Sean Stephenson delivered a talk to inmates at Ironwood State Prison in Blythe, California, several years ago that absollutely inspires, no matter where you are. No matter what circumstances or challenges you face right now.
He cuts through all the muck and challenges of life to squarely focus on going forward. Need inspiration? Sean’s talk is short, yet so powerful that on TEDx it has already been viewed by more than 5 Million people.
My accidental discovery of this talk held me, glued. As I watched, I didn’t even know Dr. Stephenson was talking to inmates. Nor did I know he had passed away two years ago from a random accident with his wheelchair. It brought tears to think of that, yet even his last words to his wife were that “it didn’t happen to me, it happened for me.”
His words, his whole being, changes lives… even in this one little talk.
See for yourself —
The comment below — one of more than 151,000 “thumbs up” individuals who also commented—is a first-hand account of how that ONE TALK dramatically changed lives at Ironwood that day. What can our lives do, if we live fully embracing, fully present to the moment, the circumstances into which we have been called today?
This talk was given in Ironwood State Prison, C-yard, in Blythe California. I was there in the audience, dressed in prison blues. Joseph Zito CDCR# AG-2352. I met Sean and had lunch in the chow hall with him afterwards. Very nice man, very kind and loving…almost an aura of sainthood about him. This day was pivotal in my life. It was the first day of my life where I did not feel completely alienated from society…the first time in years where I did not feel like just a number…the first time “normal” people did not ostracize me for my past mistakes and my then present incarceration. I’ve been out of prison for more than 6 years now. I have a wife and 4 children. We all study and compete in Brazilian Jiujitsu. I work 84 hours a week as a coring roughneck so my wife can stay home with our kids. This man helped me realize that adverse circumstances do not exist to be surrendered to but only to be overcome. I’m so sad to hear of his passing. Rest in peace sir, thank you for your help.
