Focus on the Possibilities

Today I saw two different inspiring stories that emphasized the same point: focus on what you can do, not what you cannot.

One of the first Super Bowl ads for Toyota was called Good Odds. Within the first few seconds of the commercial, Dave called my attention to the commercial because he knew it was going to be good. And it was. The commercial, available at this link on YouTube, features Lauren Woolstencroft. She beat the odds to win, not one, but eight Paralympic gold medals. It's one minute well worth watching.

The only thing I wish about this was that I knew about Lauren before this commercial. We often hear so much about those athletes, the Shawn Whites and Lindsay Vonns, who compete in the Olympics before the Paralympics. The the coverage of the Paralympics is non-existent, which means most of us don't know about those athletes, many of whom overcome even more challenges than the Olympians who compete in the two weeks prior to them.

The first story I saw today gives me hope because it focused on an athlete who competes both in adapted sports (and from the little bit I saw, adapted hockey seems way more interesting and challenging than traditional hockey) and traditional sports. CBS Sunday Morning featured a high school athlete named Danny Lilya.

Danny was born with a separated spine, which means he uses a wheelchair for mobility. Yet he plays football. Yes, you ready that correctly. Someone who uses a wheelchair for mobility plays football, traditional football as I said earlier.

How?

It's quite simple. Danny focused on what he can do. He's able to hold a football perfectly fine. So, he holds the ball for extra points and kickoffs. He gets out of his wheelchair, holds the ball and then leaves the field until the next time he's needed. His parents commented that if he were to get tackled, it would be a highlight for him and joked that they don't need to worry about him getting paralyzed from a hit because he already is.

To me, this story is the perfect example of focusing on your capabilities, not your disabilities. It's not about what Danny can't do but about what he can. It's about inclusion. How can we include others? It's about accommodation, a very reasonable accommodation of a few extra minutes to get Danny's chair on and off the field before and after these few plays. What little things can we do to help others succeed, live their dreams or simply enjoy life more?

These questions aren't just rhetorical. They're a challenge for me to always seek this mindset with Teddy and others. How can I include Teddy? What little things will help him? (And, no, a giant ladder for him to climb is not the secret to success, although he might believe that.) What can I do for others? What can you do?

Just as these stories illustrate the importance of these Lauren and Danny focusing on what they can do, my challenge to you is the same―focus on what you can do.