Jon Pritikin has made it a career helping others find inner peace and inspiration. At schools, he talks about overcoming bullying as a child while on his way to setting two Guinness World Records for feats of strength.
His nonprofit agency, Feel the Power, aims to help children and young adults make important daily choices that “affirm the value they place in themselves and in others,” his website states.
Pritikin recently spoke to Career & Technical Education students at the LoGuidice Educational Center. By video, the motivational speaker discussed bullying and the role students can play in helping others.
“You’re going to go through a season in life where you’ll want to give up. You’ll need someone to step into your life and be a hero to you,” Pritikin said. “At some point, someone at school, at home, or even down the road later in life, will go through their own difficult time. And, believe it or not, you will have to help out and step into someone else’s life and be a hero to them.”
According to his online biography, Pritikin has spent the last two decades traveling the world, speaking to 10 million people across 40 countries. He is among the most sought-after inspirational speakers, sharing his personal story of perseverance.
In 2007, Pritikin set two Guinness World Records; he appeared in the 2009 Guinness World Record Book with the title: “The Tightest Circumference of Two Aluminum Frying Pans Rolled Together with His Bare Hands in Less Than 30 Seconds.”
In his presentation at LoGuidice, Pritikin shared the story of a “little boy who didn’t have a hero.” That boy, he said, had difficulties communicating with others and was bullied in school.
“He would come home after school, hoping things would get better,” he said. “But his parents were always fighting and would go through a really bad divorce.”
As a third grader, the boy was told by a teacher that he would never learn to read, write, or talk. “It devastated him,” Pritikin said of the child.
But the boy didn’t give up. He managed to finish high school and even went to college.
In his second year of higher education, he went to the top of his class and eventually graduated two years later.
“The little boy who couldn’t talk, who became a young man, he went on with his life,” Pritikin said. “And today, that man is me. And that’s my story.”
He continued, “It’s made me who I am, but I wish I would have talked to someone. It could have helped me out. If you’re struggling today, if you’re going through a tough time, there are a lot of people who want to help you out. You don’t have to go through life alone.”
Joe Pagan, LoGuidice Educational Center principal, stressed the importance of acknowledging bullying in school.
“It’s one of those things that we talk about in elementary and middle school, but then we don’t talk about it again. It’s important that we talk about it and revisit that,” Pagan said. “In our jobs here and in your field when you go out into the real world, you shouldn’t be putting up with bullies. And, if you see it, you need to advocate for somebody. Be that hero; be that person who sticks up for somebody because that person will always remember you.”
Pritikin’s presentation at Erie 2-Chautauqua-Cattaraugus BOCES was made possible by a grant obtained through the New York State Department of Education. It was secured by Alycia Lacki, CTE counselor at LoGuidice.
Lacki reminded students of the different resources available in regard to bullying.
“I know sometimes we feel like we can’t talk about these things, but you have people who care about you,” she said.
