Story of Michael Jordan

                                

Story of Michael Jordan

“I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.” ~ Michael Jordan.

How can I talk about motivation and not mention Michael Jordan? Jordan suffered his first set-back in his sophomore year when he was left out of the varsity basketball team. Reason? He was only 5’9” at that time. His taller classmate Leroy Smith had won the last spot on the team.

He made up his mind that he would never have to face a similar situation ever again and started practicing every day after that, making it a point to take out time for his practice daily without fail. He soon shot up to 6’3”, made the team the next year and never had to look back after that.

From being a part of two gold-medal winning teams at the Olympics to winning NBA’s Most Valuable Player Award five times in his career, Jordan dominated the sports field for more than a decade in the ‘90s.

Story of Lance Armstrong

                                Story of Lance Armstrong

Diagnosed with advanced testicular cancer at the age of 25, doctors gave Lance Armstrong less than a 40 percent chance of recovery. Tumors were discovered in his lungs and stomach along with multiple lesions on the brain.

His biking career was over or so everyone thought; but no one counted on the indomitable belief Armstrong had in himself and the lessons which his mother, Linda Walling had taught him.

One of the first things that he did was to acknowledge the disease that had captured him in its talons and learn everything he could about it. He devoured books, resources and found help in support groups with people going through similar difficulties.

Lance sought strength in three things his mother had instilled in him

“Make every obstacle an opportunity”, “Always work hard and good things will happen” and “Don’t believe it when other people say you can’t”.

His first comeback after beating cancer was not a success and he finished fourteenth in the race. He even thought about retirement but constant support from his fiancée, mother and buddy Chris Carmichael soon had him training for his next race in the Appalachians.

He returned from his training a transformed man and never let the constant difficulties plough him down again.

True, the doping scandals have destroyed Lance’s reputation as a professional biker. But one cannot but admire his sheer will power and dedication through which he turned the odds in his favor at a time when everyone thought his life was over.

TEDxConcordiaUPortland - Chris Guillebeau - The business of inspiration

The importance of failure: Tyler Price at TEDxAmmon

The importance of failure

Thought of the day 31st August

“Success is going from failure to failure without losing your 

enthusiasm.” ~Winston Churchill

Thought for the day- 25th Aug 2014

                 “To dream by night is to escape your life. To dream by   

             day is to make it happen.” 
 
                                                                                                     
                                                                       ― Stephen Richards

Challenges make us stronger

Once a small gap appeared in the cocoon, through which the butterfly had to appear. A man, who accidentally passed by, stopped and watched how the butterfly was trying to get out of the cocoon. It took a lot of time, the butterfly was trying very hard, and the gap was as little as before. It seemed that the power would leave the butterfly soon.  Then a man decided to help the butterfly. He took a penknife and cut the cocoon. The butterfly immediately got out, but her body was weak and feeble, and the wings were barely moving. A man continued to watch at the butterfly, thinking that now her wings would spread and she would fly. However, that did not happen. The rest of her life the butterfly had to drag her weak body and wings that weren’t spread. She was unable to fly, because a man who wanted to help her did not realize that an effort to enter through the narrow gap of the cocoon was necessary for the butterfly, so that the life-giving fluid would move from the body to the butterfly’s wings and that the butterfly could fly. Life forced the butterfly to leave her shell hardly, so that it would become stronger and would be able to grow and develop.  If we were allowed to live without meeting difficulties, we would be via-ble. Life gives us challenges to make us stronger.