Any time I hear a story about a baby born with or developing a serious medical condition, it touches me. That was always the case, but now as a father to a toddler – one thankfully born very healthy and remaining so save for the occasional day of something bothering him – it hits me even more. As I read or listen to such a story, I imagine how I would be if it were my child. And I can only imagine that I would be a wreck, worried sick about my baby and what will happen.
It’s in that vein that I give you the most recent such story I heard, which was almost a month ago. That story is noteworthy today because of a new book available which this story is at the heart of, Motivation Now!
Last month, I attended the Medical Development Group’s annual event for people attempting to transition into or within the medical device industry. For those not aware, it is not an easy industry to get into without experience. In part this is due to regulatory concerns, as getting a medical device out to the market is a little different than getting, say, a mobile phone out for sale. Although I had an interview at a company in that space, I have more often encountered a road block with my lack of experience there.
The event was excellent all the way around, but I’m quite sure anyone who attended won’t forget hearing the story of Lisa Sasso’s son, John Robert. I won’t re-tell the entire story here, but suffice it to say it was a story that tugged at my heart greatly because it was far from a given that he would be alive right now, let alone with no medication to be taken or devices inside of him to help him live day-to-day. As she told the story and how it affected her – especially because she wanted a child badly after all the corporate success she had – I thought of my own son, healthy as soon as he was born and running around the house constantly (and trying to in the middle of the night, as he has done quite recently to our chagrin). When John Robert walked up to the stage at the end of the night to help with a raffle, there were no words. It was amazing. We heard his story and then saw the young boy – now in double digits – right there, as healthy and full of life as can be.
If you have had the pleasure of meeting Lisa Sasso, you are well-prepared for Motivation Now! The book is what you would expect considering she is the author. An executive coach and motivational speaker, there’s no shortage of sincerity in interacting with her and that shines through in the book. The importance of family underpins so much of what the book offers, with much about how important her family has been. The book contains many down-to-earth thoughts and ideas, some of them things that I suspect most of us “know” intellectually but need reminders of in an era where we often get so busy that we can lose our bearings at times.
The book is not laid out conventionally in a linear fashion. It is instead laid out month-by-month in a typical calendar with thoughts that pertain to each time of year, which allows it to be read in any order. While I read it from front to back, that was not a requirement, and if choosing to read it that way, it can easily be read in its entirety in a relatively short time.
The book is available now. It’s fair to say that having read it, I will be thinking often of my son, but in some other ways – with a constant reminder of how important he is to my wife and me, as well as our families. And I will have one more reminder of what is most important in the grand scheme of things, even as I go through a job transition (which is never easy) and once I bring my positive energy to help another company.