virgin islands scene

Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?
-- T.S. Eliot
 

 

Saturday, August 31, 1996

Belief

During the first half of this century, scientists, physicians, athletes and trainers believed that it was impossible for a human to run a mile in less than four minutes. People had tried unsuccessfully for decades to break this barrier. The conventional wisdom held that the human body was physiologically incapable of running at this pace -- that the cardiovascular and skeletal systems simply would break down before the four-minute barrier was crossed.

Then, on May 6, 1954, Roger Bannister ran a mile in 3 minutes, 59.4 seconds. He did this because he believed he could. And once he had done it, everyone else suddenly believed it could be done, too. Within 3 years, another runner had broken the four-minute barrier. Now, there are thousands of people who have run a mile in under four minutes.

For over one hundred years, runners had tried unsuccessfully to break the four-minute barrier. Then, after one person had done it, thousands more were able to do it. Did the physiology of the human body suddenly change? No, of course not. The thing that changed was belief. People replaced a limiting belief (under four minutes is impossible) with an empowering belief.

What beliefs do you have? Do they limit you or do they lift you up? Whatever you truly believe is possible, is.

— Ralph Marston

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Copyright ©1996 Ralph S. Marston, Jr. All Rights Reserved. The Daily Motivator is provided for your personal, non-commercial use only. Other than personal sharing, please do not re-distribute without permission.