-Oh, hello, Nick.
-Hi. -How are you?
-I'm good. How are you? -I'm good. I found it. Look at this.
We're at the main entrance. Thanks, man. How are you? -Welcome. -Hey, guys. So, we're bringing
the SWEAT Place to life. Not sure what that means yet,
but I'm gonna look into it. ♪♪ -Scene one, take one. Soft sticks. -[ Whispering ] Oh, so soft. [ Laughter ] Here we go. ♪♪ So, I'm driving home
from the Lyric Theatre, where I was singing
with the Baltimore Opera back in the early '80s. Yes, it's true. I used to sing in the opera. [ Singing in foreign language ] [ Singing in foreign language ] [ Cheers and applause ] Anyway, I'm driving north
on Charles Street headed home and coming up
on an intersection. It's late. There's no traffic. The light was red, but I could
see it was about to turn green because the light facing
the other direction had already turned yellow. Consequently,
I didn't touch my brake. I arrived at the intersection
just as my light turned green, which allowed me
to cruise straight through without slowing down at all. Now, halfway through
the intersection, I see something out
of the corner of my eye. It's just a red blur
somewhere off to my left. It's a pickup truck
going maybe 100 miles an hour running a red light
in downtown Baltimore City. It was about as close
as close can get. The truck missed my SUV, but there was a loud noise and an unmistakable shimmy that compelled me
to pull over right away. I got out. I walk around to the rear
of the vehicle. There was no obvious damage, but then I noticed
the trailer hitch was gone. The bumper of the speeding truck
had hit my trailer hitch, and the impact had literally
sheared the thing off of my vehicle cleanly. I get back in the SUV,
but I can't drive because I'm shaking so hard. I realized if I had tapped
the brakes even a little bit
as I approached the light, I'd have arrived at the middle
of the intersection maybe a half second later. And that would have been
all she wrote. The speeding truck would have
ended my opera career right then and there,
along with everything else. The next morning,
everything was different. Colors were brighter. The air felt cleaner. Food tasted better. Flowers smelled sweeter. I was so happy to be alive. I found myself taking pleasure
in everything -- taking out the garbage,
talking to telemarketers, going to the dentist. I was more patient.
I was more polite. I was literally a new man for about three days. Then I stopped thinking
about my near miss and went back to being
the same guy I'd always been. The point is, I don't need
to wait for a near miss to feel grateful. I can actually
decide to be grateful whenever it suits me. I was born.
I was born in the USA. I was born with a body
that allows me to walk around and see and taste and hear and do all the other good things
I so often take for granted. I try to do this every day, because whenever
I count my blessings, it's very hard
to feel sorry for myself. When I'm grateful, I can't feel
resentful or bitter or prideful
or any of the other things that make me unattractive
and annoying. But that's not the reason gratitude is at the top
of the SWEAT Pledge. Think about all we take
for granted as a society. We're no longer impressed
with smooth roads, sturdy foundations,
affordable electricity, functioning red lights, or the
miracle of modern plumbing. We're no longer gobsmacked
by the fact that 1.5% of the population
feeds 300 million people three times a day, right? We feel entitled
to these things. Consequently, we don't
really appreciate the people who make them
all possible, even though we depend upon them. This overall lack of
appreciation for skilled labor has fueled all kinds of myths and misperceptions
that discourage people from exploring a legitimate
opportunity in the trades. That's why we have
millions of open jobs that nobody aspires to. The skills gap isn't a mystery. It's a reflection
of what we value. And what we value is a reflection
of what we're grateful for. That's why
the SWEAT Pledge starts with an attitude of gratitude. "I believe I have won the
greatest lottery of all time. I'm alive. I walk the Earth. I live in America. Above all things, I'm grateful." What you just did I thought
was pretty good. Very real. Very real.
-You want to just go with that? He was rolling,
so I think we could just go with what I did, right?
-I would. Cut me out of the whole thing.
People are sick of me. -I wouldn't go that far.
-People want more Chuck. More Chuck. Sit down there for a sec,
will you? -I believe I have hit the
greatest lottery in the world! [ Laughter ] I am alive! I walk the Earth!
