Ted Williams is a homeless man in Columbus, Ohio.  I also live in Columbus and until yesterday, I had never seen nor heard of him.   However, today over a million people from around the world, including me, have met him.  Why?  Because someone at the Columbus Dispatch found out about him, gave him a video platform to tell his amazing story and now he’s getting job offers from everyone from the Cleveland Caveliers, the NFL, ESPN and beyond.  

You see, Ted has what he calls “a God-given gift of a voice.”  And that is true!  His voice sounds just as good if not better than most voice-over talents you’ll hear on any given day.  Apparently, he hit some hard times and got into drugs and alcohol, but he has been sober now for two years and has been hoping to find work using his voice.  

Seeing this video and the attention it has spurred got me thinking about something I said just yesterday on a radio show.  I was talking about how we as business owners are already media-worthy, but we need to be media-ready.  Being media-ready means being prepared when your moment arrives.  It’s a powerful mix of talent and a great story.  Ted was media ready. He had the right things to say, the right attitude, an interesting story to tell and did not seem rehearsed.  He simply shared what is true for him.  Nicely done, Ted.