One to watch

If you have not watched this lecture, get a cup of coffee, sit down and listen. It took me weeks to "find the time" to watch it. This morning I did so while sitting on my bike. It's not about death, it is not about spirituality, it is about your life's purpose. And living the life of your dreams.

Click here for the video

I sent it to my father. He said the fact that this thing is 76 minutes long, deterred him from viewing. But what if you were dying and you had 76 minutes to leave a legacy. To make a statement. To sum up your life.

After weeks of avoiding it, I found 76 minutes. In the grand scheme of things 76 minutes is not a long time at all.

One of the things that stood out to me from this lecture was the theory of the brick wall. We all face brick walls within our lives. Whether it be in sport, education, etc. The brick wall is there to keep those who don't really want something..... out. It is there to allow those who really do want something..... to show that they want it.

I think about this sport that we do. I think about my life as a swimmer. My father put me in a swimming pool for a reason bigger than being a superstar swimmer. There were lessons learned bouncing off walls and following the black line that were much bigger. Much more important. Lessons that for me could not be learned any other way.

1. Dealing with people. Put 8 girls in a lane together and soon you learn how to get along and get past the crap. Suddenly who says what doesn't matter. Bad hair days don't exist. When the second hand hits the top of the clock it is go time and we'd better be ready.

2. Teamwork. How many times did I walk along the side of the pool screaming for my teammates. How many times did they walk the 500, or the 1000 with me. How many times have you watched the Olympics, the ice skating. When the skater jumps you jump. When they land and nail it you exhale. How many times did I will my teammate to pull ahead of her competition? I learned to go beyond myself and give energy and love to other people. Swimming is a uniquely solo yet team sport. So much happens between your own ears but collectively you are a team. You are a part of the whole.

3. My critics really do love me. As I realized by watching the Last Lecture.... the people who are hardest on you, love you the most. I had a coach who harped and harped on me for breathing every stroke. But that showed he cared. The worst position to be in is to be screwing up and not having someone tell you that you are. Not telling you, shows they no longer care.

4. The importance of hard work. Nothing in life is worth having if it is easy to come by. Money, ability, marriage, and children. Hard work means putting aside the story, putting your nose to the grind, stepping into the middle of the fire and allowing yourself to hurt. I always say that the bigger the brick wall.... the higher I will climb. Nothing is worth achieving without blood sweat and tears. Breaking 5:30 for the 500 freestyle never came easy. When it happened I laid on the pool deck and cried. My teammates jumped on top of me. It was hard. Finishing the Ironman..... well enough said about that.

Those are just a few of the lessons. A glimpse. A scratching of the surface. I am always amazed at how our life shapes us. How experiences in childhood completely change who we are are who we will become.

Give yourself the gift of 76 minutes. Click above and sit back. You will not be disappointed.