Page 91 - YOU CAN WIN - SHIV KHERA

RokZRooM Special ! You Can Win by Shiv Khera

never been beaten. The first event was the 100-meter race. Wilma beat Jutta Heine and
won her first gold medal. The second event was the 200-meter race and Wilma beat
Jutta a second time and won her second gold medal. The third event was the 400-meter
relay and she was racing against Jutta one more time. In the relay, the fastest person
always runs the last lap and they both anchored their teams. The first three people ran
and changed the baton easily. When it came to Wilma's turn, she dropped the baton. But
Wilma saw Jutta shoot up at the other end; she picked the baton, ran like a machine,
beat Jutta a third time and won her third gold medal. It became history: That a paralytic
woman became the fastest woman on this earth at the 1960 Olympics.

*Adapted from Star Ledger, November 13, 1994.

What a lesson to be learnt from Wilma. It teaches us that successful people do it in spite
of, not in absence of, problems.
When we hear or read stories of people who have turned adversity into opportunity,
doesn't it motivate us? If we regularly read biographies and autobiographies of such
people, won't we stay motivated?

Learn Intelligent Ignorance

Education teaches us what we can do and also teaches us what we cannot do.

I'm looking for a lot of men with an infinite capacity for not knowing what cannot be done.

--Henry Ford

Henry Ford gave this world the V8 engine. He did not have much formal education. In
fact, he did not go to school beyond the age of 14. He was intelligent enough to know
there had to be a V8 engine but he was ignorant and didn't know how to build it.
So he asked all his
highly qualified, educated people to build one. But they told him what could be done and
what couldn't. According to them, a V8 was an impossibility. But Henry Ford insisted on
having his V8. A few months later he asked his people if they had the V8 and they
replied, "We know what can be done and we also know what cannot be done and V8 is
an impossibility." This went on for many months and still Henry Ford said, "I want my V8."
And shortly thereafter the same people produced his V8 engine.

How come? They let their imagination run beyond academic limitation. Education
teaches us what can be done and sometimes also teaches us false limitations.

THE BUMBLEBEE

We need to learn from nature. According to scientists, the bumblebee's body is too heavy
and its wing span too small. Aerodynamically, the bumblebee cannot fly. But the
bumblebee doesn't know that and it keeps flying.

91 of 177