Jim Kwik turned childhood learning disabilities into memory and speed-reading skills that caught the attention of the 20th Century Fox chairman. He trained executives, got invited to Comic-Con with the X-Men cast, and flew to the Montreal set to help actors memorize lines. The chairman sent him a photo with a note: "I know you've been looking for your superhero school since you were a kid. Here's your class photo."
Chapters
I wanted to run away. I wanted to find my superpower, something that I was good at, and I wanted to find my super friends. How many people believe remembering names is important? Because if you forget someone's name, what's the communication you're sending them that they're not, what, important? How are you going to show somebody you care for their business, their future, their finances, their health if you don't care? And just remember them right? And so I remember someone's name. It led to his business for 20th Century Fox, and it was for the chairman. And I was training him and his executive team on a Friday. And I go there, and because I was in state, because I saw all this Avatar memorabilia, and I saw this movie poster with Star Wars. I was like a kid, right? So I gave my best training ever. And afterwards, they really felt it. He was like, gave me a tour of the whole place and everything. And I saw this movie poster of Wolverine. This, for me, is a big deal. Wolverine coming out. I was like, wow, I can't wait for that film to come out. And he picks up, the chairman picks up the phone, and five minutes later, I'm in the Fox studios with 3D glasses watching Hugh Jackman fight all these super ninjas, right? And I'm in my bliss. On a Friday afterwards, he comes to me and says, jim, how was the movie? I was like, it's great. Thank you so much. I tell my story how I grew up with learning disabilities. I taught myself how to read by reading comic books. My favorite comic book were the X Men, Wolverine and the X Men. And not because they were strongest. It's because they didn't fit in. Because I felt like I didn't fit in growing up as a kid. Does that make sense with this disability and the boy with the broken brain? And the highlight of the comic books for me was when I read that the school for the gifted for the Superheroes for X Men was in Westchester, New York. It's a suburb of New York City, and that's where I grew up. So when I was nine years old, I used to ride my bicycle all around the neighborhood trying to find this school. Because when you're the boy with a broken brain, you don't connect with a lot of people because you don't feel like you have a lot to offer, right? So I used to do that. I'm telling him this story, the chairman, he's like, jim, I know. You're like, superheroes. You want to go to Comic Con. How many people are familiar with Comic Con? Right. Tens of thousands of people getting together in San Diego dressed up like superheroes. I was like, when is it? He's like, today, Friday, Saturday, Sunday. And then I was like, he's like, jim, do you want to go? I'm going tomorrow. And he was like, oh. I was like, oh, you're going tomorrow. I want to go with you. So he picks me up Saturday morning and instead of driving down there, we get on his plane. And I swear to you, on that plane is the entire cast of X Men. And they're going to surprise Comic Con, right, with their presence for the new movie that's coming out. And I spend the entire, like, I go on there and I see Wolverine and Patrick like, you know, Professor X, I'm sitting between Jennifer Lawrence and Halle Berry going to Comic Con, right? And we spend the entire day, amazing. We come back, here's the lesson. We come back and Chairman was like, how was it? I was like, best day ever. Thank you so much. He was like, he was like something else for you. I'm like, I don't want anything else. What can I do for you? He was like, they really loved you. How would you like to go to Montreal? And they were filming the last 30 days of the new movie. I'm like, oh, wow, I've never been on film set. I would love to do that, but what can I do for you? And he says, jim, just do what you did with us. Just share. Teach them how to speed, read scripts, memorize their lines faster, be present and focus on set. And I was like, oh, I could totally do that. Sunday morning, we're on what they call the X jet and we're going to Montreal and I'm brain training these amazing individuals that inspired me like growing up, right? And I got to see like on set, it was actually taking place at the school. And I got to see my real life heroes come to life in front of me as a nine year old boy. Now when I got home, there was a package waiting for me. I opened up. I don't know if you could put this slide on, please. I open it up and there's this photograph on the screen. There's a photograph of me and the entire cast of X Men and even better then Holly Berry and Jennifer Lawrence and everything that's on there was the note from the chairman. It said this. Jim, thank you so much for sharing your superpowers with all of us. I know you've been looking for your superhero school since you were a kid. Here's your class photo.
