« See all news

Two Seconds Can Change Your Life

January 14, 2010

Olympian Mark Tewksbury Discusses How Every Second Counts
 
Can two seconds really change your life? Mark Tewksbury knows from personal experience that sometimes two seconds is literally all it takes! As a star athlete, Olympic medalist, author, and mental health expert, Tewksbury's life is a great example of just how far those two seconds can go.
 
This past November, Mark was a keynote speaker at the annual Silver Dinner fundraiser for the Canadian Psychiatric Research Foundation (CPRF) and the Mental Health Partnerships of Canada (MHPC), two charities that have recently announced their alliance, to enable maximum impact, under the leadership of Michael Kirby. In his speech, Mark describes his experience overcoming mental challenges and how positive reinforcement made all the difference - a two second difference to be exact:
 
There were high hopes for the 1988 Canadian 4x100 metres men's Olympic medley relay team at the Seoul Summer Olympics, and Mark himself had been held up as a new superstar. Yet the team suffered constant morale problems marked by infighting, self-absorbtion and lack of mutual support. Mark underwhelmed in his backstroke and the very next day was due to swim the relay.

"The Canadian team had hoped, at best, to finish fifth in the men's medley relay, with the Americans and the Soviets being heavy favourites. Before the race, fellow swimmer Victor Davis nudged all his Canadian teammates to buck up; he took Mark aside two hours before the race to tell him about the importance of working with his team, not against it. At race time, Mark, Victor and Tom Ponting all improved slightly on how they'd performed during earlier competitions - but Sandy Goss did something remarkable. He beat his personal best in the last leg of the race by almost two seconds, something it would usually take an Olympian swimmer seven years to do.

To everyone's surprise, the Canadian team snatched the silver, beating the heavily favoured Soviets." 
 
                                                                                                                                                                        - National Post

Read more about Mark and the difference two seconds can make in your life. 

Categories : Beyond the Keynote - Unique Presentation Styles, Adventure/Sport, Motivation/Inspiration