Giva is proud to showcase the essays of all of its scholarship winners. Below is an essay from Jonathan Clark, winner of Giva's corporate scholarship admission to Tony Robbins "Unleash the Power Within" seminar. Giva's hope by sharing these essays is to inspire and help others to realize the joys and benefits of service.
UPW Review
by Jonathan Clark
It has been over 30 days since I was granted the opportunity of a lifetime, winning the Giva Tony Robbins Scholarship Award, allowing me to attend an Unleash the Power Within (UPW) event in Chicago with Tony Robbins. I must say upfront that the impact of my experience at UPW has been absolutely monumental and the colossal changes in my growth and development have been nothing short of amazing.
At UPW, unlike what is commonly thought, Tony did not teach us how to become motivated, because motivation is something that everyone in attendance likely already had or they would not have come. What he did teach us was very specific and actionable skills that will allow us to become the very best version of ourselves in all that we do. Today I am using these skills and leveraging my network to make the grandest strides possible towards the achievement of my professional and community service goals.
What Happened
In the days following attendance at UPW, life has taken on a perspective and meaning that has truly been unprecedented. The level of growth, clarity, insight, and determination that I have experienced is beyond anything I could have possibly imagined nor expected. The first day was meant to guide us in conquering our fears and our self-defeating beliefs about ourselves. Tony Robbins spoke for an impressive 16 hours straight (no exaggeration) providing insight after insight about how to become the very best versions of ourselves. All we had to do is take action to close the gap between where one is currently, and where one would like to be.
"Change is inevitable, growth is optional" – John Maxwell
Tony believed that it is possible to change anything in any person's life, regardless of what it is, as long as there is enough leverage to bring about that change. Tony does not believe that change takes years. Rather he believes that all change happens instantly; the moment we decide to act. It's just that most people take their entire life to come to the moment of actually making that decision. The first step in any action or decision is always the hardest. What Tony aimed to do is to internally within each of us create massive momentum and initiative to get an individual moving in the right direction working towards their goal.
"Success without contribution is failure" – Tony Robbins
Success to me is not a destination, but an ongoing never ending process of improvement. I believe that our success in life comes in two forms. One is in our ability to take our vision and make it real, whether that be in our professional or personal lives. But secondly, and equally as important, our ability to contribute to others in a way that creates a sense of true meaning and fulfillment. Tony continually emphasized this throughout the conference, as the only way to achieve true fulfillment is to contribute and give back.
Over the next six months, I will use this platform granted to me by Giva to create a log as an ongoing written account of that progress. I will execute and perform to the very best of my abilities every pledge that I set forth in my original essay. But I know that it is only through the blessing of help from others that I be able to reach such heights. My prayer is that I am able to give back so much that was freely given to me. Although it is impossible to truly describe in word my experience at UPW, I will do my very best to let my actions speak for themselves as a testament to what transpired. It was truly a gift from the Divine that allowed me to have this opportunity, one for which I will be humbly appreciative and forever grateful.