Rico Sharp lost 15 family members in four years, including his brother. He argues tough times are temporary but tough people endure, and that setbacks like a broken car or grief shouldn't define you. Remember your why and keep moving forward.
Chapters
Okay. And then finally, when you realize that times are tough and you're confronted with circumstances and situations, when things begin to happen that you didn't count on, when moments begin to transpire in your life that you didn't see coming, and you find yourself challenged, and you find yourself dealing with unforeseen setbacks in life, you dig deep and you develop the resiliency that you need to overcome the problems that you're going to be faced with in this life. Over the last 4 years, 3, almost 4 years, I've had about 15 family members to die in my life, including my brother, my father, including uncles, first cousins, best friends, and mentors. And it really has taken a toll on my family. It really has. I got a very large family, and when you have a large family, you experience a lot of death. And it's taken a toll on my family. And one of the things that we've learned through all of this tragedy— and COVID-19 has had a lot to do with a lot of people's demise in my family— One of the things that we've learned is that we have to continue to fight and continue to stand together and continue to press against tragedy. And the way you do that, ladies and gentlemen, is by realizing that you are strong enough for anything life throws at you. You see, tough times don't last, but tough people do. And when the going gets tough, tough people gets going. Through the power Of being resilient, you're able to overcome setbacks and sorrow, grief, and unfortunate circumstances. But you don't let the circumstances control you. You don't stop fighting. You don't stop. If your car breaks down on the way to school, you don't call it quits. You don't get upset and get angry and decide that, hey man, my life is not going anywhere. It's just a car. It's just a car. Call an Uber. It's just a car. Walk if you have to. It's just a car. If something breaks on you, you have to use your savings to fix it, and, and now you feel like your life is not working and things are not working and everything's falling apart. It's just money. It's not you. It's not your life. It's just money. It's just something that broke that needs to be repaired or replaced. If someone dies in your life, don't go to the grave with them. Don't die with them. When the economy goes through a downward departure and things gets high and the price of gas goes up, then don't go up with it. Don't get frustrated. Don't throw in the towel. Don't call it quit. It's part of life. Life is going to happen, and when life happens, you have to happen with it. Like you got to get going. You got to stand up and be who you are. You got to make sure that you're on top of things because you can't let life destroy your dreams and your aspirations. My My brother passed away this month, one year ago. He was one year older than I, and he died from a broken heart. He had a lot of trauma in his life, and he just didn't feel like he had what it took to continue on. And as much as I worked with him and poured into him and tried to motivate him and paid his bills and helped him out, I just couldn't get him to determine that he had what it took. What's your name? to win against life. He was paralyzed on his right side because he got hit in the head by his brother-in-law with a golf club and broke a 6-inch piece of his skull and thrust it down into his brain and got left for dead. Then his daughter died at the age of 6 from brain cancer. Mm. And then he got hit by a car walking home from work one day that broke up everything on his right side. And then he had Crohn's disease. And then he got addicted to the pain medication. And then his wife divorced him because of his drug addiction, and he just felt like he had nothing left to live for. And when he passed away, his final words to me were, don't let life kill you. Don't let life kill you. Don't allow for what you're going through or for what trouble you have in your life destroy you. Life is a fight. Life is a battle. That's why I said to you from the beginning, you have Remember your why, and you have to remember your who because life is going to challenge you one day. And when life comes to challenge you, you need to know why you're in this. Who you signed up for? Who's counting on you? Who believes in you? And if no one else believes in you and is counting on you, you believe in you and you're counting on you. And you have to give it all you've got because life is going to give it all it has to give as a competitor to see what you're really made of. And when time gets tough, you just have to tell yourself that I have. what it takes. And then you focus on what you're, what you're doing and why you're here. You focus on your degree, you focus on graduating, and you tell yourself that I am committed to the process and I will not allow for my trouble to distract me from the process. And then you keep going through that process and you keep going through that process, and eventually you will bring out the best in you as a result of giving it all you've got. And you will take advantage of the opportunities and the resources that are available to you because you realize that I'm working on something here. I'm, I'm working on my life. I'm working on my future. I'm working on my dream. And if this is a stepping stone toward my dream, if graduating is a stepping stone toward my visions and my goals, then I have to step up every chance I get because I will not quit and I will not give up on me. Always be willing to reach for the moon because even if you miss, you will land among among the stars. Be willing to aim high and hit nothing rather than to aim low and hit everything. Most people in life fail, ladies and gentlemen, not because they set their goals too high and hit, but because they set them too low and miss. So be willing to do today things that others won't do so that you can have tomorrow things that others won't have. Your attitude toward life determines life's attitude toward you. Be willing to give to life the passion you aspire in life give to you the dream you desire. Other people's opinions of you matters not to the determination of your potential nor to the dictation of your destiny. So walk not in the shadows of those you admire, but discover your own greatness and dare to aspire. For then you will realize your dream and live a life that inspires. For life is what you make it. And when your opportunity comes, you take it. Be sharp and Maximize your moment and make yourself a great life. And think sharp, plan sharp, dress sharp, walk sharp, talk sharp, eat sharp, and you'll be sharp. Thank you for your time, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Rico Sharp. Have a great day.
