Key West, Florida...
It's Monday, September 2nd 2013, just before 2PM Eastern.
Diana Nyad, stumbles ashore.
Her legs are wobbling about like a drunk, because they've not taken the weight of her body for 53 straight hours.
She officially reaches U.S. soil.
Her face is swollen like a balloon.
Her speech is slurred because her lips and tongue are blistered and swollen, a result of wearing a special jellyfish mask.
"Find a way..."
She had just completed a personal challenge, a dream.
Making her the first person in history to achieve this feat without a protective cage.
This was her fifth attempt at that dream.
53 hours earlier, 8:59AM on Saturday, she jumped into the ocean in Havana, Cuba.
... and had just crossed 112 miles of shark-infested water (with no shark cage).
The same stretch of sea where swarms a deadly atlantic box jellyfish call their home.
Jellyfish with lethal venomous stings that practically shut down your nervous system.
Diana's story is incredible and I encourage you to read the details (links at the end of this email).
But here's the most incredible part...
The journey from Cuba to Florida didn't start two days earlier.
Her journey started in 1978.
Yup, some 35 years ago...
She was 28 years old then.
The attempt was so painful, so draining, she tried to put the dream in a box and move on with her life.
But it was still there.
Like a splinter in her mind.
Feeling awkward.
Always there, talking to her.
It was waiting for the right moment.
Growing in significance and power.
It wouldn't let up.
So she tried again in 2010, 2011 and 2012.
Pigheaded determination and persistence, from a burning desire to fulfill a dream.
Failure, again and again.
Then, the right moment...
"The swim wasn't easy," said Nyad.
"You have a dream 35 years ago, doesn't come to fruition, but you move on with life..."
"But it's somewhere back there. Then you turn 60, and your mom just dies, and you're looking for something..."
"And the dream comes waking out of your imagination."
Those were the slurred words Diana Nyad said after staggering out the sea on the beach in Key West, Florida.
She's 64 years olds now.
Can you imagine that?
"Find a way..."
She chanted this over and over to shut negative thoughts out of her mind.
Instead of thinking of how far she had to go, she focused on the 6 inches of open water in front of her.
She told herself...
"Forget about the surface up. Get your hands in somehow, and with your left hand, say, push Cuba back, and push Florida towards you..."
And even though Diana could barely speak from blisters in her mouth, she said to the crowd at Key West:
"I got three messages...
One is we should never ever give up...
Two is you are never too old to chase your dreams...
And three is it looks like a solitary sport but it takes a team."
She stopped thinking about all the training, how to move her arms, and just got down to...
Reach forward with my left arm, push Cuba a little further away. And push Florida towards you.
Repeat, repeat, repeat...
For 112 miles.
Damn.
Think about this for a minute...
Stay up two days in a row, then ten more hours just for giggles.
See how you feel.
(In my early 20s I tried to see how long I could stay away for. I made it to about 36 hours before calling it quits. I couldn't believe how hard it was to do.)
Now do it swimming the whole time.
Day and night.
No stop.
With sharks and box jellyfish to contend with.
And then do that at 64 years old.
Damn.
What about you?...
What dreams do you have?
Do your dreams refuse to die no matter how many times you get knocked down?
Have you tried over and over and you just don't know how you're going to make it happen?
Just know, there is a way.
There always is. Always.
If you think you're too old.
Or too young.
Or too poor.
Think of Diana Nyad.
Don't give up on your dreams.
They are what define us.
They motivate us to "give a fuck".
To push forward, no matter what.
It's what make us special, as humans.
If you have dream ... a burning desire, use it as the rocket fuel to propel yourself forward.
Focus on the six inches of open water in front of you.
In the words of Diana Nyad:
1) never give up...
2) you are never too old to chase your dream...
3) it takes a team.
... and that "team" can can be anyone that supports your dream and believes in you (spouse, close friend, mentor, or a coach).
Dare to dream.
And then "find a way" to make it happen.
Do you want to crack this internet marketing thing bad enough?
If so, you know what to do next:
http://tlb.io/join.php?v=e26 ($49.95/mo for 7-months)
You rock!
Andre "found a way" Chaperon
P.S.
Here's two news stories about Diana Nyad:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/diana-nyad-homestretch-cuba-florida-swim/story?id=20133986
http://edition.cnn.com/2013/09/02/world/americas/diana-nyad-cuba-florida-swim/
