INSCRIPTION

THE DIFFERENCE ONE LIFE CAN MAKE – MUHAMMAD ALI

“I AM THE GREATEST” ; THE POWER OF WORDS.

“I am the greatest” became the label of the boxing legend, philanthropist and social activist, Muhammad Ali. He sounded those words in the locker room, in the ring, in front of radio microphones and TV and movie cameras, in newspapers and magazines. Before facing his opponents Ali would give himself some success treatment. He would tell reporters, “I’m going to knock him down in five/He’s going to take a dive/I’m going to sting him like a bee/so he won’t see”. He built a reputation by correctly predicting the round in which he would “finish” his opponents and by “boasting” before his triumph. Muhammad Ali defeated every top heavyweight in his era with the majority of them by knock out; his era has been called the golden age of heavyweight boxing. In fact, Ali was the first and only, three-time lineal World Heavy Weight Champion.

A remarkable thing happened in Ali’s boxing career. When he faced his opponent; Leone Spinks for the first time he forgot to give himself some success treatment; he forgot to affirm that he was the greatest. Guess what? Muhammad Ali was defeated. The second time he faced Spinks, he gave himself the success treatment and he triumphantly regained his title as the heavyweight Champion of the world.

 When Muhammad Ali thought greatness; saw greatness and talked greatness, he became and sustained his position as the greatest in his field. When he lost sight of greatness and never talked greatness, he went down in defeat. The key to changing your world is changing your words. Words are a conduit of power-constructive or destructive; they are not mere expressions but rather a self-fulfilling prophecy.