During a recent tour out of state doing speaking engagements on the values of Juice Plus and promoting
my book,
MASTERS OF SUCCESS, I received a phone call from Sunset, Louisiana’s Mayor Danny Louviere.
Mayor Louviere was requesting for me to be the keynote speaker to the eighth grade graduating class
of Sunset Junior High on May 22nd. I told the Mayor that I had a previous engagement but I would
do what I could to make arrangements to be there. It was going to be difficult to refuse his offer
as he called me a good 7 weeks in advance, therefore giving me the opportunity to work on accepting
the engagement. Time passed while I was working on changing my schedule to accommodate the Mayor
and the faculty at Sunset Junior High when I received my second phone call while attending the
Oscar De LaHoya/Ricardo Mayorga fight in Las Vegas and the Boxing Writers Association of America
Banquet honoring my good friend, Alex Ramos and producer/Oscar winning actor Sylvester Stallone
on May 5th and 6th. It was Mayor Louviere again asking if I could commit to his request. Due to
the Mayor’s persistence I immediately told
him I would be there and would make arrangements positively. He kept mentioning the small class and how
they meant so much to him and that he wanted to do whatever he could for their principal, Mrs.
Shirley James. His heart was sincere and in the right place.
Arriving at the school made me feel good that I accepted the speaking engagement. The Mayor and his wife,
Teresa, were waiting for me with all the enthusiasm I needed to make this an engagement I was going to be
proud to attend. I was immediately brought to my seat and met Mrs. James, a wonderful lady, short in
stature but tall in heart. She had a boutonnière to pin on my suit jacket while thanking me in advance
for being their guest speaker. I have spoken all over the world but this was one time I felt more
appreciation than normal. I was now even more grateful I accepted the speaking engagement.
The songs started with the audience singing with the students to “Proud to be an American” while Mrs.
Carmella Marshall gave us all ‘chill bumps’ up and down our arms as she sang the National Anthem. We
then had a few introductions before the Mayor went up to introduce me. The introduction was so overwhelming
I was humbled immediately. Now I had to live up to my intro.
As I looked into the eyes of all 19 graduates making their way to Beau Chene High School I could sense their
nervousness while still feeling their enthusiasm. I could also sense the pride they had in their school and
all the teachers and leadership, Principal James and Assistant Principal Laura Saucier. Their eyes were
totally focused on me. No one was slouched and all were wide-eyed waiting to hear what I had to say. My
topic was in reference to my life, my audio CD and upcoming book entitled,
DREAMS, FAIRY TALES, AND MIRACLES,
and what I learned from my first mentors in life, Maw Maw and Paw Paw Daigle.
I knew that I wasn’t going to motivate these young teenagers to become sales professionals but I knew that
they were in route to be in a position to making some of the most important decisions about their future.
This was the real part of growing up. High school can be adventurous or at the same time overwhelming if
not handled correctly. I wanted these young men and women to realize the power they possessed to open
their minds to the endless possibilities available to them recognizing that their subconscious mind
will believe in their abilities and dreams if they would allow their belief system to become satisfied
with positive thoughts. Knowing some of these graduates would finish high school and go to college
and possibly many would not was the reality they were going to have to face. It was important to
let them know that the formal education they were receiving was so important for their success in
life, however, they also had to be self educated by reading books (the right books).
Maw Maw Daigle,
who was illiterate, would always comment that a person who doesn’t read books is no better off than
a person who ‘couldn’t’ read. I wanted this group to understand the power of the gift of reading
and how it could impact their life in so many ways especially when reading books on positive
thinking and personal development.
My message was for these graduates to continue dreaming and never stop. I knew something about them they
didn’t quite know yet. I knew they were wise beyond their early teenage years. I knew that they had to
put up with stress like nothing else we had to deal with in our early years. They would have to learn
how to choose the proper friends and ignore the pessimists so they could protect their dreams and look
out for their own best interests while at the same time looking out for their fellow friends and
classmates who were not making the right decisions in their lives. They would have to remain children
and follow all the rules and regulations put upon them by their leaders while at the same time
becoming responsible adults carrying whatever burdens society dumps upon them confusing them to
some degree. It is important that they understood that negativity would affect them seriously
and they would have to avoid the ‘naysayers’ who would want to ‘steal their dreams’.
My new book will feature the things I learned from so many different mentors in life that encouraged me to
leverage my time wisely leading to an early retirement at the age of 42. The subtitle of the book is
“Things I learned from Maw Maw and Paw Paw Daigle you won’t learn at Harvard and Yale”. Why is this
so important? Simply, the message I wanted to deliver to this young class was they were our future.
Another message from my mentors I learned early was it was important as to ‘who you hung around with’.
I explained the simple analogy from Maw Maw Daigle,
“Hang around a shoplifter long enough you
will learn how to shoplift, however, if you hang around positive, energetic, successful people
you will learn to be the same as them”, therefore the choice is clearly going to be theirs
and theirs alone and to always be aware of the ‘dream stealers’ . These are the ones who
try to belittle their ambition so their job will be to ignore them and hang on to their dreams.
My message was simple. I wanted each student to look at goals early in life and take pride in attempting
to achieve them, striving to improve while remaining professional as only a young teenager in high school
can. The challenges are just beginning for these young graduates. Some will handle these challenges
better than others and most of what will happen will be determined between their ears. It is so
important to give these young adults the opportunity to ‘learn outside of the box’ while
earning their formal education.
Their wide eyes, grins, smiles, and eagerness to learn were motivating to me. My memory brought me back to
those years when I was scared and unsure as to where I was headed. I was so lucky to have Maw Maw and
Paw Paw to encourage me along the way with their positive feedback. Sure, they couldn’t read but they
sure knew a lot about ‘life’. Nothing can replace that experience and education.
Ending my talk I remembered all of my mentors in life and how I wanted to repay them for all their
‘leadership and encouragement’ while teaching me how to become a better and more productive individual.
Their answers all mirrored one another when I asked to repay them.
“Take what you have learned from us
and deliver these messages to others…..that, my son, will be your payment to us.”
I want to thank Mayor Danny Louviere and Principal Shirley James in giving me the opportunity to repay some of my
debt by giving what I learned over the years back to these young ladies and gentlemen. I sincerely cannot thank you enough.
In closing, Mrs. Marshall sang an appropriate song, “The Wind Beneath My Wings” for all of us in attendance.
She brought me back to my life as a young lad remembering how fortunate I was. We lacked financial means
but made up for those shortcomings with tremendous love and devotion to one another and were rich in wisdom instead.
I hope this message is clear. And remember when you get knocked down…….
always strive to get up and always
Keep Punching!
