Burns Victim to Billionaire

There's a saying -- "That which does not kill me, only makes me stronger" (Nietzsche).

One of the most successful entrepreneurs today takes this lesson to heart.... Many years ago, he was caught in a large fire. He had burns to 40 percent of his body.

He was also told he would never walk again.

Today, Forbes ranks him in the Top 20 of the world's richest people.

And he also plays a great game of tennis.

He is not the only one who believes that success is often built on failure, even on catastrophe. Often, a catastrophe can be the catalyst which causes people to take the leap that they need to take to make things happen....

The person I'm talking about is Sumner Redstone, the chairman of Viacom. Forbes ranks him as the 18th richest person in the world in their 2001 list.

In 1979, when he was age 55, Sumner Redstone was caught in a fire in a Boston hotel. As well as these burns, he was told he would never walk again, but Redstone didn't buy it. He had too much still to live for.

At the time, Redstone was a small-time businessman with a chain of movie theaters. However, his close brush with death was the spark he needed to spur him on to create an empire which now brings in more than $20 billion in annual revenue.

The main point to this story is, tragedy can sometimes have two sides....

One the one hand, there can be a lot of pain and despair.

But on the other hand, it can also be a catalyst for some to go on and achieve great things....

So, next time things aren't going your way, think of the story of Sumner Redstone's brush with death.... And how your own difficulties could be the spark you need to turn things into a victory!

- Dien Rice

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