Once upon a time, back in the early days of my broadcasting career, I had the unique pleasure of spending the day with the amazing Larry King. He was scheduled to broadcast his radio show from my station that evening, which meant he had a whole day to kill until he went on the air. My General Manager assigned me the task of entertaining him for the day.
I asked Mr. King how he’d like to spend the day. As an intellectual, I figured he’d want to do something “high brow” like visit our fabulous art museums. But not Larry! He said, “Let’s go to Turf Paradise!” Post Time was at 1:00pm, so we grabbed a quick lunch and headed for the horse track.
Larry, who refused to be called Mr. King, taught me the fine art of reading a racing form to pick the best horses and jockeys. He told me about the different bets we could place. So many options! Win, Place, Show, Quinelas, Perfectas, Trifectas, etc. Needless to say, I learned a lot about horse racing that day, but I also learned a great deal about myself.
Larry King is known as one of the greatest interviewers to ever live. He is a master at digging into the heart of a person. On that day, he asked me questions. Lots and lots of questions…
“What is the greatest lesson you’ve learned so far?”
“What are you learning now?”
“How has failure shaped your life?”
His interest in my life make me feel special and valued. The questions he asked made me believe my life truly mattered. When the day was over, I was walking on air!
It’s been almost 30 years ago since I took Larry King to the horse track and it’s a day I will never forget. He taught me a lot about horse racing that day but more importantly, he taught me the value of being genuinely curious about others and how my interest in their story might make them feel valued.
Today, I challenge both of us to make someone feel significant. It’s easy to do. Ask a few questions and listen. No judgement. No advice. Just listen.
“Being heard is so close to being loved that for the average person they are almost indistinguishable” ~David Augsburger
Let’s all go love on someone today!