Courage / GUTS

When I think about the word Guts, there are really two definitions.  It's courageous to make that big leap or shatter the norm in life, but it's equally courageous to have patience and faith in your mission.  So when I talk about guts, it's an acronym....

The G is: Going the Distance, quietly persevering....

The U is: Unwavering in your Patience and Faith...

The T is:  Taking Calculated Risks,...and

The S is:  Shattering the Norm

By my definition, few people had more GUTS than a high jumper named Dick Fosbury.  For decades, athletes in the high jump event in track and field did a straddle jump, diving roll, or "scissor kick" sideways over the high bar.  But the athletes had reached a plateau in the sport based on human flexibility and physiology. Then, Dick Fosbury came along.  He wasn't content to simply do what had always been done and just try to do it 1/4 inch better.  The rules only stated that one had to get their entire body over the bar without touching it--they never dictated HOW it needed to be done. With an unwavering belief in himself and his theory and after months of quiet perseverance and training, 

Fosbury discovered that, by leading with his head instead of his legs and diving over the high bar backwards, he could go much higher than anyone had ever gone before.  Can imagine the shock from his competitors and the spectators when, in the 1968 Olympics, Dick Fosbury suddenly flopped over the bar BACKwards--Seemingly diving onto his head?!  Fosbury had shattered the norm, changed a sport, and instantly launched himself to world class status as a high jumper with one BIG Fosbury FLOP.   

So what will your Fosbury Flop be? How will you change the world, or even just shatter the norm of your life? Yes, transformation takes GUTS, but remember that breakthrough performances like Fosbury's are not only based upon taking Calculated Risks and Shattering the Norm in competition...behind every gutsy superstar in life are the small steps of their journey, their quiet perseverance, their commitment to practice, and their ultimate belief that they are meant to be successful.  So here's to YOU, to your GUTS and to your next big Fosbury Flop!