Hundreds of adoring fans braved the freezing rain to support a beloved celebrity. It wasn't Justin Timberlake or Lady Gaga, it was Cody Crothers, the Beechmont Dancing Man. Cody is a roadside sign advertiser and has delighted people for months with his amazing dance skills. His fans, including myself, were so moved by his sign gyrations that they started a Facebook group and organized a flash mob to surprise him while he was on the job. Observing Cody over the past few months from my car has taught me 3 major life lessons.
Video here: http://vimeo.com/82911889
- Dance Like Nobody's Watching
I first took notice of the BDM on one hot summer day. I was driving in my air-conditioned car sipping on my frozen Starbucks drink and I saw him dancing on his corner. It was a little difficult to make him out through the heat mirages on the asphalt between us, but there he was dancing away. What amazed me more than the fact that a human was out in this heat was the fact that he was actually dancing in the midst of it. I admit the first thing I felt seeing him there was pity. I thought, "it sucks that he has to be out in this heat, dancing like that." Over time, however, my pity turned into admiration and later inspiration. Standing out there for hours like that is such hard work. Not only that, he is really dancing. It doesn't matter if it is hot, cold, in rain, or in shine, the Beechmont Dancing Man dances like nobody's watching.
What would Cincinnati look like if the BDM was at every job? How would your workplace be changed if the BDM walked in on Monday morning in your place? Imagine if there was a BDM driving buses, teaching in the classrooms, or selling insurance. Abraham Lincoln famously said, "Whatever you are, be a good one." No one embodies this more than the Beechmont Dancing Man. - Going the extra mile pays off
Have you ever felt like your job is going nowhere? Are you at the bottom of the totem pole and see no way up? Are you stuck in an endless rat race and see no way to the end? The BDM knows the way. If you think your job is bad, think about this. The BDM holds up an advertisement sign for a mattress store on the side of a busy street. His work colleagues are an inflatable air sock and a pole. But in true lemons to lemonade fashion, the BDM has managed to become a vital employee at his workplace, earned a college scholarship, and hundreds of adoring fans.
The BDM doesn't have the clock-in, clock out mentality that has infected so many employees. Most people don't have a desire to go above and beyond at their work place. People look for the path of least resistance. The idea that a person has to stay late, give a little extra, or do something that isn't technically "their job" is met with utter repulsion. The BDM has showed us that it is the little extra on the top that really matters. That is the part that truly makes a difference. Many, many people can probably do your job, but can anyone do it quite like you? If the answer is yes, then you have a serious problem. No one else can do Cody's job like he can, and I know that Mattress Solutions will be sorry to see him go. - Excellence is Contagious
Excellence breeds excellence. Danielle Toft, founder of the BDM Facebook page says, "The way this Facebook page came to be is that during the summer I was driving and I was having a really crappy day. I was pissed off at the world. I looked over at him and he was dancing and so happy. I instantly got a smile. So every time I came through Beechmont I was always looking at him and he gave me instant happiness. Then my friend and I were talking and I said I am going to do a Facebook group." Well that Facebook page has over 1400 people following it and counting.
Everyone wants to be excellent at something. However, excellence is something that alludes many people. When we see someone who is achieving excellence, it attracts us like a moth to a flame or me to a bag of Oreos. Find one thing in which to be excellent and people will follow. You might not get a flash mob, a college scholarship, and a seat in mattress royalty, but who knows.
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