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The Fear and the Power of Connection
A discerning speech mentor recently pointed out that when I give a speech, I look towards the audience, but I don’t really look at them. My gaze scans the audience, but never really make eye contact with anyone. Why do I avoid eye contact? Speaking to a crowd, launching words into the air, is safe…
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Push vs Pull
A couple years ago I sent my daughter – a 2-year-old at the time – down a huge slide by herself. I figured with a little push she’d realize how much fun it is to cruise recklessly down the curvy slope. I was wrong, and the tears and screams alerted all the other parents in…
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Try Again
“You can’t get back on the horse if you haven’t fallen off it.” – Phil Dunphy, Modern Family Overcoming your fear once, doing something difficult and daring the first time, is one thing. More difficult is giving that speech a second time, going back to the drawing board for a logo design, running a second…
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Be Weird
As a kid I learned how to unicycle. If you’ve ever unicycled, or seen a unicyclist, you know that unicycling is weird. I would ride around my neighbourhood getting stares for people, hearing comments like, “You lost a wheel!” Unicycling isn’t for the fate of heart, and requires that you accept the fact that what…
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Giving
Most of us believe that it really is better to give than to receive. Whenever we volunteer in the community, donate to a cause, enjoy the sleepless nights of parenthood, or take time to listen to someone’s story, we remember that it’s true. Funny how easy it is to forget that, though. It’s easy to…
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Finding Your Voice
Donald Miller says that the first stage in writing a book is finding your voice. That might be true of writing a book, on a micro level, but it’s also true of being a writer in general. You need to find your voice. If you’re a leader, an artist, a musician, a speaker, whatever, you…
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Bunting for Singles
I played baseball ever summer as a teenager. I was an average player, but a left-handed thrower, so I automatically got to pitch and play first base. I never really enjoyed going up to bat because of the pressure to do something great to help my team. One season I remember being particularly frustrated because…
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Give to Love
I’ve been reflecting on this quote for the past couple weeks. I like it because it’s counter intuitive. Normally when we talk about why we love someone, we refer to the things we get from them or how they make us feel. But that’s not actually how love works. The more we invest, the more…
