Speech to My Staff: Never Settle

Below is the speech I did for my staff at our last staff meeting. Figured it was good to take you behind the curtain a bit and see what we are about. Enjoy!

When I was between the ages of 14-18 my mother worked at JC Penny's in Springfield, Virginia. My mother was a cashier at JC Penny's and she was a damn good cashier. My mother grew up in a family of 10 kids. She is the youngest of eight so she was used to not having much. Her mother, my grandmother Vernetta Meyer raised all eight kids primarily by herself after her husband, my grandfather, Atillio Meyer, died very young of a heart attack. My mother saw most of her siblings have hard lives filled with drug abuse and more. My mother saw that and wanted to have a better life. She knew she had to work hard for what she had. At JC penny's she worked so many hours and gave so much to that job. It wasn't a particularly good job. Her feet hurt everyday pretty badly and she had to deal with rude customers regularly. Still, my mother was an excellent cashier. I used to pick her up from work when I was 16 everyday after school so I got to see her in action quite a bit.  

The summer after I turned 16 my mother got my brother and I a job at the JC Penny warehouse. To this day that was the worst job I have ever had. For three months over the summer my brother I entered a large warehouse with no windows and very little AC. It smelled like burnt plastic and everyone who worked in that warehouse looked like they had succumb to a life that wasn't what they intended it to be. Everyone looked beaten down and sad. My brother and I worked the line at the warehouse from 6am – 2pm Monday - Friday that summer. Our job was to package clothes that came off of one truck, stamp a price on them and do that over and over and over again all day. It was mindless and utterly boring work. We never got to talk to anyone and we got a 30 minute break for lunch. And not to mention, we never saw the sun during the whole work shift. And during parts of the shift we had to take these very heavy boxes with clothes in them and board them back on the truck that was parked into a tunnel like area inside the building. Still no sunshine. It was back breaking work.  

At 2pm my brother and I would get out of work and finally see the sun. It was beautiful and painful at the same time. 95 degrees and 60 percent humidity. Virginia produced some cruel summers in terms of the weather when we were kids. Still, we were so glad to see the sun finally, but it hurt our eyes as we had not seen it for a while everyday. We were so glad to get out of work, but sad to knowing that we had to come back the next day. My brother and I wanted to quit many times, but my mother wouldn't let us. She said when you accept a job or any commitment in your life you need to do your best to see it through. She also said that even if you hate your job you should still strive to be the highest performing person there. She said that shows tremendous integrity and hardiness. I didn't see it at the time, but my mother got us that job so that we understood the value of hard work and performing your best even in hard situations.  

I never forgot that lesson. And I never forgot the importance of seeing the sun regularly! Probably the reason why from 17 – 20 years old I was a lifeguard and got all the sun I needed every summer. I realized that no matter my job that I had to be great at it. My mother and father demonstrated greatness and incredible work ethic, integrity and decision making my whole life. I wanted to meet their expectations and surpass them in my personal life and in my professional life. I didn't get a doctorate because I felt like I needed it to be a trainer or be better in my life. My mother planted that seed in my life during my bachelor's degree graduation. She said "Darian, look at those students getting their doctorate. You can do that. You are smart, driven and responsible." She made me believe in myself. My mother and my father made me expect more of myself professionally and personally. I sit here today telling you that I have a very strong marriage of 12 years because my parents expected me to never settle for an average significant other.   

I sit here today telling you that nine years ago I walked into this club when it was barely finished and I saw the sunshine. I met the client. I understood the opportunity our first Director presented to me. I remembered what my parents expected of me. Never settle and always strive to seek the best place for your skills and passions. I'm happy to say that nine years later I've been blessed more than I feel I deserve by being the General Manager of Club Ridges. I have you guys in my life and we have an awesome community of residents that we serve everyday.  

And that's why now is not the time to let up. We can't take our gas off the pedal in any area of our club. We can't let our closers leave the club messy in the morning for the opening crew. We can't have our opening crew leave things undone for residents coming in to enjoy this wonderful amenity that they have access to. We can never be subpar in our performance of the services we provide to residents. We can't show up late to work or spend a bunch of time taking it easy at the front desk while work needs to be tended to. We have exactly one year until the residents take full control of the board. While we have gained a sterling reputation among the residents, there's still no guarantee that our contract will be renewed after June 30 2017. That's a scary thought. That's a scary thought.... 

That's why I wanted to take the time today to rally our team as we go through the dog days of summer here in Vegas. Next summer there's a possibly none of us will be working here if we don't expect continued excellence from ourselves everyday we are here. I want you to draw a line in the sand for yourself today. Right here, right now, make a commitment to up your level of performance no matter how well you are doing at the club. Strive to be the best closer or opener on staff. Strive to provide your best personal training session each time you come to work. When you cut those lemons when you open, ...make them look pretty and recognize you are providing a refreshing and vital source of relief for people while they work out. When you grind those coffee beans take in the smell and realize you are starting the process of giving someone a delightful tasting experience. When you clean those mats remember you are making residents feel comfortable to use our products and feel clean. And remember when you are doing this that you can see the sun piercing through the many windows of the club. And in the backdrop you can see the towering mountains that look like a painting in the desert sweeping across the landscape of the Ridges. It's truly majestic and inspiring. It's definitely not a warehouse with no windows in Springfield, Virginia. 

What is it? This place is a symbol for what most people wish they had in a work environment. It's a symbol for how great your life can be if you just continue to commit and be loyal to your feelings about this place and our people. Not everyone grew up with parents like mine. I understand that. I received regular love, affection, guidance and support while I was growing up and I still receive that from my parents. I know so many people and that includes people on our staff who never received that. I feel a tremendous responsibility at this point in my life to be your consistent voice, your pillar of support and your foundation for what you will expect both personally and professionally. Never settle for less. If you settle for less you will get less. If you strive to be great and I mean truly great at your job then you will become great. Time, effort, commitment, service, consistency, responsibility and having fun. That's what I'm asking from each of you today as we head into a critical phase of our time at Club Ridges.  

I will leave you with this. My parents moved onto Fort Meade towards the end of my college studies. Fort Meade is one of the most beautiful and sprawling military bases in America. I grew up on military bases around the world, but had never seen anything like this. My parents lived in the back of the base in one of the Colonel's quarters. Going to school and being a collegiate athlete had consumed my life. I had no clue where Fort Meade was. My parents actually had to give me directions to their house. At that point there wasn't smart phones with GPS. Just good ole directions. At Fort Meade my mother and I would take walks when I would visit them around this pond where you can watch foxes, ducks and many other forms of wildlife pass by. I remember one time my mother and I stopped on the walk as she wanted to tell me something. She looked me square in the eyes and said "Son, you have made me and your father proud. You have made our life worth it by being more than what we could have imagined. Keep pushing yourself and never settle for less." How can you get better than that in your life. It was validation and confirmation from the most important people in my life.  

I end this by saying that you guys make me proud. You make it worth it for me to come to work everyday. Still, keep pushing yourselves and  never settle for less. Never settle for mediocrity. You are always capable of greatness. Never stop pursuing being the best at whatever you love to do in your life. If you can do that then you can look back on your life and feel good about your existence. That's my hope for all of you. Make your life count each and everyday. Never settle. Ever.