Over Thinking and Losing Focus

It's nice to have somebody in your life that you can refer to as your "go to" person. Michael Roberts, this one is for you.

I have been blessed with incredible opportunities this past year. I had opportunities to speak in front of crowds of people regarding my purpose. I took advantage of these opportunities to to educate and advocate for a juvenile diabetes cure. I also had opportunities to share with people the transformation that my life has taken over the past year. I took advantage of these opportunities to motivate others to do the same. With both of these types of opportunities, I tend to over think the presentation. I over think to the point where I stress myself out about the opportunity and lose focus on the opportunity itself.

Michael Roberts and I talk about this quite a bit. He always has a way to bring me back to the purpose of the opportunity. I find myself so tied up in the presentation, that I forget that the things that I speak about are part of my everyday life. Which brings up the question, "Do I need to write out a script to share my everyday life?" The only script I need is burried inside my heart, so I have to speak from the heart.

In the past, I have gone over different presentations in my head prior to speaking opportunities. I have written speeches out in full and I have even written them in outline form, but they never seem to have the impact that I hoped they would on the audiance. Last Wednesday, I decided to abandon this method and go to the podium with no paper. Just my heart and my daughter standing next to me. I poured out my heart for 15 minutes and walked away with the confidence that someone in the crowd was inspired.

So with another opportunity to share my life and purpose approaching, I found myself going back to my old habits. What kind of props or cool analogies can I use to get my message relayed to the audiance? I have practiced various presentations at home and in my car on the way to and from work. Not being satisfied with any of them, I start getting into panic mode. A great friend, Michael Roberts calls me last night. Listens to me as I ramble on about my presentation, then points out to me that I am over thinking and losing focus of what's important. He was right. So now, I know that all I have to do is be in the room and speak from the heart. The words, passion and know how are all stored in my heart.

So why do we over think the things that we over think? Do we get ourselves so self involved in trying to look good in front of others? Does our message really get relayed to others with the passion and honesty that it should by over thinking? Why do we try to alter what our heart is telling us to say? Are we afraid of the truth that lies within our hearts?

I was blessed with a fantastic email this morning from someone who works for me. I have been watching this employee for a while now and noticed that she was struggling in some area of her life, but was uncertain of that area. I brought this employee in to my office a while back, not to pry into this person's life, but to let this employee know that I was available if needed. They chose not to share any personal information at that time, which was fine, because that was not my purpose of bring this person in. This employee left and I gave them my copy of Rhinoceros Success to read in hopes that this would motivate them and help them through their struggles. They returned the book with a note stating how much the book made sense to them and how much they appreciated the opportunity to read the book.

I took the time a day ago to comment on the progress that this employee has made since the day she completed the book. This employee has become a leader at work, but has also taken charge of their life and is moving in a positive direction. After our conversationi, I sent a follow-up email to this employee, again pointing out all of the positive changes and encourgaing them to conitnue forward. This morning I recieved an email from this person that thanked me for taking the time to care about them. This person then poured their heart out in a full page email. It made coming to work this morning very exciting knowing that I have helped one person better their life.

It all came down to this employee over thinking and losing focus on what was important in their heart.

I try to learn something new everyday, however, this lesson is something that I have been learning for quite sometime. Listen to your heart. Don't ignore the words or feelings that your heart is telling you. Finally, lead with your heart. It is the only "prop" you need.

Thank you Michael Roberts for leading us with your heart.