I Inspire I

As part of  toastmaster communication manual, I gave my 10th speech about Inspiring the audience and it goes something like this.

I Inspire I

Looking at the word InspIre, I was trying to introspect what it means. It really means “I inspire I”, you really don’t need an external source of inspiration.  You are source of inspiration for yourself.

My goal today is to make you feel special about yourselves and make you feel that you are an inspiration to yourself. Today I am going to share my moments which make me feel inspired to pursue new challenges in life.

One thing that I love more than anything is badminton and there are reasons for that. I have been playing badminton for 20 years now and that’s a long time.  Every time I play badminton it inspires me to give my best into the game, creates a rush to win. This game gave me a fighting spirit and a never give up attitude. Let me share a story with you, this dates back to 2003, I was representing my school at the inter-school badminton tournament. I had reached the final's, game started and it was very competitive, I won the first game, my opponent won the second game and here we were in the decider game, I was leading 12-10 in the deciding game, suddenly the prescription glasses that I was wearing fell and the glass shattered on the court.

I was silent... I have a very high power for my glasses and there was no way I can play without them. I could have withdrawn and lost a winning game, but that was NOT AN OPTION, referee gave me 10 minutes to figure things out. I went around in the audience and found glasses that were closest to my prescription. I came back to the court, my head spinning, giving me immense headache; I couldn't clearly see what was going on the game. You know the dizzy feeling when you get new glasses and they are not your prescription. I tried my best, but I lost the match. It wasn't about WINNING or LOOSING but all about not giving up, and giving your best. 

 

I carry that game face in all facets of my life.

2 years ago I was inspired to run a marathon. This inspiration came directly from badminton. It was all about endurance and pushing your limits. 2 weeks before the marathon I seemed to have injured my left IT band (muscle that runs from your hip to the knee), I literally dragged myself for 5 miles on the trail during that training run. I was slightly frightened that I might not be able to run the marathon, but I was determined to get better and run the marathon. I did serious physical therapy, saw a chiropractor to fix things up, iced 4-5 times a day, ordered compression socks to help with blood circulation, and looked for all the options that would make me stronger for the race day and there I was standing strong at the finish line of my first MARATHON. So, here there was another one added to the list for me to be inspired about.

Marathon did leave a mark on me, I injured my right knee. I was just restricted to walking for almost 6 months and the only option I had to keep myself active was to swim.

BUT ... I didn't know how to swim. Also swimming is one such sport, which you learn very quickly as a kid, being an adult trying to learn swimming is a totally different ball game. But I inspired myself that I can learn swimming and just like other challenges that I have been able to overcome I will learn swimming also. So, I started my swimming lessons back in January of 2013 and I had gone crazy on learning how to swim. Just to find an empty lane at the pool, I would practice around 11pm at night. And here I am now a confident swimmer, and still going strong on my learning. I still practice 3-4 times a weak, and with the help of swimming, I have finally been able to heal quite a bit from my knee injury and I have started playing badminton again after a period of almost 9 months.

I inspired myself by looking at my achievements in the past and achieved success in my present. I am sure that you also have such achievements in your life that inspire you. 

Everyone repeat with me….

I InspIre I

I InspIre I

I InspIre I