Herman Cain isn’t just the Republican Presidential frontrunner and former CEO of Godfather’s Pizza, he’s also a motivational speaker and poet. Archived versions of Mr. Cain’s official website reveal his life lessons and multiple poems bylined to “The Hermanator.” 

Mr. Cain began working as an author, political columnist, pundit and public speaker in the late 1990′s.  In mid 2007, he launched a new version of his web site that had sections featuring Mr. Cain’s “Motivational Moments,” Inspirational Moments” and “Pearls of Wisdom.” He used this version of his website up until January of this year when he launched a spiffy new page for his Presidential exploratory committee. The content on these pages is a mix of famous quotes, corporate platitudes, personal stories and Mr. Cain’s poems.

In the “Pearls of Wisdom” section of Mr. Cain’s old site, he shares anecdotes from his career in the fast food industry. In one tale, he claims to have faced “resentment, sabotage, and a conspiracy to get me fired!” during his time at Burger King.

Mr. Cain’s “Inspirational Moments” include quotes from Maya Angelou and Ralph Waldo Emerson, Bible verses,  a verse from the Broadway version of “The Wiz” and his poem, “Little Faces,” which tells the story of the birth of his granddaughter. “My baby daughter had just had a baby girl / A precious new member of a great big world. / As I picked her up with a gentle touch,
 She was small, so fragile, and yet so much,” Mr. Cain wrote. On the old site, Mr. Cain repeatedly refers to his granddaughter’s birth as a transformational experience in his life.

The “Motivational Moments” section of Mr. Cain’s site mostly features generic corporate platitudes that wouldn’t be out of place on those ubiquitous motivational posters like ”Impossible dreams are possible, one goal at a time.”

“Think of yourself as the Chief Executive Officer of a company called SELF, Incorporated. You are in charge, but have you decided to take charge? As the CEO, YOU have to identify your dreams, YOU have to determine your goals, and YOU have to develop the action plans to get there, because you’re in charge of SELF,” Mr. Cain wrote.

Along with his business advice, Mr. Cain’s “Motivational Moments” include a poem called “Ten Cans.” “You CAN have a dream, without knowing how to get there. / You CAN have a life, just start somewhere,” Mr. Cain wrote. Other poems deal with “the road to success and happiness” and life choices.

Mr. Cain’s unedited poems are presented below:

Little Faces

As she lay there in her mother’s arms,
She was only a few minutes old.
My baby daughter had just had a baby girl,
A precious new member of a great big world.
My baby daughter said, “Would you like to hold her?”
Of course I said yes, as my smile grew bolder.
As I picked her up with a gentle touch,
She was small, so fragile, and yet so much.

She had gone back to sleep after the struggle to start her life.
Baby and mommy were fine, everything was allright.
When I looked at that little face, sent from God above,
It was truly the face of a miracle, and of God’s divine love.

For a moment I didn’t know who I was or the where,
I could only think of her and so happy to be there.
Born into the world with all the other little faces,
What will we do, to make it a better place?

The Hermanator

Ten Cans

You CAN have a dream, without knowing how to get there.
You CAN have a life, just start somewhere.

You CAN make a difference, one person at a time.
You CAN make things happen, don’t expect a straight line.

You CAN be happy, if you have a hope inside.
You CAN have love in your life, but look beyond the outside

You CAN solve your problems, but FIRST, count your blessings.
You CAN find the strength, like an eagle, waiting, and resting.

You CAN make this a better world, but life is just a minute.
God CAN lead you through it, if all your heart is in it.

HERMANATOR

“The Road to Success and Happiness is not Straight”

Many people have a desire to succeed, and to be happy. But people are also frustrated because success does not come easy, and sometimes, it seems as if life is not fair.
But the road to success and happiness is not straight.

There’s a curve called failure,
A loop called confusion,
Speed bumps called friends,
Caution lights called family,
Red lights called enemies,
And jobs that sometimes go flat.
But with a spare called determination,
An engine called perseverance,
Insurance called faith,
And a driver called God Almighty,
You will make it to a place called success and happiness.

The road is not straight.

“Life is about Choices”

Life is about choices. If it’s your life, it’s your choice. The question is, who’s making the decision?

Life is filled with conflicts.
Work hard, but take some time off.
Eat healthy, but don’t eat too much.
Spend some quality time with the family, but succeed at work.
Speed up but slow down.

Life is about the choices that you have to make to balance the priorities in your life. And remember, there are still only 24 hours in the day.

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