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Demotivation Posters

When demotivation posters is what it takes to get a youth back on track

My neighbor Vivian had been having lots of problems with her 16-year old son Derk. Ever since her husband passed away two years ago, her teenage son had become a nightmare turning to drugs at just fifteen. Vivian, thinking that the absence of a father figure in the house might be to blame got Derk enrolled in a number of youth programs where he often went on great recreations with friends such as camping, kayaking and mountain climbing. But these were not enough to provide the much needed inspiration or motivation for Derk to quite his addiction. 

His drug problems persisted and Vivian's nightmare only got worse. She purchased a lot of motivational posters, you know, those inspirational prints with words like  "Keep dreaming - 'cos you will achieve your dreams" and "With a little bit more effort, you can be where you want to be" which Derk gladly placed in his room. He had promised Vivian that he was bent on giving up drugs, and though he often saw a therapist, the results were far from encouraging, leaving Vivian in a state of demotivation and constant despair.

Vivian suspected that Derk's friends were largely to blame for his continuous drug use. The last thing she wanted to do was dictate to him who he could hang out with as this was bound to lead to sever friction at home. Derk had promised his mum that he was going to quit drugs before his seventeenth birthday. He said he was trying his best and had spoken of plans to go to college, study engineering and get a nice job after graduation. But Vivian knew he needed to do much more if any of these were to come true. Derk was far from a serious chap and like most teenagers needed to be motivated or coerced into getting the job done most of the time.

One morning Vivian received a demotivation products catalog in the mail. They looked quite interesting, this being the first time she had seen such stuff. Demotivation posters that touched on a wide range of themes and that seemed very different from the motivational posters she had previously bought for Derk. Caustic and thought provoking in nature, these demotivation posters presented motivational quotes from a satirical point of view. She instantly had an idea - these would be nice gifts for Derk's seventeenth birthday.

Vivian selected three of the demotivation posters and ordered them within a week. Derk's birthday was just two months away. When they arrived, she nicely hid them for the very precious day. On Derk's birthday, Vivian gave the three posters to him kissing him happy birthday. Now, he was very perplexed that these were all his mum could get for him. Later that night in his room Derk read what was on the posters in detail. What could they mean, he wondered. On the first of these demotivation posters were congregated Zebra's with the words: “Conformity - when people are free to do as they please, they often imitate each other”. The second showed a penguin with its wings outstretched and walking. The words beneath were “Limitations - until you spread your wings, you'll have no idea how far you can walk”. And the third showed a cup full of French fires and the words “Potential - not everyone gets to be an astronaut when they grow up”. Derk began to weep.

Without Vivian having to explain what message she wanted to get across by these demotivation posters, Derk instantly understood that his mother was so frustrated by his drug problem and lack of commitment to school. He had so much conformed to the wishes of his friends and ignored advise she had given to him. How on earth could he dream of going to college without hard work. Like the penguin he would never know how hard it is till he tires. He may end up trying forever and never get to see college. And, as for becoming an engineer, not everyone achieves that and even those who do have to work hard. His mother's heart had communicated to him through the demotivation posters. 

The good news is that difficult as it may have been, Derk did give up drugs and went to college. Engineering? Well, not quite. He ended up opting for medicine and is currently a freshman at college. There couldn't be a happier ending to this tale. Vivian's heart was gladdened and after she finished narrating this story to me, I decided to get one of the demotivation posters for my son, the one which reads "Potential - not everyone gets to be an astronaut when they grow up". Well, not that he's into drugs or anything like that, far from it, but he may just end up being an astronaut!

Posters-ArtPrints-PictureFrames.com thanks Marshall Chapman for this article of his.

October 2004

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