Just another day at work. With JAZZ HANDS!! I am in a state something between giddy laughter & tears of gratitude.
I am incredibly blessed to do the work I do...but it is the people I get to work with that make my job the most amazing one on the planet!!!
Although I often get positive reviews following a class or applause after a key note, I sometimes wonder if I really make a difference. After all, I am but one girl (usually wearing a cape, tiara, "no bullshit" hat, or doing some other nonsensical thing that seems incredibly wrong considering I am working inside Corporate America).
I am silly. I am awkward. I talk to much & have a story for everything. EVERY. THING. Last month I had to come running out of a session in search of stain remover for the coffee I spilled all over myself & my WHITE skirt...and again 10 minutes later when I STILL hadn't tightened the lid on my coffee cup and spilled on myself a 2nd time. Good grief!!.
My family knows these things...but they are stuck with me.
My friends know these things...but keep me around anyway (for entertainment purposes, I suppose).
Even my housekeeper knows it. She showed up one day with what she believed was the perfect gift for me...one she couldn't resist buying. It is a sign that reads: "I don't need to flirt...I will seduce you with my awkwardness."
Yep...she nailed it, alright.
But these people are with me for the long haul. Day in & day out. They know I mean well, even if I execute my intentions rather poorly sometimes. So they are gracious. Forgiving. Loving. Again...I am lucky.
But what about the people I meet who don't know me all that well. The ones that spend an hour with me in a keynote or a few days inside a tiny corporate classroom. Sometimes I ask myself, "Can who I am possibly matter or make a difference to them?"
Well, today I got my answer.
I am incredibly blessed to do the work I do...but it is the people I get to work with that make my job the most amazing one on the planet!!!
Although I often get positive reviews following a class or applause after a key note, I sometimes wonder if I really make a difference. After all, I am but one girl (usually wearing a cape, tiara, "no bullshit" hat, or doing some other nonsensical thing that seems incredibly wrong considering I am working inside Corporate America).
I am silly. I am awkward. I talk to much & have a story for everything. EVERY. THING. Last month I had to come running out of a session in search of stain remover for the coffee I spilled all over myself & my WHITE skirt...and again 10 minutes later when I STILL hadn't tightened the lid on my coffee cup and spilled on myself a 2nd time. Good grief!!.
My family knows these things...but they are stuck with me.
My friends know these things...but keep me around anyway (for entertainment purposes, I suppose).
Even my housekeeper knows it. She showed up one day with what she believed was the perfect gift for me...one she couldn't resist buying. It is a sign that reads: "I don't need to flirt...I will seduce you with my awkwardness."
Yep...she nailed it, alright.
But these people are with me for the long haul. Day in & day out. They know I mean well, even if I execute my intentions rather poorly sometimes. So they are gracious. Forgiving. Loving. Again...I am lucky.
But what about the people I meet who don't know me all that well. The ones that spend an hour with me in a keynote or a few days inside a tiny corporate classroom. Sometimes I ask myself, "Can who I am possibly matter or make a difference to them?"
Well, today I got my answer.
What's life without random push-up contests & lunchtime runs? A participant in one of my 2-day classes last year sent me the most thoughtful message. It caught me completely off guard & gave me the strength I need to do the next leg of a marathon work season. It means so much because I was in a marathon work season when his class happened. I showed up jet-lagged, over-extended, running on fumes...but apparently I still did an ok job. You know...in the sense that I wore a cape, made toys part of the learning, had a push-up contest with one of the participants, & probably told too many stories.
But that's how I roll.
And you know what...that's how I'm going to keep rolling. Because this man took the time to let me know I made a difference. To let me know that the material was good, but that my joy is the real gift. To share that my passion had more of an impact on him than my knowledge. And for that...I am so grateful.
Someone in your life has had an amazing impact on you. Why not take 5 minutes to write a note letting him or her know that?! Or better yet, take 10 minutes & tell TWO people! We all need to hear that we matter. Because in the chaotic mess that we call life, even if we knew it at some point. We forget.
So let's help each other out. A few words can have a powerful effect. And not just for the person who reads them...but also for the person who writes them!!
I'll share the note that made me giddy + grateful in the first comment below just in case you need a little inspiration. But really...you got this. You are perfectly smart & wonderfully talented. You know exactly what to say & who needs to hear it. So start there.
Because YOU matter. And when you know that, it's so much easier to tell someone else that they matter too.
THE ORIGINAL INSPIRATION MESSAGE:
Hi Leslie,
You may or may not remember me, but you taught me in an agile facilitator class in 2013. While your class taught me new ways of thinking and some new skills, the class in itself did not have the largest impact on me. Let me explain…
I have recently been asked a powerful question; “the job is yours, but what do you really want?” I started a list and the funny thing is, you were the second list item I thought of. I wrote down; “to be like Leslie, in her joy of life and work”. I was actually stunned that came out of me…
Your pure joy and happiness was awe inspiring for me and a year later that is what remains with me… Thank you for being you, at least in those 2 days you spent with me! After reading Penny Perspectives, I think you are like this more often than not….
Please-Please don’t change, your true gift is the joy you freely offer to the world.
But that's how I roll.
And you know what...that's how I'm going to keep rolling. Because this man took the time to let me know I made a difference. To let me know that the material was good, but that my joy is the real gift. To share that my passion had more of an impact on him than my knowledge. And for that...I am so grateful.
Someone in your life has had an amazing impact on you. Why not take 5 minutes to write a note letting him or her know that?! Or better yet, take 10 minutes & tell TWO people! We all need to hear that we matter. Because in the chaotic mess that we call life, even if we knew it at some point. We forget.
So let's help each other out. A few words can have a powerful effect. And not just for the person who reads them...but also for the person who writes them!!
I'll share the note that made me giddy + grateful in the first comment below just in case you need a little inspiration. But really...you got this. You are perfectly smart & wonderfully talented. You know exactly what to say & who needs to hear it. So start there.
Because YOU matter. And when you know that, it's so much easier to tell someone else that they matter too.
THE ORIGINAL INSPIRATION MESSAGE:
Hi Leslie,
You may or may not remember me, but you taught me in an agile facilitator class in 2013. While your class taught me new ways of thinking and some new skills, the class in itself did not have the largest impact on me. Let me explain…
I have recently been asked a powerful question; “the job is yours, but what do you really want?” I started a list and the funny thing is, you were the second list item I thought of. I wrote down; “to be like Leslie, in her joy of life and work”. I was actually stunned that came out of me…
Your pure joy and happiness was awe inspiring for me and a year later that is what remains with me… Thank you for being you, at least in those 2 days you spent with me! After reading Penny Perspectives, I think you are like this more often than not….
Please-Please don’t change, your true gift is the joy you freely offer to the world.
Thanks for reading!! If you enjoyed this post or think someone you know needs to hear that who THEY are matters, please share!! We all need reminders once in awhile of just how much of a difference we make...even if only to one person! Thanks to those who remind me when I forget...especially the folks I consider my own personal Justice League! Friends, family, colleagues, & students who work & play with me in this one precious life we have!!
This post brought to you by a woman who loves her tribe and will never stop looking for ways to make our work and our lives together fun + meaningful!
This post brought to you by a woman who loves her tribe and will never stop looking for ways to make our work and our lives together fun + meaningful!
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