There are certain people whose reputation enters the room before they do.
Ken Langone was one of them.
As he walked onto the stage, the moderator began his introduction.
“You were born in Long Island in the middle of the Great Depression.”
Ken gently corrected him.
“At the end of it.”
Ken’s face softened, and he let out a quiet chuckle.
Sitting there, I expected the co-founder of Home Depot to spend the next hour talking about how he built one of America’s largest companies.
Instead…
He took us back to his childhood.
His father was a plumber.
His mother worked in a school cafeteria.
Money was tight.
Yet when Ken looked back, he didn’t dwell on what his parents couldn’t provide.
“I didn’t know what we didn’t have.
All I knew was what we did have.”
“The greatest gift my parents gave me was unconditional love.”
Then he added one more thing: “I hope I don’t make anyone in this room uncomfortable… they gave me a strong faith in God.”
It wasn’t until much later that Home Depot even entered the conversation.
When it finally did, it wasn’t about the business.
It was about the 500,000 people who put on an orange apron every morning.
Success gives people the freedom to talk about anything. What they choose to talk about reveals what matters most to them.
Since that afternoon, I’ve started listening differently:
Not for what people have built.
For the stories they choose to tell.
Months have passed since I heard Ken speak.
Every time I drive by Home Depot, I’m right back in that room.
His success earned my attention.
What he chose to talk about earned my respect.
