- I have always liked Will Smith,
I think he's a really compelling figure
and an excellent communicator.
I love seeing interviews with him.
And this is an old clip we're going to react to
when he was on an interview show with Tavis Smiley.
And this clip has gone viral,
it's all over the YouTube, you know,
it's all over different memes and things.
And I wanted to look into why this I'm willing to die
on a treadmill clip is so powerful.
Because I remember watching it originally,
and I thought, "Wow, you know, this guy
is really excited about this."
And it really landed, and I remembered it for years.
So I wanted to look back at it and ask the question,
what makes it so powerful?
So here we're going to see Smith reacting
to Tavis Smiley's question.
And a rough paraphrase of his question is,
what is it about you that's maybe a little unique
that other people can emulate to see the kind
of success they want to see in their lives?
So let's see how Smith answers this question,
and I'll react to it.
- You know, I have this question, this discussion with,
you know, friends of mine all the time.
The only thing that I can see,
and you can never really look at yourself,
the only thing that I see that is distinctly different
about me is I'm not afraid to die on a treadmill.
Right?
I will run. - You will not be outworked.
- I will not be outworked.
Period. - Right.
- Okay, so already I'm seeing something that I love.
He says, "I am not afraid to die on a treadmill."
Really clear point.
He pauses for emphasis and lets it land.
And he puts his whole body into it.
His voice is in it,
his shoulders are in it, his gestures are in it.
He's looking the host in the eye,
and he really lets it land.
And another thing about this is this visual aspect of it.
We'll talk more here, I think in a second, as he explains,
but this is a weird thing to say,
"I'm willing to die on a treadmill."
People don't usually talk that way.
So let's hear how we explain it.
- You might have more talent than me,
you might be smarter than me,
you might be sexier than me,
you might be all of those things.
You got it on me in nine categories.
But if we get on the treadmill together, right?
There's two things.
You're getting off first, or I'm gonna die.
It's really that simple. Right?
So let's go back to.
- Okay. This is really powerful.
So he elaborates on this a little bit.
You know, he says, this is the scenario.
And he turns this analogy of dying on a treadmill,
which is really another way to say, I won't be outworked.
He creates this visual analogy of he's running
next to someone else, next to you, perhaps.
And you know, one of two things is gonna happen,
you're gonna get off, or I'm gonna die trying to beat you.
Now, I don't know about you, but the idea of dying
on a treadmill doesn't seem particularly heroic.
So this comparison, this analogy is a little unexpected,
and I think that's what makes it so powerful.
You know, you might hear people say,
I'm willing to die for my family or for a friend.
But die on a treadmill?
And so your brain, I think, has to engage this
at another level to decode what he's saying.
But it's so much more interesting
than saying I won't be outworked.
I won't be outworked sounds a little ordinary, right?
Nobody would have remembered this
if he says I won't be outworked.
But he says, "I'm not afraid to die on a treadmill."
That sticks.
That makes you say, what?
Now, that is a level of commitment.
- Question about what if people block me out.
There's gonna be two options.
I'm gonna get back in or I'm going to be dead.
Right? - Yeah.
- It's like, you're not going to outwork me.
It's such a simple basic concept is
the guy who is willing to hustle the most
is gonna be the guy that just gets that loose ball.
You know, he got that, he got that, oh.
Okay, he got two.
You go, "Ooh, he's hustling, grabbed that one."
It was gonna out of bounds, but he saved it back in.
It's like the commodity that I see the majority of people
who aren't getting to places they want or.
- This is great.
So he uses a second example, second analogy
of the athlete hustling for that loose ball,
that one player on the team who's going
for really putting in the extra hustle.
And he visualizes it with his nonverbal,
so he's bringing it to life,
illustrating it with his body and with his voice
so you can picture it happening.
That's this is a shorter example
than the dying on the treadmill,
but it's another illustration,
just in case you can't connect to a treadmill,
he's giving you sports generally,
like hustling for a loose ball in basketball.
That's really powerful.
And it sounds like he's beginning to take it home.
So let's listen to the rest.
- Achieving the things that they want in this business
is strictly based on hustle,
is strictly based on being outworked,
is strictly based on missing crucial opportunities.
I say it all the time, if you stay ready,
you ain't got to get ready, you know.
- That's why-
- Okay. This is just amazing.
I can see why this snippet here has gone viral
over the years and keeps coming up online
over and over again.
This is really powerful.
Now, at the end here, he does something subtle.
He doesn't turn to the listeners and say,
"So here's what you can do to get results
if you're not getting them."
He doesn't preach at them in that way,
he doesn't point the finger.
He keeps it on himself,
and he lets the listener draw their own conclusions.
So the listener is in a position where they get to say,
"Oh, okay, so if I'm not seeing the kind of results
I want to see, maybe I need to so work a little harder.
Maybe I need to work as hard as Will Smith."
He lets them connect the dots on their own.
And I think that's much more powerful
than pointing the finger at them
and making them feel defensive
and like they're not good enough.
Right? So that's not as motivating.
If you look to him as an inspiration,
that's much more motivating.
So I can see why this clip has gone viral.
It's extremely powerful.
I just got to say big picture here,
looking at a lot of Will Smith's different interviews
and things he's done over the years.
He is a powerful communicator.
You can tell he's really committed to this mindset.
He's not just putting on a show
and giving us good nonverbals,
although he's doing all that,
but I think it comes from a deep place
of personal philosophy that he is completely committed to,
and you can see that lived out
in the way he expresses himself.
So wonderful, wonderful clip from Will Smith,
someone to look up to.
And also, I want you to know that I have something
called the Communication Coach Academy.
I'll put a link to that in the description of the video.
And there are all kinds of communication skills
and leadership classes that you can check out there.
And also comment below what do you think of this clip,
and also what other speakers or communicators
should I react to?
I would love to hear your suggestions
so that I can be helpful to you
and profile the kinds of people that are on your mind
and that you're noticing.
So thanks for tuning in for this reaction to Will Smith.
Thanks, God bless,
and I will see you in the next one.