045 - Breakin It Down with John Griffith

Show Notes | YouTube | iTunes How can a teenager from a good, decent, wonderful family end up making a mess out of their life by the age of 15? What is the path from poor teenage choices to a life of purpose and meaning? Where can parents look for some hope if their teen has taken a very bad path? Listen in for sobering answers in today’s podcast! Hey there, Innovation Nation! I got to talk to one of the most amazing individuals on today’s podcast! If you like underdog, transformation stories, then today’s episode is tailor made for you, and I think you’ll agree with Norman Vincent Peale who said, “People become really quite remarkable when they start thinking that they can do things. When they believe in themselves they have the first secret of success.” Confidence, or believing in yourself as the quote says, radically shifts what is possible. Belief for or against our own ability can have dramatic effects on what is possible. As individuals and even as a society, we often believe something to be impossible–such as running a four minute mile. No documented cases of a mile being run faster than 4 minutes was documented until an English runner named Roger Bannister did it on May 6, 1954. For thousands of years we have run and competed in running games. Yet for some reason in the years just following Roger Bannister’s record-breaking run, many athletes began to run a four minute mile, and now it is common for a professional male middle distance runner to be able to run a four minute mile. Why the sudden change? Truthfully, we don’t know exactly what causes achievement, but we do know that limiting beliefs can have a significant effect on us. For this reason, we work very hard to remove limiting beliefs as students tackle challenges in our Inventor’s Bootcamp every summer. Students are encouraged to try new things and notice the outcomes because trying a new activity often leads us to new thinking. In fact, it turns out that the secret sauce for Roger Bannister had quite a bit to do with a new type of training that he began around that time. He noted significant changes in his running times after some of his training adjustments and continued in that direction. This approach of varying the inputs and observing the outputs is just the practical application of the scientific method which is in high regard during Inventor’s Bootcamp. If you’d like to find out more about Inventor’s Bootcamp, visit TTInvent.com and click on the Inventor’s Bootcamp button. Today I get the privilege of introducing you to one of the most remarkable individuals to be on our podcast, John Griffith. John’s is truly a story of tragedy and triumph. I won’t spoil the plot, so join me as we go on a journey through innocence and tragedy to great hope. Original Release Date: 7/23/15