Poor man wanna be rich

We all gain inspiration from the content we consume, our surroundings and our loved ones. For example, my love of music taught me about thought leadership long before it became a buzzword. Bruce Springsteen encapsulated my own thought process when he sang the line ‘We learned more from a three-minute record than we ever learned in school’

The famous 75-85 boxset by the boss introduced me to a wealth of stories of flawed characters with big hearts and dreams. Despite, getting knocked down by the monotony of daily working life, they used the burning fire within to lift themselves out of desperate situations.

I clearly remember entering the workplace for the first time trying to make sense of this world as an adult, and the song Badlands seemed to help me make sense of it all in the simplest of ways.

Poor man wanna be rich, rich man wanna be king, and a king ain’t satisfied until he rules everything

Sure there was the cynical realisation in the lyric, but ultimately the underlining message I took from Badlands is if you want to make anything happen then you have to create goals and form your own path to make it happen.

Aerosmith cemented the theory of turning negatives into opportunities with their line “You’ve got to lose, to know how to win” in their hit Dream On, many years before Eminem sampled the chorus to deliver the same message in his own unique way. Meanwhile, Bob Dylan taught me not to criticise what you can’t understand and Ice Cube kept me grounded by booming ‘You better check yo self before you wreck yo self’ into my ears.

Despite having a love of technology and gadgetry, I equally appreciate the simple things in life and sometimes you just need to breathe some fresh air and soak up your surroundings. Sometimes, we are guilty of becoming so goal oriented that we forget to live, love, laugh and walk in the rain. However a quick listen of Breath by Pink Floyd ensured a very valuable life lesson was learned sooner rather than later.

Arcade Fire might have sent me a subliminal message to stay on my own path with the line ‘the past won’t rest. Until we jump the fence. And leave it behind‘ but it was the Rolling Stones who poignantly pointed out that ‘You can’t always get what you want, But if you try sometimes you just might find you get what you need’

The risk of becoming selfish or self-absorbed was quickly quashed by the legend Bob Marley who hammered home the importance of helping others on this journey called life with the simple message ‘Be not selfish in your doings, pass it on. Help your brothers in their needs: Pass it on‘

Maybe we underestimate the influence that music can have on our lives and do not always realise that the songs we listen to can empower us just a much as any self-help book or life coach ever will.

Don’t misunderstand me, I’m not the guy that sits in a dark room full of melancholy searching for deep meaning in every song that I hear. After all sometimes you just want to shake it like a polaroid picture and I’m likely to find just a much inspiration by busting out a few moves with wild abandon on a sunny afternoon.

My music obsession leads many to think that I’m just a dreamer, but in the words of John Lennon, I’m not the only one, and I know for sure that one day you will join me.

Let me know the songs and lyrics that have inspired you on this journey of life by commenting below.