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When Mark Cuban speaks, people listen. (Especially me; I've written a number of articles based on Cuban quotes.) What he says is often notable and -- more important for those who hope to benefit -- memorable.
But what I remember most is what Cuban said to me in 2014 at an Inc. GrowCo event in Nashville.
More often than not, volunteers are the backbone of large events. In this case, a number of student volunteers, like David Head, were helping out at GrowCo in exchange for free access to a few sessions. That day he had spent hours manning the green room door. I felt bad for him. Here he was at a cool conference, stuck in a chair guarding a door in a lonely hallway.
Still, David was excited about Cuban's appearance. He knew he wouldn't get to see him speak, but he did hope to get a selfie. I didn't say it but I knew Cuban's time was tightly scheduled. Local and national media were angling for time. The resulting crowd of people, all wanting something from him, meant that wouldn't happen.
Cuban arrived, did the televised interviews, and came to the green room for a few minutes before heading to the stage. Suddenly, it was time to go. Bodies were in motion. Urgency was in the air.
I happened to be near the door as the group was sweeping past and thought, "Oh, f--- it."
"Excuse me, Mark," I said.
Eyes around him narrowed. Didn't I know he needed to get to the stage?
"Yes?" he said.
"There's a volunteer who's been stuck out there all day guarding the door. He would love a picture with you. Can I run him in here really quickly?"
I've been in situations like this enough to know it almost always goes one way: 99 percent of the time the celebrity mumbles a "sorry" (at most) and sweeps past.
Not this time. Cuban stopped, smiled at David, and said, "Hey, let's get a picture together."
And here it is.
I've written about this before, but what I didn't share is what happened after I took the photo. As Cuban was walking past me I said, "I know your time is valuable, but I think you made his day."
He slowed and said, softly, "No one's time is so valuable they can't be nice."
Much of the time, we want famous people to be so humble they don't recognize they create a buzz. We don't want them to realize people are excited to see them; we want them to be oblivious to their fame or importance. (After all, if they're too aware that means they're also too full of themselves.)
But what we should really want is for people who "matter" to recognize that in the eyes of others, they are special -- and that other people might want something from them, even if that something is the simple recognition that they also matter.
Because they do.
Picture a CEO who walks into a building for an important meeting. Maybe they say hello to the receptionist. (Maybe.) Otherwise, they typically have time only for the people at their level. It's like everyone else is just a faceless, unseen cog in a larger machine.
Unfortunately, at times, we all do the same thing. We talk to the people we're supposed to talk to. We recognize the people we're supposed to recognize. We mesh with the cogs in the machine we're expected to mesh with.
But there are plenty of other cogs.
So go out of your way to smile. Or nod. Or introduce yourself.
And when someone does something that helps you, even in the smallest way -- and even if it's their job -- take a moment to say thanks. Make it your goal to recognize the people behind the tasks: the people who support, who assist, that make everything possible.
As Cuban says, "One of the most underrated skills in business is being nice."
Even though most of us aren't famous or notable, by recognizing people -- especially those who have been conditioned to expect not to be recognized -- we add a little extra meaning and dignity to their lives.
And that's the best reason to go off point, off focus, and off task.
Although, when you think about it, you really aren't taking yourself away from an important task. You're just shifting to an equally important task: showing people they matter -- especially to you.
Because no one's time is so valuable they can't be nice.
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