The next day, Darnell walked into class wearing a windbreaker over his clothes. The tears from the day before were gone, replaced by a quiet determination.
“Are you trying to sweat off the weight, Darnell?” Jarod asked. It was a testament to Darnell’s composure that Jarod said anything—even he wouldn’t have teased Darnell a day earlier.
“Something like that,” Darnell said with a grin.
“Let’s start with Christy,” Mr. Griffin said. “Did you like Sue?”
“No. We all hated her. She bossed us around non-stop. She told us everything we were doing was wrong. I’m not just talking about our diving or swimming. She didn’t even like the way we put on our goggles.”
“So you hired Dana?” I asked.
“No, we hired Sue.”
“You’re kidding,” Jarod said. “You hired someone you hated over someone you loved?”
“My notecard was clear.” Christy took out the card and read:
I intend to captain the girls’ swim team to victory in the State Championships on March 8th. To accomplish this, I will do the following:
1. Find an Amazing coach
“If my goal were to have fun being team captain, I’d hire Dana. But my goal is to win, not be coddled. Sue was amazing. At the end of practice, I swam my fastest lap of the year.”
“Was Dana disappointed?” Mr. Griffin asked.
“Actually, no. It’s Dana’s goal to be a top-notch coach someday, but I think she knows she’s not there yet. When I told her how amazing Sue was, and that she was willing to take Dana on as an assistant coach, Dana jumped at it. So instead of hiring one coach, we hired two.”
“I love how you keep saying you hired,” Jarod said, “given that you’re asking them to work for free.”
“I know. It doesn’t seem fair given that we did have money for a coach in this year’s budget.”
“So what’s your next step?” Mr. Griffin asked.
“What do you mean?”
“You’re out of steps on your card. You can already rip up the coaching card you made. And you can cross out step one on your championship card. What are you going to do now?”
Christy laughed. “I guess I was expecting Coach Sue to take charge. She knows a lot more about championship swimming than I do.”
“Never delegate your vision. You’ve put yourself in a much better position by bringing on a top coach. Yet, the question remains, what can you still do to make your goal a reality?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Well then, turn to your Mastermind Group.”
“Do any of you have any ideas?”
Christy looked straight at me, yet Darnell answered first. “If everyone hates the coach, then even if she knows what she’s doing, the team might fight her.”
Christy nodded. “That’s true. Dana, Jill, and I will have to work on keeping the team’s spirits up.”
Darnell added, “If you get the rest of the school behind your vision, that could also help get the girls on the team pumped up.”
“I like that. You know, you have a lot of insights for a guy hiding behind a windbreaker.”
“Oh, hiding, am I?” Darnell stood up and began unzipping his windbreaker.
“Yeah, Darnell!” Christy screamed. “Take it off!”
Darnell squirmed but kept pulling down the zipper. He turned his back to the class so he could pull off his jacket without showing us the front. “Introducing the newest fashion in weight loss,” he said and spun around.
On the front of Darnell’s shirt, three block numbers were written in tape: 2 4 5.
“Is that your weight?” Jarod asked.
“Yep.”
“I thought you weighed 246?” Jarod said.
“I did. Yesterday.”
“You’re not afraid that people will make fun of you if you go around with your weight written on your chest?” Jarod asked.
“I’m counting on it. I’ve decided to use the embarrassment as motivation. But I have a sense that when the numbers start dropping below 200, even those who laugh at me now will start respecting what I’ve done.”
“I respect you already, Darnell,” Jarod said. “It takes a brave man to do that. I wouldn’t have the guts.”
“I’ve only got one shot at this. I’ve got to get it right.”
“Why only one shot?” Jarod asked.
“I realized yesterday that I’m either going to come out of these 30 days believing that I’m stronger than my challenges, or that they’re stronger than me.”
Jarod didn’t fire back a snappy comment. In fact, he didn’t say anything at all. His face paled as if he’d been slapped.
“I love the attitude, Darnell,” Mr. Griffin said. “Have you added this to your steps?”
“Yep, and that’s not the only change. My card now reads:
I intend to weigh 227 pounds or less by December 23. To accomplish this, I will do the following:
1. Cut out all soda, ice cream, and other junk foods, replacing them with healthier alternatives
2. Exercise at least one hour per day
3. Use the power of embarrassment by writing my current weight on my chest each day
4. Eat only when I’m truly hungry, and stop eating once I’m full
Mr. Griffin said, “I’m glad to see your steps getting stronger.”
“They have to,” Darnell said. “I’ve lost time and gained weight.”
“Indeed,” Mr. Griffin said. “My gut tells me that more changes await.”
The next day Darnell wore a bright red sweatshirt with the number 244 taped on the front. Jarod entered after him and, rather than going to the back of the class, he took the seat behind me. Christy sat next to him, leaving all four of us clustered together in the front of the class.
When the bell rang, Mr. Griffin looked up from his notecards and grinned. “New seating arrangements I see.”
Jarod just nodded back.
“Go on, Jarod,” Mr. Griffin said. “Say what’s on your mind. Take as long as you need.”
“I want to be part of this class.”
“Haven’t you always been part of the class?” I asked.
“Not really. I sit in the back and do as little as possible. The only reason I even read my cards each day is so I won’t flunk and lose the credit.”
“What changed?” Mr. Griffin asked.
“At first, it was easy enough to blow off as just another dumb assignment from some teacher who thinks he knows what I need better than I do. But I still read the card. I knew these were my goals, not yours, and the steps made a lot of sense. And I felt like a shmuck each time I read the card, knowing I’m not going to follow through on most of it.”
“That’s why the repeated reading of the cards is so powerful,” Mr. Griffin said. “As we read them, they program our unconscious mind. I can’t read a card without acting on it for long. I need to either destroy it or follow through.”
“Even while I was ignoring my card,” Jarod said, “I watched Christy have all this success finding a coach. A couple of weeks ago, I thought she had no chance of winning the State Championship. Now I think she’s got a real shot.”
“Better than a shot.” Christy punched his arm. “We’re going to win this thing.”
“You know, I believe you will.”
“Really? I was expecting some snappy remark.”
Jarod shook his head. “That’s what I’m trying to say. I don’t want to be the guy sitting in the back cutting jokes anymore.”
“Did you get a lobotomy?” Christy said.
“Something like that. I owe it all to Darnell.”
“Me?” Darnell’s head spun. “What did I do?”
“You came in here a total mess on Monday. I’m sure you stuffed your face on Thanksgiving last year too, and probably never thought twice about it. But because of your stupid card, you came in here crying like a 246-pound baby. Don’t be offended, but that’s what I thought. Seeing you was the final proof I needed that Mr. Griffin was just some jerk who came in here thinking he knew more than us but was just as clueless as most teachers.
“Then yesterday, Darnell, you displayed more guts than I’ve ever had in my entire life. I saw you take a look at your life and decide you want more. It made me look at my attitude and wonder why I wanted so little for myself.”
“So what do you want from your life, Jarod?” Mr. Griffin asked.
“In the big picture, I guess I don’t know yet. For now, I want to hit the goal on my card.”
“Have you followed through with anything on your card?”
“A bit.”
“Let’s read it off and start from there.”
Jarod read:
I intend to make $1000 between November 13 and December 13. To accomplish this, I will do the following:
1. Call all past customers who have not hired me in a while to see if they’re interested in working with me again.
2. Print out a flyer and pass it around my neighborhood to get new customers. The flyer will not only say that I mow lawns, rake leaves, shovel snow, etc., it will also say who I am and why I want the money.
3. Keep my existing rate for customers willing to commit to one mow/lawn care per week, and raise my rate by $10 for one offs.
4. Call people with successful landscaping businesses until I reach someone willing to give me advice.
“Of these steps, which ones have you done?”
“Numbers 1 and 3. I’ve gotten quite a few more jobs than normal just by calling up past customers. And no one has given me a hard time on the rate change at all.”
“So how much have you made since November 13?”
“$260.”
“Look at that,” Mr. Griffin said. “Even with weak follow through, you’ve already passed your old monthly average.”
“That’s one way to look at it. Another is that I’ve already blown over half my time, and made just over a quarter of my monthly goal.”
“True. The clock is ticking on your goals. What’s been the story with numbers 2 and 4?”
“Just lazy, I guess.”
“Is laziness your issue?”
“Not when it comes to working. I have no problem doing lawns. But when it comes to those other things, I just can’t seem to get started.”
“Class, pay attention to the steps you don’t find yourself getting around to. Jarod might tell himself it’s laziness, but my guess is it’s intimidation.”
Jarod thought about this a moment. “Yeah, I do find them intimidating.”
“Intimidation is like an arrow, pointing out precisely where you most need to grow to succeed.”
“So I need to push myself to try harder on those?”
“No, try smarter. First, let’s reword those two steps so it’s impossible to wiggle out of them or push them off. How quickly can you get a flyer made?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never made a flyer before.”
“Do you have any experience with graphic design?”
“That’s not my thing, Mr. Griffin.”
“Is it any wonder you’ve made zero progress on this step? How many more lawns do you need to mow to become proficient at graphic design?”
Jarod laughed. “I see what you’re saying. So now in addition to all the extra work, I need to take time to learn graphic design?”
“No. As you said, that’s not your thing. Core to the Mastermind principle is that you can’t be great at everything. Rather than chasing a multitude of skills that are beyond you, leverage the power of those who already excel in that area.”
Jarod turned to me. “Kelvin, you did a great job with Christy’s video. Do you know how to make flyers too? Could you help me out?”
“I can do that,” I said. “Come by my place tonight, and we can get it done.” Jarod knew where I lived; he used to come over all the time to play when we were kids. It had been almost ten years since he was over, though.
“Before you go to Kelvin’s, I suggest you go to a print shop,” Mr. Griffin added. “They can help you figure out your size options and give you the precise dimensions Kelvin will need to make the flyer.”
“It’s better if I do that,” I said. “I’ll need to know details such as the bleed. They may even have a template. All that can be confusing for anyone who doesn’t know what they’re doing.”
“If you could do that for me, it would be amazing,” Jarod said.
“OK, let’s assign number 2 a specific date,” Mr. Griffin said. “When will you have the flyer delivered?”
“Let’s say it will be designed today, printed tomorrow, and passed out the next day,” Jarod said. “So December 3.”
“Great, add that to your step. Now, for number 4, I suggest adding the requirement of having one conversation per work day, voicemails not included. That way it’s crystal clear. You’ll know when you read your card what you have to do and whether or not you’ve accomplished it.”
“I don’t like it, but I’ll do it. My card now reads:
I intend to make $1000 between November 13 and December 13. To accomplish this, I will do the following:
1. Call all past customers who have not hired me in a while to see if they’re interested in working with me again.
2. Print out a flyer and pass it around my neighborhood to get new customers. The flyer will not only say that I mow lawns, rake leaves, shovel snow, etc., it will also say who I am and why I want the money. I will pass it out by December 3.
3. Keep my existing rate for customers willing to commit to one mow/lawn care per week, and raise my rate by $10 for one offs.
4. Call people with successful landscaping businesses until I reach someone willing to give me advice. I will have at least one conversation per work day.
“That’s a big improvement.” Mr. Griffin said. “Anything else you want to add?”
“Yeah. I appreciate you all being there for me.” Jarod took the time to look at each one of us. “I’m going to try to be a better Mastermind partner. I want to be there for you as well.”
After school, Darnell walked with me over to the printer’s.
“Have people been teasing you like crazy?” I asked.
“A bit. Derek was picking on me at lunch. You know how he is. The more people he got laughing at his jokes, the bigger jerk he became. But then Jarod heard, and he came over.”
I stopped in my tracks. “Don’t tell me he told Derek off?”
“No, he wouldn’t. They’re buds. But you know how it is with those guys. All Jarod had to do was tell me loud enough for everyone to hear how impressed he was with what I was doing and how he’s totally behind me. After that, Derek left me alone.”
I knew what Darnell meant. Derek wasn’t about to tease Jarod, so that left him little choice but to let Darnell be.
“You know,” Darnell said, “I don’t think it’s going to be anywhere near as bad as I feared. Even before Jarod came over, Derek wasn’t as brutal as usual. It’s almost like they tease you about the things you’re trying to hide, but when you just come right out and give them the ammo, they don’t know how to handle it.”
“Jarod’s right, you’ve got guts.”
“Maybe. That part hasn’t been so bad, but the hunger is getting to me.”
“What have you been doing for exercise?”
“Mainly just walking to and from school. I know I ought to do more, but between homework, dinner, and watching a bit of TV, I haven’t found the time.”
We reached the printer’s. “Are you coming in?”
“No, I’ll head on home. See you later.”
When I got home, Mom was washing dishes. “How was school?” she asked.
“Fine.”
“You still haven’t told me about your math teacher…”
“Nothing much to tell.” I picked an apple from the fruit bowl on the counter and walked over to wash it. “He’s not exactly teaching us math.”
Mom made room for me at the sink. “So what is he teaching you?”
I bit into my apple on my way out of the kitchen and mumbled, “Nothing really.”
I went to my room, shut the door, and pulled out my notecard. I called it version 1.12, yet even this one was getting worn from edits. I read it off, as I’d been doing at least ten times per day, but it still didn’t feel right. I had a feeling it would only be a day or two until I replaced it with version 1.13.
If I couldn’t get my own goal in order, at least I could help others with theirs. I fired up my mac and loaded up the templates from the printer into Photoshop. I didn’t bother trying to manipulate them. I’d wait until Jarod came to go over the pricing options and choose the right size.
Instead, I looked up a couple of email addresses and sent off a message with links to the video I’d made for the girls’ swim team. Then I went onto Craigslist to do a bit of research.
Jarod arrived early in the evening, his brow dotted with flecks of grass. He looked around my room, and old memories flashed in his eyes. “Thanks for this.” He extended a hand for a shake.
“Anytime.”
Before getting to work on his flyer, I told him about my other plan, and he quickly agreed to help. It took us just two quick phone calls to arrange everything. Once that was done, I opened Photoshop, and the two of us got to work.
“Jarod,” Mr. Griffin asked, “how did it go with the graphics yesterday?”
“Awesome. Kelvin’s the man.” Jarod patted my shoulder. “He designed a killer flyer and emailed it to the print shop last night, so I can pick up a stack on my way home. I’ll pass them out tonight.”
“Maybe you could also email the flyer to your current customers,” Christy added.
“Yeah,” Darnell joined in, “and post it on social media, and ask your friends to share it.”
“What do you think of that, Jarod?” Mr. Griffin asked.
“I’m diggin’ it.” Jarod pulled out his notecard. “I’ll add that now. I could get all of that done by tomorrow.”
“Make any phone calls yesterday?” Mr. Griffin asked.
“I actually got the biggest landscaping guy in town on the phone. He said flatly that he wasn’t interested in strengthening his competition. So no luck there.”
“I’m not so sure,” Mr. Griffin said.
“Really? How?”
“There’s a critical point that I want you all to grasp. Don’t think life happens to you. The truth is, life happens for you. Every experience you have is packed with lessons—you just need to tune in to receive them. Like a radio. Radio waves are around you at all times, but until you adjust to the right frequency, you won’t hear anything.”
“So what do you think I got from the call?” Jarod asked.
“You tell me. What are three lessons you can take away from that call?”
“I don’t know. Maybe that I was pushing off making calls because it’s not my thing, but once I did it, it wasn’t so bad.”
“That’s one. What else?”
“I was afraid that I’d get his secretary and would get the runaround, but it turned out that after hours he answered his own phone.”
“That’s two. One more.”
Jarod’s brow creased. Suddenly, a big smile drew across his face. “The largest landscaping guy in town considers me competition.”
“That’s right. In your mind, you’re just some kid with a lawnmower. But I bet this guy started out the same way, and he knows how powerful one kid with determination can become. Yesterday at this time he probably didn’t know who you were, but after one phone call, he sees you coming for him. Any other takeaways from the call?”
“I think I’ll start calling the big landscapers from other towns. They won’t feel as threatened by me, so that won’t keep them from helping.”
“Wonderful. That’s a fourth thing you’ve learned. Remember, the activated mind never lacks opportunities for improvement. What a minute ago was a worthless call you’ve now turned into life lessons you’ll never forget.”
Mr. Griffin turned towards Darnell. “Any update?”
Darnell wore a blue sweatshirt with the number 243 on the front in black tape. “I can get an extra hour a day of exercise in. Thanks to Kelvin and Jarod.”
“Oh? Kelvin strikes again?” Mr. Griffin turned toward me. “What did you do this time?”
“I found someone getting rid of an old treadmill on Craigslist. They just wanted someone to come pick it up. Since Jarod was coming over anyway, the three of us were able to haul it in the back of Jarod’s pickup.”
“Then we set it up in my living room,” Darnell said. “That way, I can get exercise even while watching TV.”
“Good thinking,” Mr. Griffin said. “How about you, Kelvin, have you thought any more about what you’d like to work on in this class?”
I dropped my eyes. “No. Not yet.”
Mr. Griffin studied me for an uncomfortably long moment. “Very well,” he finally said, though I could tell he didn’t believe me. “You’ll let us know when you’re ready. Now Darnell, make sure you add the treadmill to your card. Then read what you have to your Mastermind Group and be ready for feedback.”
Darnell’s family spent most fall weekends watching football together. The couple of times I’d joined them, there’d been no lack of nachos, soda, pizza, and a half dozen other treats at these games. While it wasn’t quite as bad as Thanksgiving, I nonetheless wondered how far back the weekend would set him.
Darnell came into class on Monday with the number 242 on his chest. While only one pound lower than the 243 he’d worn on both Thursday and Friday, it was still progress and meant he hadn’t regressed during the weekend. Still, it was already December 6, almost two weeks since he’d started, and he was only at his starting weight.
“Christy,” Mr. Griffin said, “how is the team coming together?”
“Amazing. Everyone’s times are up. We won our first meet of the season yesterday. A reporter from the town paper came and covered it, and she wants to interview Jill and myself this afternoon. Apparently, someone sent the paper’s editors the video, and they think there’s a story there.”
Christy shot me a smile. Was that just because of the success of the video, or did she suspect that I was the one who sent it to the paper’s editors?
“Are the girls warming to the coach at all?”
“They don’t like her, but they respect her and listen to her. Winning the meet certainly helped. And Dana, Jill, and I have been working to bolster team spirit. We’re coming together.”
“Wonderful. Jarod, any success with the flyer?”
“Four new clients. I’ve got a job booked every day this week. Plus, I worked my butt off over the weekend. I’m already over $500 for the month.”
“Reach any more landscapers?”
“One. He was short and to the point. He said, ‘just keep plugging away, kid. You’ll get there.’”
Mr. Griffin nodded, then began pacing back and forth in front of the class. “There’s something going on in this room that’s bothering me.”
“What’s that, Mr. Griffin?” Darnell asked.
“I’ll tell you in a minute. First, do you have an update for us, Darnell?”
“I walked on my treadmill for over four hours yesterday while watching football. I’m not getting winded as fast as I used to.”
“Good,” Mr. Griffin said, though I could tell from his pacing that he wasn’t all that engaged with what Darnell said.
Finally, I asked, “What’s bothering you, Mr. Griffin?”
“It’s you, Kelvin.”
“Me? What did I do?”
“Everything. You made a video for Christy that helped her land a fabulous coach. You made a flyer for Jarod that got him four new customers in just a few days. You got Darnell a treadmill so he can exercise while watching TV. When’s it going to end?”
“You say it like these are bad things.”
“Bad? No, none of these are bad. But I keep wondering: what is your vision? What is it you want? When are you going to give the rest of the class a chance to help you like you’re helping them?”
Mr. Griffin wasn’t going to let me hide much longer, but I could still push it “I haven’t been able to think of anything yet.”
“No? Are you sure?”
“Of course I’m sure. Why wouldn’t I tell the class if I knew what I needed?” My gut told me Mr. Griffin knew exactly what I wanted. Didn’t he realize that I just couldn’t just come out and say it?
“Very well, then. If you truly don’t know, I have an assignment for you. Your homework is to ask yourself what need you fill when doing so much for others. I don’t mean things like Christy needing a video person or Jarod needing a graphic designer. I mean, what need within yourself are you filling. Answer that, and I think you’ll find your vision.”
