The Power of Positive Thinking

The Power of Positive Thinking

Once upon a time, in a town of 996 people, there was a boy who loved to read. Ever since he was just a few years old, this boy could read. And read he did. Everything he could get his hands on.

This boy, when he was in first grade, decided who would read Caddie Woodlawn, because it was a Caldecott Award winner, because he knew that meant it was a good book.

The school librarian tried to talk him out of this choice, because the book had no pictures, and because he was only in first grade.

I think I can...I know I can...

But the boy wouldn't take no for an answer. He knew he could, he knew he would, read that book, and he told his teacher and his mom he knew he could read it. Later that week, with the boy's mom and teacher in tow, the boy read a random page from the book, and the librarian never doubted him again.

At the end of 4th grade, the boy moved away from his usual school, and his parents were no longer married. His mom had married a new man, and they wanted a new life, a different life, so they bought a tavern in an even smaller town, and they moved the boy and the rest of the family there.

Supposedly the school wasn't "as good" as where they moved from, but it didn't matter. The boy read everything he could get his hands on. He knew owning a tavern in a small town wasn't for him, so he didn't want to follow in his mom's footsteps. And he knew working on a dairy farm definitely wasn't for him, so he didn't want to follow in his dad's footsteps, so he read all he could, and he tried hard to learn as much as he could. Little Women, Swiss Family Robinson, and more books became his escape from the small world around him.

I think I can...I know I can...

Fast forward to 7th grade...The boy and his family moved back to the old school, and the boy was thought to be behind his peers because he had spent 2 years at a school that wasn't as hard as the one he was returning to. Back to remedial math, remedial reading, remedial spelling.

But the boy believed in himself and knew he should be with his previous peers.

I think I can...I know I can...

By the end of the first half of 7th grade, the boy was back in class with his peers, and by the beginning of 8th grade, was back on top.

At the end of 8th grade, as children from a small town need to do, the boy attended an orientation to get into high school. He attended the orientation with his mother, and attempted to sign up for all the classes he thought he needed to take in order to be successful. Unfortunately for him, his guidance counselor had other ideas.

This boy's guidance counselor saw that this boy was from a poor home, and that his father was a dairy farmer, and his mother was a bartender, and he thought to himself "I know a loser when I see one." He told the boy he should take easier classes, so he wouldn't have to strain himself by thinking too hard in college level algebra as a freshman, and that taking wood shop and grammar would be just fine studies, and to stay away from reading too much.

Now this boy knew that he was better than that, so he insisted, no he DEMANDED that he be enrolled in Greek mythology, and college algebra, and that not only would he do well in the class,  that one day he would do better than any of the rest of the kids in his class.

I think I can...I know I can...

His counselor scoffed at him, but he let him enroll, and let him know when, not if, he failed, he'd be able to repeat his freshman year of high school, and that the guidance counselor would be right.

This boy loved Greek mythology, and reading all the classics. He could quote Homer, and Robert Frost, and all the best authors. He studied hard, and he got really good grades. The boy knew then and there he'd go off to college and get a degree one day. But how, with a poor family and this guidance counselor holding him back?

I think I can...I know I can...

This boy met an Air Force recruiter, and he knew he'd found his way out of the little town, with the people with the little mind and the little dreams. He would join the Air Force as soon as he could, and maybe, just maybe, he'd fly a jet.

I think I can...I know I can...

This boy spent as much time as he could with that recruiter, until Christmas break his sophomore year. The recruiter suddenly was gone, and a new man, a strange man, was in his place. Boys can't join the service until their junior year, so this new man told the boy to get lost. "You can't join the Air Force. You're wasting my time. Go away."

So the boy left his dreams of joining the Air Force at that table, outside the gymnasium, one February day.

But he still dreamed of leaving that small town. There are 3 other branches of service to choose from. Perhaps one is for me.

I think I can...I know I can...

The boy talked to the Army recruiter. And the boy talked to the Marine Corps recruiter. He didn't like either one of them very much, and he thoughts his dreams were shattered.

I think I can...I know I can...

But one day, the Navy recruiter showed up. He had cool book covers, and told great stories of flying in the Navy, of being on submarines, and being a nuclear engineer. And the boy knew he had found his way out of that small town.

So one day, the boy went to the military processing station. He took all of his tests, and he passed them all with flying colors...except his vision test.

The boy was red/green color blind. And he was told he couldn't be a nuclear engineer in the Navy. He couldn't be a pilot. No matter what, no way, no how. "You can't do it boy."

And the boy was mad. He was so mad, he called his recruiter up, and he was said he was coming home. He was taking the next Greyhound bus all the way from the big city 250 miles from home to the little town where he grew up. He was going to go back, and work at a restaurant for the rest of his life.

And then, the recruiter told him an oxymoron that would change his life: "What about Naval Intelligence?" The boy didn't know what it was, but it sounded smart. And COOL!

I think I can...I know I can...

So the boy signed up. He joined the Navy, and saw the world. Or at least a few places. He saw San Francisco, and Seoul, Korea, and parts of Florida, and Japan.

And the boy went to college. It took the boy 7 years, and a failed marriage, and 5 different majors, but the boy got his degree. The boy was now a man.

The man got his degree in computer science. And the man got a good job. And a wife. And a house.

One day, the man decided he wanted to write a book.

So the man got to writing a book. The man started writing, bit by bit, other people's stuff at first, and then his own stuff. And it wasn't all that good. But it would get better.

And the man published his book. And the man is working on another book. And another book. And the man, who was a boy from a small town, filled with small minds, and small dreams, is living a very BIG dream. He gets up in front of hundreds of people and shares his message. His make it great message. And he never stopped believing.

Don't you stop believing!

I think I can...I know I can...

I think you know this man.

This man is me. Phil Gerbyshak.

This is my story. Thanks for reading it!

I think I can...I know I can...

And you can too!

[Phil Gerbyshak wrote this post as part of a group writing project set up for Positive Thinking Day on September 13th. He agreed to write an article that can be used for an ebook about the benefits of positive thinking. Kirsten Harrell is creating this nifty resource, put together special for Positive Thinking Day. All sales profits on PTD will be used to benefit the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation.]

Comments

[Skip]

Phil,

This was very inspiring and took a lot of courage to share with everybody. You are now more than ever one of my heroes. So much so that I won't even give you grief about your school picture (though I wanted to ;-) ). Keep spreading the gifts that you have been given!

[Benjamin Bach]

Hey Phil
Thanks for sharing your story. You continue to inspire me to make it great every single day!

[Kirsten Harrell, Psy.D.]

Hi Phil,
Wow! What a great story! Good things come to those who wait... I knew that you would deliver an excellent post for this project. Way to go, you big thinker! I am happy that you hung on to your dreams. You have so much to give and you are doing it, my friend!

[Katie Konrath]

Phil, very inspiring story and I'm really glad that you didn't listen to all those discouraging people. Have you ever heard of those studies where students were divided up into the high-test-scores and the low-test-scores--and then their new teacher was told that the students with the high-test-scores were the problem-students (and vise versa)?

Turns out, when the teachers expected more from the formerly-low-scorers, the students did a lot better. The high-scoring students, on the other hand, went down. And the really interesting thing is, when the teachers had trouble with the formerly-low-scoring students, the teachers thought that something was wrong with their teaching style and adjusted until the students responded. But when the teachers thought that they had low-performing students, they thought any problems were just the fault of the students.

Also, I didn't know you liked Homer! I learned ancient Greek because I wanted to read the Iliad!

[Reg of Elemental Truths]

Phil,
You absolutely MUST follow this link.
It isn't true like your story but it is INSPIRATIONAL.
I show it in every training I conduct.
http://www.makeadifferencemovie.com/
Reg

[Connie Reece]

I was cheering out loud by the time I got to the end of your story, Phil. You truly do MAKE IT GREAT! Thanks, as always, for sharing.

[Greg Balanko-Dickson]

Wow, thanks Phil, what a great story. Thank you for sharing your journey.

That Make A Difference movie is very good and well done. Thanks for sharing it Reg.

[Phil Gerbyshak]

@Skip - glad you enjoyed the post, and that picture of me. 8th grade baby! Glad to share what I have.

@Benjamin - you are welcome. Glad to help make your life a little greater!

@Kirsten - I'm happy I hung in there too. It would have been easy to just say STOP, but I'm still driving on!

@Katie - I am very familiar with that study. I initially went to college to be a teacher to be the teacher that taught every child equally.

@Reg - great video and story. Thanks for sharing it!

@Connie - You are so welcome. I'm glad to be able to share my life with you.

@Greg - You are welcome for the sharing. It's me, out there for you to see.

[Carma Dutra]

Hi Phil, What an inspiring and motivating story! I have often heard that the most successful people come from small towns. You are living proof.

[Rick Cockrum]

Your story is intense, and wonderful, Phil! You are the man to make it great.

[Phil Gerbyshak]

@Carma - thank you for your feedback and your encouragement. Small towns can be hotbeds of great success, or great failure. Anywhere can. It's all what you believe.

@Rick - thank you. Glad to share a little more of me.

[Stephen Hopson]

Phil:

What a wonderfully inspiring story! It immediately reminded me of my own path in life starting with that one day in my fifth grade teacher's class with three words that forver changed my life.

You can see it here: http://adversityuniversity.blogspot.com/2006/04/three-words-remember-who-helped-you.html

And since you've been through adversity, I would like to invite you to participate in my "Secrets of Dealing With Adversity" tagging experiment. Click on the link above for more information.

Again, thank you for sharing a piece of yourself. It inspired me. I haven't published a book yet but it's ready to be done - I just don't know which direction to go. It will be a collection of all my stories over at my blog.

Thanks!

Stephen Hopson

[Donald Latumahina]

Amazing and inspiring story, Phil! There are so many things I can learn from your experiences. Thanks for sharing it!

[Priscilla]

Excellent story Phil. I am glad you went on to be successful and to share your story with us. Keep up the great work.

[Joan Schramm]

Phil -- Great story! Thanks for sharing it with us -- you're amazing.

The beginning reminded me of an incident when I was in 2nd grade. It was near the end of the school year and we were having library time. I had pretty much read everything I wanted to read in our small school library and couldn't find a book I wanted to check out. My teacher came and told me I needed to pick something right away or go without a book. I grabbed what was my favorite book, "The Flight of the Silver Bird", about a young girl who goes with her family on an airplane trip to China and has 2 birthdays because of crossing the date line. The teacher took the book away and told me I couldn't read it because it was a 6th grade book. I protested that I had read it already -- several times. She called me a liar and sent me away. I went home in tears and my mother went down to the school to complain because she knew I had read the book before and she couldn't believe what the teacher had done. And I haven't stopped reading yet!

[Phil Gerbyshak]

Stephen - thanks for sharing your story and yourself with me and my readers. I have a good feeling about us becoming fast friends! Thank you!

Donald - you're definitely welcome. Glad I could help your learning!

Priscilla - You are very welcome!

Joan - thanks for inspiring ME with your story too! You go girl! Keep reading!

[Maria Palma]

Phil,

Truly, truly an inspiring story! I love reading stories like this ;)

P.S. I just bought your book through Amazon...Looking forward to reading it!!

[Francie]

Wow!! How did you know enough to ignore that foolish guidance counselor? And, how did you even know to take algebra and Greek mythology?

Were your parents well-read individuals? Did you have a neighbor who inspired you? Just amazing!

[Phil Gerbyshak]

Francie - I don't know that I knew to ignore him, I would say more that I felt it would be best in my life if I ignored him. I've never been much for authority, so I just did what I did best, and that's swam upstream.

My mom read a lot of books when I was growing up, and my dad never stopped me from reading. Being constantly curious, I just happened to read anything I could get my hands on. That included Greek mythology. Algebra was just one of 3 choices, the hardest of 3 choices, so that's what I took. Wish I could say there was more to it, but that's all there is.

[Phil Gerbyshak]

Maria - glad you enjoyed the story, and thanks for buying my book. I look forward to reading your thoughts about it soon :)

[Joy]

Thank Phil, for being so authentic in the story, I am a firm believer of being positive and believer of dream.
http://positivethinkingsecret.com/
Thanks,
Joy

[Phil Gerbyshak]

You're welcome Joy. Glad to share a story with you. Thanks for stopping by!

[Karen Wallace]

Hi Phil,
What an inspirational story - thank you so much for sharing it with us. You really do make it great.

I have a 17 year old son in his final year of high school, trying to decide what to do with 'the rest of his life'.. and your story reminded me that it doesn't really matter what he choses to do, as long as he has the right attitude, perseverance and doesn't let the naysayers suck the life out of his dreams. Your story is also a timely reminder that sometimes you have to go through the rough spots in order to fully appreciate the good times.

Bravo!

[Phil Gerbyshak]

Karen - thank you very much. And you're right, attitude is so important in life. There will be rough spots, and yes, they do make us appreciate the good times that much more!

[Alex Shalman]

Hey Phil!

Long time no see buddy, hope everything has been great. That story was so captivating, I really had no idea who you were talking about until the very end. Awesome!