When I was a kid growing up I use to enjoy watching the construction workers digging utility trenches with the big excavators. As I grew older I had to figure out what to study and ultimately what do when I grew up. As I recently told a friend, I thought the only successful career opportunities were to be doctor, lawyer or engineer. I guess since I enjoyed watching construction growing up as a kid, I figured that would be to become a Civil Engineer. Only after I graduated from college did I realize all the other career possibilities that existed. I never realized that someone could make a living doing art, writing, or even as a photographer or actor. I wanted to share with you 2 great examples of people doing what they love and being able to make a successful living at it.
I am very impressed with people who pursue their dreams and that work hard perfecting their art or trade. Perfecting their trade to a point where they are able to make a huge positive difference in world and at the same time make a very good living. So what spurred me to write about this tonight? We took the kids to an evening performance of
Hero Art. It was a fund raising event for the school system the kids previously attended before we moved. The 1 1/2 hour show was a combination of video and music presentation that played while
Rob Surette the artist painted portraits of famous historical figures who have made great contributions to society. He painted a portrait of Gandhi, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Ludwig Beethoven, Albert Einstein, Mother Theresa and the Statue of Liberty. In between the paintings he spoke about the people he painted and their accomplishments. He had an inspiring message for kids and the message also applied to the parents. "Be Someone" A message he had learned from his grandmother, who told him he would be someone when he grew up. Rob Surrette has performed at over 3000 schools and has been making his own positive impact on motivating kids to be a good and do something to help others. His website provides a pretty good demonstration of his work. I have also included a scanned version of his brochure at the top of this posting.
Also another very inspiring person I recently learned about was
Jamie Clarke. He recently spoke at one of the conferences I attended. He described how growing up his mother often provided him the motivation to do what he love climb mountains. She may not have realized that he would some day be risking his life to do what he loved. Jamie shared how multiple failed attempts at climbing Mount Everest didn’t discourage him from continuing to pursue his goal. He has parlayed these experiences and his passion for climbing mountains into a career. Writing books, creating movies about his recent adventures and doing motivational speaking sessions for large audiences.
Both of these folks demonstrate how ordinary people that have a determination to do what they love or to reach a goal or make a difference are able to achieve great accomplishments. In both cases they have also found a way to make a great living while doing it. I believe in surrounding or exposing myself to positive people because their energy and motivation inturn inspires me. I hope my kids will be inspired too.
