Miracles Happen All the Time. Do You Recognize Them?

I couldn't let the evens of this week pass without talking about this subject. On August 7th, 2010, tragedy struck Chili. A mine collapsed with 33 miners underground, trapped and presumed dead.

Despite the dire odds that anyone would have survived, rescue efforts began. On August 22nd, nearly two weeks after the collapse, drills were able to break through and it was discovered that just one, but all 33 of the miners were alive, and all things considered, doing well! Then, finally, on Wednesday, October 13th, more than seventy days after the mine collapsed, the miners were freed!

When I see stories like this one, the only word that comes to mind is "miracle". To me, there is nothing else that explains how all of the minors would survive, and in such good shape (they have all been released from hospital less than a week after being underground for more than two months!).

In my short life I've been privileged to see a few amazing miracles like this one. The "miracle on the Hudson" where a large commuter plane "crash landed" without hurting anyone on board comes to mind. These events can certainly be explained with words other than "miracle". People who don't believe in them, can easily explain how individual skill and training allowed Captain Sully to land that plane, and I'm sure there are geologists and others who give scientific explanations for why the minors were not harmed in the mine collapse. The truth though is that there is no logical explanation for why everyone should have survived in either case. But they did.

So what's the point? Beyond a good news story and impact on the families of those involved, what is the take-away for the rest of us from a story like this? Simply this; miracles can happen and most of the time, it takes us to MAKE them happen! Hope is never completely lost. There is always good that can come from tragedy. But we have to play our part in the process.

Miracles, little ones anyway, happen all the time. Who has seen a child be born can say that they didn't witness a miraculous thing? A hundred years ago, who would have said we would send someone to the moon? It now seems likely that in our lifetime, we may witness the development of a cure for MS. But these things don't just 'happen' they take human beings, who care for each other, doing their best to make a difference.

So if you're struggling in the rough economy, if you have problems with your relationships, if you hate your job, or you feel like your friends aren't there for you, remember, miracles happen; but it's up to us to help them along! So go out and make a little miracle in the life of someone today. GB. Mark

Opportunity Doesn't Always Knock

There is a proverb that states "opportunity only knocks once". A lot of the time, that may be true, but I believe that even more often, it doesn't even knock at all. It just comes to the door, stands there, and waits for a few minutes to see if we'll come out to greet it. If we do, great, if not, it moves on the house down the street. Sometimes, you even have to go to the side of the road and flag it down as it flies by.

Okay, so maybe I've stretched the metaphor a little, but you get the point. If you spend your lives waiting around for life to come to you, you may just miss out. Success comes to those who go out and make things happen.

This past week I was able to land a major speaking opportunity, but the opportunity didn't come knocking. In fact, I had to go out and find it and then work really, really hard to seal the deal.

The event is the Atlantic Dream Festival (contact me at: Mark@MarkBlackSpeaks.com for tickets) and features many big name speakers. I saw the event advertised for weeks. Each time I drove by one of the big billboards in town, I thought to myself how great it would be to be a part of the event.

For many, myself included a lot of the time, it would have ended there. I would have thought, "oh that would be nice" but I wouldn't have done anything about it. But this time, for whatever reason, was different. I wanted to be a part of the event, so I decided to take action. I contacted the organizers, offered my services and made my best pitch to get myself in.

It took several tries. After generating considerable positive interest, I though I had the deal done, only to have it disintegrate. Not willing to give up, I made one more last-ditch effort. I took a considerable risk, offering something I had never done before, in order to entice the organizers to find room for me...and they did.

Only time will tell if my risk pays off, but the lessons learned in getting the gig, will stay with me and serve me well the rest of my career. A lesson about persistence, motivation and making your dreams come true. A lesson I hope you'll learn as well.

This week I challenge you to go out and make things happen for yourself! Opportunities will most certainly come in the course of your life, but if you sit around waiting for them to come, you'll find there are less of them and they'll come less often. Opportunity begets opportunity. So go out there and make your dreams come true!

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If you want an added boost to help you on that road, check out the Atlantic Dream Festival. Listen to speaker from Sir Richard Branson (Virgin companies) to Steve Murphy (Live at 5) over the course of 3 days. You're bound to take something home that is worth multiples of the price of a ticket. To get more info or a ticket, contact me at: Mark@MarkBlackSpeaks.com or Call me: 506-878-0492.