Scarcity vs. Abundance

Nick believed his purpose was to speak to audiences, to become a motivational speaker, yet he had no experience, no resources, and no invitations. He decided to begin calling schools and offering to speak about bullying, dreaming big, and never giving up. He received fifty-two rejections. But on his fifty-third try, a school finally said yes and offered to pay him $50. He was ecstatic. Then he realized that it would take a two-and-a-half-hour drive just to get to the school. Undaunted, Nick offered the money to his brother Aaron to drive him there. 

As it turned out, Nick spoke to only ten students for five minutes. Five hours of driving for five minutes of speaking. He felt foolish. But then the next week the phone started ringing. School after school asked him to come and share his story. And those requests grew. They’re still growing. Today, more than a decade later, Nick receives 35,000 speaking requests a year.