I challenge you to check out the Tim Ferriss podcast with Tony Robbins entitled “Achievement Versus Fulfillment.” With Tony’s teachings shaping my own life since somewhere before 1998 the surprise for me was hearing a few simple, but powerful, concepts told in ways I never heard before. This story is about one of those gems…
When Tim asked Tony for what was the best and most worthwhile investment he made here were some of his thoughts:
The first one was going to a Jim Rohn seminar. I think I’ve shared with you I was working for this man helping him move, I was 17, I was in high school, and I was just trying to earn extra money and my father talked about this guy had been such a loser before and now he had been so successful, and so, you know when you’re 17, I told the guy, “My dad said you used to be such a loser and now you’re so successful, how come, what you do?” He didn’t like that response at first but he told me he had gone to this seminar by this man named Jim Rohn. I said, “What’s a seminar?” So this man gets up and shares would be the best of what he’s learned over, you know, 20 / 30 years of his life in an evening and saves you all those years. I thought wow and I said, “Is this happening soon?” Yes, he told me when. I said, “Can you get me in?” He said yeah, but he just didn’t say anything after that. So I asked, “Will you?”, and he said, “No.” I asked “Why not?”, and he said, “Because you won’t value it if you won’t investment in it.” “So how much is it?”, and he said “$35 for three hours.” “$35 for three hours!, I make $40 a week as a janitor, I’m going to high school, that it’s a week’s pay!” He said, “Well, just go learn on your own experience and waste 10 or 20 or 30 years of your life.” He said, “It’s up to you because I’m not paying for it and even though I can get you in I’m not going to, you decide.” I wrestled for a week with that decision because seemed like such a giant decision. I look back on it now as one of the most important decisions in my life because that night stimulated me and Jim Rohn became a model of what was possible to me of how I could help people out long term.
Tony went on further to talk about all of the people he interviewed for his book MONEY Master the Game: 7 Simple Steps to Financial Freedom, all of which were self made men, made similar comments — such as Warren Buffett saying that his best investment was going to Dale Carnegie.
For Tony, his best investment was in Jim Rohn. For myself, my best investment was in Tony Robbins. Seminars, multimedia products, books, etc, are all there to feed your mind and to hopefully shorten the learning curve rather that wasting years of your life figuring it out yourself, or worse yet, never figuring it out at all. However, in writing this story it also reminds me of your 24 hour a day, 7 day a week seminar you are always a part of — your peer group. You might be able to jump start a new life on your own but to take it any distance pay close attention to the people around you. With them for support you can take it further than even your own imagination can go.
Don’t wish it was easier, wish you were better. Don’t wish for less problems, wish for more skills. Don’t wish for less challenge, wish for more wisdom. — Jim Rohn
It’s your decisions, not your conditions that shape your life. — Tony Robbins
(Originally posted on Medium)