Philosophy, in its simplest terms, means “the love of wisdom.” Peter Vidmar is a lover of wisdom. His philosophy is “There is always fear. The trick is not to eliminate it, but to overcome it.”
As a youngster in Los Angeles, Peter grew up loving sports but feeling very frustrated because of his small size. When he was eleven years old, Peter wisely decided to pursue a career in gymnastics where his small size was not a negative. As a matter of fact, based on who had been winning the gold medals, small people had some advantages.
Peter was inspired by watching videotapes and television spots of Olga Korbut and Nadia Comaneci. He became convinced that if they could succeed, so could he. He worked very hard in gymnastics throughout high school and won a scholarship to UCLA. At one point Peter was the top-ranking American in world-class gymnastic competition. He captured the prestigious America Cup with . . . the highest American score ever.
Peter’s coach made a strong–and to some people, surprising–statement to People Magazine when he said, “Peter is not particularly talented. I’ve had boys who were more gifted physically, with more kinetic awareness, strength and flexibility. But Peter surpassed them all because of his singular determination.” Peter was so determined, his coach recalls, that he practiced one move for four years before he could successfully perform it.
Message: Whatever your goal, if you have singular determination and persistently press towards your objective, your chances of succeeding go up dramatically. Easy? No. Worth it? Yes. I believe that if you’ll go after your goal with the determination and commitment of a Peter Vidmar, I will SEE YOU AT THE TOP!
Zig Ziglar is the Chairman of the Board of Ziglar Training Systems. Subscribe to his free newsletter atwww.ziglartraining.com. You can contact Ziglar Training Systems at 800.527.0306, or by email at info@ziglartraining.com. This article was reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.
