did you ever have a dream that was so
big that you thought it was almost
impossible to achieve if you answered
yes to that question and I know how you
feel I’ve had those dreams and while not
every dream has become a reality
along the way I learned a powerful
approach of picturing that helped me
achieve most today I want to share with
you that technique so that you too can
begin to see your dreams become a
reality
one day my junior year in high school my
father came home with a brochure it was
about a special School in Annapolis
Maryland designed to Train young men and
women to became to become naval and
marine corps officers while I never
heard of the school it was there was
something about it that drew me in it
promised to push me in ways I could
never imagine the school was looking for
well-rounded self-motivated high
achievers who could take intense
pressure I didn’t know if I could cut it
frankly I didn’t even know if I deserve
to get in but by the time I finished
reading that brochure I knew more than
anything I wanted to become a member of
the brigade of Midshipmen the United
States Naval Academy I began picturing
myself as a midshipman at Navy with my
hand held up swearing to defend and
uphold the Constitution United States
against all enemies foreign and domestic
with that singular image in my mind the
things I needed to do started
manifesting themselves the Academy
required academic excellence fortunately
I had good grades but the school was
asking for a lot more than just good
grades and up until that point my
extracurricular activities were really
limited I knew that if I didn’t step up
I would never get in and fear became my
grotus greatest motivator the school
required a physical fitness test
keeping the image in my mind I started
exercising with purpose push-ups
pull-ups sit-ups and a run for time I
joined the Key Club and started
participating with earnest I sang in my
church choir and praise God with my
greatest voice
I tried out for a local school play and
while I only had a small part I had fun
learning everyone’s lines opportunities
started to present themselves I was
chosen to be mayor the city where I live
for a day
and later I was selected to represent my
school at Boise State as I thought about
getting into the Naval Academy I
realized I was having fun doing a lot of
cool things and while it would be
devastating if I didn’t get in I knew I
would be better off for my efforts then
one February my senior year a letter
came in my mind started racing my hands
got sweaty would I get in could I take
the rejection if I didn’t I said a short
prayer and I opened the letter the
Academy invited me to become a member of
the brigade Shipman and I was so
ecstatic I started hooting and hollering
I was doing cartwheels I did it I did it
I was in since that day I’ve had other
dreams other big dreams and in each case
I would picture where I wanted to be and
I would visualize what I would be doing
who I we doing with when I got there as
the saying goes you can’t make a basket
if you never take the shot I knew I
would miss the shot sometimes in the
failure would dampen my spirit but I
would be better off for my efforts and I
would be okay remarkably my
visualization has helped me achieve most
of my goals and what I learned along the
way is it didn’t take twice as much
effort it only took an extra 10% you
might ask how is that possible well let
me give you an example
fall semester my senior year at the
Naval Academy I had the chance to try
out flying my first plane I would ever
fly is the Varga Cucina
they’re six flights in eight hours I
would get the opportunity to solo now
it’s one thing to fly alongside a
qualified instructor pilot with
thousands of hours it’s another thing to
fly for the very first time solo I
remember sitting at the end of the
runway with my checks of checklist
complete and I suddenly felt all alone I
was paralyzed with fear what if
something goes wrong what if my plane
crashes I was so scared I broke out into
a cold sweat shoving the fear from my
mind I visualized myself flying my
airplane and landing it safely I then
pushed the power up started my takeoff
roll and with my instructor in the tower
on the radios I completed my first then
my second touch-and-go and on the third
time around I landed safely and came to
a complete stop with me I just cheated
death and I loved it one service
election night
I chose naval aviation and I never
looked back before I could begin flight
training I had to prove I was proficient
in the water there were a ton of tests
treading water for 20 minutes swimming
for a mile in a flight suit but the
scariest of them all was the Dilbert
dunker the Dilbert dunker was a jet
crash simulator now the idea of crashing
a jet into the ocean scared the heck out
of me
but at least I would have the training
in case it ever happened I remember
climbing up the stairs to the platform
for the dunker and watching my
classmates one by one get tested in
front of me
once trapped in the dunker dropped 15
feet slammed into the water and flipped
over it seemed like forever before each
of my classmates came to the surface
finally it was my turn as I stepped into
the dunker my body got chilled as I sat
in that wet cold seat and harness
wrapping around me I suddenly started
hyperventilating get it together Pete
you can do this I visualized myself
completing the process and swimming
safely to the surface the instructor hit
the button the dunker dropped faster and
hit harder than I had imagined I stole
one gasp of breath before the water came
up over my head and then I flipped over
it seemed like forever before we hit the
bottom and by the time I reached there
was out of breath I tugged on my harness
and it released free I made my escape by
the time I broached the surface I was my
lungs were screaming for air and I
gasped for breath I did it I did it I
passed a few weeks later I started
flight training and before each flight I
pictured those Gold Navy wings being
pinned on my on my chest
a year later Scott orchard and I
graduated with distinction Scott had had
400 hours in his private pilot’s license
before he began I had eight hours in one
solo flight in the Varga Kachina that
extra ten percent now a few years later
I was a qualified p3 Orion patrol plane
commander leading a crew of 12
I remember one Saturday night we were
over the ocean tracking a submarine we
had flown for about eight hours and we
were finished and we were ready to head
home
when base command called and said to
extend as long as possible what’s an
extra 30 minutes going to matter at this
point anyway I thought and with four
engines we routinely shut down the left
outboard engine in order to save gas and
so with this command we’d have to shut
down another engine so before doing so
though I checked my operating engines
and salt saw how they were doing the
left-hand inboard engine was fine but
the right one was acting erratically my
training took over with a bona fide
emergency I aborted the mission and
instead of shutting down the second
engine I restarted the number one engine
and when it was up and running fine we
checked the number three engine again
the oil pressure was going crazy this
emergency required we required us to
shut down the engine
and a few seconds after we pulled the
emergency shutdown handle a bright red
fire warning light illuminated the
pitch-black cockpit and a loud fire
warning horn went off it scared the heck
out of us a few seconds later the aft
observer screamed sir we got flames
coming back out of the back of the
number three engine I had over 800 hours
of flight time and this was the first
real engine fire I had ever witnessed I
called for the emergency shutdown
checklist for an engine fire and on the
third step we set a circuit breaker that
shut off oil to the engine a few seconds
later the fire went out we all breathe a
sigh of relief completed the checklist
declared an emergency and then started
heading home as I push the power levers
up 20 seconds later the fire warning
light and horn came back on dear God I
prayed please don’t let me die tonight a
few seconds later the apt observer
screamed
sir we have flames coming out of the
back of the number three engine again my
worst fears were confirmed there was no
procedure in the manuals for a scenario
like this my dream that night was to
bring my crew and my plane home safely I
was terrified but I knew I had to keep
it together to give my crew the best
chance of survival
I quickly pictured my family and then
got about a way to figure out how to get
the flames out with my power levers up I
drove the airplane towards the ocean I
knew if I didn’t get the fire out I
would have to ditch as we passed twelve
hundred feet and got to 265 not see
after observers screamed sir fire out on
number three with that good news the
whole plane erupted in cheers and with
the emergency abated and my adrenaline
depleted my hands shook uncontrollably
would be 11 hours before we finally
landed the airplane where I’d been
flying by the time I got home I was so
exhausted that I was asleep before my
head hit the pillow the next morning I
hugged my family and told them what had
happened a few years later I completed
my military obligation and decided to
leave the Navy the only thing I had
known since I was 18 I had a yearning to
enter the business world and decided the
best way for me to do that was to get an
MBA and upon graduation I joined the
coca-cola company and after five years
in finance I was bored crunching numbers
I dreamed of joining the marketing
department where the fun where the work
looked to be much more fun and exciting
there I would get to travel and work on
cool projects through visualization I
landed a job negotiate on the
sponsorship negotiations team and I got
to do deals with the NHL with NASCAR and
the Atlanta Olympic Games through my
success with the Atlanta Olympic Games I
got the opportunity not to work on just
one Olympics but eight different times I
couldn’t believe my good fortune one of
my greatest accomplishments was working
with a woman named Gabriella on the 2004
Olympics in Sochi Russia my job was to
create a coca-cola pin trading center
since 1896 in Athens pin trading had
become the number one spectator sport at
the Olympics if we were successful this
would be the 15th consecutive Olympics
where coca-cola had a pin trading center
but from the outset we were faced with
one project ending challenge after
another four months before the Olympics
began our pin manufacturer threatened to
quit and while I was able to resolve the
problem Gabriella grew worried picture
yourself inside the
coca-cola pin trading center at the
Olympics I urged still problems kept
popping up something wasn’t right I
decided to make one more trip to Moscow
I remember greeting her that cold
December day her face was distraught she
blurted Pete our retailer just quit my
heart sank oh no not again if we
couldn’t find a replacement we were
toast
we scrambled and miraculously by week’s
end we had found a backup two months
later I exclaimed
Gabriela we’re here sitting in the
coca-cola pin trading centre just as we
pictured she said Pete I believe because
you believe not only was this one of the
greatest compliments I’ve ever received
but it let me know that my visualization
could help others achieve their own
dreams so I asked you do you have a
dream to do something big something bold
something almost impossible to
accomplish then I say picture that dream
visualize what you will be doing and who
you’ll be doing with when you’ve
accomplished it the visualization will
give you the clarity to know what to do
and the determination to go that extra
10 percent to make it happen never let
go of that dream not only will you
accomplish it but you will become an
inspiration for dozens if not hundreds
of others who dared a dream of achieving
theirs in the words of Walt Disney if
you can dream it you can do it thank
[Applause]
big that you thought it was almost
impossible to achieve if you answered
yes to that question and I know how you
feel I’ve had those dreams and while not
every dream has become a reality
along the way I learned a powerful
approach of picturing that helped me
achieve most today I want to share with
you that technique so that you too can
begin to see your dreams become a
reality
one day my junior year in high school my
father came home with a brochure it was
about a special School in Annapolis
Maryland designed to Train young men and
women to became to become naval and
marine corps officers while I never
heard of the school it was there was
something about it that drew me in it
promised to push me in ways I could
never imagine the school was looking for
well-rounded self-motivated high
achievers who could take intense
pressure I didn’t know if I could cut it
frankly I didn’t even know if I deserve
to get in but by the time I finished
reading that brochure I knew more than
anything I wanted to become a member of
the brigade of Midshipmen the United
States Naval Academy I began picturing
myself as a midshipman at Navy with my
hand held up swearing to defend and
uphold the Constitution United States
against all enemies foreign and domestic
with that singular image in my mind the
things I needed to do started
manifesting themselves the Academy
required academic excellence fortunately
I had good grades but the school was
asking for a lot more than just good
grades and up until that point my
extracurricular activities were really
limited I knew that if I didn’t step up
I would never get in and fear became my
grotus greatest motivator the school
required a physical fitness test
keeping the image in my mind I started
exercising with purpose push-ups
pull-ups sit-ups and a run for time I
joined the Key Club and started
participating with earnest I sang in my
church choir and praise God with my
greatest voice
I tried out for a local school play and
while I only had a small part I had fun
learning everyone’s lines opportunities
started to present themselves I was
chosen to be mayor the city where I live
for a day
and later I was selected to represent my
school at Boise State as I thought about
getting into the Naval Academy I
realized I was having fun doing a lot of
cool things and while it would be
devastating if I didn’t get in I knew I
would be better off for my efforts then
one February my senior year a letter
came in my mind started racing my hands
got sweaty would I get in could I take
the rejection if I didn’t I said a short
prayer and I opened the letter the
Academy invited me to become a member of
the brigade Shipman and I was so
ecstatic I started hooting and hollering
I was doing cartwheels I did it I did it
I was in since that day I’ve had other
dreams other big dreams and in each case
I would picture where I wanted to be and
I would visualize what I would be doing
who I we doing with when I got there as
the saying goes you can’t make a basket
if you never take the shot I knew I
would miss the shot sometimes in the
failure would dampen my spirit but I
would be better off for my efforts and I
would be okay remarkably my
visualization has helped me achieve most
of my goals and what I learned along the
way is it didn’t take twice as much
effort it only took an extra 10% you
might ask how is that possible well let
me give you an example
fall semester my senior year at the
Naval Academy I had the chance to try
out flying my first plane I would ever
fly is the Varga Cucina
they’re six flights in eight hours I
would get the opportunity to solo now
it’s one thing to fly alongside a
qualified instructor pilot with
thousands of hours it’s another thing to
fly for the very first time solo I
remember sitting at the end of the
runway with my checks of checklist
complete and I suddenly felt all alone I
was paralyzed with fear what if
something goes wrong what if my plane
crashes I was so scared I broke out into
a cold sweat shoving the fear from my
mind I visualized myself flying my
airplane and landing it safely I then
pushed the power up started my takeoff
roll and with my instructor in the tower
on the radios I completed my first then
my second touch-and-go and on the third
time around I landed safely and came to
a complete stop with me I just cheated
death and I loved it one service
election night
I chose naval aviation and I never
looked back before I could begin flight
training I had to prove I was proficient
in the water there were a ton of tests
treading water for 20 minutes swimming
for a mile in a flight suit but the
scariest of them all was the Dilbert
dunker the Dilbert dunker was a jet
crash simulator now the idea of crashing
a jet into the ocean scared the heck out
of me
but at least I would have the training
in case it ever happened I remember
climbing up the stairs to the platform
for the dunker and watching my
classmates one by one get tested in
front of me
once trapped in the dunker dropped 15
feet slammed into the water and flipped
over it seemed like forever before each
of my classmates came to the surface
finally it was my turn as I stepped into
the dunker my body got chilled as I sat
in that wet cold seat and harness
wrapping around me I suddenly started
hyperventilating get it together Pete
you can do this I visualized myself
completing the process and swimming
safely to the surface the instructor hit
the button the dunker dropped faster and
hit harder than I had imagined I stole
one gasp of breath before the water came
up over my head and then I flipped over
it seemed like forever before we hit the
bottom and by the time I reached there
was out of breath I tugged on my harness
and it released free I made my escape by
the time I broached the surface I was my
lungs were screaming for air and I
gasped for breath I did it I did it I
passed a few weeks later I started
flight training and before each flight I
pictured those Gold Navy wings being
pinned on my on my chest
a year later Scott orchard and I
graduated with distinction Scott had had
400 hours in his private pilot’s license
before he began I had eight hours in one
solo flight in the Varga Kachina that
extra ten percent now a few years later
I was a qualified p3 Orion patrol plane
commander leading a crew of 12
I remember one Saturday night we were
over the ocean tracking a submarine we
had flown for about eight hours and we
were finished and we were ready to head
home
when base command called and said to
extend as long as possible what’s an
extra 30 minutes going to matter at this
point anyway I thought and with four
engines we routinely shut down the left
outboard engine in order to save gas and
so with this command we’d have to shut
down another engine so before doing so
though I checked my operating engines
and salt saw how they were doing the
left-hand inboard engine was fine but
the right one was acting erratically my
training took over with a bona fide
emergency I aborted the mission and
instead of shutting down the second
engine I restarted the number one engine
and when it was up and running fine we
checked the number three engine again
the oil pressure was going crazy this
emergency required we required us to
shut down the engine
and a few seconds after we pulled the
emergency shutdown handle a bright red
fire warning light illuminated the
pitch-black cockpit and a loud fire
warning horn went off it scared the heck
out of us a few seconds later the aft
observer screamed sir we got flames
coming back out of the back of the
number three engine I had over 800 hours
of flight time and this was the first
real engine fire I had ever witnessed I
called for the emergency shutdown
checklist for an engine fire and on the
third step we set a circuit breaker that
shut off oil to the engine a few seconds
later the fire went out we all breathe a
sigh of relief completed the checklist
declared an emergency and then started
heading home as I push the power levers
up 20 seconds later the fire warning
light and horn came back on dear God I
prayed please don’t let me die tonight a
few seconds later the apt observer
screamed
sir we have flames coming out of the
back of the number three engine again my
worst fears were confirmed there was no
procedure in the manuals for a scenario
like this my dream that night was to
bring my crew and my plane home safely I
was terrified but I knew I had to keep
it together to give my crew the best
chance of survival
I quickly pictured my family and then
got about a way to figure out how to get
the flames out with my power levers up I
drove the airplane towards the ocean I
knew if I didn’t get the fire out I
would have to ditch as we passed twelve
hundred feet and got to 265 not see
after observers screamed sir fire out on
number three with that good news the
whole plane erupted in cheers and with
the emergency abated and my adrenaline
depleted my hands shook uncontrollably
would be 11 hours before we finally
landed the airplane where I’d been
flying by the time I got home I was so
exhausted that I was asleep before my
head hit the pillow the next morning I
hugged my family and told them what had
happened a few years later I completed
my military obligation and decided to
leave the Navy the only thing I had
known since I was 18 I had a yearning to
enter the business world and decided the
best way for me to do that was to get an
MBA and upon graduation I joined the
coca-cola company and after five years
in finance I was bored crunching numbers
I dreamed of joining the marketing
department where the fun where the work
looked to be much more fun and exciting
there I would get to travel and work on
cool projects through visualization I
landed a job negotiate on the
sponsorship negotiations team and I got
to do deals with the NHL with NASCAR and
the Atlanta Olympic Games through my
success with the Atlanta Olympic Games I
got the opportunity not to work on just
one Olympics but eight different times I
couldn’t believe my good fortune one of
my greatest accomplishments was working
with a woman named Gabriella on the 2004
Olympics in Sochi Russia my job was to
create a coca-cola pin trading center
since 1896 in Athens pin trading had
become the number one spectator sport at
the Olympics if we were successful this
would be the 15th consecutive Olympics
where coca-cola had a pin trading center
but from the outset we were faced with
one project ending challenge after
another four months before the Olympics
began our pin manufacturer threatened to
quit and while I was able to resolve the
problem Gabriella grew worried picture
yourself inside the
coca-cola pin trading center at the
Olympics I urged still problems kept
popping up something wasn’t right I
decided to make one more trip to Moscow
I remember greeting her that cold
December day her face was distraught she
blurted Pete our retailer just quit my
heart sank oh no not again if we
couldn’t find a replacement we were
toast
we scrambled and miraculously by week’s
end we had found a backup two months
later I exclaimed
Gabriela we’re here sitting in the
coca-cola pin trading centre just as we
pictured she said Pete I believe because
you believe not only was this one of the
greatest compliments I’ve ever received
but it let me know that my visualization
could help others achieve their own
dreams so I asked you do you have a
dream to do something big something bold
something almost impossible to
accomplish then I say picture that dream
visualize what you will be doing and who
you’ll be doing with when you’ve
accomplished it the visualization will
give you the clarity to know what to do
and the determination to go that extra
10 percent to make it happen never let
go of that dream not only will you
accomplish it but you will become an
inspiration for dozens if not hundreds
of others who dared a dream of achieving
theirs in the words of Walt Disney if
you can dream it you can do it thank
[Applause]
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