First was a blog post that he put out there about "How Heros Speak". In this post he mentioned about a pro hockey player that invested time in with him when he was a little boy, recovering from his burns that were part of John's story early on in his life. It's all about the people that speak words into our hearts, souls, minds, etc., throughout our lifetime. These heros don't necessarily wear capes either, but the do interject such powerful belief into us that it ends up making a HUGE difference in our lives. He brought up the other fact about the truth is that we are supposed to be the same hero for others. There are other people out there, ones we don't even know perhaps, but we are the difference-makers that they need in their lives.
I have believed this ever since I was probably in college as that's when I found out how important it was to have people believing in me for my life. Dr. Wells Cook was the biggest influencer in my life, next to my parents and my wife - that truly made a huge difference with me. His encouraging words pointed me into being an educator. What a ride it has been from first meeting him back in the fall of 1985. That also happens to be the time I met my wife as well, at the same university - Central Michigan University! From then until now - these two people (again, other than my parents) have changed my life in so many incredible ways! Not sure where I'd be without them.
I love this part of his post & I now it is speaking to you as well: "Your great opportunity, my friend, is to realize the truth that you are intended to be a hero for others. My encouragement before you grab your cape or hockey stick and race out the door is to realize this: your ability to positively impact others hinges on your own thoughts and your own words.
Rudyard Kipling wrote, “Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind.” As with any drug, our words can be either life-giving or life-depleting. Choose today to use your words to encourage others to take back their life, ignite their possibility and change their world.
And in wondering where to begin sharing heroic optimism with others, consider starting with the reflection in the mirror."
The second part of this assignment came from his video clip. In it he asks us to follow our own minds and to catch ourselves when we start going down a negative road as far as our thoughts and comments go. Try to write them down & find some replacements for them, with more positive and encouraging thoughts & words. I mentioned this to my students and have always told my basketball players this too. Nobody else can do as much damage & hurt us, more than we can do it to ourselves. I've been working on catching myself quicker when I start going down that negative rabbit hole to problems & negativity. I need to find ways to eliminate problems, not head into more.
Let me know your thoughts on these 2 items. I think they are simply pure gold. Heck, anything from John O'Leary usually is. Check him out HERE at his website. He's got his 2nd book coming out in May 2020. Check out his first book before you read his new one. You'll love it!