The Incredible Story of Gilad Tsur Mayer Author : Scott J. Green I met Gilad on a Tuesday morning.There he was, a young, full of smiles Gilad Tsur Mayer. a proud owner of multiple successful companies. He is now launching his own category of self-help product, and is happily married to his wife Michal. An impressive collection of achievements for a man just 31 years old. On the surface, the success of Gilad Tsur Mayer may echo the similarities of other successful entrepreneurs. One may assume that Gilad spent his early years coasting through school courses and always being at the top of the class: the classic common story of another successful individual. Below the surface is a much deeper story. It is a story checkered with struggle, loss, humiliation, and resilience. Gilad’s story began 1984, when he was quickly labeled as a gifted child. Children around Gilad were learning to read and write their language while he spent his hours mastering history and geography while speaking multiple languages. The differences were undeniable. “Everybody was thrilled about me.” The boy that seemed so advanced, so ahead, was often praised by his others. He could instantly educate strangers on philosophy and art. The things most people did not know, Gilad seemed to know. He was often described as a “wonderkid”. By now, the people around Gilad knew he was no ordinary child. In 1991,at age 6, several events began to unfold in Gilad’s life. He recalls, “My grandmother, which I loved her dearly, died. My cousin became sick with brain cancer, leaving her handicapped. And my father became ill and hospitalized.” Still a young boy, Gilad remembers the struggle and fear of not knowing what was wrong with him. “You know how your parent sometimes say things such as you will make me sick one day as much as you misbehave?. When it happens, and you are a little boy: it gets you.” Everywhere he turned another struggle would await. All of this chaos and tragedy of a big world was happening inside the small world of a young boy. As Gilad’s school grades dropped because of a lack of focus, so did his morale. Teachers began suggesting he be moved to the delayed class. His mind was filled with questions. Determined the recommendations were wrong, Gilad’s parents would soon have their son’s IQ tested as a compromise. The results were remarkable . “The test showed I was sort of a genius, but I was thinking everybody is bluffing me to make me feel good.” However, Gilad’s genius label had no impact on his grades. “My grades were a disgrace to the paper I wrote on.” he grins. After changing schools in the fifth grade, Gilad’s new teacher made no mention of special treatment for Gilad. Instead, he was discretely placed in a small room with three other kids. “One child didn’t know his father’s name, the other couldn’t speak, and the third couldn’t’ read or write”. Accustomed to failing scores, he recalls receiving a 1 out of 100 on an exam. Shortly after, his teacher explained that he
received the lonely point for somehow managing to write his own name. The moment was humiliating for him. but It was also his turning point, the moment that would shape him for years to come. “I slept all day and stayed awake at night.” Gilad’s world had been turned upside down for so long. During one of those lonely nights he glanced into an old photo album. “There I was. A wonderkid at three years old, a precocious boy at five.” Gilad wept. “And then marvelously, it clicked. All the pain and things that made me look so bad were a gap that couldn’t be bridged. I repressed that story for so long. Only in retrospect you can see things clearly.” In that moment, Gilad dedicated the rest of his life to knowledge, not depending on others to give it to him, but rather to pursue it on his own. He read. He searched. He learned. He took every opportunity available to make himself the best he could be. He soon left behind the voices telling him he was not capable. He taught himself how to learn. It was Gilad’s decision to take his future into his own hands that lead to the success he has now found. It is for these reasons that Gilad is now introducing his own self-help product, for young adults as he was, wouldn’t suffer as he.