The Power of Trying, Lessons Learned from Terry Fox

The first time I had read about Terry Fox was only a few months ago when I received an email with a request to participate in the Terry Fox marathon in Abu Dhabi. I learned that the event was first founded in 1981 in memory of a young man named Terrance Stanley “Terry” Fox. The marathon was organized to raise money and awareness for cancer research. Since the run was named after Terry, I assumed he was a scientist who had initiated a groundbreaking research about the disease and this was to celebrate his great achievement and continue on his legacy. However, my assumptions were proved invalid. Terry was a cancer patient himself. An athlete who had his leg amputated for that reason.

He had a great desire to find a solution for such disease and he strongly believed in the dream of reaching one. With nothing in hand, he only had to “try” to find something. With an amputated leg, he decided to embark a run to support cancer research. He didn’t come up with a solution. He didn’t find a cure for cancer. He just said “Dreams are made possible if you try”, and indeed he did.

Terry’s story taught me two things. First, that merely trying to achieve a goal could be enough to a great extent. Secondly, a great goal does not need to be seen as one whole, but rather as broken-down parts of a goal. Another resounding lesson he was subtly giving was the fact that suffering is a main ingredient in achieving any dream.

Touching upon my first point, you’ve probably heard some people say “Don’t try, do!” But the fact of the matter is, your mindset should not be only concerned about solving the problem, but mostly focused on participating in coming up with a solution. It all starts with one step. It doesn’t matter what the sign at the end of the road says so long as you’ve started your engine to move towards that direction. The idea is to make a first step and make it well. Drive as if you’re doing so smoothly without bumps, without slowing down, and without being distracted, although the road would be the exact opposite. If you had a clear mind and a desire to start with trying, you’ll get there. People think trying is not enough, while in reality, trying could be all you need.

On the second note, Will Smith once said “You don’t set out and say ‘I’m gonna build the biggest, baddest, greatest wall. You say ‘I’m going to lay this brick as perfectly as a brick can be laid.’” Having said that, it’s essential to know that an achievement is a bunch of trials and errors and that trying is actually “doing” but in a smaller form. The saying that “X can’t be done overnight” doesn’t really refer to the amount of time you’re required to have to get something done, but the fact that it cannot be done in one single step. It cannot be done at once. You cannot just “do”, you need to “try”. So long as your vision is at the back of your mind, you need not to worry about the errors you will make in the process of trying.

The secret of getting a great thing done is breaking it down into small tasks and then focusing on each equally. And the main rule for all of the above is to do each small task with passion, belief, and a genuine intention to add value.

After all, telling yourself you’ll “try” sounds less intimidating and more convincing to start a task than you’ll “do”.

Even if you think you couldn’t get there, if you believed in the cause, you’ll find a way.
Just try.