When it comes to revolutionaries and political thinkers, there are two key categories. The first is full of theorists and thinker, that ponder their ideas all day and rarely take action. The second category is full of doers – people that assess their ideas, take action, and make them a reality. Few figures fit in the second category as perfectly as Argentina guerilla leader Che Guevara.
Born in Rosario, Argentina, on June 28th, 1928, Guevara was surrounded by books from the earliest years of his childhood. The family home closely resembled a library, with over three thousand titles propped up against its bookshelves. Che quickly became a fast thinker and intellectual, taking on the city's best and brightest in chess games at the tender age of twelve years old.
At age twenty, Che set out across his continent, navigating over five-thousand miles on a bicycle fitted with a small motor. He saw crushing poverty and injustices on his trip that were far beyond those that he had seen in Argentina, radically changing his world view during his time away. Upon returning to Argentina, he gained a medical degree and sought out to change the world he lived in.
Che's views are contentious and controversial even today, but few would deny that he failed to take real action on his beliefs. After seeing Guatemala threatened by the United States as part of its at the time aggressive foreign policy, he swore to defend the rights of his neighbor countries, and saw the possibility of a united South America in the future, due to the continent's shared cultures.
Other action followed, with Che taking a key role in the Cuban Revolution during the 1950s. He was tasked with organizing the revolutionary armies responsible for overthrowing the country's Batista government. During this time he gained a reputation as a shrewd and ruthless leader, with his brutal punishments for enemy soldiers making him a legend amongst revolutionary fighters.
Che's success in fighting for Cuban liberation resulted in him occupying several posts in the nation's government. He controlled the nation's finances, making the most of his in-depth self-education and incredible knowledge. He was in perhaps the country's biggest position of power, overseeing both its currency, its economy, and many of the island's biggest industries.
With Che's profile rising and his status as a revolutionary leader attracting attention overseas, he went from being a notorious fighter into one of the Western world's most wanted men. The United States, then using a policy of aggression towards many of the world's new communist countries, was less than enthusiastic about his success in Latin America, and saw him as a global threat.
As quickly as Guevara entered the world of revolutionary politics, he left it. While fighting against an attack on Bolivia, he was caught and captured by the nation's military forced, which were being supported by the CIA. Quickly executed, his death marked the end of the true revolutionary era.
As a figure that's both respected and reviled, Che's success as an action-taking revolutionary can be highly valuable for your own motivation. While he was well read and highly educated, Che saw the world as a place to be changed though swift action, not through inaction. By taking action on your own goals, like Che, you can open a world of opportunity and change.