Rabbi YY Jacobson - Can You See the Fire in Their Eyes?

Short Summary

Main recommendation: Judge your influence on people by whether you see a spark of energy or passion in their eyes, and never extinguish the "fire" that children naturally have. Benjamin Zander, conductor of the Boston Philharmonic, uses this as his measure of success, and the speaker applies the same test to his own teaching across many audiences. The speaker ties this to the idea that every child is a potential Mashiach and should never have that spirit snuffed out.

Key Points

• Benjamin Zander judges whether he has done his job by looking at the audience: a fire in their eyes means success, dullness means failure.
• The speaker uses the same test across all his students, whether Satmar Hasidim, secular Jews, men, women, adults, or morning and evening classes.
• He describes his role as akin to the moon reflecting the sun: he brings out the light that already exists in students rather than producing it himself.
• He cites the Gemara in Moed Katan, page 119 ("do not touch, do not damage, do not tamper with My mashiach, My anointed ones") and applies it to children in homes, schools, and communities.
• Each child is described as having dreams and the belief that they can change and redeem the world, which adults must not crush.

Details Worth Noting

• Concrete instructions: The transcript gives no step-by-step method. The actionable guidance is to watch your audience or students for signs of fire or dullness in their eyes as your measure of effectiveness, and to avoid saying or doing anything that extinguishes a child's passion, self-belief, or sense of their own potential.
• The speaker says the effect is probably even stronger with children than with adults, since children have that spark especially strongly.
• The Hebrew phrase "lahavdil" is used to draw a comparison to the Baal Shem Tov's teaching, with the speaker noting Zander captured something similar in his own language.
• The speaker frames the child's soul as infinite and the body as priceless and divine, given by the Ribbono shel Olam.
• The Jewish calendar is linked to the moon's light, which the speaker says was especially given to women through Rosh Chodesh.

Bottom Line

Engagement is measured by visible inspiration in people's eyes, and adults especially must protect the self-belief of children rather than suppress it.