When I was at the gym this morning the news reporter transitioned from Lance Armstrong to the weather by saying:
Let's talk about something a little less controversial— CTV news anchor
What is controversial about Lance Armstrong?
What he did was wrong. He is apologizing because he got caught. Wrong again.
If we have to call it controversial, can we at least agree on one thing? Can we at least agree that Lance Armstrong likes spinning?
Lance Armstrong wasn’t talking to Oprah because he’s sorry. Lance Armstrong was talking to Oprah, in the words of Lainey, “to further his remodeled agenda.”
What message are we sending to all the young people out there who we talk to about character building when we spin the Lance Armstrong story as controversial?
We can’t control Lance Armstrong, but we can control how we tell the story.
We have a responsibility to tell the story with the character we hoped he had.
One of the big reasons Who Is NOBODY? was created was to support kids in building respect based on their actions. Then they can experience self worth that’s earned and lasting. The 5 easy Who Is NOBODY? steps gives participants a formula they can use again and again.
He cheated and there was no excuse for what he did— John Fahey, president of the World Anti-Doping Agency
You have to wonder how Lance Armstrong has spun his own story to be able to walk around with such confidence, much less leave the house. Perhaps it has developed from all the practice he’s had with textbook bullying; putting others down to pull one self up. Build barriers around yourself to keep people from finding your fraud.
… Now if only I had been at a spinning class rather than on an elliptical machine this morning, I could round out this post by going back to the start.
Instead I’ll simply say, we need to learn from what read in the media. As a teacher I see how important early life experiences can be. We need to teach our youth how to build self-esteem that’s truly earned and lasting. Give them a vehicle to discover their interests and experience using them to help others.
We need to help people get in the right direction when they’re young. Then they can pour all their energy into honest endeavors.
Change starts with kids.
Image courtesy of -Marcus- / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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