Nick Vujicic - A life extraordinary
Warning.
This article is full of clichés. Here are some of them.
“Nick Vujicic is a worldwide phenomenon.”
“Nick is an incredibly charismatic speaker.”
“Nick has a magnetic personality.”
“Nick is an amazing inspiration.”
“Nick’s achievements at such a young age boggle the mind.”
“I LOVE YOU, NICK VUJICIC!!!”
Whenever Nick Vujicic is mentioned, clichés usually follow fast and furious. But, there are 2 kinds of cliché. The first are worn out phrases used to describe the same old stuff. The second kind, however, we use because we can’t think of any new words to describe the awesomeness we are faced with.
Nick Vujicic, undoubtedly,inspires the second kind.
Nick Vujicic is currently on his second tour of Malaysia, having made his rounds here a couple of months back. I had the good fortune to attend one of Vujicic’s lunch talks in Malaysia this time round. Despite the RM300 price tag for a mere 45-minute appearance, the place was packed with about a thousand excited souls of all ages, races and religions looking forward to listen to this man’s inspiring message - even whole families with young children in tow.
So, does he look taller in person?
When Vujicic finally made his appearance after the lunch, the entire hall greeted him a standing ovation. Right from the start, he showed what makes him so charismatic.
Instead of making a big show of asking, “Apa khabar?” as foreigners normally do to break the ice,Vujicic started by asking, “Do I look taller in person than in my YouTube videos?”
It’s this self-deprecating humour that has made Vujicic a worldwide phenomenon. But he hasn’t always had this magnetic personality.
Born without arms and legs, Vujicic struggled as a child with the frustrations and hopelessness of being bullied, left out, and being severely disabled physically. He openly admits to attempting suicide by trying to drown himself in a bath-tub when he was only 10.
Through the constant love and encouragement of his parents, and the strength he finds in his Christian faith, Vujicic was able to overcome his depression. Now, he’s on a crusade change the world for the better, by inspiring millions to persevere in hope despite adversity.
Nick Vujicic began his speaking career giving free talks at schools about bullying, encouraging kids not to be affected but to keep believing in their inherent value as persons.
Today, the 30-year-old is one of the most successful speakers in the world today, having spoken to millions of people in 47 countries at over 4,000 speaking engagements. He has spoken at huge events organised by governments and corporations, but he is just as comfortable speaking to smaller groups in schools and churches. His massive vision is to share his unique message of hope to all 7 billion people in the world.
A super-charismatic speaker
His charisma as a speaker was apparent, as he had the audience at One World Hotel eating out of his hand from the word “Go”. For the 45 minutes he spoke, Vujicic radiated confidence, compassion, conviction – and humour!
He describes how, in his teenage years after his suicide attempt, he pursued life with a vengeance. One story he shared was how he had sprained his foot (which he affectionately calls his little “chicken drumstick”) while playing football with a friend.
“I was bedridden for three weeks, and for the first time in my life I felt disabled!” he yells, to the delight of the audience.
Another zinger came when he was sharing about how he experiences ups and downs in his life like everyone else. “Notice the title of my book is ‘Unstoppable’, not ‘Bulletproof’,” he tells the captivated crowd.
Vujicic is the master of high-impact sound bites like this. He has a whole arsenal of funny, inspiring, touching, and most of all, motivational quotes (which he writes himself), and fires them off whenever he wants to seal a point he’s making.
But when Vujicic drops his bombs, you never get a sense that this is mere self-promotion to sell more trainings, books or DVDs. This is a man who is clearly on a mission, and he needs everyone to “get it”.
As if his long list of achievements at such a young age is not mind-boggling enough, Vujicic shared another vision. He announces his plan to “wipe poverty off the face of the earth” by using his influence to inspire 100 million people to donate a dollar a month to his NGO work (he started his first NGO when he was 17, by the way).
And yes, he radiates confidence and conviction that he’ll achieve that goal too.
A life of amazing inspiration
To date, Vujicic counts surfing, skydiving, and golf as his hobbies. He’s written 3 bestsellers and founded over a dozen companies and NGOs. Recently, Vujicic embarked on another great adventure: marriage and fatherhood. But despite the incessant requests to speak and demands of family life, Vujicic keeps his priorities aligned to his personal values – God, family, everything else - in that order.
This heady mix of grand visions, high achievements, positivity, no-holds-barred sharing and down-to-earth approachability – all packed into a tiny broken body with a spirit as free as a soaring eagle – has won Vujicic millions of die-hard fans globally.
Vujicic himself is proof of his message: you don’t need to perform or conform prove your value, you just need to be yourself. Your best self that you were created to be.
Evidence of Vujicic’s amazing ability to inspire people across national, religious, social and racial boundaries appeared during the Q&A session after Nick’s talk.
A Muslim lady stood up to say she had flown her husband and children in from Indonesia just to attend his talk in PJ that day. She thanked him profusely for his message of hope and pleaded with him to speak in Indonesia.
Another question was from a 9-year-old boy, who asked Vujicic how he learnt to write and type with no arms and legs. Vujicic answered the boy respectfully and affirmed his courage (one of the themes of this talk that day) to speak up in public.
The final proof of Vujicic’s gift of inspiration must be the Malay lady who insisted to be heard even though the Q&A had ended. When she finally got the microphone, she paid tearful tribute to Vujicic, explaining how she almost couldn’t make it to the talk as tickets were sold out and how God had answered her prayers and made a ticket available. She ended her short speech, thanking Vujicic profusely and yelling “I LOVE YOU, NICK!”
I didn't have a chance to interview the man himself, but I did manage to get a few attendees to share their thoughts.
May Lim, an investment consultant, said she was really impressed by Vujicic’s humility and down-to-earth nature, even though he was such a young and successful person.
Michelle, a fitness instructor, echoed May’s sentiments. She was surprised that Vujicic would share so openly about his vulnerabilities. “He made me realise that I shouldn’t feel sorry for myself, but to have the courage to move on through times of difficulty.”
“One of the things that I learnt from Nick today is not to live in fear. He spoke about having the courage to fail, so that we can have to strength to persevere until we succeed,” says Dani, an aspiring scuba diver instructor.
Perhaps it is what May Tan, a successful entrepreneur, says that best reveals the deep impact that Vujicic has on people: “From Nick’s short talk, I realised that life has a purpose that is beyond just the material or ordinary. This is really something to think about.”
For more information about Nick Vujicic and his message, visit:
