A career-changing moment or experience
Set Your Sights on Giving Back
Amultimillion-dollar idea was born from Jim Stovall’s own personal crisis. At 17, he was diag- nosed with a condition that would eventually
take away his sight. Completely blind
by 29 and depressed, Jim confined
himself to his 9x12 room.
“One day, out of sheer boredom, I
decided to watch a Humphrey Bogart
film, The Big Sleep. Even though I
couldn’t watch it, I could still follow
along and remember the scenes. It
worked for a while, but then somebody
shot somebody, a car sped away, someone
screamed, and I had forgotten what had
happened exactly. I got frustrated and
said the magic words, ‘Someone oughtta
do something about that.’”
Well, Jim did do something about
that. He launched the Narrative
Television Network (NTN), a company
that has a voiceover describing scenes
in movies and television when there is
no dialogue, making film accessible for
blind and visually impaired people.
NTN launched his successful speaking career. People were intrigued to
hear more about this guy who was
selling television for the blind. “Very
few times in your life do you get to
the intersection of when the ‘you that
exists’ meets the ‘you that could be.’
After the first speech, I thought ‘I can
do this!’” Stovall says.
“The response was overwhelming.
It quickly spiraled into more requests
for bookings. The big turning point
for me was when I consciously and
purposefully decided that I am a pro-
fessional speaker.”
Since then, Stovall has written a
New York Times best-seller, which was
turned into a major motion picture The
Ultimate Gift. His latest movie project
is The Lamp, starring Academy Award®
winner Louis Gossett Jr.
As the financial success of NTN and
Stovall’s speaking business grew, he
discovered, “The most fun you’ll ever
have with money is giving it away. If
you don’t believe that, get a U-haul
full of bicycles, go to a poor neighbor-
hood, and give the bicycles away. You’ll
have the best day of your life,” Stovall
says. “One of the best decisions I made
was to start a scholarship. I grew up
poor and struggled to pay for college.
I wanted to help other students avoid
that struggle. Since then, we’ve given
away over 500 scholarships amounting
to well over $5 million.”
Stovall stays grounded by being
involved in charitable acts, which is as
intentional as the ways he runs his busi-
ness, invests and saves. “Sometimes,
because we hold a microphone and
stand in the spotlight, we think that we
have all the answers. Being involved
in charitable acts helps me to always
remember that I’m just another fellow
traveler on the same road, trying
to be a better me personally and
professionally.”
Faced with the challenge of total blindness, Jim Stovall has gone on to become a world- renowned speaker and the author of the best-selling
book, The Ultimate Gift. He is an Emmy
Award winner, an International
Humanitarian of the Year, and a National
Olympic weightlifting champion. Visit www.
jimstovall.com.
Sharí Alexander is the co-owner of the Expert Message Group. EMG works with speakers and authors to publish their books, craft their speeches, and build
their business. On the platform, Sharí shares her
experiences as a presentation coach and speech
writer to help organizations improve public
speaking and communication skills.
