How to get motivated and find your spark - rule number 5.

There was a former Undersecretary of Defense who was invited to give a speech at a large conference, about a thousand people. And he was standing on the stage with his cup of coffee and a Styrofoam cup giving his prepared remarks with his PowerPoint behind him.

And he took a sip of his coffee and he smiled and he looked down at the coffee and then he went off-script and he said “You know, last year I spoke at this exact same conference. Last year I was still the undersecretary, and when I spoke here last year they flew me here business class, and when I arrived at the airport there was somebody waiting for me to take me to my hotel. And they took me to my hotel and they had already checked me in and they just took me up to my room, and the next morning I came downstairs and there was someone waiting in the lobby to greet me, and they drove me to this here same venue. They took me through the back entrance and took me into the green room and handed me a cup of coffee in a beautiful ceramic cup”.

He says, “I'm no longer the undersecretary. I flew here coach, I took a taxi to my hotel, and I checked myself in. When I came down the lobby this morning I took another taxi to this venue. I came in the front door and found my way backstage, and when I asked someone do you have any coffee he pointed to the coffee machine in the corner and I poured myself a cup of coffee into this here Styrofoam cup”.

He says, “The lesson is the ceramic cup was never meant for me, it was meant for the position I held. I deserve a Styrofoam cup”.

Remember this – as you gain fame, as you gain fortune, as you gain position and seniority. People will treat you better, they will hold doors open for you, they will get you a cup of tea and coffee without you even asking. They will call you sir and ma'am and they will give you stuff.

None of that stuff is meant for you. That stuff is meant for the position you hold. It is meant for the level that you have achieved, of leader or success or whatever you want to call it. But you will always deserve a Styrofoam cup. Remember that, remember that lesson of humility and gratitude. You can accept all the free stuff, you can accept all the perks absolutely, you can enjoy them, but just be grateful for them and know that they're not for you.

I remember getting off the Acela. I took the Acela from New York to Washington DC, and I got off the train like everybody else and I was walking down the platform like everyone else and I walked past General Norty Schwarz who used to be the chief of staff of the United States Air Force - the head of the Air Force.

And here I did you see a guy in a suit schlepping his own suitcase down the platform just like me, and just a couple months ago he was flying on private jets and he had an entourage and other people carried his luggage. But he no longer held the position, and so now he got to drag his own suitcase. And never did it sort of remind me more that none of us deserve the perks that we get.

We all deserve a Styrofoam cup.


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Thanks to Usher's New Look and Simon Sinek for their cooperation in creating this video.

To find out more about Usher's New Look and how they're developing global youth leaders, please visit http://ushersnewlook.org/

And for more inspiration from Simon Sinek, check out https://startwithwhy.com/

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