A long time ago- January 14 1984 to be exact- Dick Clark asked Madonna on American Bandstand “What do you hope will happen, not only in 1984 but for the rest of your professional life? What are your dreams? What’s left?” Madonna’s response was succint and to the point. She answered “To rule the world.” Her response was quite telling and life affirming. She knew what she wanted. She went after it. She made it. For a while, one could argue that indeed she ruled the world.

I often think of that iconic moment. I did not catch that moment in real-time but have caught it quite often in many retrospectives and documentaries. I’ve always been impressed by how simply and confidently she put it. I too have thought of ruling the world. Many of us had.

A few weeks ago, I was in Little Italy in Boston and went to a restaurant that had a wall of multiple tv screens showing various mafia movies. Then I heard softly in the background:

Tony Montana: Me, I want what’s coming to me.

Manny Ray: Oh, well what’s coming to you?

Tony Montana: The world chico, and everything in it.

That’s right. I want the world and everything in it. What a statement to utter and try to live out. Of course, we can’t all rule the world. However, we can certainly go for it. One has to work for it. Work hard and press forward no matter what. Get in that car and push it forward.