When inspiration walks in.

[craigharper.com]

Today I had an appointment with one of the most inspirational people I've ever met.
And I've met plenty.
Today inspiration walked through my door and I instantly knew what I would write about tonight.

Before Christmas I received a phone call from a woman who saw me on 9AM (an Australian TV show I do some stuff on). She explained to me that she has significant health issues (the understatement of the century) and that nobody was prepared to help her with an exercise program because she was too high-risk.

She sounded interesting and we made a time (today) when we would meet.

In a thousand words (or less) I can't do justice to Lee's story but in brief, I have never met a person who has gone through so much emotional, psychological and physical pain for such an extended period of time and who has come out the other side with an attitude which is almost impossible to comprehend.

Her life and her life-experiences are so dramatic, so extreme and so profound that I sat listening to her with tears in my eyes (and we all know what an Alpha-Male I am!). I have encouraged her to write a book to share her story. Apart from the fact that she has had six different types of cancer and been told numerous times she has three months to live, she has also had chronic back pain for years, had one of her children die and has experienced more abuse and personal trauma through a range of almost unbelievable situations and circumstances than ten people should ever have to endure in a lifetime.

It's amazing how some people can teach you a lot about yourself and your life without even talking about you or knowing anything (specific) about you.

This is what Lee taught me without even knowing it:

1. Attitude is a choice.... always.

2. We all make things harder than they need to be.

3. Human beings are incredibly capable, resilient and strong when they have to be.

4. We major on minors.... a lot.

5. When we have to survive, we'll find a way. When we have no choice, we just get it done... we don't think, rationalise, complain or procrastinate because we don't have the time. We just do.

6. Being told you have three months to live is a quick way to discover what your real values and priorities are.... (pity some people have to get sick before they start putting things into perspective).

7. Sometimes it's good to laugh, even when there's no reason to do so. Sometimes it's good not to complain, even when there is a reason to do so.

8. Sometimes, the only person you can rely on is you.

9. 'Experts' don't always know. Sometimes the human spirit is more relevant than 'test results'.

10. If you have the best attitude in the worst situation, you have a chance. If you have the worst attitude in the best situation, you're doomed.


I've gotta say, I have one of the coolest jobs on earth; every morning I get up and I'm excited about what the day will bring. I love what I do and over the years I have met some incredibly successful, gifted and talented people. I have worked with Olympians, celebrities, business moguls and professional sporting clubs... but I've never met anyone who has inspired me so profoundly or who has taught me so much, in so little time, without even knowing it.
Lee came to me for insight and direction but I was the student.
There's some irony.

When I first met her I couldn't but help comment on a significant tattoo on her upper arm and some pink streaks through her blonde hair; not what I expected from the frail(!) articulate, cancer patient I had spoken with on the phone.

"What's with the tattoo and the rock star hair", I asked.
"I got the tattoo last year."
"I told everyone, I might be dying but I don't want to look like I am."
"I didn't have a picture of all of my kids together (remembering that one had passed away), so I got Shorty (the tattoo guy) to put them all on my arm so they're always with me."

"Works for me, Lee."

With her permission, I will share Lee's story in more detail in the near future; it is truly incredible.

[John Wesley]

Craig,

I know we're all trying to build traffic, but this is just blatant self promotion.

[ahimel]

Originally Posted by John Wesley

Craig,

I know we're all trying to build traffic, but this is just blatant self promotion.

I have to disagree. He found a story that he thought was inspiring, and wanted to share. I personally don't find that inspiring, but that's because I'm closed-off and cynical. For the people who do find these stories helpful and motivating, it's a great inspiration. They shouldn't be denied the right to feel that motivation simply because the only person who could share it with them happens to have a link in his signature.

Promotional would have been,
"Most inspirational story of your life available only if you read my blog here

or

"I made Lee's dreams come true, and I can do the same for you! Click here for details.

[joshbickford]

Haha, guy shares a great inspirational story and someone calls him a blatent self promoter.

Where is John's head today?

Thanks for sharing the story, we can learn so much from people that are in dire situations.

[John Wesley]

If you'd been to his site, you would notice that thread is a complete cut and paste job of a blog post. It's a great story and all, and I'm glad he brought it up, but I think the forum deserves a bit of original writing. If every blogger did the same thing where would the forums be?

[ahimel]

If every blogger did that, we'd be in trouble. But there's not necessarily a correlation between one person doing that one time, and every blogger doing that every time.

I don't copy-paste my blog posts to the forums because, frankly, most of y'all don't care. But if I posted something that I thought people outside my regular readership would care about, I'd probably post it on the forums also.

It's a matter of discretion. If Craig follows this up by copy-pastes of every single blog post, then I'll agree it's marketing and vote that he be banned. If he follows it up with copy-pastes of only occasional posts, but in a pattern that makes it clear that he's just selecting random posts and throwing them out to a random audience, ditto. But as long as he is honestly providing value, then I think he is meeting the purpose of this forum.

And a copy-paste of the blog post is still less self-promotional than a link to the blog post.

[TheColonel]

Thanks for posting that. I enjoyed it.

[TheColonel]

And by the way, I'm not trying to build traffic. Speak for yourself.

[ahimel]

Originally Posted by TheColonel

And by the way, I'm not trying to build traffic. Speak for yourself.

I hope you're not trying to build traffic, because you're doing a really lousy job of it if you don't put any links in the post.

[John Wesley]

You guys have a point, I was overly critical with the first posting. Though something just bothers me about pulling content directly from a blog to the forum without adding anything original. It just smells sort of spammy.

An interesting side note. That original comment really fired Craig up. It inspired an entire post on his blog: Motivational Speaker - Craig Harper. I wonder why he never responded here, and he didn't even have the decency to link to me!

[TheColonel]

Wow, his response sucked the sympathy right out of me. I think you may have been right to begin with, JW.

[Jon]

Originally Posted by John Wesley

Craig,

I know we're all trying to build traffic, but this is just blatant self promotion.

Craig Harper's blog kicks ass. I love how he meshes powerful, real world life lessons with witty humor. Obviously I love Steve's too. Great stuff.

[Liara Covert]

I liked Craig Harper's glimpse into another meaningful life story. No matter what we do each day, I find it humbling to learn about how other people deal with what can seem at times be unfathomable levels of adversity. Not only do moving personal stories enable us to put our lives in perspective, but we may also develop a deep admiration and respect for emotional trials.

In my mind, true adversity goes beyond external circumstances to include psychological challenges which are different for each of us. Christopher Reeve's sense of physical and mental adversity after his equestrian accident was different than Ernest Shackleton's trials during Antartica explorations. Child poet Mattie Stepanek is another example of determination and uplifting inspiration. (See Mattie Stepanek's Personal Website) The attitudes of struggling people who develop resilience can be humbling. We can learn from them just like we can learn from our own lives. No matter how long we live, it is up to us to make the most of that time. Learning is our major responsibility.

Why is it do you think that people have such a more powerful lasting, impact when they experience accidents, abuse, violence or other tragedies?