A Painter's Homage to a Mentor: Brian Tracy's Birthday Portrait
A Special Birthday Present for Brian Tracy
In September 2023, during my visit to San Diego where I had the opportunity to meet Brian, I learned that on January 5, 2024, Brian would be celebrating a significant milestone - his 80th birthday. From that moment on, I began pondering over the perfect gift for such an occasion. It had to be something special because Brian is an extraordinary person.
I asked myself: What do you give someone who has everything? There aren't many options. That's when the idea struck me to paint his portrait. I also considered painting a joint portrait of Brian and his wife, Barbara. I thought that Barbara, for Brian, is his most precious person. She supported him at the beginning of his journey and had to endure all the traveling he did to teach us what he had learned about the principles of achieving success. I am lucky that my Adam, like Barbara for Brian, is not only my life partner but also my best friend.
Unfortunately, the three photos of Brian with Barbara that I found did not fully meet my expectations. The ones I liked were not clear enough, and the clear ones were not what I wanted to paint. I remember watching a video of Brian with Barbara by the Christmas tree multiple times, hoping to capture a frame where both looked as I wished to paint them. Despite going through the video frame by frame, I couldn't find "that" shot. I decided that the portrait of Brian and Barbara would have to wait for another time. After all, my portrait was meant to be a birthday surprise, so I couldn't ask Brian for the photos needed for painting it without spoiling the surprise.
In the end, I chose a photo of Brian that was supposed to grace the cover of our joint book, "Success Mindset: The Key to Achieving Your Goals," and decided to paint that portrait. I removed the background on the computer, chose a different one, and painted the portrait. I finished painting it in December and sent it to San Diego right after the holidays, hoping that my present would arrive by January 5, 2024, i.e., before Brian's birthday.
Along with the portrait, I included a letter to Brian, requesting him to send me a photo of himself with the portrait. I hoped to receive it via email. However, Brian's surprise was different – he took a photo of the portrait and a photo of himself with the portrait, then published them on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram. I only learned about this after some time, and I only saw the Instagram post yesterday, April 20, 2024, when my 19-year-old daughter Victoria sent me the link.
LinkedIn -> www.linkedin.com/company/23-success-principles
Embracing Multidisciplinarity in Passion and Pursuit
I must confess, until recently, I wasn't very active on social media. I always had a lot of work. Not only was I involved in the construction of technological lines for the processing and recycling of plastics, which I have been doing for over 20 years, but some time ago, I also decided to develop my personal passion for painting. And what does Brian say you need to do to be a good painter? ... paint, paint, paint :-) So, I was preparing paintings for various art competitions and exhibitions in Milan, Warsaw, Paris, etc. As you can imagine, my time was limited.
I also didn't quite know how to show the world my other side. All my clients and acquaintances know me as an expert in the processing and recycling of plastics. I specialize in recycling films and PET bottles "bottle to bottle" and in extruding films, but that's not all. I can help you design and implement a complete plastic recycling plant from A to Z. However, very few knew that I paint. Even when I showed the paintings I had painted on social media, my friends didn't believe that I had painted them myself. They thought I was posting images that for some reason... came into my possession. But in 2013, I just decided that I would start painting. Everyone has a hobby, and painting is my passion. However, it felt somewhat awkward to inform my clients that yes, I am an expert in plastics processing, but I also have an artistic soul and paint in my free time. How could I post about technological lines and at the same time about painting? Was I technical or did I have an artistic soul? It didn't seem to fit together.
Discovering the Multidimensionality of Passion But eventually, I decided to take a step forward. I thought, I can't help it, but I am not ordinary and can't just stick to being interested in synthetic materials. But what is normal, anyway? Normalcy is conformism and doing what others do, the way the majority does. Yet, people of success are not like everyone else. They set their own goals and strive to achieve them.
Others don't know that, aside from synthetic materials, I am knowledgeable about many other topics. I am interdisciplinary, like Leonardo da Vinci. You can talk to me about quantum physics, which I became more interested in 2016 when our daughter Alexandra was born. While feeding Alexandra, with Adam out installing technological lines, I watched YouTube videos on quantum physics. I watched one, then another, and got hooked. It turned out that physics wasn't as boring as I thought it was in high school. One of my biggest challenges comes from the fact that I can't limit my interests to one field. Like Leonardo da Vinci, I combine diverse passions: I work on designing and building machines for the processing and recycling of plastics, and my free time is filled with the art of painting oil paintings. Fortunately, I have found a way to dedicate myself to the two main fields that are my passion, sticking to them with commitment. The rest of my interests serve as valuable supplements to my knowledge, which I use in everyday life whenever the need arises.
Exploring Alternative Medicine and the Power of Thought
I also have a keen interest in alternative medicine. Not everyone knows this side of me, but those friends who are aware often turn to me for advice. I laugh sometimes, saying I'm our family's "witch," in the sense of being knowledgeable, of course. I'm what you might call a "green witch," fascinated by herbs and the impact of diet on human health.
The Belief in the Power of Thoughts
I've come to firmly believe that our thoughts can shape our reality. It's not for no reason that people have said for ages, "Don't jinx it" or spoken of self-fulfilling prophecies. Your thoughts become your reality, but more specifically, it's the thoughts plus the emotions we invest in them. Mere thoughts aren't enough; they must be felt, not just said or thought. Nikola Tesla once said, "If you want to understand the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency, and vibration." Speaking of Tesla, I've painted his portrait too, which hangs in my office. I have the original painting of Tesla because, unfortunately, I never had the chance to meet him personally. As for Brian's portrait, the original hangs with him, while a replica hangs in my office.
Preparing Brian's Portrait for Printing
Before sending Brian's portrait, I scanned it at a very high resolution and took it to a print shop to have it printed on canvas. Usually, print shops have canvases of inferior quality made from synthetic materials. Luckily, I found a local print shop that prints on natural cotton canvases. The original portrait was painted on Italian linen canvas, but the reproduction on cotton canvas turned out quite well. I even applied varnish over the reproduction, making it look almost like the original :-) It hangs in my office now.
Dreaming of Brian's Portrait in Your Homes
My dream is for Brian's portrait to someday hang in the office or home of each one of us who has been changed by his teachings, serving as a daily reminder of the lessons he has taught us over four decades. Remember, he has delved into the subject of "success" for 40 years, and simply reading his books or listening to his lectures is enough; you don't need to look any further. From my experience, a voracious reader and someone who, since learning to read in elementary school, absorbs books daily, I can say that Brian's books offer everything that all those before him, including ancient philosophers and Napoleon Hill, have written about the principles of achieving success. You'll also gain insight into his personal reflections and experiences from years of work and interactions with successful people. In many homes, portraits of Nikola Tesla and Albert Einstein hang on the walls. Shouldn't Brian's portraits be among them? In my opinion, yes. Brian is our Albert Einstein or Nikola Tesla of personal development and self-improvement, deserving a place of honor in the form of a portrait.
My Book with Brian Tracy: A Token of Gratitude
My book, co-authored with Brian Tracy, "Success Mindset: The Key to Achieving Your Goals," represents my heartfelt thanks to Brian for what he has done for me. I turned to his teachings in 2013, during a personal "reset" period in my life. His words echoed in my ears when I was facing challenges, repeatedly telling myself, "You can do it." Despite the odds seeming against me—going through a divorce and being away from my family, unable to relocate because of my then 8-year-old daughter Victoria—I had to find a way to manage. "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are," a phrase I once read on the wall of a small restaurant in Peru, South America, guided me through 2013 and continues to be a reminder whenever I face difficult times.
Impacting Younger Generations with Brian's Teachings
When you ask our 7-year-old Alexandra, "What does a winner never do?" she will tell you, "They never give up." Alexandra is fortunate to grow up with Brian's teachings, hearing them continuously at home.
Brian's Portrait Included in Our Shared Book
I recently asked Brian if he would mind including his portrait in our joint book. Fortunately, Brian was agreeable to the idea. The book is still in progress and will soon be published in multiple languages (you can understand, I had to spend time painting, which limited my time for writing. In recent months, I've not only painted Brian's portrait but also created many other artworks). I've decided to include a printed portrait of Brian in every book, free of charge, not just as part of the book's pages but... as a separate, stiff-card portrait. You can frame it and hang it in your office as a constant reminder of the principles he taught us. Share these principles further. They are universal, applicable to everyone, everywhere, and in every field. I am living proof of this, as Brian's principles work just as well in the construction of technological lines as they do in painting oil paintings, learning to ride a bike, singing, playing music, or engaging in sports. Choose a goal and persistently work towards it. Make at least one step toward your most important goal each day... and... never give up.
Encouragement to Share Your Story
I would be thrilled if those of you who frame this portrait and either hang it on the wall or place it on a desk could send me a photo of Brian's portrait. It would confirm that not only Brian but also I have made a difference. Thanks to me, Brian's presence would extend beyond books and courses to sometimes glancing at his portrait, reminding you of what Brian has taught us. Please share your stories with me about how Brian changed your life. I promise to feature them on my blog and social media pages, and the most inspiring stories will be included in my next book. Brian taught me, and now I must pass the baton forward.
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