Craig Fitzpatrick

And then depending on who you are and the way that you like to experience stories, you might latch on to one of the three themes more than the others.

The first one is obviously.

It's a hockey book.

It's a book about how I learned to ice skate originally at the age of 37 and then got really into learning hockey from there.

And then eventually played my way onto Team USA as somebody that learned hockey as an adult, which is unusual for anyone.

But for those listening that may be blind or visually impaired and have never tried skating before, believe me, you can do it.

So it's about my journey through hockey, first and foremost.

The second thing that it's about is the leadership lessons that I learned along the way that I was able to apply in business, in friendships, in my life off the ice, and eventually in a romantic relationship with my wife, Jenny, and becoming a dad to my son, Pace.

So the lessons that I learned along the way from hockey that I was able to apply are

off the ice.

And then the third thing that it's about is what I would call a redemption arc and the removal of excuses.

So the book begins chronologically at a point in my life where I was just catching up to the fact that I had lost over 90% of my vision.

I was diagnosed with Stargardt's disease in 2002, but it really took my brain over a decade to catch up to the fact that I had gradually lost the ability to do certain things and transition that mindset to finding things that I was still able to do.

And lacing up skates for the first time really unlocked that list of other possibilities for me

So I would call the third central theme in the book, which should resonate with a lot of the blind community, the removal of excuses and the finding of empowerment.

I'm lucky enough to have a lot of friends who aren't blind or visually impaired, and I've gotten feedback along the way.

And the central theme that I seem to hear resonate with

The sighted community that has picked up the book is really that third theme that I talked about.

What's your excuse?

If somebody that has gone almost completely blind, like me, can get onto the ice at the age of 37, learn hockey, play competitively, and then use that as fuel to do some of the rest of the things that I've done in life, why not some of the other people that may be experiencing an obstacle or difficulties in their own lives?