The Idea of Service

In the episode, The Idea of Service . . .

“All of our income, tangible and psychic, of any kind, comes to us from making the best use of What We Are - as learning, growing, thinking, imagining, productive creatures in the service of others.”

Have you ever considered how the fate of one person has influenced your life for the better?

Allow me to introduce you to that person and how, through serving others, he changed the lives of countless millions.

Recently, as a volunteer for the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum, we launched an educational initiative on YouTube titled "The Inside Loop." Using the computer interface, Zoom, we can conduct interviews with retired U.S. Marines (in their homes) from World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.

This got me thinking about a former Marine who served during WWII on the USS Arizona, which was attacked on December 7, 1941, in Pearl Harbor. Killed were 1,177 of the 1,512 crewmen on board at the time; he was one of only 15 marines to survive the attack that day. His name is Earl Nightingale.

While in the Marine Corps, Earl was allowed to volunteer at the local radio station as an announcer. This is what eventually sparked his desire to move to Chicago and explore his newfound “broadcasting career.”

In Chicago, he began hosting his own daily commentary program on the huge, 50,000-watt clear channel, WGN radio. Earl's career spanned over 40 years, and from 1950 to 1996, he was known as the voice of the hero in the popular action-adventure series 'Sky King,' which also aired on WGN radio.

During that time, he authored a book, The Strangest Secret, which has been hailed as “one of the great motivational books of all time.”

He then went on to narrate this book in 1956. It was the first audio recording to achieve gold record status (over one million copies sold).

What captured my attention, as a young boy, was Earl Nightingale’s daily five-minute program, “Our Changing World,” which aired in 1959, five minutes a day, five days a week during that 40-year span. The program was heard on over a thousand radio stations, it was the most widely syndicated program of its time.

Subsequently, those five-minute segments would be compiled and distributed as a digital audio download, The Essence of Success.

I’ve made those segments a part of my life for over 55 years. So allow me to quote once again Earl's Idea of Service,

This is Patrick Ball. Thanks for listening. See you in the next episode.

Comments

Paris – the End of Silence

✈️ In this special episode: Paris – the End of Silence Sometimes, connection arrives in the most unexpected form—not through grand gestures, but through a quiet voice carried by technology. In a Paris apartment, I finally understood my family’s words . . . and felt my mother’s presence in every sentence. Since I was a little boy, France has been both a beautiful and frustrating paradox in my life. Every six to nine years, my mother, Mauricette, would take my brothers and me back to La Rochelle to visit our French family. The moment we arrived, the air would fill with a sound I loved but couldn’t share in—the rapid-fire, musical rhythm of French. My aunts, uncles, and cousins would warmly sweep me into hugs and kisses, their words flowing like a lovely melody I couldn’t quite catch. I’d smile brightly, trying to communicate with my eyes and hands. But as soon as we stepped off the plane, my mother and her sister-in-law, Joséan, started talking animatedly. They were gone, chatting h...

Pushing the Pause Button

In this episode, Pushing the Pause Button: Stepping Off the Treadmill Hello, friends — If you're reading this, I'm already off the grid. Today begins a much-needed vacation, and for the next few weeks, On the Fly is taking a break right along with me. For a long time, my inner voice has said, 'Keep every commitment, no matter what.' That's meant early mornings, long days, and a calendar packed with posts, podcasts, and projects I couldn't seem to say no to. I've been trying to be the tireless workhorse—but that kind of grind doesn't end well. Lately, I've noticed I'm not quite myself—shorter fuse, louder sighs, and a few too many grumbles (Lori deserves a medal). That's when you know it's time to hit pause before the spark burns out. So, I'm stepping back to rest, recharge, and remember what it feels like to not live by the next deadline: no tech, no to-do lists, just some space to breathe. Thank you, truly, for all your support and ...

The Friday Morning Pause

In this episode, The Friday Morning Pause: When My Brother’s Bookshelf Called Me to Stillness We live in a world allergic to stillness. Our mornings begin mid-sprint—thumbs scrolling before our eyes even open. The impulse to jump into the digital chaos is immediate. But sometimes, stillness finds you . It was early Friday morning. We’d arrived late the night before, stepping into the cool air before the day turned hot. Half-awake, I reached for my phone—emails, headlines, social feeds waiting like a morning buffet of distraction. We were in Cuba. No Wi-Fi. No 5G. No password. Just stillness, disguised as inconvenience. Instead, I caught sight of something unexpected: a small stack of books on my brother’s TV shelf. My brother and his wife are powered by perpetual motion. They are the definition of overscheduled and overstimulated. Yet there it was: Stillness Is the Key by Ryan Holiday, quietly mocking my scrolling habit. The irony was perfect. I put my phone down—a small, delibe...

Noirmoutier: An Ocean Between Us, Gone in a Moment

In this episode, Noirmoutier: An Ocean Between Us, Gone in a Moment. Sometimes love waits half a century for its moment — and when it finally arrives, time doesn’t stand still; it disappears. The moment I stepped off the train in Nantes, it felt like time froze. There she was — my cousin Michèle — waiting on the platform, arms waving desperately. When we finally embraced, the fifty years that had passed between us disappeared in an instant. The melody in her voice was the same, but softer than I remembered. We both shed tears of joy that only come from love long overdue. “I’m so happy you are here,” she whispered, her voice trembling. Thank goodness for the translation app on my phone, because the conversation began immediately — fast, fluid, and unstoppable. The Frenzy of Catching Up As we drove for about an hour to the tiny town of L’Épine on the Island of Noirmoutier, the words kept tumbling out. Michèle and her husband, Alain, are the most gracious hosts — but my new challe...

On The Fly

Search This Blog