Investing in People Brings the Greatest Returns

Hello and welcome to the Soul of Innovation podcast. I am the host, Thomas Anglero, and my mission for this podcast is to share with you those private thoughts and reflections that I have being one of the top keynote speakers around the world on technology, motivation, and innovation. I hope you truly enjoy all the lessons I share, all the dots I connect that sometimes are just really difficult to get out but it's all for you. I truly hope you enjoy this episode.

Welcome to the Soul of Innovation podcast. I am Thomas Anglero, and I want to talk to you about investing. I think— and this is not just financial investing, and I'm not a financial advisor, but I am an expert in investing in people. And I want to touch on just investing in general, and this is one of the most important topics that you should pay attention for you. Yesterday afternoon, I was walking with a colleague and a young lady yelled my name, and I turned around and she was shaking with excitement. Her name was Sarah. Her name is Sarah. And Sarah was so happy to see me. Sarah was one of my students that over 10 years ago, I wanted to make a difference here in Norway. I wanted to invest in the young people and create incredible leaders for tomorrow. So I, I started a program with Bjørn Holt High School, the virgåneskole, and I had an evening course for 10 weeks, 2 hours each week. From 6 to 8 on entrepreneurship and leadership. And towards the end of the first time I had this course, the first course, I realized that I could— that teaching that wasn't enough, that these kids had to— and the kids, the students were the age of 17 and 18— and I realized that they had to actually experience what it means to be a great leader. How fortunate they are in the lives that they have. So one evening, remember, I'll never forget it, in the middle of the class I said, I need to take all you to New York. I gotta take you to New York City. I have to show you the, uh, rotten side of the Big Apple. I want to take you to soup kitchens. I want to take you to homeless shelters. We're going to work there, we're going to volunteer there. Um, I want to take you to gay and lesbian community centers so you see what that culture is about and that they're not different than us and what the challenges they have. And the students like, yeah, this would be a great thing to do. That, that ended at around 8:30 that night. 9 o'clock the next morning, I received the phone call from the assistant principal of the school, and he told me that first thing in the morning he called one of his contacts at the government of Norway, who then contacted the Crown Prince, who then said, 'I want to fund this.' And literally by 9 o'clock the next morning, I had funding for this trip, and the trip was on. And for 3 years in a row, I took between 8 10 students every year for 1 week, around 8 days usually, to New York City. And for 8 days in New York City, of the whole 8 days, only 2 hours were spent shopping or doing tourist stuff. The rest was spent visiting schools in the worst neighborhoods that I could find in the South Bronx or in Brooklyn, where the graduation rate was nothing. Sorry, getting into a long story. Them being to do that. She says, I find it very interesting because here in Norway, per capita, one of the wealthiest places in the world, yet the children that are being brought up here with all this wealth and opulence, how can we make them the greatest leaders that have ever walked this planet? And that, I thought, was by showing them and exposing them and having them exist. Not showing them, but having them exist, having them actually live with talk with and build up the confidence of the poorest people in the world that I can find. And this is what I did for 3 years in a row. And Sarah was one of the girls from one of the classes, one of the groups that went there. And she was so excited to meet me. She goes, I just— so I saw you on the train. I had to jump off the train and go, that's Thomas Anglero. She goes, look, I'm shaking to meet you. I'm shaking. I'm like, but Sarah, we know each other so well. I told you we'll always be family. And she goes, I know, but you're Thomas Anglero. And it occurred to me, the investment I made— I volunteered my time. This wasn't to make money, it was just I wanted to do this. This investment I made in these young people— Patrick, um, and there's so many amazing ones that I'm just seeing their faces now— that investment I made has made a huge difference. They send me messages all the time saying that when they're in the most difficult situations in their lives, they think about what would Thomas Anglero do. Have you touched someone? Have you invested and volunteered your time to touch a young person such that they, in a moment of most difficulty, reflect upon the lessons that you've taught them to help guide them in that moment. That's a hell of an investment, but I expect no return. There's the difference. When you invest in people, don't expect anything back. You get back love. That's huge. That's priceless. And that's something that cannot be bought. You go to a prostitute for sex, which is physical, but that's not love. Love is something that has to be earned. Love is something that happens in a moment. Love is something that cannot be predicted. Love is something magical. And Sarah reminded me that over 10 years ago I made a difference to a whole bunch of young people. And her excitement yesterday reminded me that it was worth it all. Trust me, it wasn't easy being one sole adult taking a group of kids to New York City who had never been to the United States and high risk, and they're all 17 years old, and it worked out phenomenal. If any of you would like to see it, I actually videotaped the evening session. So at the end of every day, we would— I would go back to my room in the evening, sit all together, and then for the next 2 hours, we reviewed the day, and I videotaped that whole thing. Video, whole session I put on YouTube, so it's there historically for all of them to reflect and see it as they get older. And we reviewed the day, and there's some very intense sessions. So if you'd like to see that, just, um, Google my name on YouTube and type in YHood, W-I-H-O-O-D. The world is your neighborhood. YHood, beautiful. And is there that type of investment, that investment in someone's life That investment of your time. That's what you're investing— your time to make this planet a better place. How often do you invest your time? I know you're caught up with yourself. I know you're caught up with your job, the demands of your job. When you come home, the life you have at home, your husband, your wife, your kids, Or if you're single, you have all these things that you got to do with all your friends, your compas, and all this stuff. But those things are investments, and those are great. But what about investing in the future of the city, the town, the country, the planet you're in, and people? How much time do you allocate to investing in others? When you have a meeting at work, do you answer to be the smartest person in the room, or do you answer to make sure that everyone else is the smartest person in the room? Do you answer so that you make yourself look a little stupid so that the person next to you has an epiphany and they give the right answer, and you sacrifice your ego so that they could feel better about themselves and they can walk a little better, and that they— that's what they needed to be a better person? Do you ever see life from that perspective or exist in life from that perspective? Those are investments that you can make every single day. The cost is don't expect anything back. We live in such a capitalistic society that every time we think of the word investment, it means we have to have a return. Let me tell you something: when you die, you cannot take that Tesla with you. You cannot take that big home with you. I mean, everybody says this all the time, but if you seriously think about that, then why the hell are you collecting stuff? Why are you collecting stuff? How much did that stuff cost you? How much does it cost you to daydream about collecting that stuff? Does it really mean anything to you? I mean, really make— does it make a difference? I was having a conversation with someone and I told them something I thought was profound. They didn't pick on about— pick up on it, excuse me. But I still— I'll repeat it here, and that is this: If having that car makes you feel so damn good, so much better, so amazing, that that's who you really are, then let me ask you, that other guy over there, when he buys that car, is he the equivalent of you? Everything you experienced, everything you value, everything you learned, you're now same same. And all the person has to do is buy that damn car. The same as you? Of course not. It's ridiculous. Invest in people. And who you are and your self-worth is— it's, it's, it's not even describable. When, when Sarah came to me yesterday, I was I was surprised. I was caught off guard. But the fact that she was nervous to meet me is crazy. Young people need our help, everybody. They need our time. Give your time to anybody who's a teenager. Give your time to anybody in their 20s. They need our time. They may not agree with everything we say, but they need our time. They need our attention the same way you needed it when you were in your teens and your 20s. And if you're in your teens and your 20s and you're listening to this, then you should listen to them as well. You don't have to believe everything they say, but they're giving you and they're investing in you. I could go on with this all day long and It's such a personal topic, but as the days go by and you look at your bank account, look at your life account. Who have I invested in in the past that will bring back tremendous rewards? In the future. That's an investment. Your life should be full of those. Your life should be full of moments when you walk down the street, someone runs up to you so excited to see you and to thank you for you being you. That's the definition of an investment. Having a bigger house or another car It's a definition of materialism, not investment. Invest in you. You want to collect something? Instead of art, collect friends, collect moments, collect memories, collect, collect hugs. All those things are priceless and live forever. The house will always need a new coat of paint. The car will always need to be fixed. The memory of someone hugging you never needs to be fixed. It is as strong as the moment you got— you gave that person a hug and they gave you a hug back. That's the definition of investment. Now go invest. This is Thomas Anglero investing in you, and that I know you're gonna invest in others from the deepest parts of your heart. I love you. Go forth and spread beauty and light. And until the next time.

Thank you for listening to that episode. If you want to contact me, you can contact me on my website at anglero.com, and you can also subscribe to the newsletter, or you can find me anywhere on social media with Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter. Thank you so much, and I hope to hear from you very soon.