Activate, Takeoff, Fly!

Lessons from an unsuspected movie expert.

Activate, Takeoff, Fly!

“I have two kids.  Boys.”  Clayton Bearden said to me as we were working together on Friday.  “One of them is graduating from high school and college today!”

I later learned that this son was one of only seven seniors in his very large high school to graduate with his high school degree as well as his Associate of Science degree.  I knew Clayton had two sons and the newly graduating son was his youngest.  And, his success made me wonder about the life path of his older brother as well.  

“His older brother is nothing like his younger sibling.  He never wanted to attend college.  He’s a lot more like me.  He’s a kind of adrenaline junkie.  Don’t get me wrong.  They’re both great young men.  I’m very proud of both of them.  They’re an improvement over their dad!”

Clayton’s older son is in the military.  In a way, he paved the way for his younger brother because he joined the national guard just before his senior year in high school and by the time he graduated and went to boot camp, he had already been promoted. Both boys recognized their personal skills, identified their path and then focused on moving forward, doing their best.

Think about some of your own greatest successes in life.  They most likely happened because you activated your own skills to make it happen, just like Clayton’s sons did.

Whether you and I realize it or not, we all have what it takes to be great on own our chosen path.  Yes.  That means none of us need to resort to yucky gimmicks or manipulation to get our best results.  Have I left you wondering?  Think about this.

While riding on a bus from an airport terminal to board an airplane last week I happened to be sitting next to an intellectually challenged man and his travel companion.  We began a light-hearted conversation.  At least I thought it was.  That is, right up to the time he asked me what the best Mary Poppins movie was.

Just as I was about to open my mouth to answer, he answered for me.

“It is the newest one!”  He blurted out.

His travel companion looked at me and said, “He’ll be able to tell you everything about almost any movie ever made!”

She was right.  He knew details I never dreamed possible.  He had such passion it was very clear to me that he had activated every skill his hunger would allow him to consume.

“I don’t think I’ve ever known this much about anything!”  I said to my new friends as we walked up the ramp and into the airplane so we could fly together.

Clayton had been teaching his sons about how they could fly together their entire lives.  Here are the truths that Clayton and my flight companions displayed about how everyone can fly their highest.

First, every person, ever born, has unique talent, personality, and interest.  Personal success comes by embracing those individual attributes.

Second, be true to who you really are and not who you think other people or institutions want you to be.  Clayton encouraged his boys to excel while embracing who they truly are.  He never compared his sons to each other.  And, he never discouraged them from focusing on their own paths.

Third.  Clayton’s sons and the unsuspected movie expert thrived as a result of their support system.  Those closest to them were able to recognize what made their life companions special and exceptional.  This third step is the critical catalyst for flight activation.

“I have two kids.  Boys.”  Clayton Bearden said to me as we were working together on Friday.  “One of them is graduating from high school and college today!”

“That’s true!”  I said to myself as Clayton left to meet his family and friends to celebrate his son’s success.  “And, you, your sons and an unsuspected movie expert have shown all of us the secrets to activate takeoff and flight for everyone!