Page 162 - The Way to the Top

Guy OSEARY

Copartner and CEO of Maverick Recording Company

Four people have given me sound nuggets of wisdom that have helped me
keep business in perspective.

When I was nineteen, I complained to David Geffen about some other

people in the entertainment business who were making a lot of money and
who I didn’t think deserved it. David turned to me and said, “You need to
be a racehorse. Do you know what racehorses do?” I answered, “They
race.” David replied, “No, they wear blinders! If they looked to the left or
right, they would lose. Don’t look to the left and don’t look to the right.

Wear blinders and race your own race!”

One day, when my Kabbalah teacher, Eitan Yardeni, asked how I was
doing, I told him I needed a break. I was thoroughly exhausted,
overwhelmed, and overworked. Eitan then said, “Do you know what you

should do now?” I thought he was going to encourage me to take some
time off. But instead he replied, “No, go work harder! Be careful what you
ask for because you may get it.” Eitan was right. If I ask for a break, God
may hear me and I may get one—a long one. I took this advice to heart

and started to work even harder.

At lunch one day with my friend Ron Burkle, I shared with him my
disappointment over a particular investment and what a big mistake it
turned out to be. He told me, “It’s only a mistake if you haven’t learned

anything from it.” It’s such a simple comment, but it helped me move on
and not beat myself up for the loss.

And finally, I was chatting with my best friend Anthony Kiedis one day,
and I asked him how he was doing. He replied, “I have a roof over my