As it’s getting closer to Christmas season and the colder weather is setting in, I need to get our chimney cleaned so we can enjoy a cozy fire during the holidays. As I was putting this task on my to-do list I suddenly flashed back to a scene in my living room many years ago when a chimney sweeper was at our house. I had been practicing some repertoire when he arrived so he heard me singing. He complimented me and went on to say that he wished he had a special talent. I know he was referring to some musical or artistic talent, however, I reassured him he did have a special talent which I truly believe.
I think everyone has special gifts and abilities. The problem the chimney sweep was having, and that many people have, is he was unable to recognize his talents. Sometimes we think if we are not good at things like sports or music, we are not gifted. Not true. Everyone has strengths and skills. The trick is to unearth those abilities and nurture them to allow them to grow. Your gift’s purpose or usefulness may not be immediately obvious, but there is a need and place for everyone at the table. You must be careful not to judge your gift as insignificant or less valuable than that of another person because you never know how, given a chance, your talents can manifest themselves in beautiful and powerful ways.
As it is getting colder in New England I realized it is time to buy a new winter jacket. In full disclosure I already have several winter jackets so I don’t actually need another one to keep warm. I do want another jacket, however, because am not completely satisfied with how I feel in the ones I have now. It’s not a question of how they fit, it’s a question of how I feel about myself when I’m in those jackets. I mentioned in a previous post that I recently re-embraced an edgier part of my personal brand, so now I feel like I want to have that edginess come through in my winter jacket.
Earlier this fall I was in the studio recording my Christmas album. I love Christmas music so it was such a fun day singing through all that beautiful music with my pianist. However, before we could get to the point of laying down the tracks I had to choose the actual songs to go on the album. Of course, I choose many of the classics, but I threw in a couple of lesser known, although beautiful, pieces as well. One of those pieces is a song called “The Carol of the Birds.”
Have you ever been involved in an activity where you lose track of time? Maybe you were writing a great story or even playing a video game. Your mind was completely engaged in the task at hand. This kind of focused energy is often referred to as flow. It’s a term created by Hungarian psychology professor, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, which refers to “the mental state of operation in which a person in an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and success in the process of the activity.” To achieve flow requires complete engagement.
I have sworn off watching the news during my daily 6:00am treadmill run. It bums me out too much. I have switched to reading client attraction, self-improvement or branding materials instead. However, the other day I forgot my book and resorted to watching tv again. I landed on the highly cerebral show of “America’s Next Top Model.” Hey, not only did it get me through the burn, it also reminded me of an important branding lesson.
In my last blog post I mentioned the fact that nurses and teachers are my heroes, and it’s true. After giving birth three times, my appreciation of nurses has grown exponentially. Having a good nurse makes all the difference in the world when it comes to those times when you really need to rely on someone to help you push through. Most of my maternity nurses were very sweet, but there was one who was tough as nails. At one point I seriously wanted to slap her, but in all honesty she was probably the best nurse I ever had. This was my nurse for my first baby. I think her name was Joan.
We live in a world where everyday there are more and more options available to us, especially for women. It used to be that as a woman your two main career choices were either nurse or teacher. Nurses and teachers happen to be my personal heroes so I’m not knocking those professions. Now, however, a woman can choose to be just about anything her heart desires. This is a great improvement, but it comes with its own set of challenges. With so many options it can be hard to choose a direction. Wouldn’t it be great if there was some magic wand you could wave that would just point you in the right direction? Well, there is and it’s call personal branding.
Today is October 1st. As if on cue, the weather turned overnight from balmy to cool and rainy. It is a vivid reminder that things are shifting and that time is marching on. It’s been a great year so far for me with taking on new clients, learning new technologies, and creating new services. As you all know however, with any business there is always so much more to do. As October marks the beginning of the end of the year it is time to think about what still needs to get done. That list can get pretty daunting, so the question is how to prioritize?
It may come a surprise to some of you, but not everyone likes opera. "How is that possible?" you say. Shocking, I know. There are actually people on this planet who would rather shoot a staple gun into their foot than listen to a soprano screech out a high C. It's just not their thing.
I recently read an article about the rock singer Bono where he talked about the process of finding his voice. Initially, he tried playing guitar, but he did not excel with it. Then someone suggested he sing, but he didn't think he really had a voice and he struggled to know how to do it. However, he gave it a second try and something clicked. He found his voice.