Friday Forward

Friday Forward Plot Summary

Introduction

The morning light filtered through the blinds as Sarah stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. "Another day, another mountain to climb," she whispered to herself. Like many of us, Sarah felt stuck in a cycle of unfulfilled potential—knowing she was capable of more but unsure how to bridge the gap between her current reality and her aspirations. This sentiment echoes through countless lives, where we recognize our capabilities but struggle to activate them fully. At its core, this book addresses a fundamental human question: How can we elevate our lives by building our capacity to achieve more? Through compelling stories of ordinary people who accomplished extraordinary things, we discover that capacity building isn't reserved for a select few blessed with special talents or circumstances. Rather, it's a deliberate practice available to anyone willing to cultivate their spiritual, intellectual, physical, and emotional dimensions. These four capacities form the framework through which we can transform our potential into achievement. The journey ahead invites you to examine your own life through these lenses. You'll encounter individuals who overcame seemingly insurmountable obstacles by developing these capacities, and you'll gain practical insights for implementing similar approaches in your own life. The path to elevation isn't about dramatic overnight transformations but rather consistent, intentional growth across all dimensions of your being. As you turn these pages, you'll discover that your greatest limitations often exist only in your mind, and your capacity to achieve is far greater than you've imagined.

Chapter 1: The Power of Purpose: Building Spiritual Capacity

Michael Weisser, his wife Julie, and three of their five children had just moved to Lincoln, Nebraska, where Michael would serve as cantor and spiritual leader of South Street Temple. Their welcome to the community was anything but warm. As they unpacked, the phone rang with an ominous message: "You're going to be sorry you moved in, Jew boy." Days later, they received a package of hateful anti-Semitic materials with a business card from the Ku Klux Klan that read, "The KKK is watching you scum." The police identified the likely culprit as Larry Trapp, the local Grand Dragon of the KKK chapter—a double amputee who had lost his legs to diabetes. Instead of responding with fear or anger, Weisser took a remarkable approach. He began calling Trapp every Thursday at 3:00 pm, leaving messages of love: "Larry, there's a lot of love out there. You're not getting any of it. Don't you want some?" After weeks of these calls, Trapp finally answered, screaming profanities. Weisser calmly offered to drive him to the grocery store, knowing Trapp was disabled. The calls continued until one day, Trapp called Weisser asking, "Is this the rabbi?" When Weisser confirmed, Trapp said, "I want to get out of what I'm doing, and I don't know how." Despite his family's concerns, Weisser visited Trapp that night. During their conversation, he learned about the severe abuse Trapp had suffered as a child. It became clear that Trapp's hatred stemmed from never having felt loved. Over the next year, Trapp transformed, making amends in the community and speaking about the dangers of hatred. When his health deteriorated, the Weissers invited him to live with them—an offer he accepted. Before his death a year later, Trapp even converted to Judaism. At his funeral, the synagogue was filled with people who would never have expected to be there just years before. This extraordinary story demonstrates the power of spiritual capacity—knowing who we are at our core and what values guide our decisions. Michael Weisser's clarity about his spiritual values allowed him to respond with love rather than hatred, to seek understanding rather than judgment. By doing so, he not only transformed Trapp's life but created ripples of change throughout his community. Spiritual capacity gives us the foundation to live with purpose, to make decisions aligned with our deepest values, even when—perhaps especially when—those decisions are difficult.

Chapter 2: Disciplined Minds: Cultivating Intellectual Growth

Ann Miura-Ko grew up as a first-generation American, the daughter of immigrant parents who sought better opportunities in the United States. Her father, a rocket scientist at NASA, instilled in her one principle that would shape her future: the importance of giving a "world-class effort" in everything she did, no matter how trivial. From childhood, he would regularly ask if her effort in anything was "the best she could do." After struggling with extreme shyness, Miura-Ko eventually became an elite high school debater. While attending Yale, she secured a financial aid job as an administrative assistant in the dean of engineering's office. On her first day, during a call with her parents, her father reminded her to think about how she could be "world-class" in her new role. When she explained she would just be making copies and filing, he simply responded, "I think you should think about it." Taking his advice to heart, Miura-Ko transformed her approach to these seemingly mundane tasks. She focused on creating crisp copies indistinguishable from originals, used a label maker for filing rather than handwriting labels, and carefully selected the freshest donuts when asked to bring them to the office. Her goal was to make everything a "delight moment" for her colleagues. One day, the dean asked her to give his friend "Lewis" a tour of the engineering school. After providing an excellent tour and building rapport with the gentleman, Miura-Ko learned he was Lewis "Lew" Platt, CEO of Hewlett Packard. Impressed, Platt invited her to shadow him at his company during spring break. After her visit, he sent her two photographs—one of herself sitting beside him, and another of Bill Gates sitting in the exact same spot during his recent visit. This powerful visual left a lasting impression, and Platt became a key mentor in her professional development. Ann Miura-Ko went on to become one of the most respected venture capitalists in America, helping to shatter the glass ceiling for women in her industry. Forbes magazine has called her "the most powerful woman in startups." Her story illustrates that intellectual capacity isn't just about raw intelligence—it's about how we think, learn, plan, and execute with discipline. By committing to excellence in everything, even in tasks others might consider insignificant, we develop the intellectual capacity to achieve extraordinary results.

Chapter 3: Physical Resilience: Pushing Beyond Perceived Limits

At the age of thirteen, Sean Swarner was playing baseball when he heard a pop in his knee. The next day, all his joints were swollen. Shortly after, he received devastating news: stage four Hodgkin's lymphoma with a prognosis of just three months to live. While his friends worried about popularity and fashion, Sean focused on fighting for his life. He used visualization techniques from his swimming training, imagining microscopic spaceships with chemotherapy guns destroying cancer cells in his body. After a year of aggressive treatment that added sixty pounds to his small frame, Sean beat the cancer and entered remission. He resumed life as a teenager, returning to competitive swimming. But twenty months later, during a routine checkup, doctors discovered a completely unrelated cancer—Askin's tumor, which has a mere 6% survival rate. Given just fourteen days to live, Sean underwent treatment so intense he was put into a medically induced coma for each cycle. The radiation was so severe that he lost the use of one lung. Miraculously, Sean defeated cancer again, though he has no memory of being sixteen years old. After college, where he studied psychology with the goal of helping other cancer patients, Sean had an epiphany: to truly make an impact, he needed to "scream hope from the highest platform in the world"—Mount Everest. With only one functioning lung, Sean became the first cancer survivor to summit Everest. Interestingly, an illness forced him to stay behind at camp on his group's first attempt, which failed due to bad weather. After recovering, conditions cleared, and Sean reached the summit on his first try. Since then, he's completed the Explorer's Grand Slam—scaling the highest peaks on all seven continents and hiking to both the North and South Poles. On his last North Pole expedition, he carried a massive flag bearing the names of thousands affected by cancer. Sean's story exemplifies physical capacity at its most inspiring. While physical capacity certainly includes fitness and nutrition, it's ultimately about understanding our body's capabilities and pushing beyond perceived limitations. What makes Sean's achievements remarkable isn't just his physical accomplishments but his mindset—he considers himself "lucky" for the knee injury that likely saved his life and the illness that delayed his Everest attempt. His journey reminds us that our bodies are capable of far more than we imagine, particularly when we cultivate resilience and maintain a positive perspective in the face of extreme challenges.

Chapter 4: Emotional Intelligence: Mastering Relationships and Reactions

Mary-Claire King's story begins with what could only be described as a catastrophic week in April 1981. On Sunday, her husband announced he was leaving on vacation with one of his graduate students—and leaving their marriage. Monday brought news of her tenure, but she returned home to find her house burglarized. To complicate matters further, she was scheduled to fly to Washington, DC, on Friday to present her case for her first research grant to the National Institutes of Health. King's mother had come to town to watch her six-year-old daughter, Emily, during the trip. However, shortly after arriving, her mother accused King of being responsible for her family falling apart, saying, "How could you do this? How could you not put your family first?" before promptly returning home. With no one to watch Emily and her presentation looming, King called her mentor to cancel the trip. His response was unexpected: bring Emily to DC, and he would sit with her during King's presentation. He even purchased Emily's plane ticket. Thanks to this support, King delivered her presentation and secured the grant for her research project—which ultimately led to the identification of BRCA1, one of the most significant discoveries in breast cancer research. King has continued this vital work for over thirty-three years, saving countless lives. King's story reveals several crucial aspects of emotional capacity. First, the importance of mentors who push us forward in our darkest moments, rather than giving us an easy out as friends might do. Second, the reality that everyone faces difficult periods—what matters is how we respond. Can we maintain perspective and keep moving forward? As Thomas Fuller noted, "the darkest hour is just before the dawn." When things seem unbearable, a breakthrough may be just around the corner. Emotional capacity encompasses how we react to challenging situations and the quality of our relationships. Mary-Claire King could have given in to the overwhelming circumstances—her marriage ending, her home violated, her mother's criticism, her childcare plans collapsed. No one would have blamed her for postponing her presentation. Yet her emotional resilience, combined with the support of a key relationship, enabled her to persevere. This decision not only advanced her career but ultimately contributed to saving millions of women's lives through her groundbreaking research.

Chapter 5: The Habit of Excellence: Small Actions, Remarkable Results

Hal Elrod experienced a professional near-death experience during the 2008 financial crisis. His speaking engagements and coaching clients vanished, and he quickly accumulated $425,000 in debt despite having just bought a house and gotten engaged. His downward spiral was so severe that he contemplated suicide. Seeking inspiration, he began studying the habits of high achievers across various fields—artists, athletes, and business leaders. What he noticed was striking: almost all of them had morning routines with similar elements. Unable to decide which elements were most important, Hal created his own comprehensive morning ritual that incorporated all of them. With his wife's help, he named it "The Miracle Morning." As he implemented this routine, his life began to transform. He eventually wrote about his experience, and his book became a bestseller, creating a community of productive early risers worldwide. The six key elements of this life-changing routine, which Hal called his Life SAVERS, include: Silence (meditation, prayer, or reflection), Affirmations (positive statements to build confidence), Visualization (mental imagery of desired outcomes), Exercise (even just a few minutes to elevate heart rate), Reading (at least ten pages of personal development material daily), and Scribing (daily writing or journaling). Hal actually wrote his book during his morning routine. In 2016, Hal faced another challenge—an aggressive form of cancer with only a 30% survival rate. He credits his established morning routine as playing a critical role in his battle and eventual remission. His research showed that most high achievers with sustained success have a morning routine. They rise early to play offense rather than react defensively to the world around them, starting each day with intention and focusing on what matters most to them. Hal's story demonstrates how small, consistent actions can lead to remarkable results. Excellence isn't achieved through occasional heroic efforts but through daily disciplines that compound over time. By implementing his morning routine, Hal transformed not only his own life but the lives of hundreds of thousands of others who adopted similar practices. The habit of excellence begins with intentional choices about how we spend our time, particularly those critical first moments of each day when our willpower is strongest and our minds are clearest.

Chapter 6: Breaking Barriers: Overcoming Self-Imposed Limitations

Roger Bannister made history on May 6, 1954, when he broke the four-minute mile barrier with a time of three minutes, fifty-nine and four-tenths of a second. Until that moment, many believed running a mile in under four minutes was physically impossible. Yet remarkably, numerous other runners broke the same barrier in the years that followed. While improved training, coaching, and technology played roles, psychology was equally important—these runners now knew the impossible was possible. Today, elite high school runners routinely accomplish this feat. More recently, Oregon runner Justin Gallegos set a goal that might seem modest by comparison: to run a half marathon in under two hours. However, Justin faces a unique challenge—he has cerebral palsy, making running both a joy and a physical struggle. As a child, Justin used a walker and underwent physical therapy to improve his gait. In high school, he began competing in long-distance running, catching the attention of Nike. He helped the company develop shoes designed for runners with disabilities. Justin's perseverance paid off when Nike made him the first professional athlete with cerebral palsy to receive a sponsorship contract. The company surprised him with the offer during what he thought was a video shoot for World Cerebral Palsy Day. When a Nike director presented him with the contract after a practice run, Justin was moved to tears—as are most people who watch the video of this moment. Justin expressed his amazement at the journey: "I was once a kid in leg braces who could barely put one foot in front of the other! Now I have signed a contract with Nike Running!" His determination to break the two-hour half marathon barrier continues to inspire athletes and non-athletes alike. His story exemplifies how our limitations are often self-imposed rather than physical realities. Just as Bannister showed the world that the four-minute mile was possible, Justin demonstrates that cerebral palsy doesn't define what a person can achieve. Breaking barriers begins with challenging our assumptions about what's possible. This principle applies far beyond athletics. In our careers, relationships, and personal growth, we often accept artificial limitations without testing them. We believe we're "not creative enough," "too old to start something new," or "not the type of person who can do that." Yet the most significant barriers to our achievement typically exist in our minds rather than in reality. When we recognize these self-imposed limitations for what they are—mental constructs rather than physical facts—we open ourselves to possibilities that were always available but previously invisible to us.

Chapter 7: Meaningful Connections: How Relationships Shape Our Success

In 1991, when Rabbi Michael Weisser moved with his family to Lincoln, Nebraska, to become the spiritual leader of South Street Temple, their first interactions with the community were far from welcoming. They received threatening phone calls and hateful mail from Larry Trapp, the local Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan. Despite the danger, Weisser responded in an unexpected way—he began leaving messages of love on Trapp's answering machine: "Larry, there's a lot of love out there. You're not getting any of it. Don't you want some?" After weeks of these calls, Trapp finally answered, screaming profanities. When Weisser calmly offered to drive the wheelchair-bound Trapp to the grocery store, Trapp declined but seemed touched by the gesture. Eventually, Trapp called Weisser asking for help to escape his life of hatred. During their first meeting, Weisser learned about Trapp's traumatic childhood of severe abuse. Over the next year, Trapp transformed, making amends in the community and speaking against hatred. When his health deteriorated, the Weissers invited him to live with them until his death a year later. Trapp even converted to Judaism during this time. The Harvard Study of Adult Development provides scientific backing for the importance of such connections. Following two populations for seventy-five years, researchers analyzed blood samples, brain scans, and self-reported surveys to determine what factors most contributed to a happy, fulfilling life. Their unequivocal conclusion: good relationships are the primary determinant of happiness and health. As Robert Waldinger, the study's director, summarized: "Good relationships keep us happier and healthier. Period." Importantly, the research showed that it's not the quantity of relationships that matters but their quality—defined by authenticity and vulnerability. During life's inevitable challenges, leaning into meaningful relationships rather than withdrawing from them proves crucial to resilience and recovery. Weisser and Trapp's story illustrates how relationships can transform even the most entrenched hatred into understanding and love. While most of us don't face such extreme circumstances, we all encounter difficult relationships that test our capacity for empathy and connection. Whether in business or personal life, engaging with others as complete human beings rather than as functional roles creates the possibility for meaningful connection. Such connections not only enhance our daily experience but may actually help us live longer, healthier lives. In our increasingly digital world, where social media "likes" substitute for genuine interaction, intentionally building authentic relationships becomes even more vital to our well-being and success.

Summary

The journey through these stories reveals a profound truth: our capacity to achieve is far greater than most of us realize. From Rabbi Weisser turning an enemy into family through love, to Ann Miura-Ko transforming menial office tasks into a pathway to excellence, to Sean Swarner conquering Everest with one lung, these individuals demonstrate the extraordinary potential that lies within each of us. Their accomplishments weren't the result of special talent or luck, but of deliberately building capacity across spiritual, intellectual, physical, and emotional dimensions. The key insight that emerges is that capacity building isn't about dramatic transformations but consistent, intentional growth. Hal Elrod's morning routine, Mary-Claire King's perseverance through her darkest week, and Justin Gallegos's determination to run despite cerebral palsy—all exemplify how small, daily choices compound into remarkable achievements. Our limitations are rarely as fixed as we believe; they're often self-imposed boundaries waiting to be challenged. When we recognize our own capacity for growth and surround ourselves with relationships that nourish rather than deplete us, we create the conditions for genuine elevation. The path forward isn't about seeking quick hacks or shortcuts, but about the patient work of expanding our capacity across all dimensions of our being. As these stories teach us, the process of becoming more—more purposeful, more disciplined, more resilient, more connected—is itself the reward.

About Author

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Robert Glazer

Robert Glazer is the founder and CEO of global performance marketing agency, Acceleration Partners. A serial entrepreneur, Bob has a passion for helping individuals and organizations build their capacity to elevate.Under his leadership, Acceleration Partners has received numerous industry and company culture awards, including Glassdoor's Employees' Choice Awards (2 years in a row), Ad Age's Best Place to Work, Entrepreneur's Top Company Culture (2 years in a row), Great Place to Work & Fortune's Best Small & Medium Workplaces (3 years in a row) and Boston Globe's Top Workplaces (2 years in a row). Bob was also named to Glassdoor's list of Top CEO of Small and Medium Companies in the US, ranking #2.A regular columnist for Forbes, Inc. and Entrepreneur, Bob's writing reaches over five million people around the globe each year who resonate with his topics, which range from performance marketing and entrepreneurship to company culture, capacity building, hiring and leadership. Worldwide, he is also a sought-after speaker by companies and organizations on subjects related to business growth, culture, building capacity and performance.Bob shares his ideas and insights via Friday Forward (https://www.fridayfwd.com), a popular weekly inspirational newsletter that reaches over 100,000 individuals and business leaders across 50+ countries. He is the host of the new podcast Elevate with Robert Glazer, where Bob sits down with leaders, thinkers and authors to discuss personal growth and helping others live their best lives. Bob is also the author of the international bestselling book, Performance Partnerships. Outside of work, Bob can likely be found skiing, cycling, reading, traveling, spending quality time with his family or overseeing some sort of home renovation project. Learn more about Bob at https://www.robertglazer.com.

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