What Stephen Hawking Said To Me About Our Brief Moment In Time

Somewhere in the Cosmos: Circa, 1989.

In 1988, Stephen Hawking published, A Brief History of Time. A book that while I claimed that I read, I had no idea what in the name of Copernicus I was reading. The concepts, analogies and metaphors were so far over my head, so far over my pay grade, so hard for me to wrap my frontal lobe around, that it turned out to be one of the turning points in my life and my career.

So rare is it that in our lifetimes, we meet only a handful of people that we really can point to as having been an inspiring and influential part of who we are. And while there are so many more that have influenced us over a lifetime, maybe 8 or 10 stand out, as we reflect at our own brief history in time.

Stephen Hawking has been one of those people in my life.

It was 1989, by the time I read the book and had been reading the newspaper reviews about the book. This was before the Web was born, so gathering more info on Hawking and his work included trips to the library and scanning books. It was in these months that helped me convince me that I needed to go back to college. I was 31 years old, married, our first baby and a new job in the executive search field having left the homebuilding industry, records showed I had a whooping 5 college credits to my name over the prior 15 years from various programs. It was time to raise my game. I knew it and my wife knew it. And for what ever reason, Hawking's book, his story, his disability, his quest to study such a vast field with the struggles he had caught my attention and struck a nerve with me--a nerve that told me I needed to learn more about...well everything.

By early 1990, I was enrolled in college as a part time student and started my quest to secure more knowledge, secure a bachelors degree and do what I needed to do for me. Over the next 14 years, I earned 3 degrees in psychology and behavioral science, in the end, having become just a little obsessive about learning more. I read every book Hawking wrote along the way. And I read about astronomy, cosmology, geology, psychology, anthropology, biology, sociology, chemistry, geometry and any "ology" I could find.

Hawking said to me--in his ideas, his philosophies, his research and reasoning methodologies--that my ability to think vibrantly, vastly; to be fearless of the outcome or awareness that new ideas may bring to me; to study and observe nature and human nature and universal laws without judgement, without trying to make a case for or against, but to consider all points of view, were the words he spoke to me. His quest, his tenacity, no doubt, was far more profound and genius than anything I could imagine, but he was driven by not only the quest for meaning and structure, but to prevent himself--his physical body--from disintegrating in a chair before he was 40. A goal larger than himself was what he needed to keep himself from turning to dust. He was driven to make an impact on the world with this ideas, his theories, his drive. And so he did.

Over the past 30 years, since I read his first book and learned about this complex man--bolted and taped to a wheelchair for most of his life--my world, my passion for science and research; my curiosity for wanting to know what lies beneath or what flies above, has been influenced by his willingness to push his boundaries to the limits. He inspired me to push myself to extend my knowledge, to write books that reflected ways to improve our lives. He encouraged me to join the ranks of the scientific community and engage in research projects through academic achievement and pursuit; and to share ideas in a way that others can consider...just for a brief moment in time.

And, ironically, only a brief few weeks ago, prior to Hawking's death, I decided to return to a solo retained search practice, naming it New Frontier Search Company--a name influenced by this inspiring scientist I have admired. I am grateful that he lived in my lifetime, and as the saying goes, "when the student is ready, a teacher will appear." So off I go... into the New Frontier.