Pushing fellow managers beyond the limits Audience: 10 department managers from XYZ Corp. A special meeting was called by the CEO. He asked each manager to present a 5-minute speech about a personal hero. [I am the human resources manager].======================================================= ============================== Purpose: to motivate fellow managers to take targeted and decisive action, which pushes them beyond their current limits.MY WAY======The Fred Hollows Story------------------Quote: "When I saw an opportunity I didn't sit back and we called a commission meeting about it… we got it done.” We sit here today, talking about how we can take decisive action. I can't help but feel a bit of irony in this, and as I researched this encounter I stopped a couple of times to wonder what my hero would think about it. No doubt he would have thought we were bloody idiots, and I have no doubt he would have used those words, if not something stronger. My hero is Fred Hollows, the "eye doctor". The legend of the man Fred Hollows nearly overshadows his work, which is no mean feat considering his extraordinary work and the lasting legacy of the foundation he left behind. There is no doubt that better scientists or more skilled surgeons emerged in Australasia - Howard Florey and Victor Chang spring to mind, but none captured the imagination or personified the great Australian qualities of egalitarianism and larrikinism as much as Fred. Born in Dunedin, New Zealand in 1929 to Christian Social parents, Fred Hollows originally wanted to be a missionary. But as a young man he said... middle of paper... time: "Nothing in the equation is insurmountable. If we can do this, the world will sit up and take notice." The money was raised and the program was a success. Now, the work of the FredHollows Foundation has spread across Africa, Asia and South America. The number of people who have regained their sight exceeds one million. The cancer diagnosis in 1988 didn't stop Fred. He continued to work, as well as drink, smoke and keep up with cricket scores, tirelessly. Fred died in 1993, surrounded by his family, and took an active interest in the development of the programs he had started until his last day. I believe that if, like Fred Hollows, we take a "can do" attitude, we will have the strength of our convictions, we can not only turn this company around, but we can have a blast doing it.