I found out on Tuesday that a friend of mine has passed away. Keith Harrell was a motivational speaker that I met at a corporate convention in February 2007. I was working for the mortgage company at the time and he was a keynote speaker. Normally I have zero tolerance for motivational speakers. Over the top nonsense about "believing and achieving" and guys who repel down from the ceiling to the overblown strains of "Ya'll ready for this?" just make me tune out.
But Keith was very different. From the moment he stepped on stage there was a depth to his message that other speakers were sadly lacking. He didn't talk about being a better salesman...he spoke of being a better human being. He wasn't there to motivate me to break records in production, he was there to motivate me to break records in the number of lives I could touch by just doing what I do better and with more purpose.
"Superfantastic" was Keith's trademark phrase and he was a guy who lived it. I remember sitting in the crowd that morning and seeing my future staring me in the face. I wanted to do what I watched Keith do. Convince people to be great at touching lives...then the sales would naturally follow. It took me 2 more years to finally give in to the calling I felt that day.
Keith was supportive when I emailed him and told him of my decision. Instead of ignoring me or giving me a brief nod, he sent me several emails full of thanks for God's using his words to move me into a new phase of life. He spoke openly of his faith in Jesus Christ and how thankful he was that we shared that bond. I felt that Keith was my friend and my brother in Christ.
As I grow older I am learning that the truest things you can know about someone are the things said after they pass away. At Keith's memorial website, there is an overflow of wonderful words about what great friend this man was. He was a star in the speaking world but never so big that he didn't care deeply about people who listened to his words. He cared. He saw every contact as a chance to touch someones life. The world was truly a better place during his time here.
Now I have the challenge of trying to live so that the same can be said of me one day.
But Keith was very different. From the moment he stepped on stage there was a depth to his message that other speakers were sadly lacking. He didn't talk about being a better salesman...he spoke of being a better human being. He wasn't there to motivate me to break records in production, he was there to motivate me to break records in the number of lives I could touch by just doing what I do better and with more purpose.
"Superfantastic" was Keith's trademark phrase and he was a guy who lived it. I remember sitting in the crowd that morning and seeing my future staring me in the face. I wanted to do what I watched Keith do. Convince people to be great at touching lives...then the sales would naturally follow. It took me 2 more years to finally give in to the calling I felt that day.
Keith was supportive when I emailed him and told him of my decision. Instead of ignoring me or giving me a brief nod, he sent me several emails full of thanks for God's using his words to move me into a new phase of life. He spoke openly of his faith in Jesus Christ and how thankful he was that we shared that bond. I felt that Keith was my friend and my brother in Christ.
As I grow older I am learning that the truest things you can know about someone are the things said after they pass away. At Keith's memorial website, there is an overflow of wonderful words about what great friend this man was. He was a star in the speaking world but never so big that he didn't care deeply about people who listened to his words. He cared. He saw every contact as a chance to touch someones life. The world was truly a better place during his time here.
Now I have the challenge of trying to live so that the same can be said of me one day.
