Independent Banker - February 2020 - 58

sense to Brown, but over time, his opinion changed.
" I've come to the conclusion over the past decade that
that's absolutely false, " he says. " The truth is that if
we buy into the idea that we're ordinary people doing
extraordinary things, first we have to convince ourselves
that we are ordinary.
" I don't think there is anybody on this planet who was
put here to be ordinary. I believe that we were created with
talents, gifts and abilities as unique as our fingerprints.
And I believe we were put here to make an extraordinary
difference. The true definition of a hero is extraordinary
people who choose not to be ordinary. That changed
everything for me. "
In his 2017 book The Hero Effect, Brown describes his
own take on heroism, one that transports the hero out
of the realm of the mythological and into the everyday
world. His H.E.R.O. is an acronym for helping (H) without
strings attached, creating an exceptional (E) experience,
taking responsibility (R) for their actions and seeing the
world through the lens of optimism (O). His heroes make
life better, solve problems and move people from where
they are to somewhere new.
Personal heroes
Brown has encountered such heroes throughout his
career. That career started when his father, a blue-collar
worker, helped him buy a franchise after he dropped
out of high school in his hometown of Muskegon, Mich.
The venture failed, but it launched Brown into a highly
successful career in franchise expansion that spanned
more than 30 years.
Years later, his wife, Lisa, became the greatest of his
heroes. At the age of 3, their son Josh was diagnosed with
a speech and language delay and, two years later, with
autism. Brown credits Lisa with defying the odds; she left
her career behind to help Josh succeed at school, learn to
drive and get into college despite the hurdles he faced.
" They gave us a list of everything this boy wouldn't do,
all of the things he wouldn't achieve, " Brown says. " And
for the last 17 years, I've had the honor and privilege of
watching a leader with the title of mother rewrite the
vision for this boy's life. This boy has achieved more than
they ever thought he would, more than I ever did. This kid
went to college. I didn't go to college.
" That's the beauty of leadership; leaders take the
storyline life gives us and they rewrite it. I watched as this
compelling vision that my wife Lisa created attracted all
the resources and the people we needed. "
Brown has not only learned from his wife's optimism,
58 Q ICBA Independent Banker Q February 2020
"
[Heroes] have this
uncanny ability to
show up larger than
life. ... Larger than life
means bigger than life's
problems, bigger than
the storyline that life
gave us, bigger than
the challenges that our
clients and employees
are facing.
but from his son's unwavering focus, too. " One of the
things children with autism do is get very fixated on their
heart's desire, their passion, " he says. " They have this
uncanny ability to not hear all the periphery, all of the
noise. They're very literal thinkers. Josh has taught me
the power of focus. He doesn't really understand other
people's opinions of him. Therefore, he doesn't really
"
Independent Banker - February 2020

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