One of the qualities I most admire about myself is my modesty.
I'm kidding, of course, since on the issue of humility, all I need recall is the wisdom of my now departed dad...
Fully recognizing my big head as a kid, and maybe fearing it, he offered this sage advice..."Neil, stay humble, in your case it will come in handy."
Decades later when my mom had passed away, and my career was progressing, my dad would be sitting all alone in the house once crowded with kids...watching me on TV.
A man of few words, he summed up my lucky success this way-- "Only in America, Neily boy, could "you" be offering financial advice."
We had a good laugh...but his point was very serious. Don't get cocky. Soon, you'll be clueless.
I think if dad were around today...
He'd be looking at Democrats who have come out of this election thinking they won a landslide, and acting that way.
Don't get cocky. Do...get a clue.
Americans gave you a license to lead. Not to do victory laps.
But it's as if in the rush to celebrate this election, they've completely forgotten...prior elections.
Wasn't it two years ago after the Republican takeover of the house, leaders in that party thought that they too were indestructible and unbeatable? They weren't.
And wasn't it two years before that...
That those same Republicans thought, with Democrats in complete control of Washington, they were done in Washington?
Just like Democrats were done...
And so likely Bill Clinton, in 1994? They weren't. He wasn't.
Something happened along the way. Each way. Each time.
They say it's humbling to lose. But i think it should be even more humbling to win.
To see in the moment that it's only a moment. And in a moment it can change. Many times.
My dad was a very wise man. Armed with only a high school education, he had a doctorate in something i like to call...life.
He got it.
And he urged me and my brother and sisters to get this.
Never become so arrogant that you risk showing others you're an ass.
And never is that test greater than when things are going your way.
Because contrary to what you think, people won't remember how you handled things when the chips were down...but how you handled them when the chips were up.
Democrats now, like republicans two years ago, would be wise to remember that.
Fame is fleeting. Success even more so.
Just remember Americans elected you to get a job done. And if you can't do it, in the next election they'll find someone who can.
You don't have to take it from me. Take it from history.
Better yet, take it from my dad.
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