Interview with Elizabeth Torres

Age shouldn’t even be considered an obstacle on the road to success anymore. Whether you’re young or old, you can achieve great things. Elizabeth Torres is a testament to this. Elizabeth is twenty years old, a motivational speaker, poet, and painter. She has accomplished so much in a short time because she started at an even younger age. Elizabeth was born in Bogota, Colombia. She had a talent in the arts at a very young age. By six years old she was already publishing poetry and showing the world her artistic skills. Her poetry and art helped her gain recognition. At age ten she published a book entitled, Questions without Answer. This book became a best seller in Colombia. Questions without Answer brought even more recognition and awards to Elizabeth. She was invited to various universities and communities in the US to share her story and to motivate others towards their dreams.

Today, Elizabeth resides in New Jersey. She now shares her story with high school and college students around the United States. Elizabeth also recently published another book of poetry called Because the Flame is Alive.

Lyved received the opportunity to ask Ms. Torres a few questions about success and life.

You have accomplished a lot at a very young age, do you believe age is just a number?

In my opinion, we should count not by years, days, hours and minutes… But by heartbeats. Whenever you are doing whatever it is that makes you happy, anxious, adventurous or satisfied…like discovering a new place, meeting with an old friend, traveling or starting a new project, your heart beats of excitement. That’s when you are most alive.

If we sat down and did nothing for a whole year, we would still grow older. What matters is what you make of those years.

As a child, I realized that my life was the result of my actions. If I considered myself too young, I was stuck in the waiting room of life for a few years, and I didn’t want that. So I started to open doors for myself, which takes a lot of discipline and effort, but the results are amazing. I would wake up early in the morning to write poetry, attend to classes, and afterwards, give conferences. Now that I am 20, the age when most motivational speakers are just getting started…I already have at least 12 years of experience.

What is your favorite quote?

I don’t truly recall where I first heard this quote, it’s a latin phrase that I’ve kept close to me ever since: Gutta cavat Lapidem. (The drop hollows the stone). It is an excellent reminder of how our daily lives reflect nature’s perfection. It isn’t strength but perserverance that will allow us to arrive to our destination, no matter what awaits for us along the road.

A second quote I’ve grown very attached to is one that appears in one of the poems in my latest book “Because the Flame is Alive”…. it says, the world endures, “because the flame is still alive”. And as you can see I titled my book the same way. It became my motto. Because it’s been proven that men can survive without food, even without water, but not without oxygen and fire. To me, life is combustion, it is hope, it is love, it is energy…and even though we cannot see it, we belong to it and depend on it. When we breath, we are connected to the world and the world takes from us too, and in this process, our flame breaths. It’s a reminder that we are not alone… Knowing that there is a greater presence, that we belong, and that we are loved, ignites our flame, and keeps us going.

What is the greatest obstacle you ever faced? And how did you overcome it?

Whenever you pursue a dream, or decide to simply step out of bed and do something productive, you’re bound to find obstacles. I see them as challenges that make you earn your results. I’ve had hundreds of doors closed on my face since I was a child, because publishing companies didn’t believe in the words of a child… I always struggled to get my work out there, to share my message, to make time for everything that a dream requires. Then, when I traveled to this country, I had to learn a new language, and that to me was pretty difficult, but now that I understand it and have the capability of enjoying its beauty, I know it was all worth it. Obstacles are meant to awaken our creativity, they are opportunities to prove our skills, our strength, and our perseverance.

What has been the most crucial factor to your success?

I would say it’s been to never underestimate the opportunities in front of me. While promoting my books I was often invited to college campuses, corporate companies and theaters, but also to little community centers, local radio stations, and family reunions. I enjoyed them all equally, because I learned that from every reunion, big or small, a new door opens. I listened to the advice those people around me had to say, and more connections arrived, more interviews, more conferences. It was an unstoppable chain of reaction. We could sum it up by saying: Keep moving, keep the world interested.

When you set out on achieving a goal, what are your first steps?

Every object around us, from a building, to a car, to a cup of coffee, was first an idea in the mind of someone who dared to try it and make it a reality. You see, success principles are not what you find in expensive books and pay thousands to learn. They are the experiences that life teaches you when you follow the right path, and the clues that it shares with you to guide you and protect your dream. In this case, the principle would be: imagine, believe, act. Or to develop it even further: Develop an idea into a project, create a business plan, do some research, set short term goals to keep track of your progress, and get to work.

You are very positive and happy but is there one thing that really puts a smile on your face?

Of course! The company of my family, my brother’s perfect memory when discussing movies and comedy shows…. walks in new york city, the shakespeare and co. bookstore in Paris…. La Casa de Poesia Silva in La Candelaria, Colombia (a colonial house dedicated to poetry in my country of origin)… I not only smile but sometimes even cry just by listening to a good poem or by being caught by surprise by a good song.

Another reason why I smile every day is because I know that more and more young people are discovering their talents and using them to their advantage, taking control of their lives and making a difference in the world. This makes me smile because it’s always been my dream. To quit hearing about wars and terrorism and dissappointments, and hear once again the song of balance in the universe, and on earth, among men and women.

Have you found your purpose in life?

Ever since I was a little girl I always had this idea in my mind that I would become a renowned writer, a famous artist, and a famous motivational speaker. I would visualize myself traveling all over, presenting my books, giving interviews and speaking to huge audiences. To me, this was the only way I could share a little bit of my flame with the world around me, and give back for all the blessings I have received. I look at myself now and I smile because I know I’ve followed the right path. I’ve listened to thousands of anecdotes of people who have changed because they were motivated by my message. This life I’ve chosen is a great responsibility because it isn’t something I do for myself, I do it for all those who don’t have a voice, so that their voice can be heard too. And if the satisfaction and complete happiness I get after every conference and interview means that I’ve found my purpose in life, then I have. Since there are so many goals yet to be accomplished, I cannot sit to wait and find an answer… When my hands are wrinkled and my feet cannot keep going, I’ll know for sure.

What is the one thing that frustrates you about the young people of the world? Or even people of all ages?

Interesting question… sometimes I get frustrated because of the attitudes of people towards themselves. You know? When they wake up in the morning already accepting failure, because they are petrified of it and so they do not dare to even try and change it. It’s like if they had been programmed to think that failure means the end of the world, when it’s simply a new lesson. Another thing that truly frustrates me and saddens me is that ambitious hunger for power and for material properties, that sometimes even leads to people taking away from their own brothers. It’s something we teach our children, because it’s adults that do it. Children like to share because they are still innocent, they like to enjoy everything around them, amazed as if it were an adventure. I wish I could tell these people: Don’t waste your time damaging and hurting those around you just for material treasures… when you close your eyes, they’re not there anymore.

Do you believe that where you are today does not determine where you can go tomorrow?

Where we are today is without doubt the result of what we worked for yesterday. But it does not determine where we’ll be tomorrow. Tomorrow is different. Tomorrow is hope, it is our new chance to prove ourselves, and change our destiny.

What is next for you?

For this year, I plan to continue promoting my book “Because the Flame is Alive” in the U.S and abroad… I am already working on another book, and several other projects to expand my audience and share my message. I believe that I can set a positive example for future generations, and that I can help young people become leaders, so that’s my greatest goal. I’ll soon be traveling to Ireland and London, and in the following 6 months, to Mexico, Colombia and Canada… Wherever there is someone doing something positive, I want to be there to help them… Keep the flame alive in me, and ignite it in others, until we’ve all become keepers of the flame of love, liberty and hope.

For more on Elizabeth Torres please visit her website here.

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This article was published on Wednesday, February 27th, 2008 at 9:43 am and is filed under People, Success. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

5 Responses to “Interview with Elizabeth Torres”

1. Andrew says:
   February 27th, 2008 at 11:41 am

   I would like to thank Elizabeth for taking the time to do this interview.

   Thanks,

   Andrew

2. Sj says:
   February 27th, 2008 at 10:53 pm

   “You see, success principles are not what you find in expensive books and pay thousands to learn. ”

   Extremely true

3. Andrew says:
   February 28th, 2008 at 7:23 am

   Sj, that struck a cord with me as well.

   -Andrew

4. Karolis says:
   February 29th, 2008 at 8:27 am

   I agree with SJ. I also liked this one:

   “Where we are today is without doubt the result of what we worked for yesterday.”

   and this one:
   “In my opinion, we should count not by years, days, hours and minutes… But by heartbeats.”

   She achieved more than most people achieve in their lives and she is still 20 years old. It’s interesting what she will make out of her life in the coming years.

5. Andrew says:
   February 29th, 2008 at 9:13 am

   Yes, her future is very bright. I can’t wait to see what else she accomplishes!

   -Andrew

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