This article is a continuation of Make the Impossible Possible (Part 1), a review of Bill Strickland’s, motivational text reviewed by Lynne Marshall, Director of Promotions & Outreach, WUWF Public Media.
Of the “note to self” reminders I appreciated from Bill Strickland’s, Make the Impossible Possible and ones that I think, especially in an educational environment, others may find interesting are these:
Never underestimate the importance of even one caring, attentive adult in helping a kid imagine something other than his/her current circumstances as the limits to life. For Strickland it was his mother who expected more of him in terms of manners, discipline and education. Even with that he was almost lost, but for a high school art teacher who introduced him to a life beyond his personal experience, encouraged him to try something new, and created a space (the art classroom) in which he could imagine a different life for himself. As he says, his life had always been a struggle, “But I had a reason to struggle now, and that made all the difference.”
I first became aware of Bill Strickland about a year ago when my daughter (a UWF art major) attended a large conference in Pittsburg in March 2008 and heard Mr. Strickland speak. She was so inspired by his address to the conference that she continued talking about him for several weeks. Eventually I googled him and went to several websites with video clips of him speaking. The more I read, the more I understood her enthusiasm. Then in July of last year several folks from UWF Marketing Communications heard him speak at another conference in Boston. Equally inspired, one of them brought it up in conversation at work and was surprised to find that I knew who she was talking about. Feeling like the outsider for never having heard him speak, I decided I needed to purchase his book, Make the Impossible Possible.
Welcome back from the holidays! The Libraries have implemented a new