As I grow older, I find myself tearing up more often than ever before. The reasons are numerous and varied and, in most cases, very cathartic for me. I don’t mind at all. It might be a song, a movie, a TV show, a memory, a realization or simply something that happened during my busy day.

I firmly believe these various circumstances have always presented themselves to me. I’m just more aware of them at this point in my life.

One of those moments materialized for me recently during a very hectic week in a major city. I was involved in a frenzied week of training which ran until 9 p.m. every night. I repeated the same program several times every day in order to accommodate the hundreds of employees our client had scheduled to attend.

Leadership and front-line employees alike arrived from all over the city to attend the three-hour sessions, day after day. Due to the size of each session, the programs were held in one of the largest and most historic churches in the city.

After the last session of my last night, I was alone in the enormous auditorium packing up my materials and props. I had turned off most of the lights, and it was extremely quiet at this point. I was suddenly startled to see someone just three feet in front of me … almost as though he had instantly materialized out of nowhere.

There, standing quietly with a warm smile on his thinly bearded face, was a short, middle-aged man who, extending his hand, said in heavily broken English, “Hello, Mr. Harry. My name is Albert.”

I smiled, shook his hand, and returned the greeting. He apologized for bothering me after a long week but said he wanted to thank me for everything he had learned this week. I thought that it was odd that he had referred to a three-hour session as “all week.”

He went on, in broken English, to explain that he wasn’t an official attendee of the training. He was an employee of the church where the sessions were being held. He was walking by the auditorium on the first night of the week after getting off work. He listened at the door to see why people were laughing. After a few minutes of listening, he casually made his way to the back of the room, picked up one of our booklets, found a seat and became an “unofficial attendee.” He sat through the entire program taking notes!

As if that weren’t unusual enough, Albert returned after work every night for the rest of the week and sat through the program again and again. I thanked him for doing so but couldn’t help but to inquire why he kept coming back.

Albert explained that he was from Albania and struggles to understand and translate the English language. Each night after the class ended at 9 p.m., he took his notes home, sat around his kitchen table with his wife, two sisters, one brother, and three high school aged children, and they all discussed and translated his notes. He told me that his entire family had learned so much by the end of the week and how much they all enjoyed the lessons they had learned. He wanted to stop by and thank me for the gift I had provided for his family.

I accepted his out-stretched hand once again and told him that it was I who wanted to thank him for reminding me that there were still good people in this world who wanted to learn and grow. I told him that it was an honor for me to be a part of his family’s growth. At that point, with what appeared to be glistening eyes, he hugged me and simply said, “Thank you, Mr. Harry, and God bless you.” Albert then turned and walked away into the darkness.

What I didn’t tell Albert was that many who shared that auditorium with him all week didn’t want to be there, others felt they were being forced to attend, many didn’t listen much less take notes, and some weren’t focused on learning or personal growth. That was certainly not the fault of our client. These behaviors are evident in most all groups who attend this type of session today. It doesn’t matter where they work or what part of the country they live in. It’s simply human nature.

These reactions make it difficult for those of us addressing these audiences. It’s so easy to get frustrated as you wonder just how many will benefit from your efforts. You sometimes feel as though you want to consider throwing in the towel. You never do, of course, for the sake of the few who truly want to learn and grow—but you sometimes feel like reaching for that towel.

That night, Albert from Albania, unbeknownst to him, actually encouraged me to reach for that towel. However, it wasn’t to throw it in … it was to wipe my brow, appreciate those like Albert, and refocus my efforts to always search every audience for my next “Albert.”

I finished packing up my things for the walk back to my hotel through the quiet, dark streets of late-night city … a bit of an appreciative tear in my eyes and a glowing warmth in my heart. Thank you Albert!

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

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Just when I feel I’ve seen it all, someone comes along to prove me wrong. I seem to find the strangest situations in larger cities like L.A., Dallas, Chicago, and New York City. My last visit to the Big Apple was certainly no exception. As I reflect on this very unusual incident, I still can’t understand or begin to explain it. However, I won’t soon forget it.

On my last evening in town, after a long week of facilitation, I decided to have dinner in a picturesque little restaurant near the East River not far from my hotel.

I was sitting alone in the rear of the restaurant enjoying my dinner when I noticed an enthusiastic young man, in his mid-30s, walking rapidly toward me with a big grin on his face. I knew he was coming to me as I was the only one in that area of the restaurant and I was sitting by the window overlooking the river.

As he arrived at my table, he reached out, grabbed my hand and starting pumping it as though I were a long lost friend he hadn’t seen in years. In heavily broken English, he gave me his name and told me how thrilled he was to meet me. He called me Sam as he explained that he never misses an episode of my show.

I quickly explained my name was not Sam and he might have mistaken me for someone else. He apologized and said that he was certain I was Sam Waterston, one of the stars of the long-running television series, Law & Order. He asked if he could have an autograph.

Trying to keep a straight face, I again gave him my name and explained that I was not Sam Waterston. Again in broken English, he said he understood, apologized for bothering me but still wanted my autograph because he thought I looked so much like Sam Waterston.

At this point, I was very embarrassed and couldn’t think of anything to say. He then handed me a pen and a folded newspaper as he explained he wanted the autograph for his wife who loved the show.

I said, “You understand I’m NOT Sam Waterston, right?” He indicated he was aware of that fact but still wanted my autograph as he continued to hold the newspaper in from of me. I really felt stupid at this point as other customers in the restaurant had turned to watch this encounter trying to figure out who I was. I quickly told him I didn’t feel comfortable signing someone else’s name.

He again grinned from ear to ear and said, “No, I want you to sign your own name!” Now I’m almost laughing out loud as I tried to visualize this man explaining this scenario to his wife when he got home. Why would she want the autograph of a total stranger who her husband thought looked like a television actor? He obviously wasn’t going to give an inch so I quickly signed my own name on his newspaper! The man again thanked me, pumped my hand again, and went on his way.

Several customers were still glancing my way. It took me another ten minutes to finish my meal, and I then made my way to the register to pay my bill. As I walked by a man and his wife at a nearby table, the man reached up and tapped my shoulder as he asked, “Are you somebody?” Maintaining a straight face and continuing my journey to the register, I said: “Isn’t everyone? Sam Waterston — Law and Order.”

As I continued walking, I could hear the husband tell his wife, “I thought so!”

People are funny.

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

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