On the internet there’s a video of Scooter Braun (34 year old music manager of Justin Bieber and co-manager of Kanye West, supermodel Karlie Kloss and Founder of SB Projects) being interviewed, and amongst many fascinating things they discuss, to me, he’s asked about the key to his success.
Braun responds: “David Geffen (Hollywood business magnate, producer, film studio executive, and philanthropist) said to me, “In a hundred years, no one is going to remember me so they sure as hell won’t remember you.” I replied to him, “yes, but they’ll feel our impact”.
Braun continued: “That’s what David meant – no matter how much money you make, it’s not going to go with you. I’ve gone to people I respect who are older than me and say, well, what’s the end-all, be-all? And every single one of them always comes back to me with this — The quality of your relationships is your true success. That is how you become successful. Money will come, especially if you have quality because money starts showing up, because people bring you in. I’ve been brought into amazing businesses because I have great friendships and they say, we want to show you this. And I think that if I had all the money in the world and I didn’t have my son and my wife, I’d be pretty miserable.”
The quality of your relationships is your true success.
That’s all there is. Relationships. Connection. I think I’m in the business of relationships; not entertainment, not singing. People buy people. It’s connection that drives us all. How related we are to others is the measure of success. A life well lived. A legacy left.
Money can’t buy that. As Scooter Braun says, we can’t take money to the grave. An extremely successful business man, friend and client told me recently, ‘the richest people I know are not happy.’
The measure of a successful life was demonstrated to me again on Sunday when Sim and I, with our girls, and Tim, CJ and Helen drove from London into the beautiful Gloucestershire countryside (via the Cotswolds) for a Golden Wedding anniversary. Michael and Judith, a very special couple, were celebrating 50 years of wedded bliss with 100 of their dearest friends and family in a picturesque setting; a marquee in their garden.
As Sim and I sat with them, as welcomed guests, we were present to their actions, their speeches and the comments of their friends illustrating to us that FAMILY and FRIENDS is everything. Connection is everything. Michael and Judith have been through loss and hard times, they have been incredibly successful in their fields of expertise and beyond generous to their community in so many ways – they’ve made a massive difference. Money came as a result of their quality; celebrating 50 years of marriage that day, it was all about the people. They invited us because our music helped them heal in their time of sorrow. Afterwards they told us my performance, with songs from my solo albums, my girls singing Heal Me, and Incognito’s show is something they will never forget. ‘Best party ever’, said the guests. Yet, you know what? Their family and friends’ attitude towards Michael and Judith, their generosity and their kindness, the way they’ve lived their long lives, made such a huge impact on us, we’re the lucky ones to bear witness. My family and Incognito. It’s something we’ll never forget.
“Money can buy you a fine dog but only love can make him wag his tail”. Kinky Friedman.
With love,
Geoff
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