Is it time to expect the unexpected?
I don’t know what it is about shows like “America’s Got Talent”, “American Idol”, etc. but nearly every season on each of them, someone gives a performance that you just wouldn’t expect. Someone comes onto the stage that you know has absolutely no business being there. You can see it in the way they carry themselves, their shoulders are slumped, they have almost no self confidence. And some of them even admit “Confidence is a problem for me”. But then they do what it is they do and you can tell at the end of it, after hearing the thunderous applause, their whole attitude has changed. Even Simon Cowell can’t dissuade them and often times Simon admits “Wow, I never expected that!”.
So why is it that based on appearances alone, we think that someone can’t possibly be what they’re trying to be? Why is it that we often times don’t give em’ a chance? What hidden talents do you have that people aren’t willing to give YOU credit for? What hidden talents do you have that YOU don’t give you credit for?
I remember in High School and really all through my whole school career . . . I was looked at as the “fat kid”. Yeah, I was (am) bigger than most. But I had skillz. My buddy Randy and I were the reigning intermural pickleball champs. I was on the swim team and the water polo team. No one expected someone my size to be athletic. Especially when it came to running. Swimming sure, you could see that . . . extra padding he’ll float, of course he can swim, but RUN? No way.
Every week in PE, we had to run a mile. And every week I got beat by our PE teacher. He was in his 60’s. Every week he ran a 6:00 mile. On the dot. Not 5:59, not 6:01. So I made it my personal mission to beat the old man. Believe it or not, I was usually in the top 3 or 4 runners in the class. I ran a 6:30 . . . then a 6:20, eventually I was down to a 6:05. On the very LAST mile of the year, the PE assistants knew of my goal. I was right behind the old man on the first lap: “1:30 John!” was the call. Next lap “2:59 John! Keep it up!” I could feel it. THIS was the day. On the third lap I Pulled just ahead of him. “4:27 John! You’ve got it!” . . . beared down and gave every last drop of energy. With each lap, the assistants encouragement gave me that extra little push. Now I know I’m ahead of the old man coming into the finish, the only question was “How fast?” 5:55. I did it! I beat the old guy. People were stunned. They didn’t expect that from me. Of course next week for “The Pit” run . . . 4.5 miles, he absolutely CRUSHED ME. But hey, I had my moment.
So who aren’t you giving credit to? Let them know. You adore them. Give them that little push they might need to be GREAT! To be who they can be, without judgement, without restrictions. Make a difference in someone’s life.
Here are two videos that inspired my post:
Paul Potts from 2007 “Britain’s Got Talent” and Susan Boyle from 2009 “Britain’s Got Talent” . . . enjoy!
For some reason, YouTube isn’t allowing the video to be embedded . . . so here’s a link to the video, watch it. Be inspired.