Recently I watched a short documentary about pro runner Dave Wottle.
At the 1972 Olympics in Munich, Germany, Wottle started the 800m Final definitively in last place. After a seemingly detrimental slow start, the average observer, including the commentary team, had written him off as having no chance of winning.
Wottle never gave up on himself or the race. He kept pace with extraordinary effort and seized every opportunity to move closer to the lead. When the race concluded, and to the surprise of everyone watching, he’d come from behind to take 1st right at the goal line and win the gold medal.
I can relate to Wottle’s Olympics story.
As a writer I feel like I went through trials and preliminary rounds to a get chance to compete for a lead. Early on I was treated like I was in last place with no chance of winning more often that I care to remember. I started writing online in 1998 with aspirations of working for print magazines and newspapers.
I applied for every job opening. Disappointingly, I was laughed at, made fun of, and was told my online writing wasn’t credible. Someone even went as far as to say I wasn’t “a real writer”.
That didn’t stop me from seeing the goal line and believing I could get there first. That didn’t make me give up when there were so many others ahead of me.
I kept writing like Wottle kept running and eventually I made it to those print magazines and newspapers. In fact, I accomplished way more than I set out to do, crossing goal after goal after goal.
I haven’t won that gold medal yet, though. To me that’s a Pulitzer. My race for it started slow.
And I’ll never give up. |THIS.
[By M.J. Walker]
