inspiration

Is this not the most inspiring story of the Winter Olympics?

February 15, 2014 by Peter Fletcher

Lydia Lassila has provided the inspirational story of the Winter Olympics. Image: Christine Rondeau http://www.flickr.com/photos/crondeau/

I’m inspired by people who keep going in spite of adversity. People like Lydia Lassila who ruptured her ACL in 2005 then, despite doing it again in 2006, went on to win the World Cup in 2008/09 and an Olympic gold medal in 2010.

But if that isn’t reason enough to be inspired by her tenacity and courage what she did at this year’s Winter Olympics is.

In her final jump Lassila chose to attempt something no woman has ever achieved before – a quad twisting triple somersault. (That’s a full-twisting somersault, followed by a double-twisting somersault, followed by another single-twisting somersault.)

She could have played it safe. Instead she chose to leave an indelible mark on Olympic records.

Had she not demanded of herself something so audacious the world could only have suspected that such a feat might be possible.

Not only did she show that it was possible but that true champions stretch themselves beyond their limits.

Lydia Lassila, you are an inspiration.

No arms, no legs, no worries with Nick Vujicic

May 23, 2011 by Peter Fletcher

There are worse things than having no arms and legs.

Most of our challenges aren’t physical, most are mental and emotional.

Principals work no matter the circumstance.

The biggest disability is fear. Men relate our value to what we do. Whether we achieve our goal or not doesn’t change the value of you.

We get scared from discouragement. Often our worst critic is ourselves. To do something new often creates fear. If we have a purpose to our goal then we have the courage to face our fears.

Principal # 1 The purpose, meaning and value of my goal will inspire courage.

I don’t know what I can achieve until I try. Let your passion drive your purpose. If its not meant to be let your dream go. But don’t let that stop you dreaming.

How long do you try? Let your heart decide the answer.

Principal # 2 When I fail I will try again

Keep trying, try different ways.

Principal # 3 Failure = education

Principal # 4 Obstacles = opportunity

You don’t know what’s around the corner until you go there.

Stop complaining about what didn’t go right. Learn from it and move on.

What’s my biggest obstacle, the one that’s hindering me from achieving my goals?

Can your obstacles possibly change? Almost every obstacle can be changed. Some obstacles don’t change but hearts do.

Learn from the best to become the best.

Once we understand that our value as a human doesn’t come from what we do then we can attack whatever we want to do without risk, without fear.

Five ordinary people who inspire me

January 6, 2011 by Peter Fletcher

The ordinary: where inspiration is at its most potent

The Philosophy section of the new Facebook profile invites users to add (tag) “People inspire you”. It’s empty on my profile. I want that to be different.

It’s sad that Facebook allows me to add Beyoncé and Barrack but doesn’t enable me to tag real people, the ones I hang out with, the ones that are more than just a manufactured 2-dimensional image on a TV screen.

Here, then, are the people who inspire me, who lift me, who expect me to deliver more than I believe possible. These are ordinary, everyday people. They’re not celebrities, they don’t drive fancy cars and they aren’t on the big screen. And yet they’re inspirational. These are the people I’d put on my Facebook profile if given the chance.

Rita Fletcher

Rita always meets the world with a smile. Even when things aren’t going how she hoped she still smiles and laughs a lot. She’s selfless and generous and always welcoming. Our house is a home thanks to Rita. And she’s put up with me for 25 years.

James Lindley

Jimmy and his partner Kelly McGrath run Lindley’s Boxing Gym in Carlisle. He calls me Fletcher and is always encouraging. Whoever trains near Jimmy always trains harder. He’s always helping young blokes, teaching them boxing skills and gifting them life skills.

Tatiana Mijalica

Tats runs Maverick Strategies, a social media consultancy based in Melbourne. Although we’ve never met Tats will often pick up the phone just to say hi or share an idea or find out why I’m moving too slow. She’s a whirlwind of energy.

Mum

Before I was born my sister was killed in a motor vehicle accident. I can’t imagine a greater loss for a parent. And she did it tough on the farm. We lived in a tent inside a shed until I was 14. But despite these hardships I’ve never seen Mum anything but happy. She’s always smiling, always positive and continues to carry herself with a proud dignity.

Keith Larner

A couple of years ago I worked as a volunteer for Outreach Services and Keith was my mentor. Our aim was to help long term male prisoners successfully re-enter the community. Keith is probably the most compassionate human I will ever meet. He continues to inspire me to see the best in others, even when others choose only to see the worst.

And finally, I’ll add one I have yet to meet or speak to. He’s just a legend and almost always brings a tear to my eye.

Kurt Fearnley

Kurt Fearnley is a paraplegic. He’s also an Olympic gold medalist and holds a string of records too many to list here. But it was his Kokoda Track “walk” that really inspired me. To do Kokoda with 2 arms and 2 legs is one thing, to do it dragging yourself through the mud by just your hands? Now that’s inspirational!

Image credit :: stevendepolo on Flickr

Is this not the most inspiring story of the Winter Olympics?

No arms, no legs, no worries with Nick Vujicic

Five ordinary people who inspire me

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