When I was 22, my mother died to cancer. I had dropped out from college, to meet the needs of my young family. Little John was 4 months old and I was big time broke. My wife did not work at the time, and we could not afford childcare.
I got a job selling snacks to small stores around the city.
A few weeks later I had a bitter encounter with my boss, a rough-motivated-by-power-recently-promoted guy. Well, that afternoon I was jobless again, angry, frustrated and obviously depressed. My wife was devastated.
It was only two weeks after my mom died and nothing was really helping. Of course I kept going to job interviews and nothing seemed to happen. I took a call from a friend I had just met a few months before. He was a hot shot in the speaking circuit, well spoken, successful and a great human being. He and his wife wanted to meet my wife and my son and, what the heck, I had time to spare. That's how Fernando Villa, Amparo and their daughter Maria became our lifetime friends.
- Can I talk to you in private? - He said. He took me aside and said - Luis, the way I see it, you don't seem to have many choices. I think you need to be in one of my seminars. Don't worry, this time we will waive the fee. - The topic was on public speaking skills and self motivation.
The running fee was $2,000. I almost flipped. I thanked him and thought, "I don't have anything to lose". The following week I attended a sixteen hour seminar that would change my life for good.. Little I knew that I had made the best choice in my life, by accepting this generous offer.
I listened to the man, his tips, his opinions, and mostly, his experiences. He had authority. He led us into some exercises, small group discussions, all in a very participative way. He made me think and gave me so much, I have no words to describe. Needless to say, I was in a very receptive attitude. I needed a change, and needed it bad!
He became a coach and a mentor. I spoke to the man over the phone once every month. Short and substantial, his counsel was powerful.
It took me five years to make the decision of becoming a speaker, and finally, some day of March 1982 I presented my first paid seminar to a crowd of six. Only one was a paying attendee. The rest were family and friends!
That way, many years ago, I became an inspirational speaker. Besides my work as a clinician (I hold a masters degree in Applied Psychophysiology - stress control - and a also a Ph.D. in Psychology) in an Intensive Care Unit, I love to see people improve their lives in sometimes dramatic ways. Sometimes I wonder how much of his teachings were key in the way a treated my patients. Most of the time it was a matter of nurturing hope. Other times was a thing of setting goals and fostering a change in attitude. The rest was the treatment. All of it added to a number of successful cases. Others were not that successful, but at least, I had the chance to help a little in the quality of their lives.
I think that, no matter what we do, we are in the business of transforming lives. We are here to make a difference and help our neighbor.
I also believe that education in life skills, can do wonders. After all, we never stop learning. And that's real good.
Fernando and I we were best friends for thirty years. He passed away in January 2007. Thank you my dear friend for making such a difference in my life!
Well my dear reader, you got this far, thanks a lot. Now you know why I think that good seminars can foster life changes!
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