Sandy Gennaro
When it came to becoming a successful musician, the odds were stacked against Sandy Gennaro, as they are stacked against most people who pick up a musical instrument and hope to become rock stars. But after maintaining a successful music career for over 5 decades, sharing the stage with several hall-of-fame musicians and performing for over 1 billion people between television and live audiences, he now shares the mindset and core principles that are necessary to beat those unbelievable odds, even when it comes to treating people afflicted with cancer.
Mr Gennaro feels strongly that paying it forward has helped him to remain on that path of success and continue receiving tremendous gifts in his life.
In the keynote speech at the AONN+ 13th Annual Navigation & Survivorship Conference in New Orleans, Sandy Gennaro, world-class drummer, speaker, and coach, who has recorded and toured over the last 52 years with globally renowned artists like Joan Jett, Cyndi Lauper, Michael Bolton, and the Monkees, used his own unforgettable stories to drive home proven concepts that can help create “rockstar” performances in every arena of life.
Learning the BEATS
According to Mr Gennaro, these potentially life-changing core principles can be summed up by using the acronym BEATS:
- Belief (“God Energy”)
- Enthusiasm (Visualization)
- Attitude (Thoughts)
- Tenacity (Passion)
- Service (Empathy)
“When I wrote this acronym, I realized that, in addition to playing beats for over half a century, I’ve been living these principles,” he said. “And that was the reason I was able to overcome such unbelievable odds.”
First, belief refers to a having a belief in a “God Energy” or a power greater than ourselves.
“I’ve always believed that as long as there’s a breath in my body, there is hope; everything is possible as long as we are alive,” he said. “We all have that little bit of God energy inside of us—it’s called a soul—but in order to take advantage of it, you have to subscribe to it. You have to believe it, and you have to trust it.”
In conjunction with that belief, he trusts in the power of having a sense of enthusiasm about the future. “When I visualize an event that hasn’t happened yet, I visualize its successful outcome,” he explained. “I picture it in my mind as if it already occurred, and I feel actual enthusiasm at witnessing its successful resolution.”
He says this practice of visualization can help with developing a growth mindset versus a fixed mindset. According to Mr Gennaro, when problems arise in the life of a person with a growth mindset, they visualize a successful resolution; a person with a fixed mindset throws in the towel.
As a kid, Sandy went to bed every night visualizing his future life as a rockstar drummer. “I went to sleep every single night visualizing myself on stage from a drummer’s standpoint, sitting behind the drums, seeing the audience and the backs of my nameless, faceless bandmates, the smell of the fog machine, and the feel of the drumsticks in my hand,” he recalled. “I was just waiting for the day that it was going to happen. When you visualize, verbalize, and believe something in your heart, it becomes much more powerful.”
As a drummer, he knows that audience involvement equates to a much more meaningful experience for everyone in the crowd and believes this idea can be translated to cancer navigation. “It’s so important to make your patients feel that they’re part of the success of their treatment, and to instill in them the power of positive visualization,” he said.
Another core principle—attitude—is strongly tied to enthusiasm and visualization.
“We were given the power of choice and free will, and we have a choice as to which thoughts we entertain,” said Mr Gennaro. “Thoughts, especially when backed by enthusiasm, become words; words become actions, and your actions become your personality. Your personality is the way people perceive you, and the way people perceive you becomes your legacy.”
He pointed out that the drummer supplies the beat for the entire band, with the goal of providing a platform for the singer. Similarly, navigators are like the drummers of the care team; they lead the patient and their family and coordinate with other providers on the team.
“That’s your band; where you go, the patient will follow,” he said. “So it’s important to instill that positive attitude in your patients.”
With a positive attitude and a growth mindset, tenacity follows. According to Mr Gennaro, his life as a musician was full of unknowns and inconsistencies. Coming off of a 3-month tour and having nothing on his calendar could have sent him into a tailspin of worry, but because of his tenacious attitude, he was able to consistently overcome the odds as a professional musician.
“I’m not going to stand here and tell you that my half-century in the music business has been a bed of roses; there have been a lot of problems,” he said. “But in order to sustain my career and beat the odds, I’ve had to believe in the future, in the unknown, and in the possibilities ahead.”
Service is the final core principle of BEATS. Having a service-oriented mindset, expressing empathy, and displaying kindness toward others can turn their day around completely (and in Sandy’s case, can even open doors to big new career opportunities), so it’s always worth that little extra effort.
A Life-Changing 5 Minutes
Mr Gennaro firmly believes that because of his beliefs, enthusiasm, attitude, tenacity, and service to others, he has been able to beat the odds in his life.
“This can be life-changing,” he said. “I never got a gig from a résumé; I always got gigs as a result of a relationship with somebody else, or a favor I did for somebody.”
In fact, he once spent 5 minutes to be kind and talk to an aspiring young musician named Dave in the hallway after one of his shows. Dave later turned out to be Cyndi Lauper’s manager, and he invited Sandy to come on tour as their drummer. He even plays on the studio version of “Time After Time” (and later met his wife of 36 years on tour).
“Every time you hear that song, I don’t want you to think of me,” he said. “But I want you to think of belief, enthusiasm, attitude, tenacity, and service.”
He feels strongly that paying it forward has helped him to remain on that path of success and continue receiving tremendous gifts in his life, and he urges others (particularly leaders) to never let an opportunity go by to pat someone on the back or congratulate them on a job well done. He encourages others to listen without assumption and sacrifice without reward, because the possibilities are endless when we involve altruism and compassion.
“As navigators and service-oriented people, you’re always thinking of others; it’s never about you—it’s about your patients and their families,” he said. “Consider yourselves blessed to do what you do, because having that sense of altruism is so meaningful. It makes the world a better and healthier place.”
“The world needs more generosity and less animosity,” he added. “Because you never know when that little act of kindness could change your life forever.”
