|
|
Students
The Winning Path
Everyone knows that Olympic athletes train very hard. But I've found that very few people grasp the enormity of the physical and emotional commitment. To get this point across when I speak around the country I mark off the room to demonstrate the size of an average high-school pool, which is twenty-five yards in length. Then I ask the audience, "How many laps do you suppose you'd have to swim every day to become the best in the world?" Most groups start guessing at around fifty laps. Fifty laps? That's just the warm-up! In the hard part of the season, my teammates and I would swim 800 laps a day. That's 20,000 yards or about twelve miles.
Not everyone wants to be an Olympian, but everyone has some goal that they want enough to perform the equivalent of swimming 800 laps to achieve: to be good at a profession; to be part of a winning team; to have a solid family life; to help others in a meaningful way.
There is no shortcut, no "luck," and no way to manipulate the system to your advantage without hard work. Improving your attitude will not relieve you of having to work hard, although it does make the effort easier. If you're not willing to give consistently, half-hearted trying will just create another disappointment. Try the lottery instead! Why should you push yourself? The answer: Because the rewards of reaching for excellence truly are profound. I'm not talking about a pay raise, a plaque, or even a gold medal. It's living into a purpose or a calling that enlivens even the most mundane tasks. It's a deep pride in the life we are living...
To awaken the Olympian within, we must have faith in the noble purpose of our life's goals. We must learn the skills of success to achieve our noble purpose. We'll be amazed at what we are capable of achieving.
--Nancy Hogshead
Excerpted from Awaken the Olympian Within: Stories from America's Greatest Olympic Motivators, Edited by John Naber
© 1999 by Griffin Publishing Group
This
publication is a creative work fully protected by all applicable rights. All
rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any
form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including fax, photocopy,
recording, or any information storage or retrieval system by anyone except the
purchaser for his or her own use.
The material used in this publication is
the sole responsibility of Griffin Publishing Group.
Awaken the Olympian Within
Stories from America's Greatest Olympic Motivators
Paperback $19.95
© 1999, Griffin Publishing; ISBN: 1882180984
288 pages
For information
on purchasing the book from bookstores or here online, please go to the Web page for Awaken the Olympian Within (Griffin Publishing) or
Awaken the Olympian Within (Amazon).
|
