to your whole life what if I told you
that what you’ve been told since you
were a kid about what it takes to become
successful is completely wrong what if I
told you that you did not have to be so
many of the things you thought you did
now you’ve been lied to and just for
clarity you weren’t lied to by your
teachers by your parents by the adults
in your life because they hate you
you’ve been lied to because they would
just misguided for example what if I
told you you do not have to be smart to
be successful there are a bunch of
but this is what we’re told
ever since we’re younger we want to be
in a smart class don’t we have you ever
heard a teacher say something like this
too maybe you are one of your classmates
Wow you finished your work really really
quickly you must be really smart do you
know what’s being said and implied in
that statement what’s being implied is
if it takes you a long time to do
something then you are not smart so when
we’re younger if we come up to an
obstacle we don’t go oh this is awesome
we go well I don’t want people to know
I’m not smart but as adults we all know
that anything worth doing takes a lot of
time but we keep saying you have to be
smart now I will prove to you that being
smart is not a precursor to success with
a simple question how many of you know
someone you know someone who’s really
really smart but they’re not doing
anything productive with how smart they
are does anyone know something like that
all of us
so being smart that can’t be what it is
oh good news you know what else you
don’t need to be talented talent
completely overrated we talk about
talent oh you you’re gonna go so far you
have so many natural abilities you’re so
gifted doesn’t mean anything and I’ll
prove it to it the same question I just
asked you a few moments ago how many of
you know someone I want you to really
think who is really really talented
maybe they’re amazing poet or musician
or artist or whatever it is but they’re
not doing anything to the level they
should with the natural talent that they
have does anyone else someone like that
so whoohoo oh this isn’t a science wait
a minute so we all know someone who is
smart we all know someone who’s talented
that’s not doing anything so it can’t be
smart intelligence talent gifts and by
the way it’s also not being born into
the right family being born rich or any
of those things it’s one thing that
nobody can give to you it’s the only
thing you can give to yourself that
makes the biggest difference
and that word is effort effort is
everything whatever you’re not good at
with the right amount of effort you
become good at it now this old concept
was very fascinating to me because when
I grew up in the projects in Brooklyn
New York I was in the smart class in
elementary school I was in the top class
and you know what we all knew we were in
the top class oh and to make it even
better does anyone remember the days
when you didn’t even have to study for a
test and you got good grades I loved it
and everyone kept telling me around
you’re so smart and I was like I am
smart until I hit junior high and then
all of a sudden I became really dumb the
craziest thing happened I would be in
class and the teachers will be talking
and I’ll be like you ever had that face
where on the outside you look like
you’re 100% paying attention but on the
inside you have no idea what’s been
happening I mastered that but I couldn’t
ask for help because I was the smart kid
because if I asked for help it would
prove I didn’t grasp things quickly so
therefore I’m not smart dr. John Medina
and his work of brain roles and brain
rules for babies talks about when we
connect our concept of who we are to
innate abilities we have no control over
we don’t become successful but when we
attach them to things like hard work and
effort we control those but I didn’t
know that there so I did like what I
thought was the right thing to do and I
just shut my mouth and it went on into
high school I just got WAY worse
I started failing and I was not a
science person where my people science
chemistry biology is just not your thing
like I look at it and you just might as
well be speaking a different language
where are the people math you just suck
at math like it’s just not going to be a
good experience right I got you I was
with that okay so for me science was my
hard subject and I failed and I was told
I want to be able to graduate on a side
past my science classes
so now I’m facing not being able to
graduate having no skills or talents
that I could know of in fact I played
three sports in high school and sat on
the bench on all three of them so my
professional athlete goes out the window
I was in a tough environment I witnessed
people get murdered I’ve been robbed
beat up made fun of and I thought I have
no future what’s the point so when I was
16 I thought it’d be better to be dead
than to be alive because what what’s the
point so when I was 16 I went to the
roof of my building I stood on the roof
and I looked down I imagined what would
feel like to not have to deal with the
pain that I had inside of me because
what was the point not smart not
talented
luckily I stepped back from the ledge
that day because I heard this still
voice inside of me and all they said was
not yet and his voice had to come from
being much greater than me because again
I’m not smart enough to think this on my
own so with that thought of not yet I
went back into my room and was just
depressed and I am lucky to have people
care about me I have an amazing mother
awesome brother fantastic father and my
father song and he said get up we gotta
go for a ride looks like I jump in his
car he starts driving it takes me to
this beautiful neighborhood that I never
seen before it was over like 15-20
minutes from our house and he said you
see this house you see these cars he
said one day if you want it you can have
these things you know because as a
teenager we know success is the big
house and a big car right and I was like
yo there’s no way I’m gonna be able to
have these things and then he said
something things that changed the course
of my life what he said was we were all
given the problems we were supposed to
be given so that we can face
them overcome them and that’s where we
become the person we were meant to be
you said what most people do is they
face their problems and then they go oh
this is proof I don’t deserve it
this is proof I’m not supposed to have
it look at these problems in my life so
they quit but he said when you put in
effort you get to the other side and on
the other side is where the magic
happens
that’s where success comes from so I
started getting excited I said well how
could I apply this in my life I was like
what better place to apply it then than
with science so what’s my chemistry
teacher I said look I’d like to graduate
I’m not gonna graduate came past this
class I’ll make a deal with you if I can
pass the final exam you give me a
passing grade in the class with the
final grant final exam was cumulative
she said deal so I started doing some
strange things during lunch I would go
to tutoring and I would work with my
tutor understand concepts before I went
home before I left school I would do the
blue I would do more tutoring then on my
way to school and from school I would
get practice problems and I would go
over the practice problems every single
day to and from school the craziest
thing happened after I did that for a
few months I passed the class I passed
the test I graduated so from there I
decided to sneak into college I like to
say I snuck into college because I went
to the college that my brother got
accepted to because he’s smart I got in
and I said listen I’m not going to be
the smartest student by no means I’m not
going to be the most talented student
it’s impossible so how am I going to
succeed here I made a decision early on
that I was just going to outwork
everyone because I’m not smart I’m not
smart I’m not talented so if I was in
class and I didn’t understand something
I would raise my hand until I got it I
would go to office hours and meet with
the professor to make sure I understood
the concepts not just when the tests
were coming out I would meet with the
teachers assistants to go over the
course curriculum to make sure I
understood it from that particular
professor’s perspective I never handed
in a paper without a second set of eyes
looking at it I met up with all the
smart kids in class and by the way you
want to find a smart kids they sit in
the front they got highlighters make
friends with them okay I made friends
with them and I studied in groups with
them
and the funniest thing happened at a
16,000 students I was named one of the
top five exemplary students this is me
back in the day when I had hair I like
to call it the glory days right I was an
educational opportunity program student
ELP student at Binghamton University yes
yes I was needed most outstanding
graduating senior in my class president
of for student organizations when I
graduated I applied the same concepts to
my entrepreneurship endeavors in my
businesses so if I ever that was a
problem like I don’t know how to manage
people I’m not good at it I would change
it to I just need to put more effort
into managing people and I would get
good at it
and it’s amazing because I started
travelling to high schools and colleges
and sharing this idea of effort and
effort is everything an amazing thing
happens now we have a shared language
the students have a language they can
communicate to the teachers and the
teachers have a language they can
communicate to the students so no longer
is it oh I’m just dumb in math look I
got a bad grade it becomes oh I got a
bad grade I guess I need to put in more
effort in math teachers instead of
saying hey better luck next time they
can say hey you didn’t get a good grade
we just need to do more effort let’s
figure it out the language became
created and it’s a mindset that moves
away from this natural innate ability
and move it to something we can control
Cal Dweck has a great book on mindset
which talks about growth mindset and
fixed mindset growth mindset says I can
learn and do anything fixed mindset says
everything I got I already got it’s not
going to get better I believe and many
educators do that the growth mindset is
the way to success and I believe the
pathway to the growth mindset is effort
effort is everything and you’ve
experienced this how many people
remember what it was like to learn how
to tie your shoes does anybody remember
this have you ever seen a little kid
trying to tie their shoes it’s the most
frustrating process in the world your
fingers won’t do what your mind’s
telling it to do you can’t get the bunny
ears just right and then you take your
shoe you throw dr. Whibley
I just with Velcro and you just be done
with it right just me and TOMS shoes for
the rest of my life right but the funny
thing happens you don’t give up
you believe it’s possible one day and
you keep doing it and then something
happens your brain clicks and now I’m
confidence you can tie your shoelaces in
the dark because of effort no one’s born
naturally gifted at tying your shoes do
you get that no one is born naturally
smart at the ways of tying shoes you put
an effort you learn you get it that
neuro plasticity of the brain does not
go away barring a healthy functioning
brain of course you have to move from
this idea that you have to be naturally
good at something to succeed at it you
don’t you have to put in effort effort
is everything effort is more important
than where you’re born it’s more
important than the money you have in
your bank account so I have full
confidence that if I ever lost it and
God really we got to do what I have my
effort will see me through you’re not
good at math start printing effort
towards math you’re not good at science
start putting effort towards science you
want to start a business put an effort
into starting a business you want a
great marriage put in the effort to have
a great marriage people think well if
it’s supposed to be is just going to
happen no if it’s supposed to be you’re
going to put in the effort to make it be
there’s a great quote that I love from
Thomas Edison that says opportunity is
missed by most people because it’s
dressed in overalls and it looks like
work with effort you’ll take advantage
of every opportunity that’s in front of
you
effort is everything and when you put in
effort not only will you take advantage
of the opportunities that’s in front of
you you’ll take advantage and create
opportunities you didn’t even know
existed thank you [Applause]