This week, we are in Florida for a short vacation.

I had a chance to read “Significance in Simple Moments “written by Jon Petz, a good friend, professional magician and fellow professional speaker who lives in Columbus, Ohio. In it he tells the story early in his career when he was asked to do a magic show for a sick boy in a local hospital.

Jon is a really good magician. When I was in corporate and responsible for a large regional conference, I hired Jon to be our luncheon keynote speaker. He mixed magic with his message. Months later at the organization’s Christmas Party attendees were still talking about Jon. I’ve been across the table from Jon and have no idea how he does his incredible magic.

In his book, Jon tells the story of that day with the young boy, Nathan, and his family at the hospital in great detail. Nathan had asked for David Copperfield. He got Jon Petz instead.

Jon thought, “I’m just a magician in Columbus, Ohio. I’m just a no-name performer — not a headliner celebrity with his own Las Vegas show.”

Jon showed up and treated that show for Nathan the same as any other professional performance. The mood in the room changed from solemnness to eagerness and excitement. For the time Jon was there, everyone including their priest who was in the room laughed and were amazed by Jon’s magic. Nathan forgot about his pain and the seriousness of his illness. He was a boy having fun. The entire family was caught up in the show and forgot about life for a while.

Jon learned months later from the priest that Nathan passed away the morning after Jon’s performance. His performance was the last happy moment Nathan’s family all had together.

That performance changed Jon. He realized he wasn’t just anything. His perspective had shifted. Jon realized his gifts could made a positive difference in people’s lives. Jon states in his book when we say, “I’m just a____,” what we really are uttering is. “I don’t make a difference.”

That, my friend, is not true. We have all probably heard someone say “I’m just …” We may have said it ourselves. We can choose to use our gifts and be significant. You can read the whole story and more in Jon Petz’s book “Significance in Simple Moments,” available at JonPetz.com or Amazon.com.

In 2017 when Mark, the Shale Crescent USA chairman, said, “Greg, you can get us on the main stage at the World Petrochemical Conference in Houston.” I protested, “Mark, the main stage is reserved for CEOs and thought leaders. You can’t even buy your way onto it. We’re just a small nonprofit from Marietta, Ohio.”

Mark’s encouragement and belief in me changed my thinking. Shale Crescent USA was part of a main stage panel in 2018 with Shell and Bechtel. Everything changed. People ran to our exhibit booth after the presentation to get a copy of the Executive Summary of the Shale Crescent USA study with IHSMarkit.

Since 2018 Shale Crescent USA has spoken on main stages at numerous national and global conferences in the USA, Tokyo, Japan and Mumbai, India. We are working on a trip to Germany this spring to tell their industry about the advantages of manufacturing in the Shale Crescent USA region.

SCUSA has become a thought leader with four major studies, White Papers, TV and radio interviews. Companies around the world are talking to SCUSA. I have been on two international calls since arriving in Florida. It all started with our chairman changing my thinking. Now we never say we are just …

Lynnda and I left two days early for Florida so we could visit our two grandsons. Calen, the oldest is married. We went to see them and their new house. Cole, the youngest, is a senior in high school. He plays soccer, runs track and cross country. Soccer is a winter sport in Florida. We told him at Thanksgiving we were coming to watch him play.

Last week, we drove to northern Florida and saw him play. We hadn’t seen him play in high school. Cole is one of the team captains. He played the entire 80 minutes.

Sadly, Calen and Cole lost their mother to illness last summer. Sports help Cole. A little like Nathan and Jon Petz, sports are a diversion where Cole can feel normal.

We never know when our actions create significant moments having a positive influence on others. Nine years ago, the weekend before Thanksgiving, Cole and Calen stayed with us in Elkview. That season was the first time my adult soccer team played in the league championship game.

It was cold and raining. My team got beat badly. I got to play most of the game. Calen and Cole came to watch. In the car after the game, I asked Cole what he thought.

“That was flaming awesome, Grandpa,” was his response.

Cole still remembered that game, talking about it following his game. We are never just anything.

Beginning a New Year is a good time to take “just” out of our vocabulary.

As high school coaches we sometimes hear, “I’m just a freshman.” We quickly correct the player. We believe in seeing our players not as they are but as they can be. In business we should never consider our people just anything. They are better than that. The only thing holding them back may be our attitude.

We all have gifts we need to use to make a positive difference in the lives of others. Being humble does not mean we hide our gifts.

We have been given our gifts to be significant and to make the world a better place. When we face God at the end of our life, we should want to hear, “Well done my good and faithful servant.” Choose to be significant in 2024.

Greg Kozera, gkozera@shalecrescentusa.com, is the director of marketing and sales for Shale Crescent USA, www.shalecrescentusa.com. He is a professional engineer with a master’s in environmental engineering and over 40 years’ experience in the energy industry. He is a professional speaker and author of four books and numerous published articles.