find a way to do it. His use of the microphone check illustrates
the intensity of his focus.
The A. Larry Ross firm handled media and public relations for
more than twenty-three years for the Graham organization. Ross
says, “One of the distinctives of Mr. Graham’s ministry has been
his ability to make positive points for the gospel in any situation.
You can ask Billy Graham how he gets his suits dry-cleaned on
the road, and he’ll turn it into a gospel witness.
“I cut my teeth in the corporate world before I worked with
Mr. Graham,” says Ross, “and I set up numerous media inter-
views. Almost always before a TV interview, they do a micro-
phone check, and they ask the interviewee to say something—
anything—so they can adjust the audio settings. Often a corporate
executive, for that check, will count to ten, say their ABC’s, or
recite what he had for breakfast. Mr. Graham would always quote
John 3:16—‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish,
but have everlasting life.’
“When I asked Mr. Graham why he does that, he replied,
‘Because that way, if I am not able to communicate the gospel
clearly during the interview, at least the cameraman will have
heard it.’”
Even the preinterview time is focused on his overriding purpose.
LEADERSHIP
LESSONS | Lasering
Applying the Principles
Leaders must identify the essential goal and continually move
toward it. In this, Billy learned well from his predecessor, Dwight
L. Moody, who said, “Give me a man who says ‘This one thing I
do,’ not ‘These fifty I dabble in.’” Not that there aren’t times when
leaders must multitask; it does mean simplifying the issue until
the single ultimate objective is clear.
As someone put it, “If you chase two rabbits, both will escape.”
The Leadership Secrets of Billy Graham