Janice Bryant Howroyd

People often will speak about me in terms of what they see I've done in my life.

I measure my success

by what I've done with my life.

And I do believe that it's so important for us, no matter where we find ourselves, whether that is in the context of society, in the context of politics, in the context of

finance and business, wherever we find ourselves, seeking first the kingdom of Christ for me is important.

If that's not your measure, find out what that thing is that is higher than you, that is bigger than you, and that is embracing of you that you can aspire to.

Years ago,

A young man in my company, Zia Islam, shared something with me that I've kept forever.

And I asked Zia, how did you find your strength, Zia, during certain circumstances?

And he shared with me his father had taught him, Zia, never chase the money.

Let the money chase you.

And

I've thought on that for years because people so find it complimentary, think it complimentary and find it so casual to speak about my success in terms of the billions of dollars that my company generates a year, volumes out at a year or the billions of dollars that the entrepreneurs who I've mentored aggregate over a year.

The truth is, if those entrepreneurs aren't happy, if they're not going home to families they treasure and who know they are treasured, if my grandbabies don't know me because my children don't want to know me, if those things are occurring in my life, then any measure of gold is not going to satisfy success for me.

Success is the worthy realization of a worthy ideal.

And I learned that through study.

That wasn't me, you know, who thought of that.

Earl Nightingale put that in front of me years ago.

And so...

When you live with that measurement, make no mistake, we've got to do the finance, we've got to keep the numbers if you're in business.