March 2011, 11 months after brain surgery to remove a massive tumor, I found myself in Iraq and Kuwait for 12 days performing for the US military.
What an incredible honor to be able to share my passion and my story formally for the first time.
I almost didn’t take this opportunity due to fear of the unknown and speculation from the media and other influences in my life.
I find we’re conditioned as a society to give into fear and for whatever excuse we give the lack of pursuing our dreams/ goals, we let fear take control of our lives.
They told me not to follow BMX as a career and to just work or go to school.
They told me BMX wouldn’t take me anywhere and I better have a backup plan.
They never told me how to take care of my health or how to create a vision for my life that I can work towards. “They” were not my parents. My parents supported my decision to take a massive risk by dropping out of school and moving away from my family at 17 years old for my BMX dream.
Now I’ve been to over 15 countries, performed for the USA military in Iraq, become friends with my idol Dave Mirra, started my own business, impacted lives around the world, and have spoken to thousands of people from a stage I never fathomed being on.
I share this because I’m a kid from Cape Cod with nothing more than the love and support of my family, my bike, my dream, and the work ethic to put the effort and time in while never settling for anything less than my desired outcome.
Crazy where I am 13 years later after embarking on this chapter of my life. I’m now evolving into a new route on track for a new purpose and new passions but bringing BMX with me everywhere I go, mostly in story but someone in action.
I had/have a lot of odds against me but the most important thing I’ve learned is that we create the reality we think and envision in our own minds.
The actions we take are influenced by that thinking and envisioning. Jim Carey said “our eyes are not just for viewing. They’re also projectors.” Envision the life YOU want and work your ass for it and it can be manifested into your reality.
I’m proof of this concept as I don’t teach theory, I share experiences.
Josh P. 💚🧠✌️