For some powerful reason, Diana Nyad was not going to stop until she swam the 110 mile stretch of hazardous water from Cuba to Key West. This was her fifth try. The odds were against her. She had failed 4 other times. Her recent feat of physical, mental and psychological endurance was even more notable because of her age. At 64, she was still motivated by a deep passion to be the champion distance swimmer she was called to become at 5 years old. Brava! This week, we came across a compelling TEDxBerlin talk published on YouTube in December 2012, which was before her successful swim. It is well worth watching and it caused us to think about leaders.
She chose not to discuss the difficulties she faced growing up, but told a powerful story about her father igniting her sense of self as a champion swimmer. At 5 she felt important. She was connected to history, was unique and had a sense of destiny. She spoke about life, turning 30, and then 60...how perspectives and motivations change. Her connection to her passion endured. Can educators make such an impact on 5 year olds? Can we find our destiny at every age? How do we prevent our passion flame from being "burned out"?
