Life Lessons From Tony Orlando

OCT 28 WRITTEN BY ROBERT MILLER

Tony Orlando is one of the greatest entertainers of our generation. I interviewed him recently on my Follow Your Dream podcast. In his 60-year career in show business he’s had dozens of hit records and a hugely successful television show. On top of all this he’s won more awards than you can count. Yet, what I learned was, despite all of his commercial success, Tony’s proudest achievement was the money he raises and the support that he gives to United States veterans.

In addition, he said his other great accomplishment is having been the co-host of the Muscular Dystrophy Telethon for over 30 years alongside Jerry Lewis. Tony is an example of a selfless human being who takes pride in what he gives back to the world. 

He made me stop and think about what most of us consider our accomplishments. More often than not it’s our commercial or artistic successes. But these successes are fleeting. A generation or two from now very few people will know or remember us or our accomplishments no matter how big they seem now. 

Most people do not have the ability to give back on the same scale as Tony Orlando. But we each have the ability to live a responsible and ethical life. And I think that in today’s world it’s more important than ever to do the right thing by others. 

This may be a simple directive, but it's one that we all need to follow.