The-Slight-Edge

70 The Slight Edge
create the results you want. It can even be lethal. Think of the poor
frog that gave up and let himself drown because he couldn’t see a breakthrough on
the horizon. He was wrong, of course: there are miracles, even in the life of a frog.
It’s just that the breakthrough didn’t come down out of the clouds; it came at the
end of a series of consistent, determined, compounding-interest foot-paddlings.
What’s the greatest gift you can give to an inner-city kid? An understanding of
the Slight Edge. Because that’s not the answer he’s getting from the world around
him. He believes that the only way out of his world of poverty, violence, oppression
and fear is to become a sports superstar—because that’s what we tell him. That’s
the quantum leap answer. The truth, of course, is that very, very few individuals
will have the talent to break out of that world by becoming sports superstars. And
deep down, every one of these kids knows that, or soon finds out ... so they give
up. Why bother? And they become victims of the Quantum Leap Myth. Can you
imagine if every first grader was required to start reading 10 pages of a good book
a day? How would their finances, their health, their relationships change as adults?
Slight Edge for Teens: Making a Difference
A few years ago we partnered with the SUCCESS Foundation to
write
it’s a wonderful book that skillfully illustrates the importance
to young kids of clarifying their goals, while practicing the small
efforts necessary for success, and accepting responsibility for
one’s own destiny. Organized in an easy-to-read format and
sprinkled with engaging exercises, action steps and stories from
real teens, SUCCESS for Teens helps teens embrace eight principles that
will allow them to shape the futures that they want.
For more information, log on to www.successfoundation.org. The SUCCESS
Foundation, along with its partnering organizations Big Brothers Big Sisters,
Boys & girls Clubs, Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship, Just Say Yes,
America’s Promise Alliance and Optimist international, are committed to
distributing worldwide more than 10 million SUCCESS for Teens books and
audios to instill the Slight Edge philosophy in today’s youth.
Crisis of Poor Health
Over the last several decades, it’s been amazing to me how many people I’ve
been close to have persisted in making fun of my dietary choices, exercise habits
and personal development goals. The “insignificant” little things I’ve been doing