Don't wait for your place to be made for you. Make it yourself. Don't wait for somebody to give you a lift. Lift yourself. Arise and sweat Martin. Pushing to the front. 1894. Welcome to Classic Interviews. number two. The title of today's message is Select Yourself, JFK's Campaign for President. What? where we explore the timeless lessons learned from the of influence. Persuasion, Charisma, Hustle, and Grit insights of the hustlers and heroes of history.
Discover the strategies, tactics, tips, and tools you can use to master the power of influence, to achieve your own most daring dreams and goals. Stay tuned as we uncover the secrets of the saints, sages, sinners, and superstars of success. And now, your host, author, and speaker, Johnny Welch. Hello, this is your host, Johnny Welch. Welcome to the Classic Influence Podcast. You can find the notes for this show on our website at classicinfluence.com
where you will also find more information about us, including a link to my new book, Mastering the Power of Grit, which I'm super stoked about and which you can get on Amazon. Again, that's Mastering the Power of Grit. Check it out. Okay, let's get into today's episode. yourself. In to run for president of the United States. He was only 42 and less than his second term as a U.S. Senator when he officially announced his bid for the White House.
politics, Kennedy faced fierce opposition from the first moment he threw his hat in the ring. Many of the old-school politicians of his own party considered him too young and too inexperienced to receive the party's nomination. The Republican frontrunner, Vice President Richard Nixon, was only four years older, but Nixon readily exploited Kennedy's youthful appearance
and the fact that he was the youngest presidential candidate in US history. In fact, Nixon used every occasion he could to highlight Kennedy's limited experience. attempting to paint a picture that portrayed Kennedy as incapable of handling the awesome foreign affairs and diplomatic responsibilities of America, a nation in the clutches of the Cold War.
None of Nixon's criticisms, however, could compare to the shot fired by former president, an esteemed friend and ally from Kennedy's own party, Harry S. Truman. Truman also thought Kennedy was too young and too inexperienced to be president. Privately, Truman said that Kennedy was immature. And much to Kennedy's disappointment, Truman thought Kennedy's lack of maturity and experience was important enough that he made a point of voicing his opinion in a televised press conference.
dramatically broadcast from the Truman Presidential Library. Angry about the alleged influence of Joseph P. Kennedy, Senator Kennedy's father, over the selection of delegates for the Democratic Convention, Truman took to the airwaves to resign as a delegate and to criticize the process. Truman ended his address by appealing directly to Kennedy.
Senator, are you certain that you are quite ready for the country, or the country is ready for you in the role of president in January 1961? Acknowledging his high expectations for Kennedy's future, Truman continued, I'm deeply concerned and troubled about the situation we are up against in the world now and in the immediate future.
And that is why I hope that someone with the greatest possible maturity and experience would be available at this time. May I urge you to be patient. To a hustler like JFK, indeed, to any legitimate presidential candidate, the question was ludicrous.
What kind of a president would Kennedy make if he could be persuaded to back out of the race so easily? And how would future voters interpret his ability to make important decisions if he backed out now, given that he had already made the decision to run? Kennedy knew better than to seriously consider Truman's plea, even while he understood that the broadside alone caused him to lose some support. Kennedy was his own man, and he was determined to make his own way, regardless of who opposed him.
Too often people make the mistake of mindlessly allowing others to limit their possibilities or dictate and control their path to power and success. after decades of dealing with controlling authority figures from parents, teachers, and bosses to administrators, regulators, and the law, most of whom are themselves embedded in obsolete paradigms from a previous era.
people become indoctrinated and subtly subjugated by a system of power and control, of cultural expectations and societal norms. As a result, most people come away thinking that success is about following the rules pleasing the powers that be, and, if they're patient and dutiful, eventually getting some of what they set out to achieve.
Our cultural instinct, writes Seth Godin, is to wait to be picked, to seek out the permission, authority, and safety that come from a publisher or a talk show host. or even a blogger who says, I pick you. All too often, by the time most people realize how hopelessly outdated this way of thinking is, and how frequently this scheme fails as a result,
Countless opportunities and endless alternatives have already passed them by. Not only aren't you going to get picked, but it's impossible to pick yourself if you don't understand how the system works, writes Godin. Once you reject that impulse and realize that no one is going to select you, then you can actually get to work.
Hustlers don't wait for anything to pass them by. Instead, they get to work. They see the advantages that can be gained from bucking the system, and how an occasional well-timed abandonment of the rules or an upending of norms and expectations and project power, win voters over, devastate the competition, or even destroy an enemy in war. Understand, this does not mean that impatience is a virtue, or that over-eagerness or lack of loyalty will serve you better.
It won't. Breaking rules, abandoning customs, defying conventions, these are not virtues in themselves. In the beginning, learning the customs, traditions, and rules will help you to understand the power of relationships at hand. and may help you to identify and tap into their hidden or indirect benefits. It will also give you the wisdom to know when these social constructs are best broken. abandoned or overturned. The point is not to develop a reputation for rebelliousness.
The point is that you need to be the one who decides whether or not now is the time, and you are the one. The virtue is in being the author of your own fate. Whether that means closely following the rules and joining with the people in power, rejecting the system altogether, or mapping out your own path somewhere in between.
Challenge the system. Choose yourself. Initiative is the privilege of picking yourself. You're not given initiative. You take it. Pick yourself. Seth Godin, author and speaker. One of the most important factors in Kennedy's success was his deep drive to succeed, a characteristic common to the hustlers and heroes of history, and indeed common to many in the Kennedy clan.
Jack Kennedy wanted to live his life to the fullest and that often meant taking bold chances, seizing the initiative, and going against the grain. Furthermore, from his youth, he struggled with persistent ill health. In fact, his doctors were often unsure how long he would live. He suffered throughout his life with chronic back pain and Addison's disease, a disorder that weakened his immune system and drained his energy. By the time he was 40, he had been given last rites three times.
Kennedy thus had a clear sense of how fleeting life can be. He wasn't about to follow Truman's idea of a patient, subservient political career. Rather than waiting his turn, Kennedy directly challenged the system he sought to control. In Kennedy's mind, the idea that he should wait to be selected by political bosses and party leaders was a rule ripe for breaking, and the 1960 presidential campaign was the time to break it. Kennedy nevertheless recognized the gravity of Truman's public remarks.
He understood that Truman represented the views of many others, and he immediately grasped the lesson from Truman's charge. He realized he had not yet built a sufficiently strong case for the strength of his candidacy. More importantly, he realized that he could use this as an opportunity to make a more compelling case for himself as a candidate and to demonstrate his grace and power under pressure. And therefore, he again seized the initiative with his own public address.
Mr. Truman suggested that I step aside In response, let me say... not intend to step aside at anyone's request. Immediately positioning himself on equal ground with the former president, Kennedy himself appeared resolute, self-assured, and presidential. He acknowledged that he did not undertake lightly to seek the presidency, understanding that in his words, It is not a prize or a normal object of ambition.
Recalling his years of service in World War II, and as a member of Congress, he nevertheless subtly reminded Truman that in America, it is the voters, not former presidents or political bosses, who determine whether a candidate is fit for office. I am, he said, willing to let our party and nation be the judge of my experience and ability.
Finally, Kennedy concludes by turning Truman's own rules on their head. This much, he said, ought to be understood. If we are to establish a test for the presidency, whereby 14 years in major elective office is insufficient experience. then all but three of the ten possibilities mentioned by Mr. Truman last Saturday must be ruled out. All but a handful of our presidents, since the very founding of this nation, should be ruled out.
And, he continued, every president elevated to that office in the 20th century should have been ruled out, including the three great democratic presidents, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, and Harry Truman himself. Naturally, there are consequences of going against those in power. The skilled hustler will readily challenge the status quo without unnecessarily alienating his opponents.
Kennedy's readiness to reject Truman's request and strike out on his own in no way included a desire to disrespect or further distance himself from President Truman or the leaders and bosses of the Democratic Party. And in that regard, his last remark was particularly well-crafted. He was rejecting Truman's rationale, while at the same time holding up Truman as one of the quote, great living presidents of his time.
While the criticism and attacks of Truman and other party leaders may have irritated Kennedy, he was too much of a hustler to let past offenses get in the way of his ambitions for the future. Despite this charged public exchange with Truman, for example, Kennedy actively sought the counsel of the former president and, over time, won Truman over.
Eventually, Truman became a trusted ally, helping to build support for Kennedy behind the scenes. Don't get discouraged, Truman said, referring to Kennedy in a telling remark to a friend. The boy is learning. John F. Kennedy did not wait to be chosen by his party's leaders. He didn't defer to party conventions or submit to any implicit rules. He chose himself. He believed and in the end proved that breaking the rules could lead to the most powerful office in the world.
If you want to be successful, you must also choose yourself. Never waste time listening to doubters and cynics. Never let anyone convince you that you're too young or too old. Don't let others determine if you have what it takes. Steele Kennedy's outlook. Don't wait to be asked. Don't assume you can't go for the top. Decide for yourself that you have the qualifications and experience.
succeed. Hustlers don't wait to be chosen. They don't wait for permission. They don't wait to be selected, discovered, or found. They choose themselves and they act. Power of Grit, and you can also find an affiliate link to the book in the show notes. Be sure to plug episode entitled Cultivate a Fantastic Obsession. Thanks again for listening. This is your host Johnny Welch from Cultivate.