ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Mark Bezos - Activist, volunteer firefighter
Mark Bezos works at Robin Hood, a poverty-fighting charity in New York City, and the assistant captain of a volunteer fire company in suburban New York.

Why you should listen

Mark Bezos is the SVP, Development, Communications & Events at Robin Hood, the leading poverty-fighting charity in New York City. Bezos joined Robin Hood following the sale of his advertising agency, excited to have found a way to use his powers of persuasion for good.

Bezos is the Assistant Captain of a volunteer fire company in Westchester County, New York, where he lives with his wife and four children. He is continuously amazed and motivated by the everyday acts of heroism--big and small--that surround him.

More profile about the speaker
Mark Bezos | Speaker | TED.com
TED2011

Mark Bezos: A life lesson from a volunteer firefighter

Mark Bezos: Življenjska lekcija prostovoljnega gasilca

Filmed:
3,120,225 views

Prostovoljni gasilec Mark Bezos pripoveduje o herojskem dejanju, ki ni šlo čisto po načrtih - mu je pa dalo pomembno lekcijo: Ne čakajte na to, da postanete junak.
- Activist, volunteer firefighter
Mark Bezos works at Robin Hood, a poverty-fighting charity in New York City, and the assistant captain of a volunteer fire company in suburban New York. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:15
Back in NewNove YorkYork, I am the headglava of developmentrazvoj
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V New Yorku delam kot vodja razvojnega oddelka
00:17
for a non-profitneprofitna calledpozval RobinRobin HoodHood.
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v neprofitni organizaciji z imenom Robin Hood.
00:20
When I'm not fightingboj povertyrevščina, I'm fightingboj firespožari
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Ko se ne borim z revščino, se borim s požari
00:22
as the assistantpomočnik captainkapitan of a volunteerprostovoljec fireogenj companypodjetje.
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kot pomočnik poveljnika prostovoljnega gasilskega društva.
00:25
Now in our townmesto,
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V našem kraju
00:27
where the volunteersprostovoljci supplementdodatek a highlyvisoko skilledusposobljeni careerkariero staffosebje,
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prostovoljci pomagajo visoko usposobljenim poklicnim gasilcem
00:30
you have to get to the fireogenj scenescene prettylepa earlyzgodaj
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in na prizorišče požara je treba priti dokaj zgodaj,
00:32
to get in on any actionukrepanje.
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če hočete ujeti vsaj malo akcije.
00:34
I rememberZapomni si my first fireogenj.
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Spominjam se svojega prvega požara.
00:36
I was the seconddrugič volunteerprostovoljec on the scenescene,
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Na prizorišče sem prispel kot drugi prostovoljec,
00:38
so there was a prettylepa good chancepriložnost I was going to get in.
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zato je bila priložnost, da sodelujem, dokaj dobra.
00:41
But still it was a realresnično footraceFootrace againstproti the other volunteersprostovoljci
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Ampak vseeno je šlo za pravo dirko z drugimi prostovoljci,
00:43
to get to the captainkapitan in chargeobtožiti
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da bi prišli do poveljnika
00:45
to find out what our assignmentsnaloge would be.
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in dobili svoje naloge.
00:47
When I foundnajdemo the captainkapitan,
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Ko sem našel poveljnika,
00:49
he was havingimeti a very engagingprivlačen conversationpogovor
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se je ravno zavzeto pogovarjal
00:51
with the homeownerhomeowner,
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z lastnico hiše,
00:53
who was surelyzagotovo havingimeti one of the worstnajhujše daysdnevi of her life.
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za katero je to moral biti eden najhujših dni v življenju.
00:57
Here it was, the middlesredi of the night,
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Bilo je sredi noči,
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she was standingstoji outsidezunaj in the pouringnalivanje raindež,
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stala je zunaj v dežju,
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underSpodaj an umbrelladežnik, in her pajamaspižame, barefootbosi,
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z dežnikom, v pižami in bosa,
01:05
while her househiša was in flamesplameni.
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medtem ko je njena hiša gorela.
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The other volunteerprostovoljec who had arrivedprišel just before me --
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Prostovoljec, ki je prispel ravno pred menoj,
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let's call him LexLex LutherLuther --
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imenujmo ga Lex Luthor...
01:13
(LaughterSmeh)
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(smeh)
01:15
got to the captainkapitan first
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je bil prvi pri poveljniku
01:17
and was askedvprašal to go insideznotraj
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in ta ga je prosil, naj gre v hišo
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and saveshranite the homeowner'shomeowner dogpes.
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in reši lastničinega psa.
01:23
The dogpes! I was stunnedosupla with jealousyljubosumje.
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Pes! Skoraj počil sem od zavisti.
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Here was some lawyerodvetnik or moneydenar managermanager
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To je bil gotovo neki pravnik ali finančnik,
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who, for the restpočitek of his life, getsdobi to tell people
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ki bo vse življenje lahko pripovedoval,
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that he wentšla into a burningžganje buildingstavbe
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kako je šel v gorečo stavbo
01:32
to saveshranite a livingživeti creaturebitje,
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in rešil živo bitje,
01:34
just because he beatpremagati me by fivepet secondssekund.
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samo zato, ker je bil pet sekund hitrejši od mene.
01:37
Well, I was nextNaslednji.
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No, jaz sem bil naslednji.
01:39
The captainkapitan wavedpomahal me over.
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Poveljnik me je poklical.
01:41
He said, "BezosBezos, I need you to go into the househiša.
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Rekel je: "Bezos, iti moraš v hišo.
01:44
I need you to go upstairsgor, pastpreteklost the fireogenj,
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Pojdi gor, mimo ognja
01:47
and I need you to get this womanženska a pairpar of shoesčevlji."
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in prinesi tej ženski par čevljev."
01:50
(LaughterSmeh)
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(smeh)
01:53
I swearPreklinjati.
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Prisežem.
01:55
So, not exactlytočno what I was hopingv upanju for,
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Ni bilo ravno to, na kar sem upal,
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but off I wentšla --
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ampak šel sem...
02:00
up the stairsstopnice, down the halldvorana, pastpreteklost the 'real'"resnično" firefightersgasilci,
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gor po stopnicah, preko hodnika, mimo "pravih" gasilcev,
02:03
who were prettylepa much doneKončano puttingdajanje out the fireogenj at this pointtočka,
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ki so bili bolj ali manj pri koncu z gašenjem,
02:06
into the mastermojster bedroomspalnica to get a pairpar of shoesčevlji.
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v spalnico, iskat par čevljev.
02:09
Now I know what you're thinkingrazmišljanje,
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Vem, kaj mislite,
02:12
but I'm no herojunak.
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ampak nisem nikakršen junak.
02:14
(LaughterSmeh)
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(smeh)
02:19
I carriedprevažajo my payloadkoristni tovor back downstairsspodaj
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Svoj tovor sem nesel dol,
02:22
where I metsrečal my nemesisNemesis
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kjer sem pri vhodnih vratih
02:24
and the preciousdragocen dogpes by the frontspredaj doorvrata.
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srečal svojega "sovražnika" in ob njem dragocenega psa.
02:26
We tookvzel our treasureszakladi outsidezunaj to the homeownerhomeowner,
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Svoja zaklada sva odnesla lastnici hiše,
02:29
where, not surprisinglypresenetljivo,
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kjer je, normalno,
02:31
his receivedprejeto much more attentionpozornost than did minemoj.
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bil njegov deležen večje pozornosti kot moj.
02:34
A fewmalo weekstednih laterpozneje,
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Čez nekaj tednov
02:36
the departmentoddelek receivedprejeto a letterpismo from the homeownerhomeowner
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je društvo dobilo pismo lastnice hiše
02:38
thankingzahvala us for the valiantpogumen efforttrud displayedprikazano
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z zahvalo za naš trud
02:40
in savingvarčevanje her home.
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pri reševanju njenega doma.
02:42
The actukrepati of kindnessprijaznost she notedopozoriti abovenad all othersdrugi:
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Posebej je izpostavila tole prijazno gesto:
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someonenekdo had even gottengotten her a pairpar of shoesčevlji.
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nekdo ji je celo prinesel čevlje.
02:48
(LaughterSmeh)
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(smeh)
02:50
In bothoboje my vocationpoklic at RobinRobin HoodHood
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Tako v svojem poklicu pri Robinu Hoodu
02:52
and my avocationklic as a volunteerprostovoljec firefightergasilec,
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kot pri prostovoljnem gasilstvu
02:54
I am witnesspriča to actsdejanja of generosityvelikodušnost and kindnessprijaznost
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sem priča velikodušnim in dobrosrčnim dejanjem
02:57
on a monumentalmonumentalno scaleobsega,
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velikih razsežnosti,
02:59
but I'm alsotudi witnesspriča to actsdejanja of gracemilost and couragepogum
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sem pa tudi priča lepim in pogumnim dejanjem
03:01
on an individualposameznik basisosnove.
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posameznikov.
03:03
And you know what I've learnednaučili?
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In veste, česa sem se naučil?
03:05
They all matterzadevo.
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Vsa so pomembna.
03:07
So as I look around this roomsoba
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Ko se ozrem po tej sobi
03:09
at people who eitherbodisi have achieveddoseženi,
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in vidim ljudi, ki so dosegli,
03:11
or are on theirnjihovi way to achievingdoseganje,
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ali še bodo,
03:13
remarkableizjemno levelsravni of successuspeh,
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izjemne uspehe,
03:15
I would offerponudbe this reminderOpomnik:
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vas opominjam:
03:17
don't wait.
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ne čakajte.
03:19
Don't wait untildo you make your first millionmilijonov
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Ne čakajte, dokler ne zaslužite svojega prvega milijona,
03:21
to make a differenceRazlika in somebody'snekdo je life.
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da bi nekomu spremenili življenje.
03:23
If you have something to give,
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Če imate kaj dati,
03:25
give it now.
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dajte zdaj.
03:27
ServeSlužijo foodhrano at a soupjuha kitchenkuhinja. CleanČiščenje up a neighborhoodsoseska parkparkirati.
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Pomagajte v ljudski kuhinji, očistite park v soseščini,
03:30
Be a mentormentor.
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bodite mentor.
03:32
Not everyvsak day is going to offerponudbe us a chancepriložnost
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Nimamo vsak dan priložnosti,
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to saveshranite somebody'snekdo je life,
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da bi nekomu rešili življenje,
03:36
but everyvsak day offersponudbe us an opportunitypriložnost to affectvplivati one.
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a vsak dan lahko vplivamo na življenje nekoga.
03:39
So get in the gameigro. SaveShrani the shoesčevlji.
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Pridružite se torej igri; rešite čevlje.
03:42
Thank you.
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Hvala.
03:44
(ApplauseAplavz)
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(aplavz)
03:49
BrunoBruno GiussaniGiussani: MarkMark, MarkMark, come back.
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Mark, Mark, pridi nazaj.
03:51
(ApplauseAplavz)
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(aplavz)
03:58
MarkMark BezosBezos: Thank you.
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Hvala.
Translated by Klavdija Cernilogar
Reviewed by Matej Divjak

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Mark Bezos - Activist, volunteer firefighter
Mark Bezos works at Robin Hood, a poverty-fighting charity in New York City, and the assistant captain of a volunteer fire company in suburban New York.

Why you should listen

Mark Bezos is the SVP, Development, Communications & Events at Robin Hood, the leading poverty-fighting charity in New York City. Bezos joined Robin Hood following the sale of his advertising agency, excited to have found a way to use his powers of persuasion for good.

Bezos is the Assistant Captain of a volunteer fire company in Westchester County, New York, where he lives with his wife and four children. He is continuously amazed and motivated by the everyday acts of heroism--big and small--that surround him.

More profile about the speaker
Mark Bezos | Speaker | TED.com