The winners code

GEORGE CHINGARANDE | Monday March 14, 2011 00:00

Some of these flights take people to heights that defy imagination. Technological developments have made possible what was once just a pipe dream.  On December 9th, 1903 the New York Times, arguably the most respected newspaper at the time, wrote that 'maybe in a million or 10 million years' man would be able to invent a plane that would actually fly. People had dreamed of flying for many years, and many longed to cross the seas. However, the absence of a plane shattered all those dreams.  The New York Times wrote its verdict at a time when the United States Army with all its resources had tried in vain to develop a plane.  On December 17, 1903, only eight days after the New York Times editorial, a remarkable thing happened. 

Two brothers,  Wilbur and Orville Wright successfully piloted their plane.  Although the flight lasted only 12 seconds, they had made the breakthrough that made it possible for all of us to fly today.

Choose To Be The Common Man Who Does The Uncommon ThingToday, just as it was in 1903 many people, organisations and even nations are suffering in silent acquiescence.

They have dreams that are going up in smoke; desires that seem like they will never be satiated and sometimes problems that refuse to go away.  Many people and organisations alike are failing to find answers to the questions that life poses to them.  All this state of silent desperation has conspired to produce a desire for someone who can actually make the difference.

At a time when the people in the know believed that it was impossible to fly, the Wright brothers made the difference.  This was possible because they dared to entertain the thought that it was actually possible to make the difference.

By all accounts the Wright brothers were not the most intelligent people on the earth, and they were not even the most sophisticated inventors.  They were just common people. However, they made an uncommon contribution to the world. They began with the idea that it was actually possible to make a difference.  This simple thought is what is lacking in many of us.  And its absence aggravates the malaise that has become common in many places and lives.

The Buck Stops With YouMany people are looking for uncommon people to come and do uncommon things that will turn around their fortunes and the fortunes of their organisations.  The answer is not with uncommon people.  Great feats are accomplished by ordinary people.  The beauty of it all is that you are one of them.  There is no better candidate for doing extraordinary things than you and me. Extraterrestrial beings may be the heroes of folk tales, but they have never been known to make the differences in the lives of real men and women.  It is tempting to look up to others that we believe are more talented or have certain inherent advantages.  It is not uncommon to pass the buck.

However, people that pass the buck have never made a difference.  There comes a time when you have got to realise that the buck stops with you.  And that moment is not only the beginning of success, but also the beginning of maturity itself.

It does not matter how difficult the task maybe or daunting the challenge, you must always be grateful to the heavens for matching you with such an hour and such a challenge.  Greatness always comes hidden in challenges.  The people that forsake their challenges also spurn their opportunities for their progress and the progress of mankind.  To dare is to do, and it is the one who dares to do who will ultimately win the battle.  He who dares wins.  Many fail because they never attempt in the first place.  There is great power in doing, because nothing was ever accomplished without action.

One Small Step for Man, and A Giant Leap For MankindThe first flight was only 12 seconds. It lasted shorter than the time it will take you to read this paragraph, but it was the beginning of a great revolution in the affairs of mankind. It was a small step taken by one man, but it totally changed the history of air travel. We must learn from it never to underestimate the difference that one (wo)man with a passion and a vision who dares can make to this world.  The small actions that you take in your own world have far-reaching ramifications.

Never Listen to The NaysayersI do not know whether the Wright brothers read the editorial of the New York Times of December 9 1903.  If they read it, then I know that they did not listen to it.  Besides the New York Times there were many more people that criticised the Wright brothers.  Few did it openly, but surely many more voiced their scepticism privately.  Many people will criticise you in this life, and some of the most outrageous things that people say about you, you will never hear them. It is the preoccupation of the small-minded to criticise the action minded.

Many people claim to know what they know nothing about.  If the Wright brothers had taken their cue from the New York Times, they might have been discouraged and given up on their dream.  Instead they stayed the course, and continued to make improvements of their aircraft.  Five years later, Orville was able to stay in the air for one hour two minutes.

Whereas the 12 second flight was witnessed by only five people and reported by only a few newspapers, the later flights were witnessed by multitudes and reported on extensively.  The same people that criticised them became their hero worshippers.  People are very fickle, so never let naysayers determine your path in life.

Many things can be said about the Wright brothers, but they made a difference.  The world, and its people is waiting for someone who will make a difference.  Be that person.