Life Lesson in an Email

Last week I had this exchange with a viewer about why I didn’t post a show Thanksgiving weekend. Brilliant story and advice! Thanks Ron!!

From: Ron Davis [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Wednesday, November 28, 2012 9:54 AM
To: Bill Becker
Subject: weekend sports

I lost the damn link. I thought I subscribed but I can’t find that either.

Ron

From: Bill Becker [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Wednesday, November 28, 2012 9:58 AM
To: Ron Davis
Subject: RE: weekend sports

You Loser…here’s the link – www.weekendsportsupdate.com

I didn’t do a show this past weekend…unfortunately the inspiration that drives me to do the show can also be a source of anguish and I just didn’t have it in me last Saturday. I am doing this coming weekend’s show on Friday so it will be up for sure this weekend.

From: Ron Davis [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Wednesday, November 28, 2012 10:20 AM
To: Bill Becker
Subject: weekend sports

OK here goes:

Knock that Shit off! You can’t skip any weeks period. Your viewers will disappear and when you pitch your skill set out in the land of the tall and beautiful you want to show your YouTube stats and history of growth. If you don’t have it in you I want you to switch to the mindset of separation meaning you take how you feel and lay that aside, the Buddhists see it as a flower floating past them in a stream, and do what your rational self knows needs to be done. You cannot allow yourself to be defeated by inner doubts, feeling bad, not feeling inspired or any of that horse manure.

This is a true story though I am telling it from my memory which is spotty at best.

Once there was a gifted violin prodigy who through family connections was able to secure an interview with one of the top three violin teachers in the world. This teacher required that any students seeking to become one of his students must submit a recording of a violin performance so that the teacher could judge if the student had enough talent to become one of his protégés. The gifted violin prodigy submitted the recording that he agonized over for months to the teacher. He then met with the teacher to get his evaluation. The teacher told him that contrary to what others had told the student that he had almost no talent and should consider never playing again in public. The student was decimated and his aspirations to be a world-class violinist ended.

The student went on to a career in business where he was very successful and years later after attending a violin concert he again ran across the famous violin teacher. The student berated the teacher telling him how much his evaluation of his lack of talent had hurt him. The student asked the teacher what it was about his performance that the teacher so disliked. The teacher responded saying that he never listened to the performance that actually every student that ever submitted any performance to him he never listen to and told everyone of them exactly what he had told the student. The teacher went on to say that he was not ever in doubt that the student had great talent but what separated those at the very top of the profession from those that would never obtain the top of the profession was not a lack of talent but a lack of toughness. The teacher said that no matter how talented every great musician must have the ability to withstand strong criticism, self-doubt and the discouragements that come into every life in order to be one of the absolute best. The teacher knew that the student could not take the rejection that he would not succeed no matter how talented he was. So as an act of kindness he always wanted those that had talent and not sufficient toughness to change path that they might succeed in life.

Ron

I have never met any man that was not in some way my superior. (Except for you know who!)