From Chapter 3, "Persistence, Press on!" in Ingredients of Outliers An Unlikely Hero Chances are you’ve never heard the amazing story of a man named Cliff Young, but he’s a legend half a world away—in Australia, the Land Down Under. The legend began in 1983, as the inaugural foot race from Sydney to Melbourne was about to get underway. It was an ambitious undertaking, covering a distance of 875 kilometers, or more than 540 miles. That’s the equivalent of running nearly 21 complete marathons—in a row! To put it in perspective, that would be similar to running from New York City to … [Read more...]
Tenacity: From Braces to Races
From Chapter 3, "Persistence, Press on!" in Ingredients of Outliers From Braces to Races The woman whose story follows had no aspirations to be a role model. “I don’t consciously try to be a role model,” she said, “so I don’t know if I am or not. That’s for others to decide.” After reading her story, I’m sure you’ll agree that she proved to be an outstanding one, inspiring others to press on, no matter what obstacles they faced. Born prematurely in 1940 in the segregated South, the twentieth of 22 children in a desperately poor family, there was nothing about this tiny … [Read more...]