so I said well Steve let me ask you
would we give your boss a plus or a
minus or dislike’ question mark on that
he said let’s be generous and give him a
question mark I said how many friends
does your boss have I hope you’re
marking these for you how many friends
real friends do you does your boss out
he said I don’t think he’s got any I’m
not his friend I just haven’t had my
league I take it truly somewhat of a
jerk I said okay we give him a minus on
that
I said tell me about his family and he
said well his wife’s divorcing him
well that one’s easy to answer I said
how much hope does he have for the
future
he said well four I started talking to
you I thought he had a lot but right now
don’t think he’s got any why did that
statement come forth because for the
first time he had evaluated it that’s
what we need to evaluate where we are
are we investing our time properly using
our resources properly what will the end
results be well then I said to us Steve
when that was over we give him the –
there I said Steve of the eight things
that you consider marks of success he
gets one two three four five six – –is
he gets one plus and one question mark I
asked Steve a question I’m going to ask
you the same question Steve would you
swap places with your boss right now
knowing what you know he looked at me
kind of stunned he slowly rose to his
feet and said no would you just for a
moment let’s play a game let’s pretend
that your telephone rings tomorrow
morning and the voice on the other end
says John I’ve got some marvelous news
for you we’ve just won a trip to
Acapulco they’re gonna be four of us
that can go there only two of us my wife
and myself we leave it exactly eight
forty-five we’re going to stay on the
beach for days we will live in a
millionaire’s villa we will have
everything in our beck and call we will
live the life of luxury for four full
days now remember John we leave tomorrow
morning at 8:45 my only question is can
you be ready to go at 8:45 may I see the
hands of those who could in fact respond
and say yes
I could go just for a moment let’s
continue the game by saying you got the
telephone call you accept it then all of
a sudden it dawns on you hey I’ve got
some things to do as a matter of fact
I’ve got to do this and this and this
and this and this and as a matter of
fact you turn to your wife and say honey
I just don’t know whether or not we can
make it or not she says now hold a phone
John she whips out a sheet of paper she
says now what’s the first thing we got
to do what’s the second thing what’s the
third thing what’s the fourth thing what
the fifth thing
how many of you honest-to-goodness
believe that during the next 24 hours
you could get more done than you
normally get accomplished in three four
five six days would you hold up your
hands please here’s my question please
every day of your life
why don’t you in your own mind say
tomorrow I go to Acapulco if I get this
done today do you realize that if you
were to do that and schedule it and lay
it out that it would be just a matter of
weeks before you could in fact go to
Acapulco at any time that you wanted to
are anywhere else you want it to go I
was coming in on the plane yesterday
and I was sitting next to no boy and I
couldn’t help but notice he had his raw
his wedding ban on this finger now
looked at him for a moment I said friend
you got your wedding band on the wrong
finger he said yeah I married the wrong
I don’t know whether he did or not but I
am completely persuaded that most people
have the erroneous idea about what it
takes to be successful and then about
what success is and about what life is
and I would like to during these next
few minutes climb down right inside of
your mind I’d like to climb down in your
emotions I’m gonna motivate you I’m
gonna say some things to you that are
going to have an impact and you will in
fact not be the same when you get up
from your seats at the end of this
evening on your trip to Acapulco there
were several things involved first of
all you had a very specific goal say
could you had a time limit and third you
listed the obstacles the things you had
to do in order to get the trip to
Acapulco I’m gonna talk to you tonight
about goals their four basic reasons why
people do not have goals number one they
have not been sold now friends I’m flat
gonna sell you on why you got to have
them I didn’t say I wanted to I didn’t
say I was going to try to didn’t say I
hoped to our flat said I’m gonna sell
you on why you must have them the second
reason a lot of people don’t have goals
as they do not know how to set those
goals I’m gonna give you a basic formula
for setting those goals that will be
precise if you will follow it the third
reason a lot of people do not have goals
is they have fear you see there’s a
certain amount of risk involved when you
say the
I’m going to do even if you do not tell
anyone else when you set a goal there’s
a certain amount of risk involved then
the fourth reason a lot of people do not
have goals is because they have a poor
self-image if you do not think you
deserve success if you do not think you
deserve a bigger home to be a million
dollar producer to have an outstanding
mate
our beautiful well disciplined children
who are productive if you don’t think
you deserve them then you’ll do things
that will keep you from getting them
let’s look at number one let’s sell you
on the idea of having goals are they
important at Yale University in 1953
they did a study of the graduating
seniors they discovered that of the
graduating seniors only 3% of them had
definite predetermined written down
goals twenty years later they did
another survey of those seniors who had
graduated they discovered that the 3%
who had committed their goals to paper
had accomplished more than the 97% who
had not written them down what about you
personally if you got your goals laid
out are you a meaningful specific or are
you a wandering generality our goals
necessary I’m gonna say emphatically yes
can you imagine the chairman of the
board General Motors and somebody comes
to him and says how did you get to be
chairman of the board General Motors do
you really believe he said well I just
showed up for work and they started
promote men first thing here you know
Here I am chairman of the board General
Motors no I think you know that that is
not the way that it happened what about
you are you a wandering generality or
are you a meaningful specific how many
of you are in the world of selling would
you mind holding up your hands please
one of the major problems we have in the
world of selling
a lot of times the salesperson is out
selling and although they are out there
physically what they’re saying mentally
is I need to be home with the family and
then when they’re home with the family
physically they’re saying mentally I
ought to be out in the field selling and
so when they’re out in the field they’re
really back at home and when they’re
back at home they’re really out in the
field and ain’t never know where people
today complain of lack of time it’s not
lack of time that’s the problem it’s the
lack of direction are you wandering
generality or are you a meaningful
specific Howard Hill was part of the
greatest Archer who ever lived
he killed a cape buffalo with a bow and
arrow he killed a Bengal tiger with a
bow and arrow
he won 281 consecutive tournaments he
was never beaten in competition as a
youngster I have seen Howard Hill in
newsreels
from 50 feet draw dead aim and split the
center of that bullseye perfectly in the
center and yet he could take the next
arrow and literally split the first one
an amazing demonstration of skill and
yet I’m gonna look at you dead center
and say to you I could spend 20 minutes
with you and at the end of that 20
minutes dick I could have any man in
this audience or any woman in this
audience hitting the bullseye more
consistently than Howard Hill could have
on the best day he ever had provided we
blindfolded Howard Hill
and turned him around so it would not
know which direction he was facing and
you rather obviously laugh and say signa
that’s silly of course how could a man
hit a target he could not see that’s a
pretty good question here’s another one
how can you hit a target you do not have
have you got one
are you a wandering generality or are
you a meaningful specific are you going
to work tomorrow because that’s what you
did yesterday if that’s the reason
you’re going tomorrow you won’t be as
good tomorrow as you were yesterday
because you’re two days older and no
closer to the goal you do not have you
got to have those goals a lot of people
don’t have goals because of fear I want
to skip one and talk about this one just
for a moment I’ll be leaving on an
airplane tomorrow for Toledo Ohio now I
got sense enough to know that some of
those airplanes are coming down faster
than they’re going up it’s dangerous for
that plane to fly you see in the
newspapers where the ships leave the
harbor and you see where some of them
sink it’s dangerous for the ship to be
on the ocean you read where people lease
their homes and the lessee they people
who’ve rented the house they tear it up
it’s dangerous to let somebody move into
your house and yet the engineers tell me
that it’s more dangerous for that plane
to stay on the ground that it will rust
out faster than it will wear out up into
the heavens they tell me that that ship
will collect more barnacles in the
harbor and become unseaworthy faster
than it will sailing the high seas and
they tell me that that about house stays
empty that it will deteriorate faster
than if you do not have someone living
in that house besides planes are built
for flying ships are built for sailing
houses are built for living and man too
was built
or purpose he was designed for
accomplishment he’s engineered for
success he’s endowed with the seeds of
greatness and the greatest danger we as
human beings have is when we do not do
anything at oh stop a hundred young men
aged 25 on any Street USA follow them
until they’re 65 years old and of those
who are still living you will discover
that only five of them have succeeded
financially it’s almost as if they’d set
out in life to fail but I also believe
one of the reasons is most people don’t
understand this thing called money see I
think it’s all right to have money as
one of your goals occasionally I speak
to people and they say well I don’t want
to make a lot of money you know I
believe a man or a woman that would say
lot of people don’t have it because they
don’t understand it they talk about cold
hard cash
it’s neither cold nor hard it’s solved
feels good beautifully colored not one
says that redhead of mine over here ever
said to me wait a minute honey I got to
go change clothes because what I’m
wearing won’t go with what you’re
carrying as a matter of fact it goes
beautifully with it
there was no while I’ll have some of my
Christian friends they’ll adjust their
halos and save Zig how do you reconcile
all of that talk about money with
Christianity now say it’s easy
I believe God made the diamonds for his
[Applause]
I read my Bible and it tells me Jacob
was a millionaire Moses was a
millionaire Solomon of the richest man
who ever lived an old joke wouldn’t
qualified for the food stamp program if
you know what I mean
no money’s alright as a matter of fact
you cannot get too much money unless the
money gets you you know Solomon told us
in Ecclesiastes that he who seeks silver
will never be satisfied with silver now
if money becomes your God you got a
problem you’ll never have enough we know
thats true because in the last two years
five billionaires have died down in
Dallas somebody said I wonder how much
money Howard Hughes really left and
somebody else said he left it oh so if
anybody asked you how much you’re gonna
leave say same as Howard Hughes you’ll
be telling the truth now having said all
of that let me see if I can tie it back
together I believe and I’ll make this
statement 40 times in my book that you
can get everything in life you want if
you’ll just help enough other people get
what they want for example if you’re a
Salesman
if you’re selling a product that solves
a problem then you’re helping someone
else get what they want which is the
solution of the problem so you get what
you want and what you deserve if you’re
in management and your productivity and
the productivity of your people is
important to your income if you can
train enthuse inspire motivate your
people to be successful then your
rewards are going to be greater you can
get everything in life you won’t if you
will just help enough other people get
what they want see we can get what we
want if we can give you some thoughts or
some ideas or some motivation or some
stimulation if we can in fact leave you
something so that when you go home
tonight you will be a better man or a
better woman or a better boy or a better
girl then you will be more successful
tomorrow yes there’s danger in setting
goals but there’s infinitely more danger
in not setting them then a lot of people
do not know really how to set goals I’d
like to share it some length with you on
that I started writing this book I
started writing this book and I kind of
got excited about it I put in there some
words you can go where you want to go
you can do what you want to do you can
be like you want to be good man I wrote
those words and I said now Ziggler
that’s pretty good as a matter of fact I
got to talking to myself which is
perfectly all right it’s all right even
to answer but if you ever catch yourself
to the answer you got a problem well I
caught myself with a problem you know I
was saying huh because where I said you
can be like you want to be I look down
and there was a 41 inch waistline and
202 pounds of Ziggler and the thought
occurred to me that one of these days
that I might bump into some of you and I
could just imagine this conversation
taking place I could imagine you saying
Ziggler do you believe that stuff you’re
right I was gonna say uh huh then I was
gonna imagine you saying do you believe
all of it I was gonna say man yeah then
I could imagine you poking your finger
net 41 each waistline and saying Ziggler
do you really believe all of it and then
I was gonna have to say well you know us
office we do take a little literary
license every once in a while but I knew
I had to make a decision I either had to
take those words out of there you can be
like you want to be or I had to do
something about me not only that but my
boy was eight years old at the time and
I think every father ought to be able to
whip his children until they’re at least
12 and the rate I was going I wouldn’t
even gonna be able to catch mine but the
straw that broke the camel’s back was
when that red head of mine kept telling
me to hold my stomach in and I already
was so I went down to Cooper’s clinic
now Cooper is the guy who wrote the book
aerobics when you see somebody out
jogging you can rest assured that’s
Kenneth Cooper who had an influence on
him well it’s a five and half hour
examination
first thing they did was took two quarts
of my blood well it looked like two
quarts they feel so many bounds I
thought they were opening a branch of
the blood bank right there
then they dunk me in a tank of water
three times and the purpose was to
determine the percentage of body fat
that I had when I got through they told
me that I was 23 and 9/10 percent pure
lard then they put me on a treadmill and
you know on the treadmill the longer you
can walk the better your physical
condition
and the worst possible condition was
horrible well I was determined to get
out of horrible into just awful
and I made it by four seconds when it
was all over the young doctor dr. Martin
skinny young doctor run to the Boston
Marathon does the good things
call me in big smile on his face
optimistic a real PMA advocate probably
reads success unlimited on top of it
call me any with big old smiley said mr.
Ziegler we’ve got marvelous news for you
we’ve run these figures through the
computer and according to our computer
and we know it’s right you sir are not
overweight however he said according to
the computer you are exactly 5 and 1/2
inches too short and I said well doc
that’s pretty bad it and he said now
actually you’re in remarkably good
physical condition for 66 year old and I
said doc I’m 46 he said you’re in awful
shape soon as a matter of fact if you
were a building I’d condemn you and I
said well doc what can I do and he
whipped out a sheet of paper stick in my
book and by the time he got through
telling me what I couldn’t do I was kind
of like the little boy who asked his
daddy a question and his daddy said well
son why don’t you just ask your mother
little boy said dad I just didn’t want
to know that much about it I got home
and that redhead of mine said the honey
said you want to be out running all over
the neighborhood I suppose and I said
yep
well she said if I’m gonna have a 46
year old fat boy running all over the
place I’m gonna get you looking as good
as I can so she went down and bought me
a fancy running outfit and I’d already
gotten some fancy shoes when I did
something that was really ugly but I
hadn’t read and Landers at the time and
I’m gonna use that as my excuse although
I really knew better you know and says
that you should not steal pages out of
other folks magazines well there was a
page in one of the doctors magazines
advertising jockey shorts now I don’t
know if you folks in Minneapolis read
the jockey shorts or not but if you
don’t the next time you see one you
should at least look at the picture
you’ll find out in a hurry they don’t
put jockey shorts on fat boys at least
they don’t have a good year so I hung it
up in my bathroom and I said now there’s
my hero that’s the way I’m gonna look
well the next morning that alarm clock
sounded off and I hopped out of bed and
put that fancy running outfit on and hit
the front door and ran a block well but
the next day I did lots better I ran a
block and a mailbox then the next day I
was a block into mailboxes then a bokken
three and a block in four and a block in
fact one day I ran all the way around
the block came back in walked the whole
family up and said guess what dad has
done and one day then I ran a half a
mile then one day I ran a mile one day
around a mile and a half one day around
two miles started doing the situps only
ate the first day then 10 then 20 then
40 then 80 then 120 then 200 started
doing push-ups only six the first day
then eighth and 10 the 20 then 30 then
40 the day I do the GI push-up that just
means you push up in there and slap your
hands while you’re in the air I’ll tell
you it’s different from the others that
weight started coming down from 202 to
165 the waistline dropped from 41 to 34
oh I know a lot of people have said to
me yeah but I bet you were dieting
religiously which is partially true
now please understand I am NOT here to
try to talk you on to going on a diet
I’m here to talk to you about goals as a
matter of fact I talk about it as much
as I do because it involves every single
principle of goal-setting first of all
ladies and gentlemen my credibility was
at stake you see if I’m gonna write in
my book you can be like you want to be
if I’m going to stand up in front of you
and say you can be like you want to be
and I come waddling out at – OH – there
goes credibility if I get up here and
acknowledge Jesus Christ one moment and
tell you a dirty joke the next there is
no credibility see credibility is a
tremendously important thing that was
[Applause]
and the second thing that was my goal
you can’t reach somebody else’s goal
that’s reason I say don’t let me talk
you into going on a diet that’s serious
business if you want to lose weight you
start by going to your skinny doctor for
a thorough examination now if he’s not
skinny swap doctors see there’s
something missing from a credibility
point of view when a fat doctor tells
you you oughta lose weight get you a
skinny doctor and a thorough examination
that goal was mine you cannot reach
somebody else’s go
the third thing about that goal was the
fact that it involved a big goal if
you’re one for writing down phrases
please write this one down you see in
order for a goal to be effective it must
affect change and if it doesn’t affect
change then the probability of you
reaching the goal are pretty slim 37
pounds made a difference in me I run
into old friends all the time and they
say hey you’ve lost some weight there’s
a difference in order for it to be
effective it’s got to be big because
it’s the big goal that creates
excitement it forces you to reach in and
utilize that which is there and the next
thing about the goal although as a
practical matter it was an intermediate
goal I’m going to use it for
illustrative purposes as a long-range
one when I wrote this book I was
convinced it would sell I sent it to
three publishers they were convinced it
would not sell they roll me back said we
don’t think it’ll sell now when it got
to the fourth printing their row begins
and hey you know we think that thing’s
gonna sell but at first they said no I
believed
it would I believed also ladies and
gentlemen but it would sell well I was
enthusiastic about I did a lot of work
on it so I decided I was going to go
ahead and print the book myself and most
authors who print their own book they’re
generally print a thousand copies maybe
two thousand in rare cases five thousand
but I believe the next point about a
goal is tremendously important I believe
you’ve got to have commitment now made
that commitment I ordered 25,000 copies
for that initial printing can you
imagine me with 25,000 copies in my
warehouse saying that I weighed 165
pound because you see the first thing I
wrote in the book was that I weighed 165
pounds that I had a 34 inch waistline
and the day I wrote that I weighed 202
pounds can you imagine me stuck with a
warehouse full of books saying I weighed
165 and I could warden out and saying it
works I’d made a commitment you got to
have those long-range goals and the rule
is a simple one you go as far as you can
see and when you get there you’ll always
be able to see further the doctor told
me I had to lose 37 pounds now that was
specific see that’s another point about
goals it’s got to be specific you can
take the hardest days the world has ever
seen take the most powerful magnifying
glass you can buy in any store hold that
magnifying glass over a pile of
newspaper clippings on that hottest day
and you’ll never start a fire if you
keep the glass moving but the moment you
hold it still you harness the power of
the Sun you multiply it through the
glass and boom you’ve got a fire you
cannot make it as a wandering generality
you’ve got to have a very specific
target 37 pounds was a very specific
target my target date was 10 months down
the road
so I looked at the 37 pounds divided by
10 it came out three and seven tenths
pounds boy I got excited three and seven
10 pounds of month why anybody can do
that it’s easy as a matter of fact I was
so convinced that I could lose three and
seven tenths pounds in a month
but I didn’t even bother to get started
the first 28 days yeah greatest
labor-saving device ever invented was
tomorrow so the other point if you’re
gonna do anything you got to break it
into a daily basis and you got to get
started now I was raised out in a small
town in Mississippi Yazoo City
Mississippi now today there are a lot of
people that try to impress folks by
telling them they’re from Yazoo City but
I really am as a matter of curiosity how
many of you here today have never been
to Yazoo City Mississippi never been
okay I think everybody ought to have
something to look forward to when I was
a boy William next door to some rich
folks now know they were rich brother
burn because they had a cook I know they
were rich because the cook had something
to cook during the Depression that was a
sure sign of wealth and I was over there
for lunch one day as I tried to be most
every day and cook brought the biscuits
out no exaggeration those biscuits were
no thicker than this wristwatch now
looked at him for a moment I said Maude
what in the world happened to your
biscuits she red bag gave that big
old-timey life and said well I’ll tell
you about those biscuits she said they
squatted Tehran’s but she said they just
got cooked in the squad hey you know
anybody that gets cooked in the squad
you know anybody that’s really gonna do
something as soon as the kids get out of
school and then I’ll have more time to
do those things then the kids get out of
school and say well I didn’t realize it
but I got to take them everywhere
whether the kids get back in school then
I’ll really get busy kids get back in
school let’s say well we’ve got a
winning football team this year got to
support the team wait laughter football
season then I’ll really get busy
football seniors over they say well you
know it’s Thanksgiving and Christmas now
and New Year’s well after the holidays
then man I’m really gonna get busy after
the holidays they say well you know the
weather is just so bad and isn’t this
the worst winter we have ever had way
too the weather clears up a little bit
then I’ll get busy after the weather
clears up they say well you know this is
the first chance I’ve had to play a
little golf or go fishing will I get
that out of my system then they say well
it’s almost time for Easter wait laughs
to Easter Baptiste as they say well you
know it’s now almost time for the kids
to get out of school but that’s where we
came in was it it see the people who
wait for aunt Matilda to move out are
John to get on the day shift or for him
to swap in the old clunker or until we
get a new governor or a new
administration the people who wait for
external changes before they make an
internal decision will get cooked in the
squat every single time I can guarantee
you you’re gonna reach your goals you
got to make up your mind you do
something today you can’t do everything
at once
and if I were relate back to weight it’s
appalling to me to have somebody come up
who’s a hundred and fifty pounds
overweight and say they’re gonna lose it
in three months time friend it took you
40 years to put it on don’t take it off
like that I took mine off and kept it
off because I changed the thing that put
it on a habit ate too much
regularly I didn’t gain 37 pounds in one
weekend it is one more bite that done me
in it’s the little things I looked at
that weight and I realize that all I had
to do was lose one and nine-tenths
ounces a day and if I lose one in nine
ten ounces a day then yes I’m going to
lose that weight
ladies and gentlemen to the ounce and to
the day ten months I had lost exactly 37
pounds I had set the goal and I had
reached it now a lot of times people
come to me and they say sake tell me the
truth I’m always amused that people that
say tell me the truth they’re implying I
guess that have been lying up until then
tell me the truth now Zig how did you
feel about getting up in the morning and
going out there and doing that running
how’d you feel about it I’m gonna tell
you the truth I hated it man that alarm
clock could sound off you know and I’d
lay there for a minute I think to myself
Ziegler what’s a 46 year old fat boy
like you’re doing getting up running all
over the neighborhood your buddies are
sound asleep what are you trying to
prove and then I’d look down at that 41
inch waistline and I would say Ziegler
do you want to look like you or do you
want to look like the guy in the jockey
shorts well I didn’t want to look like
me no way so I’d get out of bed but just
cause I was running that didn’t mean I
had to like it man I’d get out there and
run Joe I don’t know what I’m trying to
I can like a teenager and everybody else
is sound asleep and Here I am doing a
food thing like this is crazy you know
and how if I go and don’t you think for
one minute I didn’t tell everybody about
it either friends relatives strangers
everybody I came in contact with I tell
him about that enormous sacrifice I was
making listen at one time at one time in
my life I could get up and make you a
speech and I could put a
and my voice and a pained expression on
my face
and I could say friends you gotta pay
the price oh what a bunch of baloney
that is Iran in the snow of Winnipeg
Canada Iran in the sands of Acapulco
literally Iran in the orange groves of
Florida I’ve run in the rain right here
in Minneapolis and then one day ladies
and gentlemen I was running in Portland
Oregon
beautiful day never forget it
about 78 degrees I was on Portland State
University campus it was about 12:30 or
1:00 o’clock I was scheduled to speak I
believe at 4:00 o’clock and I was out
running and as I was running on that
campus I looked around some of the kids
were laying on bike it’s reading some
were studying somewhere recording some
are just relaxing here comes old Ziggler
run and bottom you know sweat running
down my back sweat running down my legs
you know and for the first time that day
it dawned on me that I was not paying a
price for the first time that day later
gentlemen don’t owe me that I was having
the time of my life it dawned on me that
I was enjoying every single step that I
was taking today at age 50 I can run two
miles faster than 98% of the college
kids of America I’m stronger than I was
a quarter of a century ago I can do
things that I could not have dreamed of
doing just a few years ago I contend
that you do not pay the price for good
health you thoroughly enjoy the price
you pay the price
[Applause]
you pay the price for failure you pay
the price for a poor marriage you enjoy
the price of a good one you enjoy the
price of success you just look at the
people who’ve made it and the people who
have not made it I believe we’ve got to
change our vocabulary see this number I
don’t believe you pay the price I know
that you enjoy of the price and I
believe we need to change our vocabulary
I’m really talking about changing an
attitude am I not see that’s what we’re
talking about here at these PMI rallies
changing attitude we live basically in a
negative world an overweight person says
down the table and says everything I eat
turns to fat well that’s negative mother
sent your child off school and says now
don’t you get run over that’s negative
we live in a negative world and we
become part of what we are around did
you know that two-thirds of the medical
students acquire the symptoms of the
disease they study common cold we know
that if we get medical treatment that
the average life of a cold is a week if
we don’t get the medical treatment the
they don’t know what causes the cold
they don’t know what cures it but they
do know who gets it the odds are over
ten to one that when you get the cold
it’s because you’re emotionally
depressed
you’ve got stinking thinking which if it
continues long enough will lead to
hardening of the attitudes you become
part of what you’re in classic case you
take a southern boy or girl and send
them up north and in a matter of months
you’ve noticed it or you can take a
northern boy or a girl and send them
down south and in a matter of months
we’ll have them talking normally you
become part of what you’re around what
can we do well let me give you another
classic case reported in the July 1976
issue of Success Unlimited magazine in
Israel there were a large number of
immigrants from the Orient and a large
number of immigrants from Europe arrived
at about the same time they did an IQ
evaluation on both groups the average IQ
of the children from the Orient was 85
the average IQ of the children from
Europe was 105 on the surface it appears
that the European Jewish children were a
little smarter but they put all of these
kids together in the caboose where the
direction is positive where the input is
you can do it where the dedication is
complete where they build up the
motivation the drive the direction is
fantastic and four years later the
115 you can change you can grow the
greatest message I could ever give to
you is that one simple thing yes you can
grow I said with all of my heart I know
in my mind that man was designed for
accomplishment that he’s engineered for
success that he is endowed with the
seeds of greatness you can start from
where you are with what you’ve got and
so long as you build on a moral
foundation I believe you can get
anything you really want if you’ll just
help enough other people get what they
want
I’m gonna share a story with you I think
it’s the greatest story that I’ve heard
in my lifetime the story goes back
nearly 13 years I was speaking in Kansas
City and there I met a man his name is
burnin lofty he’s more than a friend
he’s a brother he’s in the audience
right over here
burned alive caked over stand up brother
burn burned alive chick told me this
story he said Zig when our son was born
our joy knew no bounds because we
already had our two daughters now we had
our son the family was complete but he
said it wasn’t long before we knew
something was wrong because his head
hung too limply on the right side of his
body but the family doctor said he would
outgrow it we knew better so we took him
to a specialist the specialist diagnosed
his condition as a reverse of clubs feet
and treated him for that but he said we
knew Ziggy it was more serious we took
him to one of Canada’s top specialists
and after an exhaustive examination the
specialist said this little boy is a
spastic he has cerebral palsy he’s never
gonna be able to walk or talk or count
to ten I’m gonna suggest that you put
him in an institution for his own good
and for the good of the quote normal
members of the family brother Byrne
looked at me he said you know Zig I’m
not a buyer I’m a seller I could not buy
the idea that my son was going to grow
up being a vegetable so we took him to
another doctor who told us the same
thing and then another and another and
yet another and another until 30 doctors
said there is no hope then the heard of
a dr. Pearlstein down in Chicago they
got an alternate appointment so that
when someone else cancelled they could
have that appointment because dr.
Pearlstein was booked two years in
advance and 11 days later a little boy
from Australia cancelled and they went
to Chicago dr. Pearlstein examined David
perhaps as no child has ever been
examined before and when he finished he
said this little boy is a spastic he has
cerebral
he’s never going to be able to walk or
talk or count to ten if you listen to
the prophets of doom but he said I want
you to know that I am NOT problem
conscious I am solution conscious and
yes I believe there is something that
can be done for this boy if you are
willing to do your part
well obviously burn any Lane logic said
doctor tell us what to do we will do
anything the doctor and the therapist
and the nurses spelled it out in my new
detail they said you’re gonna have to
push this little boy beyond all human
endurance then you’re gonna have to push
him some more you’d have to work him
until he falls then you’re gonna have to
pick him up and working some more you
got to understand that there is no
stopping point that if you ever stop he
goes back you got to understand that
there might be months and even years
when you will be unable to detect any
change but you got to stay with it and
one last thing don’t ever give him
therapy in the presence of another
victim of cerebral palsy because if he
sees them taking therapy he will
inadvertently pick up those awkward
movements you see we become part of what
we are around whether it’s moral or
immoral whether it’s good or bad stay
with it long enough and it’s going to
rub off on you the law sticks went home
it built a little gymnasium in the
basement of their home but hired a
physical therapist on their bodybuilder
it took him a lot of months but one day
David lopsy could move the length of his
own body it took him several years but
one day the therapist called Bernie home
and said I believe David is ready and
Bernie rushed home and David logic was
done in the basement and on a little mat
getting ready to do a push-up does that
little body started to rise into the air
the emotional and physical exertion was
so great there was that a dry inch of
skin on that little body
when he finished that one pushup mother
and dad little David and the sisters and
the therapist and everybody broke down
and shed those tears which so eloquently
say that happiness is not pleasure
happiness is victory the story ladies
and gentleman is even more remarkable
when we know that one of America’s
leading universities had examined this
little boy and said there’s no motor
connection to the right side of his body
he has no sense of balance he will have
extreme difficulty even being able to
walk and stand straight he’ll never be
able to swim or skate or ride a bicycle
on October the 23rd 1971 my wife and I
had the privilege of flying to Winnipeg
Canada to attend the bar mitzvah of
little David Lyfe – oh how I wish you
could have been there how wish the
television cameras of the world had been
clearly focused on what we saw as this
little boy walked to the front of the
synagogue tall and straight and strong I
wish you could have heard him as the
words heard those words that moved him
into the manhood of the faith of his
forefathers I wish you could have seen
what we saw knowing what we knew because
you see at that time he had done as many
as eleven hundred push-ups in a single
day you’d run as much as six miles
non-stop he was shooting golf in the
high 80s one of the best table tennis
players in Winnipeg Canada he had
entered as a seventh grader st. John’s
Ravens court school for boys where this
little boy who is never gonna be able to
count to ten did quite well in 9th grade
mathematics maybe where in 1974 he
qualified for an unrated $100,000
ordinary life insurance policies so far
as we know the first and only time this
has ever happened now tell you the story
of David lofty because it involves so
many of the principles in which I
believe it begins with the right
foundation
of honesty and character and faith and
loyalty and yes love
oh what a love story this one he is you
see every night this little boy used to
have to put his braces on and every
night he would say dad do we have to put
him on tonight or mom can’t we just
leave him off tonight or do we have to
put him so tight and you mothers and
fathers know what I speak of when you
have a little boy with tears running
down his cheeks
pleading don’t put them on tonight but
because they did love him so much they
did not listen to the tears of the
moment because they wanted to see the
laughter of a lifetime that ladies and
gentlemen really what love is all about
because you see so many of us as parents
are reluctant to do for the child what
is best for the child because we fear
that child in might with hold his love
from us not knowing that over the long
haul the best way to guarantee his love
is to demonstrate ours by acting in his
best interest I tell the story of David
logic because it involves so many of the
principles in which I believe they had a
beautiful relationship with others the
doctors and the nurses you see they all
had a part the therapists all had a
parts you don’t climb the high mountain
by yourself it is in conjunction with
others that we really accomplish the
major things in life that’s why I like
to tell the story of David lopsy because
it’s a story of cooperation I tell the
story because it’s a story of goals of
big goals of lifetime goals of monthly
goals weekly goals hourly goals even
ladies and gentlemen I tell the story of
David lousy because it involves so much
in attitude you talk about attitude this
boy since he was too small to carry it
used to have his own cassette player and
every day that little mine was spared
with the good that cleaned the pure the
powerful the positive message is over
and OH
over and over you can do it son you can
do it see we live in such a negative
world that unless we deliberately read
the good books daily unless we
deliberately regularly feed our minds
with those motivational recordings that
in essence remind us over and over in a
negative world that we ourselves can be
positive if we have the positive input
yes I tell the story of David laughing
because I believe it has so much to do
with one of those things that so many
times we as individuals have attendants
that overlook as a matter of curiosity
and I’m almost through of course you
know when us Baptists say finally that
don’t necessarily mean immediately that
just means we get enclosed but I tell
the story of David because it emphasizes
so many of the things in which I believe
I’m just curious how many of you had
already noticed this chrome-plated pomp
sitting here on the that’s amazing you
know I’ve noticed something when I get
aboard an aircraft with this pomp almost
without exception I’m the only passenger
that’s got one so I’ve got to assume by
believe
I believe this I believe that this pump
is going to sum up what I want to say
about life and what I want to say about
David loves you got a couple of good
friends down in South Alabama
their names are Bernard Haygood and
Jimmy Glynn they were out riding through
the South Alabama foothills one day and
they got a little bit thirsty they pull
behind this ole abandoned farmhouse
Bernard was driving he hopped out he ran
over to this old pump and he grabbed the
handle and he started the pump now just
as a matter of curiosity how many of you
good folks up here in the big city have
ever used one of these old water pump
hey that’s fantastic okay well it was
hot it was August no Bernard wanted to
drink of water now she’s been pumping a
couple of minutes he said Jimmy better
get that old bucket over there and dip
some water out of that Creek we’re gonna
have to prime the pump how many of you
know what I’m talking about when I say
you got a prime the pump well for you
non poppers that just means that you got
to put something in here before you can
get something out here see a lot of
people stand in front of the stove of
life and say stove now give me some heat
then I’ll put some wood in you a lot of
times the secretary says boss give me a
raise then I’ll start coming to work on
time so many times the student will say
teacher just give me a passing grade
this semester though my folks gonna tear
me up if I don’t have a passing grade
then next semester I’ll guarantee you
I’ll study can you imagine the farmers
saying Lord give me a crop this year and
I promise our plant next to you no it
doesn’t work that way
first of all you got to put something in
before you can get something out well Oh
Bernard wanted that drink of water I
mean it gets hot in South Alabama and he
was just uh pumping away and pumping
away you know and I’ll tell you that
sweat was beginning to come off up and
he said you know Jimmy I just don’t
believe us into water down there no
Jimmy said yet is Bernard you know in
South Alabama the wells are deep and
we’re glad they are because you see the
deeper the well the cooler the cleaner
the sweeter of the pure the better taste
in that
is and is it that the story of life
isn’t it true that that prospect that
you really have to work on the most when
you find that do make that sale isn’t it
true that that’s the one that really
gives you the most satisfaction isn’t
that the one isn’t it true ladies and
gentlemen that the boy or the girl who
was available to every Tom Dick and
Harry or Mary Sue and Jane come down the
pike those boys and those girls are not
the ones that make the kind of husband
you want in the kind of wife that you
want isn’t it true that the things in
life that have valued that you got to do
some pumping for well Oh Bernard man he
wanted that drink of water I mean by
then he was really working up a sweat
but you know there’s always that
question just how much pumping are you
willing to do just for a drink of water
and finally Oh Bernard just threw up his
hands you said Jimmy they’re just
sitting in the water down there Jimmy
said don’t stop but all right don’t stop
if you stop it goes all the way back
down and then you’ll have to start all
over and isn’t that true see there’s no
way you can look at that pump and say
yeah just two more strokes and I got it
because you might have to pump another
ten minutes there’s no way you can look
in the head of that prospect and say yep
just two more closes and I got him
because you know it might really take a
lot of pumping but this we know we know
that if we pump long enough and hard
enough and enthusiastically enough that
eventually the reward that follows the
effort will always bring forth the
reward and if you notice that once you
get it to pop in but then all you got to
do is just keep a little ease the steady
pressure on it and man you go get more
water then you know what to do
isn’t it true that when things are good
they get better and when they’re bad
they get worse
and it’s got nothing to do with what’s
going on out there it’s got everything
to do with what’s going on between your
ears you see your business is never good
or bad out there your business is good
right here between your own two ears and
if you’re thinking is thinking your
business is going to be in exactly the
same shape I tell the story of the pump
because that too says something about
David logic for one solid winner David
set the alarm caught one hour earlier
than any other member of the family the
wind chill in Winnipeg Canada hits as
much as 80 degrees below zero he put
those skates on he literally crawled out
to the frozen ice and it took him one
solid winter to learn how to stand later
he skated on the neighborhood hockey
team now tell the store later son
gentlemen because you see it wasn’t easy
but I think if you were to talk to David
lofty today he would tell you that you
do not pay the price for good health you
enjoy that prize now Teddy the story
because you see there today is a sequel
to the story I was speaking out in
Amarillo a young couple seated down on
the front row were visibly moved with
the story and they came to me and they
got the address of the doctor who had
taken dr. Pearlstein place on his death
and they went to Chicago and this doctor
examined their little girl whom they
said had cerebral palsy little girl was
about 18 months old and this doctor
examined their little baby girl very
careful and he said this little girl
does not have cerebral palsy it was a
misdiagnosis she was simply born
prematurely she has all of the symptoms
today of cerebral palsy because you have
been treating her for the disease and
she now has acquired all the symptoms
they started treating her as a normal
child beautiful and happy and moving
well today all you become part of what
you’re around the way we treat people
gets to be so tremendously important you
know folks I’ve had so many people to be
so nice to me in my lifetime I know that
for the first two and a half years I
sold I was almost a complete failure
a man named PC Merrill came along and
said in essence you can do it and he
made me believe it before the year was
over I was number two out of over 7,000
salespeople my whole life changed
because the man said to me you can do it
oh I wish I could look you in your own
eyes dead center and say you can do it
because you can I’m just convinced that
God wants you to make it believe in you
because you’re unique they’ve been over
10 billion people’s to live on the face
of this earth there’s never been another
you believe in your fellow human being
believe in what you’re doing the company
you represent the product you sell if
you’re a salesperson believe in our
great country it’s the greatest land on
the face of this earth and of infinitely
more importance than anything I or any
other speaker who will ever address you
will ever say believe in Almighty God
because if you do I’m gonna close not by
wishing you a good day I’m gonna close
by guaranteeing you a good forever and I truly will see you at the top
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