ALL the Energy You Need ft. Dr Tommy Campbell | Ep 110

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Dr. Tommy Campbell, thank you very much for joining the podcast. We were just speaking beforehand in terms of, you know, know, obviously the crazy world that we're living in right now. But how has it been on your side of the pond in 2020.

In the USA? It has been very traumatic. We have experienced so many thousands and thousands and upon thousands of deaths with this COVID 19 global pandemic. And it is, we are, we're definitely in this country and globally. We're living in some unprecedented times. And this coronavirus is really bad in the usa. But there is hope, you know, in who I am and what I represent and I will share that later. I know it is going to get better, but it is pretty bad in the usa. But I know it is going to get better. I believe that. I'm an advocate for that and I just know it's going to get better.

Well, I think most of us will hope to have that level of confidence as well. But I'm glad you personally, you're doing well. And so for the people who might not be so familiar with you, Dr. Campbell, in terms of you're a motivational speaker, an author from the U.S. please tell us a bit more about your story up until this point and what led you into motivational speaking as well.

Absolutely. Yes. I have a very unique story. I've experienced so much failure. I've experienced so much trouble in my life and I've been through so much. But this is what I decided to do and I'm very excited. I made the decision to use all of my pain and turn it into positivity of becoming a motivational speaker. And my story is I flunked the first grade and I grew up with a learning disability. I had a reading and comprehension problem. I was bullied in school and I was always the underdog and when I got into high school, my high school teacher, she told everybody else how great they were going to be. But when she got to me, she said, tommy, you're not smart enough to go to college. She said, tommy, you're not going to graduate high school. Now, my whole life, I've had people to try and put limitations on me. And that's what I want to tell you. I want to tell London and the whole world, never. Don't allow people to put limitations on you. Don't allow people to tell you what you can and cannot do. And she told me, she said, tommy, you might as well just go into the army, go into the military.

So.

So unfortunately, I listened to her and I went, took the military test. And when I took the military test, I failed the military test. It's quite ironic. And then I said, well, I said, I might as well kind of prove her wrong, because the best way to prove your critics wrong is to become successful. And so I got into college, but unfortunately, I started struggling with mental illness and depression, and I flunked out of college. And I got back in. And when I flunked out of college, it seemed like my life was over. I was depressed. I was like, how am I going to get back to college? And I said to myself, maybe what the teacher went. Maybe what my high school teacher said about me, maybe it is true. Maybe I am not smart enough to go to college. Maybe I didn't deserve to graduate high school. So I didn't give up. And I got back in college on academic probation. And then it took me. It took me six years to get my bachelor's degree because of my learning disability. It took me five years to get my master's because of my learning disability. And then once I got my master's, I went and got my doctoral degree in leadership at a seminary. And it's just. I really got to a place in my life. I said, okay, I'm not gonna let people put limitations on me. You know, I've been through so much in my life. I've experienced so much rejection. And then in 2009, I became homeless. I was living on the streets, and I had to beg for food. And then now, years later, I'm a motivational speaker, and I'm a published author of three motivational books. And my fourth motivational book, it will be published next year, sometime in January. And I just want to let the people know that, you know, don't let people doubt you. When people doubt you, prove them wrong, you can accomplish your Dreams. That's what I want to tell you. You can do it, you can achieve it, and you can accomplish anything you want to accomplish. Anything is possible.

I needed that dose of energy. So thank you.

Thank you very much.

God, I don't even know where to start following that. But it's so for you, amongst all of that is an incredible story. But amongst all of that, what was the day? What was the turning point? What has been your biggest turning point? Because it sounded like there's been multiple, you know, things and multiple turning points. But what was the turning point for you? What day was it? Do you remember that moment in terms of deciding? Because when I work with people, we can't control the events, but we can control how we define them. And so you made a decision where, look, I can't keep controlling the events. Tough things happen in life. But one day you made a decision to define it in a different way. Do you remember what that day was? And the moment, specifically, the biggest moment for you?

The turning point for me. The turning point for me. And I'm glad you answered that question. And I know I get excited when I speak. I have a lot of energy and I love it. I am excited. The turning point for me, David, was when I became homeless. When I became homeless during the summer in 100 degree weather and I became homeless, I was living on the streets and I had to beg for food. That was the turning point for me. I said, I know I may be homeless, I may be living in the streets, I may be begging for food. But in the midst of that, I remember I was raised by my grandmother. She said, tommy, she said, you're gonna do great things one day. And I remember when I was in the heat in the middle of the summer and I was homeless, living on the streets and begging for food, I'm excited. I told myself in the midst of being homeless, David, that I would not be like this for the rest of my life. I said, I'm going to make it, David. I would talk to myself. I would do daily affirmations with myself. I would affirm myself. And this is what I want to tell you. It's okay to do affirmations, but this is what I want you to do. I want you to be the affirmation. I want you to become the affirmation. And when I was homeless, when I was in those streets and I had to beg for food, that was the most humiliating moment in my life. But in the midst of me being homeless, that was my turning point. I said, I'm not going to live like this for the rest of my life. I said I'm going to become great one day. I said I'm going to become successful and I am going to accomplish my dreams. And I will not be homeless for the rest of my life and I will not die in these streets because I know people, I have people that I know who are homeless and they ended up dying in the streets. And I said, that's not going to be me. And let me tell you something I want to tell the whole world. You don't have to stay stuck in life you may be going through, you may be dealing with depression, you may have never knew your father, you may grew up in a single mother home. I don't know what your situation is, but whatever your situation is, you don't have to stay that way. And I want to tell you there has to come a point in your life where the turning point is key. The turning point is essential. And there has to be a turning point in your life that can catapult you to greatness and success. And for me, again, as I reiterate, when I became homeless, that was the turning point for me. And I said, enough is enough. And I remember when I was in the streets, those words of my high school teacher came in my mind. And the words that she said came into my mind when I was homeless. Well, Tommy, you know you're not smart enough to go to college. Tommy, you know you're not good enough. Tommy, you know you're not going to graduate high school. And all the limitations that people tried to put on me, they told me I would never amount to anything. Well, Tommy, you know you're not going to amount to anything. See those negative voices, David, I heard when I was homeless, I heard all those negative voices in my mind. But this is what I made a decision. I chose the turning point. When I was homeless, I said, negative voices, you will not defeat me. I will become successful. I will be great. I will use my gifts to serve and I will make a difference in the lives of people. And I will not stay this way for the rest of my life.

For lots of people listening, where they pick up on your energy and enthusiasm and positivity and they feel that in their body, which I can feel as well. When people can feel that, that kind of energy and enthusiasm for lots of people, I'm sure you've experienced this with people you've, you've done speaking with. They feel that energy and enthusiasm at that moment, like I feel it at this moment. Yes, but Then you go away and the energy, enthusiasm drops and then they're wondering what to do next. So the question I have is, how do you turn that energy and enthusiasm positivity and the advice you're giving people, how do you help people long term? So because if we have a conversation like this conversation or a conversation I have with any guest, it has an impact in that moment, but it's what we do continuously and consistently. Like you're saying you couldn't just have that affirmation once and then that's your life sorted. It has to be consistent. You have to keep pushing yourself in that way. How do you encourage people to come up or what strategies would you provide to help people have longer term success rather than just feel enthusiasm and energy in one particular moment?

I am so glad you answered that question. And that is very important because when I look at my life when I was homeless and when I barely graduated high school and I was always the underdog, you know, this is what you do. This is what you do. We all experience pain in our lives. And you with motivation and having energy, you know, you just can't be excited one day, you can't be motivated one day. It's like, this is like a cell phone. You use your cell phone, but you have to charge that cell phone every day. When you're on that cell phone and you're using that cell phone, eventually the cell phone is going to go dead. But what you have to do, you have to keep that cell phone charged. You have to charge that cell phone every day. And what I recommend, I recommend you to listen to motivational speakers every day. And I want you to read positive motivational books, watch positive content. You have to charge yourself with motivation. You have to charge yourself with positivity every day. And this is what I want to tell you because I know many of you. You all have a story too. You all have pain. This is what you do. I witnessed so many people, when they experience pain, when they go through rejection and when life punches them in the face, they want to give up, they want to throw in the towel. But this is what you do. Take your pain, take everything that you're going through, take everything that you've been through and use it as fuel and motivation to stay motivated. Because while you're going after your dreams, listen to me very closely. While you are going after your dreams, while you are trying to do something great with your life, you are going to experience obstacles, you are going to have problems, you are going to go through trouble because success doesn't happen overnight. You can't cheat greatness, you can't cheat success. You gotta go through the process. So, so, so you have to keep yourself motivated, you have to keep yourself inspired. You have to charge yourself every single day. And this is what I want to tell you. I want to say this again. Use your pain. Don't. Don't take your pain and use your pain and then just give up on life. But so many people, they get depressed, they go through pain, they have issues, they get rejected, they have struggles and they want to quit. See, when you start going through, so many people want to quit. But let me tell you this. Don't you quit while you're going through. Don't you quit. I want you to learn from every obstacle that you're facing. There is always something to learn from it. And through all of your pain, through every trouble, through every trial, through every tribulation, through every negative thing that has happened in your life, there's always something positive to look at it in your life, through every problem, all things, listen to me very closely. All things work together for the good. That's the good, that's the bad and the ugly. So through every obstacle, you got to see the positivity in it. You got to stay positive. Being positive, it is a mindset. And there are so many people, they're pessimistic, meaning they're negative. You cannot be negative and expect to accomplish your dreams. You must be optimistic, meaning you must be positive. So it's like, let's get back to this cell phone. You have to charge that cell phone every single day if you want to keep using that cell phone. Because if you don't charge your cell phone every day, you won't be able to use that cell phone. So that's you. You got to charge yourself every day with motivation, with positivity, with encouragement. So I want to recommend listening to motivational speakers, watch positive videos, read self help positive, positive motivational books. So just charge yourself for positivity. And I want to say one more thing on that. You. It's a mindset. You have to have a. You have to have a positive mindset. You have to think like a champion. It is a mindset. I want you to, you have to have those habits of being positive every single day by so many people. So many people have good habits. So many people have bad habits. Like, for example, like all the successful motivational speakers such as myself, the billionaires and the millionaires, we got to this point in our lives because we've experienced Failure. But we took our failure, we took all of our tragedy, we took all of our negative experiences and we channeled it in positive energy. And we made a choice to take our pain and turn it into something great and turn it into something that's positive. So what I want you to do is do daily affirmations and just charge yourself every day. Develop a habit of being positive and you will see that your life will change.

So who do you listen to and watch that gets you inspired.

Yet? Who I listen to is a motivational speaker, Dr. Eric Thomas. Sure, I listen to him. He is by far one of the greatest motivational speakers in the world. I listen to Eric Thomas because I can connect with him. And Eric Thomas, he has changed my life and his story is very similar to mine. So I listen to Eric Thomas and people like Les Brown and Tony Robbins. But mainly I listen to Eric Thomas because he has been very instrumental in my life and he has been used to change my life forever.

What do you think is. I'm a fan of all three of those. Les Brown is the reason that I set up my whole business. I think I remember listening to a recording of his just going through a tough phase of my life and I just remembered him saying the words, it's not over until you win. And that made a huge difference and that changed everything from that point point on, really. When you think of Eric Thomas and Les Brown, what do you see as the differences between the two? Obviously, apart from their stories, but in their way that they deliver, what do you see as the differences between them?

The differences that I see between Eric Thomas and Les Brown is they are phenomenal. They are some of the greatest motivational speaker in the world. But with Eric Thomas, when you listen to him, he's very energetic and he's like me. I'm very similar to him.

You are very similar to Eric.

He has a lot of energy, he speaks loud, he speaks with authority, like myself. But Eric Thomas will make you want to get up and grind. He will make you want to get up and grind and just grind and grind and just work hard. But Les Brown, the difference, he will make you feel like you are a winner and that when all odds are against you, you can come out of those negative odds. Whatever situation you're in, if you just keep striving and just keep going after your dreams, you can come out of this and win and not give up.

What are the. What testimonials do you have from people in terms of what stories or what people said to you? You just Mentioned, for example, how Eric Thomas changed or saved your life. What stories do you have or have you been lucky enough to have of other people saying what impact you've had on them?

I am so glad you asked that question. I get messages from people all over the world. Ever since I started doing my motivational videos, people have reached out to me and they said they were suicidal. There have been people, hundreds of people. They said, Dr. Campbell, I was about to commit suicide, but I happened to stumble across your motivational videos on YouTube. And I just click play to watch your video. And when I watched your video, they said, I made a decision not to commit suicide. There's been people who have went to college, graduated from college because of my motivational videos. There's been people that's been in domestic violence situation. They have mental illnesses, depression, they've been through divorce voices, they've been through cancer and sicknesses and grief. And they said, all because of my. When they watched my motivational videos, they said they got. They gave them hope and they got healed for watching my motivational videos, and they decided not to commit suicide. Their marriages were saved, they got through. Some of them who were hurt from divorces, they made it, they healed from my videos. And people who are sick with cancer and people who are struggling with depression and mental illnesses, they said when they watched my motivational videos, they received healing and decided not to commit suicide. And that is just a blessing in and of itself. And that just lets me know that what I'm doing is not in vain, that this is definitely my calling and my destiny.

Mm. When people start out, when they have that calling, as you referred to it, when they have that calling, they have a picture in their mind of what it will look like when they've achieved it. So the first of a two part question. Is this that picture you had in your mind, first time round, of what it would look like when you were successful? One, have you achieved or does the picture look like you thought it was going to look? And the second part of that question is it's always about leaving footprints in the sand for other people to follow. And I want to know what footprints you would like to leave for other people in the future, aside from the positive affirmations and everything else that you've mentioned. So the first part of that question was, does the picture look like how you imagined it would look when you started on this journey?

That's a great question. No, the work is definitely not done. There's so much I want to accomplish. You know, I want to you know, that I want to. I want to impact the world. I want to, you know, once this global pandemic is over, you know, I want to travel internationally, you know, get it, speaking in corporate conferences, summits, the uk, Australia, Canada, Bermuda, the NBA, the NFL, the UK and corporate, you know, the work is definitely not done. Actually, it has just for me, for me as a motivational speaker, it has just begun. And I'm not sad at where I am now. As a motivational speaker, I'm not satisfied. I know there's more, you know, I want to make a. I want to make a global impact on this. On this. I want to make a global impact, you know, not just the usa. So definitely, you know, the answer to that first part question. No, my work. My work is. Has I got. I have my work cut out for me, you know, it has just begun. I have not even reached the limits or scratched the surface where I want to go, where I want to be or what I want to do as a motivational speaker. And I want to use my gift to serve people, to motivate people, you know, globally.

And the second part of that question is, what footprints would you like to leave in the sand? So aside from you've mentioned about positivity and affirmations, I know that the aspirations that you have as well. So when it's all finished and wrapped up, what footprints would you have liked to left? Would you like to have left in the sand for other people to follow?

I want to leave a legacy as a motivational speaker, you know, I want to be that great example, you know, I want to leave a legacy, you know. You know, when I'm done, I want people to say, you know, Dr. Tommy Campbell Jr. He was like no other, you know, he not only did he just serve the people in the US but he. Made a global impact on the whole world as a whole. He served Dr. Campbell, he served people. He loved the people, he believed in people. Because I believe as a motivational speaker, you just shouldn't focus on the financial aspect of it. But it is being a servant. That's what I want to do. I want to be a servant. I want to take all of my pain, David, everything that I've been through, all of my rejections, all of my failures, all of the lowest points of my life, and I want to give those to the people and leave a legacy and let the people know who. Let people know who are struggling, let people know who are depressed, let people know who are at the lowest part of their lives that you could take all of your pain and take every negative thing that happened in your life and use it as fuel and motivation to serve people and help other people. Because you should take. We all have gifts. Everyone is gifted. Everyone is gifted beyond measure. So take what you're gifted at, take what the gift that you've been given, and use that as fuel and motivation to be a servant. Because we are servants first. We are to be a servant. So the legacy I want to leave is that I was one of the most greatest servants that. That ever walked the face of this earth. And another thing I want to say is I love the people. The legacy I want to leave is that Dr. I want people to say, Dr. Campbell really loved the people. Dr. Campbell really cared about the people. Dr. Campbell really. He really. He had a heart for the people. And that's what I want to say. Me as a motivational speaker, I truly love the people. It's greater than the money. I love the people. I care about the people because I know what it's like to be in pain. I know what it's like to suffer. I know what it's like to be the underdog. I know what it's like to be rejected. But I want to leave a legacy. And I love the people. Oh, damn.

That was some answer. So for people listening, for the many people listening who want to bring a bit of that into their world, into their teams, into their businesses, I know that, as you said, your aspirations post this pandemic, that you want to be able to travel internationally and do this in lots of places, including in London. So for people who are interested in contacting you, who are interested in your message and your voice, how can people reach you?

Yes, my name is Dr. Tommy Campbell Jr. And I'm a motivational speaker in the US and if you want to book me to speak internationally in the uk internationally, please email me at Z as in Zebra. O as in Oscar. N as in Nancy. E as in Edward. P as in Paul. O as in Oscar. P as in paul39.com that is zone pop39mail.com. And again it is Z as in Zebra. O as in Oscar, N as in Nancy, E as in Elephant. P as in Paul. O as in October. P as in place 39@gmail.com that is zone pop39mail.com. And if you want to book me to speak internationally, that is my contact information.

Great. Thank you very much. So, Dr. Campbell, want to say thank you for your energy, enthusiasm, thank you for your time and continue doing the.

Great work, you are more than welcome.

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