Anything Is Possible | Steve Robinson | TEDxUniversityofSalford

When you become unstoppable everything is

possible

. Did you know that maybe you knew that? But if not, I'd like to help you realize that by sharing with you my journey of discovery, a journey that began for me in prison, you could call it school. but for me school was like a prison because I couldn't escape and I hated school and I hated school for a good reason because I was bullied throughout my school life but it got worse when I went to high school because I started getting acne, this is one of the only pictures I have at the time because after that my acne got so bad I just didn't want pictures taking school was hell, it was torture, it was so bad that I only attended two days out of five and that wasn't official. mind and on one of my days off I had to go on a friend's motorcycle and it was great.

I loved it and my friend said you can buy this bike if you want, Steve. I want £10 for it. £10. I said 10 was like a million. pound for me I don't have any money I don't have

anything

of value except I had one thing I had an instant camera they were like the predecessor to the digital camera they were great to this day I'm not sure where I bought that camera. I think my aunt gave it to me, but I managed to sell it to my friend's sister for £5. I thought I was halfway to getting on that bike.

Nothing will stop me. I will do whatever is necessary. so I went out and gardened and I ate gardening and I went out and washed people's cars and I ate washed cars but I tried my best and got that £10 and bought that motorbike, isn't it amazing how? we can do everything we can when it's really necessary sometimes in life we ​​have to do the things we don't like to get the things we want this is my bike I was brilliant on that bike finally there was something I was good at and something I had to look forward to at the end of the day and on one of my days on my motorcycle I met this young man called Michael Tai, he was 12 and I was 13 and he also had a motorcycle and he was good on his motorcycle and he could follow me and do the same kinds of things that I could do and together we would go out and have these wonderful, wonderful adventures.

I lived for those adventures, but there was a little boy who wanted to join us on his motorcycle too, the only thing is he wasn't a boy, he was a 30 year old man who wanted to join me, the 13 year old, and my partner Michael, 12 years old, but this one 30 years old. The man couldn't do the things we could do and he couldn't keep up with us and, frankly, he was dangerous, so we avoided him like the plague until April 19, 1982, when I was 18 because that was the day . I couldn't help it anymore because that was the day he thought he could do a daredevil stunt on his motorcycle, jump on me on my motorcycle from a blind hill without me knowing he was there, but he didn't have the skill I thought he had. and he couldn't make the jump and instead he landed on top of me his foot Peg tore my arm off there and then he landed 100 meters away from me his motorcycle then hit my chest it collapsed and punctured both my lungs they ruptured my liver ruptured my gallbladder ruptured my spleen I fractured my pelvis and broke my leg in fact you could say I was in bad shape but it was worse than that I died three times on the operating table I remember opening my eyes and looking up and there was an angel looking at me, that angel was called Janet, by the way, and she was a nurse on ward 16 of Leeds General Infirmary, but she really was an angel, she had piercing blue eyes that looked straight into my soul and she said in a soft voice and gentle Steven you have had an accident on your motorcycle you are in the leader's general infirmary you are going to be fine but you have lost your right arm nonsense I thought I had lost my right arm what are you talking about?

I can still feel it. I can still feel it now. I didn't know back then that there was something called phantom limb syndrome, where people who have lost a limb can still feel that missing limb, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized I knew a lot of people who suffered. something very similar. Phantom barriers. Barriers that prevented people from achieving the things they really wanted to achieve in life. Barriers that seem real, but like my right arm, there are really many people now. We suffer from phantom barriers, not all of us, but many of us take the first step to conquering them is to recognize them now.

Janet and the female staff did everything for me at the hospital, the most personal care and I am a small, ugly, insecure child. And that experience I felt honored, but if you wanted to use a bathroom you had to use a code, there was no option because everyone was bedridden, but one day I said to Janet, oh please, Janet, could you take me to a bathroom appropriate? Janet said yes. "I'll do it," she said, "but when you're done, give me a shout so she can come clean you up." She was so badly injured that I couldn't do

anything

for myself.

Janet Janet I finished, so Janet came to clean me up and then took me away. I went to the sink to wash my hands, now Janet had forgotten that there was a mirror in the bathroom and mirrors weren't allowed in Ward 16 and they weren't allowed for good reason because they were all mutilated and disfigured, but Janet had taken me to the bathroom. staff bathrooms and she had forgotten that there was a mirror in the bathroom and that's when I first saw it. I could not believe what I was watching. All my spots were gone. I thought I knew.

Miss Bots was gone. I was overjoyed. Look. In the mirror again I thought, oh yeah, my right arm was gone, they were telling me the truth, I thought, never mind. Miss Bots was gone, isn't it amazing how we can see the good in what might at first seem like a bad situation? We have choices We can all choose to see the good or the bad in anything You two have the same ability I am no different from you except I have one arm and I am super handsome which always makes you laugh I looked at myself in that mirror.

I was happier than ever. This tissue of euphoria took over me and he had an epiphany and I realized that he was no longer a spotty child. Thanks to all the medicines they gave me at the hospital, he cleared up. my acne, but I also realized that I was no longer shy thanks to all the personal care I received from Janet and the female staff had become desensitized, but they also realized that I was not a weak child because I had overcome trauma important and I had survived, I walked into that bathroom as a shy, insecure, spotty boy, and I came out a strong, proud young man, ready to face the world, but I also realized that all my job opportunities were gone and I thought to myself, is that a good thing or is that it? something bad, I remember the options we have.

I realized that it was a great thing because I would no longer be limited by a 9 to 5 job. No one would tell me what to do anymore, but I would become unstoppable. I would go out and create my own future. my own destiny I would have fun and hopefully make some money along the way I was a one-handed motor mechanic I was very good I was a little slow but I was very good so I was a break dancer and I got paid for it my break group dance was called Chain Reaction have you heard about this thing that no one knows I'm convinced that one of these days someone is going to say I've heard about you it hasn't happened yet but I'm convinced it's going to happen so I got involved with old Juke boxes and Bandidos de an ancient arm I'm fine, I think there may be a pun there.

I bought, sold and restored vintage Juke boxes and vintage bandits from around the world. I have met some. amazing people, but I was a little worried because my education had really suffered at school. I thought what am I going to do about it. I was worried about becoming an idiot or hopeless or hopeless and I thought, well, what can I do? Do I know what I will do? I'll go to night school but it was at night I studied everything Electronics Math Computer programming Furniture refinishing Cabinet making Metal work Carpentry whatever I studied my own Spanish language Whatever I studied it until finally I had exhausted all the night school courses.

I thought, oh no, what will I do now? I thought I know what I'll do. I'll go to college, but you need grades to go to college, right? and I don't have any. but I have a first class honors degree in computing from Leeds Metropolitan University, the first in my family to attend university. I didn't even do it, thank you, I didn't even start until I was 35 and I didn't do it. Graduate until you are 40 you are never too old to learn or the phrase I prefer is it is never too late to educate now for my end of year project I had to create software and I thought well, what do I know?

I thought I knew a lot about jukeboxes, so I created software for a digital touchscreen jukebox that plays MP3s, but I went a step further because I knew about electronics, computer programming, metal work, woodworking, restoration furniture, cabinet manufacturing. I created an entire jukebox and I took that jukebox to college after college. I continued to develop this system and launched my company Robinson's Jukeboxes Limited within the first eight months of trading. I sold 400 jukeboxes. Get in there. I created a million pound product single-handedly. I'll give you one that is definitely a pun, but I realized that I had become unstoppable and nothing was going to stop me, not even my irrational fears.

Many of us have irrational fears, not all, but one of my fears was horses. and I thought I would I'll get over my fear of horses I know what I'll do I'll take riding lessons in 2014 I came fifth in the national dress qualifiers AR fifth with five no's out of 350, in fact last year I came third, I ate horses, that is what he used to say. I absolutely love them. If you've never tried horseback riding, try it just once, but then I want to deal with my big fear, my fear of flying, and I thought, how can I overcome my fear of flying?

I know what I'll do. I will be taking flying lessons so thanks to a charity called the Disabled People's Flying Scholarship and the NHS who made me a C prosthesis. I started flight training, unfortunately that C prosthesis didn't work and failed dramatically at 3 and a half thousand feet I thought oh no, what am I going to do about the prosthetic arm problem? I know what I'll do. I'll make my own prosthetic camera. Don't everyone do that? When the press found out, they took this on. Photo that was in the national media, the headlines said disabled guy takes flight training with a DIY prosthetic.

The other one that I really liked said Robopilot or it was Robopilot. I'm dyslexic since Robo got a double B or a B. I honestly don't know. Sorry guys, you might have to take off my jacket, I'm super warm, no I'm not super war, did you know it was coming? I am a fully qualified private pilot, this is the plane, the flight is called robin 2160, it is a two-seat aerobatic plane and yes, I do aerobatics, so all the awards came. I was awarded the Douglas B Memorial Trophy for my outstanding contribution to disabled pilots. If you don't know who Douglas Bder is, he was a World War II spitball from R and him.

He didn't have legs, so I was awarded the Yorkshire Inspirational Individual of the Year award, but the award I'm most proud of is this one. This is the medal of the British Empire awarded to me by Her Majesty the Queen, the late Queen Elizabeth II, the blessed one. The Queen knew my name. Well, I knew yours, I'll leave it for you to digest, yes, I'm a published author, a dyslexic author, I had a hard time coming up with that title, but I shouldn't have because there's no way to try if I can achieve everything. these things with one arm and I have done much, much more, imagine what you are able to achieve with two.

I'm Steven Robinson, inspirational speaker, one-armed pilot, armless dyslexic author, when you try, anything is

possible

for you too if you choose it. become unstoppable