a
In just 13 minutes that he spent on TEDxDonauinsel stage in 2014, he blew us all away with his powerful message and charming personality. This year Andy is coming back to spend some more time on the same stage. Let us introduce you the moderator of TEDxDonauinsel 2017: ImaginAction – Andreas Onea!
1. If he wasn’t a swimmer, he would be: FOOTBALL PLAYER
2. One word that Andy’s best friend would use to describe him: DISCIPLINE
3. He keeps his Olympic medal: IN THE BOX ON THE SHELF
4. Andy’s best habit is: COMMUNICATION
5. The best idea people ever came up with: INTERNET
6. If he could choose one superpower it would be: SWIMMING THROUGH AIR
So what’s new, Andy? What changed in your life since TedxDonauinsel 2014?
I guess to put it all into perspective I’ll have to start by reminding you that in 2012 I had one of the biggest failures as an athlete – I came in 4th at London Paralympics. I had to prove myself a lot of things after that. I somehow managed to convince myself not to give up and then the success came – in 2015 I finished 3rd in the World Championship, in 2016 I finally won my first paralympic medal in Rio and also 2 medals at the European championship.
If you could give your talk at TEDxDonauinsel now, would you change anything?
I think I’d do it the same way regarding the topic. On the other hand, I’d work on my English hahaha. Speaking at TEDxDonauinsel was a perfect fit for me at that moment, I had to say the things that I said.
Where do ideas come from?
Ideas are driven by passion. If you have a passion for something, you’ll come up with the way to do things differently, better.
How do ideas turn into actions?
Always write it down. That’s rule number one hahaha. I have a notebook dedicated for this purpose.
To be honest, I don’t know the universal recipe, I can only tell you how I do it and what works for me. So once I come up with some idea, I write it down, let some days pass and think about it, and then I come back to my notes and make more notes. Finally, after a reasonable amount of time passes I decide if I should act and if I have the resources to do it or no. If yes – I go ahead with it, if not – I wait for better times. It’s all trial and error. Especially in sports.
Is there any brilliant piece of knowledge or wise advice you’d like to share with our readers?
Don’t give up. It does not matter how hard it looks, you have to focus, have a goal and do it. It is as simple as it sounds. The important thing is to know where you are heading to.
Andy’s favorite talk:
a
Andy’s talk at TEDxDonauinsel: