- Chris Moon, MBE
There’s motivation and there’s motivation. But in the case of ex-soldier Chris Moon, MBE, there is a level of motivation to the nth degree. When you first speak to Chris you can hear, and almost see, the drive that has helped this man overcome almost insurmountable obstacles. Chris, 47, has survived against all the odds – including abduction by Khmer Rouge guerrillas and being blown up while walking in a cleared area of a Mozambique minefield, losing his lower right arm and leg. Less than a year later, he ran his first marathon and has also completed the world’s toughest ultra-marathons. In addition, he has written his biography, One Step Beyond, and a second book, which is about motivation, will be published next spring. Chris has also been a speaker for more than ten years on mindset, motivation and leadership. He is married with three young children.
Can you tell us a bit about your childhood?
I grew up in a little village near Salisbury and was taught about farming. I went to an agricultural college (now the Plymouth University faculty of Agriculture and Food Technology) but I wanted to do something more connected with people so I worked as a volunteer at a centre for homeless young people. It was an amazing experience. I then joined the army and went to Sandhurst.
Working as a volunteer, was the idea of service and motivation part of your character even then?
I think for me there might be some truth in that. I have been talking about the process of achievement for more than ten years and how you achieve things. You need to be someone who makes things happen. We all have choices. You have more choices than you realise. If you can do something to add value to something else, it adds meaning and value to your own existence. I am naturally positive and work on being positive. The price of negativity is too high to pay.
Why did you want to join the army?
I wanted to do something worthwhile and to make a contribution. My father and grandfather were both soldiers for a while. I served in the army for three years and used my military skills clearing landmines.
You were always fit and healthy, what did you do to keep fit before your accident?
I just did a bit of running. I am not a worldclass athlete. Being fit kept me alive. I did gym work, cycling and hill walking.
Tell us about your experiences as a prisoner of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia?
I worked for a charity (the Hazardous Area Life-Support Organisation Trust) in Cambodia. I survived the Khmer Rouge in 1993. It was a challenging experience and I made a documentary on Discovery Alive and met the commander who was supposed to rubber-stamp my execution. There were at least eight or nine men captured after me and they were executed. It was my second day in Cambodia and the UN were running the country. We were told it was quite safe to work in the village but something changed. The Khmer Rouge moved their forces very quickly without any notice and we were basically held up. I was believed to be a foreign military advisor. I was a prisoner for only three days but it was the longest three days of my life. 
My release was a combination of things, including meeting the commander. He was not the commander who executed the others. It was also about taking personal responsibility, choosing the right things and having a strategy. I told myself: ‘I won’t be a victim and must not behave like a victim.’ It’s a nogoer. It can be complex working with people. The documentary team went out to Cambodia and I met the commander again. We had a long conversation. I hadn’t realised just how dire our situation had been.
Do you use those same negotiating skills which helped secure your release today?
I think I have learnt such a lot from that. With challenging or tough experiences you mustn’t focus on the past. It is important to be the way we are 100 per cent and focus on the here and now.
First you have to focus; secondly you have to learn the importance of thinking and understanding about your environment. Third and fourth are the importance of listening and the importance of not being affected by negativity.
What difference did the amputations of your right hand and leg make to your life in terms of motivation?
I was right-handed and when the first feelings came around I remembered the whole thing. I can remember the noise of the explosion ringing in my ears and then I looked … I remember thinking how my right hand was very badly damaged and shouting to back-up to call in a helicopter if they could. I can remember very clearly everything that subsequently happened. I ended up in Mozambique. I thought this might be it and thought about the opportunities I should have taken and all those things. I was aware of the fact that you need to make the best of it when I felt like drifting off. The power of life is one of the most extraordinary things. I knew about running a marathon and long distance running and there are other things you can learn such as running a one arm and one leg ultra-marathon.
How did it affect your family and friends?
I was not married then. My children have only ever known me as not being nearly as well-equipped in the limbs department and so it is not a big deal. They are not bothered.
How successful have you been in terms of pushing the boundaries of prosthetics further?
Fourteen years ago there were no amputees running long-distance. Now I am running a little bit quicker because technology has improved so much. I have done a lot with various charities where I focus on my speaking and training. I am doing a programme for a phone company about how they can achieve more with the time they have got and to focus on goal-setting and to push for the process of achievement.
What is the blueprint for being successful? What are the procedures?
It is not simple. It depends.........
| Comments |
|
