This random act of kindness to a stranger changed Tony Robbins life forever.
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00:00I was so broke that I had, I don't know, $21, $22, whatever it was, to my name.
00:05I'm living in a foreign square for a bachelor apartment.
00:07I'm feeling sorry for myself.
00:08I'm watching Luke and Laura on General Hospital.
00:10I mean, I was a mess.
00:11I was a total mess.
00:13And I realized I'm not paying my rent and I'm out of money.
00:16And I don't have any prospects for some new cash in the short term.
00:19And while I was sitting there, there was this little boy that came in
00:22and he held the door open and in walks behind him,
00:24this beautiful woman who was clearly his mother.
00:26And so, you know, I definitely took it in.
00:28And then he sat down, he pulled out the chair for her.
00:30He was just so attentive to his mother.
00:32I mean, he was just so with her that, honestly, I was moved.
00:35And so I finished my meal and then I got up and I paid the bill.
00:38And I was like $6 in those days, you know, for all you can eat salad bar, whatever it was.
00:41And so I had whatever's left, $17, $18, $19.
00:44And I walked over to this little boy before I left.
00:45And I said, hi.
00:46And I introduced myself.
00:47I said, I'm Tony.
00:47And he told me his name was Paul or whatever it was.
00:49I don't remember his name.
00:49This little boy.
00:50I said, Paul, I said, you are a class act.
00:53I said, I saw you held the door open for your woman.
00:55I saw you pull up the chair for her.
00:56I said, take her out to lunch like that.
00:58That is really cool.
00:58And he goes, well, she's my mom.
01:01And I said, that's even more cool.
01:02And I said, take her to lunch.
01:03He goes, well, I didn't take her to lunch.
01:04He goes, you know, I'm nine years old.
01:05I don't have a job yet.
01:06And I said, yes, you are taking her lunch.
01:07And I reached in my pocket and I took all the money I left, whatever it was, $17, $18, $19.
01:11I dropped it in front of him.
01:12I had no plan to do this.
01:13It wasn't like manufactured.
01:14I wasn't trying to impress this woman.
01:16And he looked up at me like shocked.
01:17And he goes, I can't take that.
01:18And I said, sure you can.
01:19He said, how come?
01:19I said, because I'm bigger than you are, right?
01:21And he laughed like crazy.
01:22And I didn't even say another word.
01:23I just walked out the door.
01:24And I got to tell you, it was the most powerful experience of my life.
01:28Because I had no fear.
01:30I had no scarcity.
01:31And I got home.
01:32And I realized what I'd done.
01:33I was like, I have no money now.
01:34I had like no money, nothing.
01:36And the next day, I got the old snail mail and came in around like noon.
01:40And I pull out this letter.
01:42And there was a young man that I had loaned $1,200 to.
01:45And he had not paid me back.
01:46And I was desperate for cash.
01:47I probably called him 10 times.
01:49Trying to track him down.
01:50Not a single response.
01:51And I was so hurt and pissed.
01:52And here's the letter from this guy saying, I'm really sorry.
01:54I know you've been trying to reach me.
01:56I've been avoiding you.
01:57And here's the money you owe.
01:58And I'm going to give you some interest as well.
02:00So I got, at that point, that was like more money than anything.
02:03And so once again, I'm sitting there.
02:05Tears going down my face.
02:06I'm an emotional character.
02:07And I chose to believe, I don't know if it's true, but I chose to believe that it's because
02:11I let go of trying to just take care of myself.
02:13I did what was right.
02:14Life's not about me.
02:15It's about we.
02:17And that's also why when people are suffering, it's always because you're obsessing about
02:22yourself.
02:23You're obsessing that something happened and now you have less.
02:26You think you have less.
02:28Or something happened and you've lost something.
02:30Lost love.
02:31Lost money.
02:31Lost significance.
02:32Lost attention.
02:34Lost something.
02:35When you get all suffering is obsession with self, you can snap out of it.
02:39And all you have to do is stop expecting and start appreciating.
02:43You know, if you're going to wait till you think you have something, you're never going
02:45to have something of any size or scope.
02:47There's something inside the human psyche that when you do what's right and you get
02:50outside of yourself, there's something that'll click for you.
02:52So it's a long way of saying when you have nothing is when you need to give.