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June 01, 2011 at 08:00 PM
I’m a sap. Every year I get sucked into watching American Idol. Some might classify it as a mild obsession. My only saving grace (I tell myself) is I’ve never actually texted a vote. So technically, I’m not a groupie.
So what is it, aside from J Lo’s wardrobe that grabs me? It’s the moments. Granted, they’re not my moments but occasionally, there are some moments. What are moments, you ask?
We all have them. It’s just ours don’t usually get played out on national TV. To me, those special moments are the fleeting times when we somehow nail it. When we hit one out of the park. When our passion finally makes sense. It’s the rare moment when we get everything right and we know it. It’s the stuff of legends.
When I watch Idol, sure, I love watching the performers’ moments. But I also find myself reflecting on some of my own moments. I think about moments with family and friends, moments with work and a moment or two on the stand-up comedy stage. Basically, it’s my life highlight reel, without commercial interruption.
The financial industry has provided me, and I’m sure many of you, with our own moments. Do you remember the first order you placed? I do. It was a little blue-haired old lady in Kenton, Ohio. Before I had opened my office, I was brainwashed into going door-to-door making cold calls.
I’ll never forget it. I knocked on her door and introduced myself. After some polite chitchat, she went to get some old bond she had and asked me to sell it for her and put it in a mutual fund. Thank goodness she knew what she wanted to do because I sure didn’t. As I walked away, I thought, “Hmm, maybe this will work after all.”
