Surfing great inspires pupils
Shaun Tomson invited to Woodridge after fire to share insight from personal tragedy, bestsellers
DRAWING inspiration from his own tragedy to help make a difference in the lives of others, legendary surfer and author Shaun Tomson presented a moving motivational talk at Woodridge College yesterday.
“There is a simple tool – the code method – if you believe it, it can change your life,” Tomson, 61, said.
Considered a pioneer of modernday competitive surfing, Tomson, who tragically lost his 15-year-old son Matthew in a “silly schoolboy prank”, said he was not at the school to “tell you what to do or wave a finger”.
“All of us have an unbelievable power inside of us to write something down [and] when it is written down it becomes true,” he told children in the full Raymond Ritchie Hall.
Tomson’s only biological son, Matthew, died in April 2006 from an accidental death caused by playing the choking game, where a person is choked until they pass out, often with the help of a friend.
“I lost my son to bad choices and that is the primary reason why I do this [motivational speaking].
“It was a split-second decision and it killed him,” Tomson said after his talk.
Ranked one of the top 25 most influential surfers of all time, and placed among the top 10 greatest surfers in the world, Tomson was in South Africa attending the 2017 Corona Open surfing competition in Jeffreys Bay as a commentator.
The 1977 world champion surfer and author of The Surfer’s Code – 12 Simple lessons for riding though life and bestseller The Code – The Power of I Will, Tomson said he had a clear message for those who attended his talks – “what you will, you will become”.
“You can influence other people just by what you say and what you do,” he said.
The Code, hsi latest book, was inspired by a visit to Anacapa School in Santa Barbara in California, US, where Tomson spoke about its predecessor, The Surfer’s Code.
During the presentation Tomson asked pupils to write down 12 lines describing their core values.
The Code –a No 1 teen best seller on Amazon – has 12 chapters with 12 stories about his life as well as practical advice about personal growth and overcoming life’s obstacles.
Born and raised in Durban, Tomson visited 24 schools in the region during March, where he said he reached at least 30 000 pupils. “Some kids will take it [the talk] as a joke but others will take it in.
“I am hoping to do more this year. I need to reach at least 100 000 young people. That will mean at least 1 000 will be empowered,” he said.
In the 1980s Tomson founded clothing company Instinct and a decade later he and his wife Carla co-founded another clothing line, Solitude.
Jason Howorth, head of academics for the intermediate and senior phase at Woodridge, said the main reason for inviting Tomson was to inspire the pupils after the fire which ravaged part of the school last month.
“There is a long process [of rebuilding] ahead and there is a lot of unsettlement, but we will overcome this,” Howorth said.