You Are Worth It

One of the things I am most grateful for is the people I meet out on the road.

The road can be a lonely place.

It’s not the glamorous life so many envision when I tell them I am a motivational speaker and travel hundreds of days each year.

Missed flights.

Rideshare no-shows.

Long nights and early mornings.

And yet I am eternally grateful for this life that picked me.

I have met amazing people along the way.

I’ve heard stories that have moved me in ways I never imagined.

I’d like to share one of those stories with you this week.

I was speaking in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Three events in three days for the same healthcare client.

Incredible heroes doing the work of helping hurt people.

Each day, the “opening act” was a performer I had never seen or heard before.

Kyle Dillingham.

A world-renowned musician.

An award-winning acoustical instrument maestro.

A fiddle player from the south or as some might say a virtuoso violinist.

He’s been on stages around the world.

He is a masterful artist.

But not just with the instruments.

Oh, to the contrary.

The music is mind-blowingly good.

But watching him perform “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” while entertaining the crowd on a skateboard…

My goodness.

Charlie Daniels meets Tony Hawk.

He elevated the experience to one-of-a-kind status.

Remarkable in every way.

But that wasn’t the best part.

Backstage we had a chance to chat.

He asked about my story.

I asked about his.

It was a great conversation.

But one thing he shared has never left me.

It inspired me and moved me.

It made me think.

He told me about a project that is equal parts music, humanitarian, and spiritual.

The project is called Broken Beyond Repair.

One day while in a recording studio, he noticed a box of old, broken violins.

In this box were instruments deemed that the cost to fix them was more than their worth.

He had noticed the box before.

But one day he felt the urge, a prompting, to pick one up.

So, he did.

He began to play the dusty old fiddle.

It had dents and dings.

And not all the strings.

But as he moved the bow, he began to hear sounds that he had never heard from other instruments.

Then he picked up another.

And another.

He realized something special was happening in him.

And through him.

These magnificent sounds were paying homage to times long past.

To better days when they were new and full of life.

The layers of melodies and stories yet to be told from these violins began to stir something in Kyle that led him to record an entire album using these broken instruments.

Those that were thrown in boxes and shoved in corners.

Long forgotten by many.

Awakened once more by the master’s hand to bring the gift of their brokenness to the world.

For in their frail hollows were the echoes of all they had seen and done.

Stories and memories.

Laughter and tears.

Magnificent performances.

And a few missed notes.

As it turns out, none of them were broken beyond repair.

All they had been through was leading up to this moment when a masterpiece would come to life.

When Kyle shared this with me, I was overwhelmed by the powerful metaphor it represented in life.

That no matter what someone has gone through, they still have great value.

Great worth.

So many people are broken and feel beyond repair.

They’ve lost hope in themselves and humanity.

No matter what you’ve been through or what you are going through, I want you to know that you are not broken beyond repair.

It is worth the work.

It is worth the fight.

There is music in you that the world needs to hear.

The story of your life can be someone else’s survival guide.

The stumbles and missteps can light the path for a fellow traveler.

The sour notes can become the sweet sound of hope for another.

Never underestimate your value or the value of others.

Encourage each other to let your brokenness become someone else’s wholeness.

We may be a little dusty.

We may have some dents and dings.

And a few missing strings.

But I believe your greatest masterpiece is still within you.

And I for one, can’t wait for it to be revealed.

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Kevin D. Brown is a branding and culture expert. He’s an award-winning motivational speaker, bestselling author, and the creator of The Hero Effect®. Follow him on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.