#55 Chris Norton: Resiliency in the face of adversity

**Chris Norton** is a former [American football](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_football "American football") [defensive back](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defensive_back "Defensive back") who played [Division III football](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NCAA_Division_III_Football_Championship "NCAA Division III Football Championship") for the [Luther College](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luther_College_\(Iowa\) "Luther College (Iowa)") Norse. His football career ended in 2010 when he became [paralyzed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paralysis "Paralysis") while making a tackle during a kick off in a game against [Central College](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_College_\(Iowa\) "Central College (Iowa)"). He was given a 3% chance of ever regaining movement below the neck but has continued to recover some sensation and mobility throughout his body—including his hands, legs, feet and torso.[\[1\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Norton#cite_note-1) Today he lives in Florida with his wife where he manages his non-profit foundation and works full-time as a motivational speaker.

Chris managed to work hard to defy all the odds and got to a point where he walked across the stage for his graduation. Inspired by the help and dedication of his fiance Chris made his next mission to walk down the aisle to marry the love of his life. Chris has an incredibly inspiring story. In this episode, we talk about the importance of accepting that sometimes life has better plans for you than you had for yourself.  

Chris shares how he was able to take his mess and turn it into a message. We discuss the importance of taking responsibility for your life no matter what the circumstances. He talks about how he made that choice and refused to accept the status quo but also accepting where he was at.

Your future will take care of itself if you take care of today.

We talk about celebrating the little wins in order to keep you motivated and moving forward. There is a balance of grieving the past and simultaneously move forward. Allowing ourselves to feel all the negative feelings rather than suppressing them.

Chris has recently published his new book The Seven Longest Yards. Stay to the end of the podcast for a free gift from Chris.