Inspiration for the day
It’s still dark outside. It’s 25 past 6 and it’s cold and I’m deeply moved and inspired for the day to accomplish big things. I got up at 10 past 5 because I wanted to use my day. Make something out of it. I was fighting to get up. It wasn’t easy but it worked. I dressed, and five minutes later I was out on the streets. Running. I like to go out for a run when it’s dark and cold. You always observe new things and meet new people – and still you are by yourself. Time for you to do what you want to do. No obstacles. It was a good decision.
When I go on a run, I sometimes feel like taking my iPod, sometimes not. Today I did feel like taking it. When I take it I usually watch ted-podcasts.
TED is a small nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design.
Our mission: Spreading ideas.
We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world. So we’re building here a clearinghouse that offers free knowledge and inspiration from the world’s most inspired thinkers, and also a community of curious souls to engage with ideas and each other.
To learn more about TED just go to it’s website http://ted.com.
So today I went out for a run and I listend to another amazing ted talk. There are so many, but this one was so impressive, I got to share it!
It was held by a guy named Bill Strickland – probably non of you will know him. And he told his story. Who he is, where he came from and where he is going. He decided to build a school. A school in the poorest part of Pittsburg. His concept: “If you get kids flowers, if you give ‘em food, and get them sunshine and enthusiasm you can bring them right back to life!” He says it’s all about appreciation. It’s about caring about others and believing in them so they can learn to believe in themselves. It’s an important message. But it wasn’t the only one. He said so many amazingly inspiring things that I urge each one of you: Listen to this guy. Take 30 Minutes of your lifetime to listen to a man who made a difference, who is willing to show everyone who wants to see how to make a difference yourself. It is one of these messages we need. It is so impressive to see how one man can make this kind of a difference.
To convince you, I copied some quotes from the speech:
- “There is nothing wrong with the (poor) kids – On average I get 80% of them to college, when 4 years ago they couldn’t read.”
- “If you treat kids like a human being, they are very likely to behave like one”
- Showing a beautiful artwork: “Children, who the entire world has given up on – thats what they did!
- “…and there are no differences between white and black mothers! Mothers will come where their child is celebrated!”
- “You have the way people think of themselves before you can change how they behave…”
- “The only thing that is wrong with poor kids, is that they don’t have any money – but that’s something we can change!”
- “I believe that the world is a place that’s worth living in. You have to tell them: I believe in you! I belive in your hopes and your dreams, I believe in your intelligence and in your enthusiams.”
- “We won’t make it as a country unless we can turn this (education, poverty) thing around!”
- “In Pennsylvania it costs about 60 thousand dollars to keep people in jail, but it’s only 40,000 dollars to send them to medical school! It’s actually 20,000 dollars cheaper to send people to university, than keep them in prison!”
- “We can build these centers all over the country, in every city and village, for less money than we spend on prison!”
- And he closes his speech with a revolutionary idea: “The solution to the depression is to make a friend in every town – then you’ll never be alone. I hope that I met some tonight!”
This is one of the best ted-talks I have ever seen and it inspired me to spread this idea. If you like it copy the video’s URL, send it to your friends, twitter it, facebook it, talk about it and think about what he said, and how you can make a difference in your world!
The direct link to the video is http://ted.com/index.php/talks/bill_strickland_makes_change_with_a_slide_show.html
On his webseite (bill-strickland.org) he asks “Can one entrepreneur save the world?” and the title of his book answers it: “Make the impossible possible”
By the way, by now it is 10 past 7, the sun is shining and even some birds are singing! What a wonderful world!
