"Darryl Mobley helped me think bigger, work harder, and be more creative in my career"

"Several years ago as a fresh graduate of a state school, I was a bit overwhelmed when I started at Procter & Gamble -- a place loaded with top MBA's from the finest schools in the world. The team I was assigned to work with initially included a fiery tough Yale grad, a Japanese whiz kid fresh from getting his MBA at U. of Chicago , and a towering gentleman in a bow tie who was a graduate of West Point … Darryl Mobley. Darryl was "all business" and had incredible signs displayed above his desk with sayings such as, "Strike Early. Strike Deep. Strike Often." It was immediately clear to me that Darryl was not your typical "office colleague."

Darryl struck me as someone with a fierce drive for excellence in everything he did. I sensed almost immediately that Darryl was a strong ally and that he did not just seek greatness for himself, but that he wanted it for those around him as well. He listened more than he talked, but he clearly communicated his position on various business & life topics. His comments came in the form of questions, not statements, and he quickly allowed me to get to the right answer without ever "telling" me what it was.

The most compelling question Darryl ever shared was a simple greeting on a holiday card. There was a picture of Santa on the front of the card and a seven-word question written on the inside:

"How Great Will You Choose to Be?"

When I opened it, I immediately chuckled. It was classic Darryl. I tossed it onto the pile of other cards I had received but my thoughts returned to it and the question inside again and again. I have thought more of that card from Darryl over the years than all the other cards I have received over the last 20 years.

If Darryl asked the question, he clearly thought I had the potential for greatness… didn't he? What did greatness mean to him -- and to me? And, Darryl felt I had a "choice" -- that I would choose the answer to that question. What an inspiring (and equally disturbing) thought. It was "ownership" of my life in its most simple form. I could be what I wanted and if I "chose" to be mediocre -- that's what I would be. If I chose to be great, that too was an option. I just needed to follow the philosophies spelled out on the signs on Darryl's desk. Wow! Powerful stuff.

Eleven years after meeting Darryl, I co-founded a company called Making College Count after writing a book of that title. Since then, the company has delivered live presentations to over 17 million high school students on how to make the most of their educational opportunities to get where they want to go in their careers. The core tenet of what is now 7 different success programs for students at what is now called "Making It Count" is what I got from Darryl many Christmas holidays ago – that students will choose how great they want to be -- that it is the choices that they make every day that will ultimately open or close doors for their future. They control those decisions so they can choose how great they want to be -- however they personally define greatness.

There have been many significant influences in shaping my life, values, and careers, but there is absolutely no question that Darryl Mobley helped me think bigger, work harder, and be more creative in my career and helped shape the philosophies that we share with students at Making It Count."

Patrick S. O'Brien

Co-Founder

Making It Count