The Lawyer’s Well-Being Brief

What could you accomplish if you told yourself, you got this, make it happen?

“To the mind that is still, the whole universe surrenders.”-Lao Tzu

Although American track and field athlete Jesse Owens is probably most well known for winning four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games. Perhaps more impressive were his performances prior to the 1936 Olympic Games.

At the 1935 Big Ten Championships, Owens overcame a severe tailbone injury and tied a world record in the 100-yard dash — and set a long jump record of 26–8 ¼ that would stand for 25 years. Owens also set new world marks in the 220-yard dash and in the 220-yard low hurdles. All together, Owens competed in 42 events in 1935 and won all of them.

I wasn’t there to know what Jesse Owens told himself prior to the Big Ten Championships. I do know that one of his track coaches always told him to do his best, so maybe he just told himself that he was going to go out and do his best. You cannot control what the world expects of you, you can only control what you expect of yourself.

Are you going to go out and win every competition that you come across as Jesse Owens did in 1935, not likely. What you can do, is tell yourself “you got this, let’s make it happen,” and see what you can do. Forward, always!