Inspired: Pursuit of Progress

by Kelly Clark

After four Olympic Games, I began to reflect on the "Why" of my life as a professional snowboarder. For much of my young life and throughout most of my career, I believed that success would fulfill me. Most people do. I found myself driven for more- more medals, more exposure, more sponsors, and more people praising me for my performance. I realized that somewhere in the midst of successes and failures, accolades and achievements I lost myself. As I took inventory of all of it, I discovered that success did not equal fulfillment and if I didn't start living from a healthy place, my influence would end when my career did.

It is easy to look at the lives of professional athletes through the lens of fame. This lens filters out the hard stuff and paints a picture of a life without process- But, life is all about process. In this book, I set out to define what motivates me while helping others discover what might be motivating them. I help people change the "rose-colored" lens that leaves them apathetic and entitled, to a lens that brings the whole picture into focus.

This book begins at the pinnacle moment in my career thus far- The Salt Lake City Olympic Games. From there, I journey back to the plastic snowboard my dad bought me when I was seven years old and describe the highs and lows that have marked my career. As the book develops, I identify obstacles, struggles, and hindrances to success, while providing strategies to overcome them. I build in foundations of belief, hard work, and consistency, all built around the one thing that every person must discover no matter what they do- WHY?

Genres: Nonfiction, Sports

192 pages, Paperback

First published December 19, 2017

About the author

At thirty-three years of age, Kelly is a four time Olympian, three-time Olympic medalist and the winningest athlete in snowboarding history. She is a trailblazer and dominant force in the sport of snowboarding, continually innovating and “raising her own bar” in every competition, but her success is more than medals on a shelf. Kelly’s pursuit of greatness inspires others to push the envelope of innovation. She wants her life to be the message.

It is no secret that Kelly is a woman of faith and purpose and it is seen in her life. She consistently makes it about more than just herself and strives to inspire people everywhere to live their dreams. Kelly wants the height of her success to be the foundation from which others are launched. “The greatest legacy I could leave would be to see my ceiling be the floor for the next generation. It is bigger than me, but it can start with me.” I have found in a performance-driven culture, it is difficult to find true meaning apart from success on the podium, but I want people to see that success is an inside job.” Her authenticity and integrity is refreshing, piercing through the noise.

Reviews

[Jeff Lamb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read.

Inspirational but more interesting. I enjoyed her writing style, it wasn’t my favorite, but it kept me going to the next. Her story is definitely unique. I would highly recommend this to young adults or teenagers first. She would be an amazing person to bring in to a high school to have her talk to the students. Overall I really liked it. Quick read for sure.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Kelly's perspective on competition, personal growth, faith, life, friends and winning. Success must be well defined if we are to avoid unhealthy patterns. I look forward to the generation of athletes "raised" by Kelly - their attitudes of cooperation and competition will drive the sport to the next level every season. ❤️