Is it possible to create powerful and positive momentum shifts in your personal and professional life? Adam Nugent welcomes Dan Clark to the podcast. He is a motivational speaker, author, and CEO. Together, they talk about the resilience of the human spirit and how you can’t be afraid to turn traditional thinking on its side. Who do you hang out with? Are you thinking or doing? It’s time to develop your most genuine and authentic self.
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In this podcast excerpt, Dan Clark shares a touching story about a homeless man and shares what keeps him up at night.
AN: You spend your life motivating and helping people. So let me flip it a little bit. What keeps you up at night?
DC: That I didn’t pass by someone I could’ve helped. It’s the cheesiest thing on the planet. Many years ago, it was a snowy, foggy day. It was a blizzard, and the wind was blowing so fiercely that the snow was actually piercing our skin. It hurt so bad. We had a shopping mall downtown, and the entrance from Main Street had three doors, but the two main doors were locked shut that day. So, the only entrance into the mall was the turnstile revolving door in the middle of the building. And because that was the only entrance, there were eight other people in front of me.
I had driven around the block twice and couldn’t find a parking spot close by. So I had parked up the street about a quarter of a mile away with no overcoat. So, I’m fighting the fierce blizzard in this foggy, freezing cold day with just my tie and my sport jacket. At the turnstile door is a gentlemen, all bundled up from the Salvation Army, holding his red bucket. Because I’m ninth in line, I have plenty of time to see this homeless gentleman with no coat. I still remember his white converse, and his right shoe was completely blown out and his toes were exposed to the elements. In his tattered, dirty clothes, he walks up to the Salvation Army bell ringer, reaches in his pocket and pulls it inside out. I’m there long enough to watch him count out loud, “93 cents.” He put it in the bucket and said, “Merry Christmas, lad.”
He gave everything he had and disappeared into the foggy day. I’ve never forgotten that. What keeps me up at night is wondering if I was not aware of someone during that day who just needed a pat on the back, a smile, and acknowledgement.
