 I watched at 9 miles as people jogged past looking hopeful, energetic and smiling. Further into the run, the picture looked quite different. Many looked tired, struggling to push onto the end. This was the Milton Keynes marathon this weekend. At 19 miles, I saw a small girl standing beside the track shouting and clapping at everyone who came past: ‘Well done! You’re doing brilliantly! Keep going!’ Pained faces turned to smiles. People who were walking, limping, mustered the strength to start running again. It was amazing to observe. The power of a child. The gift of encouragement. It brought tears to my eyes. I wasn’t running but it energised me too. Previously, I had been waiting for a friend, Adrian, to run past so that I could encourage him, catch a photo. Now I found myself clapping, cheering, shouting words of encouragement to everyone. To strangers. To people I have never seen and will never see again. The girl’s effect was infectious. Magical. I decided to stay until the end, to clap and cheer, to project belief and hope into tired minds and bodies. It felt like such a privilege. Exhausted runners breathed, ‘thank you’, gave a thumbs up and offered a weak smile. This girl struck me as such an incredible life symbol. How to inject belief, hope, encouragement into people’s lives , especially people who feel at the end of themselves, of their situations, at a loss how to survive - never mind to succeed. I’m reminded of Paul’s words in the New Testament: ‘Let’s keep going in the race marked out for us, keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus – especially since there are people surrounding us and cheering us on.’ (my paraphrase). God, help us recognise the profound impact a simple word of encouragement can make: it could save a life, a dream, a deepest hope.
8 Comments
Janet Webb
3/5/2016 02:55:52 pm
Really liked this, thank you. We influence others all the time - we might as well do it in a truly positive way.
Nick Wright
3/5/2016 02:59:27 pm
Thanks Janet. Yes, I agree. As a good friend of mine says, 'we are always influencing - but not always in the way we expect or hope for'. If we are aware of our influence, we can choose - to some degree at least - how we want to exercise it. All the best. Nick
Mike Johnson
4/5/2016 07:30:41 pm
Perfectly said. Not only does encouragement and inspiration help the giver and the recipient, it then helps all the people the recipient influences from that moment on. The ripple you launch from your life, becomes a tidal wave in the lives of others.
Nick Wright
4/5/2016 07:38:14 pm
Thanks for the affirming feedback, Mike. I really like that image of the ripple becoming a tidal wave. We often don't know what effect our words and actions have, including down through generations. We can offer encouragement where we have opportunity and trust and hope it has positive and lasting effects. All the best. Nick
Aaron Skogen
4/5/2016 07:31:27 pm
Well said Nick (sorry I cannot tag you). I have experienced first hand the benefits of a stranger giving encouragement. In my first 150 mile ride for MS, I was very tired as we neared the end. Yet, those last few miles were populated with driveways full of people cheering us us on, telling us the end was near and thanking us for cycling in support of a great cause. With each kind and encouraging word, my breath came a little easier and making that revolution of the pedals didn't feel as hard. To your point, this positive encouragement can be used in so many situations. A great lesson in this. Again, well said!
Nick Wright
4/5/2016 07:41:47 pm
Hi Aaron and thanks for modelling positive encouragement in your response! Wow - 150 miles is incredible - and for a great cause too. I remember doing a charity ride for British Heart Foundation. It was only 40 miles but, at the time, it was the longest distance I had ever ridden. At the end, I felt absolutely exhausted but my spirits were lifted by a crowd of people cheering and clapping at the finishing line. It was a moving moment for me and I really appreciated it. With best wishes. Nick
Clive Bacon
4/5/2016 10:10:29 pm
My brother was running in the MK marathon last weekend so you my have cheered him on. The following comes from a recent UCB radio Word for the Day: Encouragement can work miracles. In the movie Stand and Deliver, high school teacher Jaime Escalante has two students in his class named Johnny. One is a happy child and an excellent student; the other spends his time messing around and getting into trouble. When the Parent Teacher Association held its first meeting of the year, a mother came up to Jaime and asked, ‘How’s my son, Johnny, getting along?’. Jaime mistakenly assumed she was the mother of the better student, so he replied, ‘I can’t tell you how much I enjoy him. I’m so glad he’s in my class’. The next day ‘problem Johnny’ came to Jaime and said, ‘My mom told me what you said about me last night. I haven’t ever had a teacher who wanted me in his class.’ The result? He completed his assignments that day, and brought in his completed homework the next morning. A few weeks later he had become one of Jaime’s hardest-working students - and one of his best friends. His life had been turned around because of an accidental word of encouragement. It works like this: When you look for good in a person and express it, you give them something to live up to. In other words, you motivate them to be better than they are.
Nick Wright
5/5/2016 01:44:03 pm
Hi Clive - and wow - what an inspiring story!! Love it. It makes me wonder: how much of what we experience in others is, at least in part, what we evoke in them. Thanks for sharing. Made my day. :) All the best. Nick Leave a Reply. |
Nick WrightI'm a psychological coach, trainer and OD consultant. Curious to discover how can I help you? Get in touch! 
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