Impossibility does not even have to have a definition next to the word. Anything can be accomplished! And yes, that means that each day you are pushing yourself a little bit harder. People equate pushing yourself with pain, but it is not pain at all.

Pain is suffering. We only suffer if we don't push through what we perceive to be pain. Any act of overcoming our disability is a self-inflicted action. We are aware of the pain because we control it by how hard we push. It's only by pushing that the suffering is reduced.

To reduce actual pain, we must engage what we perceive pain to be. Like most things in life, we don’t realize what something truly is or its impact until after the fact. We have to go on the journey first. It’s after the fact, upon reflecting, that we see what actually was and why we thought the way we did.

We are given exactly what we can handle. It’s up to us individually to find and achieve the possible success. What has happened in our lives is exactly what has created us to be who we are. We owe it to ourselves to embrace our situations positively because an optimistic attitude is always the first step towards eliminating every perceived existence of pain.

So I found 11 high-volume publishers in NYC.  I've got their addresses and phone numbers.  All of them are in easily commutible distance once I get in the city.  Now I just got to have the guts and just go.  I got nothing to lose, right?

I'm finalizing my package now and don't want to rush putting the final touches on how I have chosen to represent An Uncharted Life and all the hard work that has gone along with it.

Here's the plan.

Greg's marketing package for An Uncharted Life:

1. Introductory letter
2. Two pictures attached to the letter (one marathon shot and the other as a Children's poster child when I was 4) to show the before and after effect
3. My bio
4. My business card with all contact information, including this website
5. A DVD with a personal introduction from me, explaining the package and its materials in full.  Also included will be 2 of the news stories done on me last month.
6. Two chapters from my book

My plan is to hand deliver it to the secretaries.  Worst-case scenario they tell me how I have to properly submit my package, but the way I see it I have worked too hard to not go the extra mile and speak to someone in person about what I have done with my life and the output that has resulted from the life I have discovered and built.  It may seem scary to do, but embracing my dream and actually reaching towards it feels so much greater than finding solace in knowing the good that could be if I had the opportunity to live this dream.  I'm going to show them my dream.  The strength it takes to do that will also reveal the strength I have gained over the last 22 years.  That's what impresses people and that is exactly why I know my dream will come true.  It's as plain as day when you talk to me.  I just have to believe in myself and actually show them who I am.

Next Tuesday is the day.  As I have been saying, big things are coming!  Stay tuned =)

So, I really hate today. There’s nothing wrong today, it’s just the day that I hate. In a way it is good. It’s a reminder of moving forward…and I have gotten myself so much further in one year.

In a way it is good to look back at the past and remember how happy it made you. There’s comfort in knowing that what you once had was meaningful. That’s why it is so hard to let go and why it hurts so much.

Each experience helps you grow. When one experience ends, don’t shut down in remorse. Let the ending propel you into something new instead of you stunting your growth by mourning a sensation that is no longer there.

Today is the day that I am going to map out my route to visit all the publishers in New York. Last year at this time I was still writing my book that I am now ready to sell…I don’t even think I was 100 pages in at that point.

Moving on is a tricky thing because to do so truly means that you completely shut every door of opportunity for whatever you are moving on from to reemerge. Ever since I finished my book in October, all I have thought about is when I can go to New York and sell it. That is where I am meant to be. Everyone has to move on, and selling this book is one step closer to helping a lot of people figure out how to move on and ultimately find the fulfillment that I have found in my life.

I guess what I am really trying to say in this post is that everybody has a bad day. We can’t avoid them, and we are probably all entitled to them. Just don’t let one bad day ruin all the hard work and progression you have made. Don’t let one event tarnish or determine all the positive events and achievements you have gained.

That is why I need to go to New York. I deserve to celebrate this achievement of finishing a book. I’ve done so much to let one day, and the memory of that day at that, determine my outcome. This is my life, and through it all, I must have done something right.

Now I have to go and clean the house…just like anyone else, even I have chores to do. Plenty more to come. My goal is to share my trip details tomorrow.

Have a great holiday weekend!

I put off mapping out my New York trip, that I want to go on at the beginning of next week, again today. My sister is debating if she wants to transfer to University of Maryland or Towson. She hadn’t really visited College Park yet, but my best friend is in grad school there and doing research in the lab all summer. I also have another friend who has been through hell and back medically for the past 10 months. Seeing each of them were good enough reason for me to head over there on a Friday.

Ajay was in the lab, as I knew he would be. I walked over to his building and he showed me the project he was working on and the other two projects going on in his office. He gets to work with a laser…that could blind you. So cool!

And Cat…I really feel for this girl. She found out over the summer that she is allergic to gluten, meaning she could no longer eat almost all the food she had been eating her entire life. On top of that she has had a handful of other, seemingly unrelated, medical issues that could probably provide storylines for 6 House episodes. At least they would be able to diagnose her right on House…

I hadn’t seen Cat for a long while…I still had her birthday present from September at my house. With my sister going to College Park, it just seemed like a perfect opportunity to cheer her up.

My career is coming together. I’m not worried about it. To me, life is more important to work. When I have to work, I know to keep my responsibilities in check. I never shirk a responsibility of working, I just always try to remember what’s important in my life and it just seemed right to go visit Cat today and show her that I care.

I had a meeting with Northwestern Mutual the other day about both a job opportunity and a discussion about the speaking and advocacy program I have created, and how we can partner to network me so that Determination can become all that it should and needs to be.

This was the first interview-type atmosphere where I was bluntly honest. Usually in interviews you are strategically honest, making sure to prepare and can your answers in a way that you know will universally appeal to the company you are interviewing with. I’ve taken that approach and it has worked in the past, but this time I have worked so hard towards my dream that it truly has become who I am…and they loved it.

They told me that I will be able to join their team anytime, they just want to make sure it is not going to interfere with my ability to grow Determination. …This is crazy. Determination is still an on-the-ground effort, in fact it is still underground in some respects, yet everyone I have met since I launched the site and finalized my program is blown away. Everyone sees this as successful and truly believes I am going to make a true difference. And honestly, that is all I want to do.

My whole life I pushed myself day in and day out to be better and better at baseball. I was a great pitcher and was told I would play pro ball. I wanted to do that for myself: to make enough money that I could live beyond independently and support my family in the process. That is still my goal, but the motivation driving me has grown into something even bigger, and so much more meaningful.

I have a lot of supporters and followers. These people count on me and have been a huge source of inspiration for me to keep doing what I am doing. I’m not going to lie, I have spent quite a bit of time on Facebook the past couple weeks. The reason being because I decided to visit the brain surgery survivors and awareness groups I had joined and was so surprised to see how many new people had joined the group and actively participated in the discussion boards.

Suddenly I found a whole new slew of friends to make and have been happily bombarded with a whole new source of support and love. These people, all of them, are so amazing. Even just in reading my bio I put on my page, that was enough to inspire them. Before we even chatted they were behind me and had joined my own group. I’ve found a deeper meaning to do what I do and I have been spending time connecting with them and getting to know them on a personal level.

These people are very special to me. Each one of them is my friend. Making this program a reality is not for me; it’s for them. I know I have been spending a lot of time talking to them when I can and should probably be doing other things, but talking to them renews my motivation and teaches me exactly where my program needs to be heading after each conversation. I continually learn from them, but the more we talk the more I am reaffirmed that I have been on the right path all along.