It feels like I have joined a public speaking boot camp. This week's workout was at a high school where I spoke with 100 students and teachers over two sessions. The topic was my life's timeline and the lessons learned along the way. For fifteen and sixteen year olds, this had the potential of being boring, or worse, sleep inducing, so I added lots of excitement: a costume change, candy rewards (Kraft/Cadbury brands of course), high-kicks, and brutally honest stories (and the emotions behind them). It was a lot of fun and they seemed engaged by the good and bad decisions I made.
It felt strange sharing my life with an audience. Although I prefer the present over the past, I had forgotten some of the experiences that have made me who I am. My lessons learned are:
- Believe in yourself – no one can do it for you- Decide what you want in life and go for it
- Be good at something, anything – “The more I practice the
luckier I get”
- Keep your options open – be open to new things
- The more you do the more opportunities you find
- Be referable – that’s how you get ahead
- First impressions count
- Be positive – you don't accomplish much when you are
negative
- If something isn't working, try a different approach
- Ask for help (and give it too)
- Don't burn bridges
- What goes around comes around
Like most public speaking talks, you learn from your audience
and I am still thinking of the students' and teachers' thoughtful
questions. Now, how do I write a thank you note to 100
people?
Phil
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