.
On a plane somewhere between Dallas, TX and Las Vegas, NV:
It seems as though once you consciously set an intention, certain related
situations start manifesting. However, whether you look at them as mere
coincidences versus opportunities for growth is a choice you get to make.
A couple of months ago, I made a decision (thanks to
inspiration from
Bob Goff via his book
Love Does) that if I wanted more faith,
I needed to
“do more stuff.” So far, this “stuff” has ranged from seemingly simple
(giving way my first
Giving Key) to something a little more substantial (going
to San Diego for the
Storyline Conference). But it seems that once the
intention had been set, opportunities have begun appearing.
There’s a friend with whom I’ve shared a link to
my favorite TED talk. In return, he sent me a link to
one of his favs. I love the
inspiration found from watching
TED talks online and love the friends who share
links with me. So when said friend mentioned that he, himself, would be
GIVING
a TEDx talk, my immediate response was:
1) Where?
2) When?
3) Can I come?
My friend is
Stephen Kellogg. He is an überly talented
singer/songwriter and one of the most insightful people I know. When his tour stops in a town I'm currently in, I get to experience an
always entertaining show and, time permitting, get to share a meal or a
backstage hang before or after the performance. But usually these cities are
Nashville or LA... which means there are a lot of ‘industry’ types that want to
say hello... which means our time together is limited.
So the idea of seeing Stephen for an extended period of time, in a place that perhaps he would have a few more minutes to share, seemed ideal.
Plus, he would give an 18 minute inspirational talk. If this was considered “doing stuff,” I was ready to sign up.
Which I did.
TEDx was held at
Concordia University in Portland, OR.
Portland is one of my favorite cities to travel (confirmation that I definitely
needed to go), four days after my birthday (aka birthday treat to myself to
alleviate any guilt from traveling for pleasure as opposed to work).
A quick overview of
TED:
“TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. At TED, the
world’s leading thinkers and doers are asking to give the talk of their lives
in 18 minutes. Talks are then made available, free, at TED.com.”
A quick overview of
TEDx:
“TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that
bring people together to share a TED-like experience. x = an independently
organized TED event which features videos and live speakers to spark deep
discussion and connection in a small group.”
The event was hosted by
Mark Powers, a
former TEDx speaker,
who introduced the 2013 class, comprised of local and national speakers giving
18 minute talks that were aimed at inspiration. Or in my thoughts, those who
are
“doing stuff.” Speakers included:
- a roller girl and her filmmaker partner who are making a documentary on roller derby’s globally transformative impact on women around
the world.
And one of my favorites (besides the obvious SK):
- an illustrated collaborator, who made and gave out a domino
to each person – with a “bot joy” drawn on the opposite side. These tiny pieces
of inspiration were taped underneath each chair and the audience was encouraged
to collaborate by finishing the piece themselves. (With sharpie, which, luckily, I always have on hand.)
Soon, the main reason for my TEDx attendance took the stage.
Stephen’s talk “I Can’t Get No (Job) Satisfaction” was just that – finding
satisfaction in your line of work.
While some people would question how he – a rock star – would have any complaints about having anything but job fulfillment, he offered a couple of examples to support his “we all face the same challenges” conviction, including:
- a photo of his four beautiful daughters & wife, whom he
can't see often while he’s on the road (ie. a struggle with time commitments)
- a ridiculously negative (and incorrect!) public review of
his music, in which it was called a “victim of it’s own gritless contrivances” (ie.
poor job performance review)
·
He said “I believe that our ability to be satisfied with our
work is well within our grasp” and gave five strategies on how to be happier
with the work we do:
- Know why you're working (measure your wealth not by the
things you have but by the things you have for which you wouldn't take any amount
of money)
- It's better to be at the bottom of a ladder you want to
climb, than the top of one that you don't (stolen from The Office but which I
will credit SK for when I’m giving this advice to others in the future)
- The grass is always going to look greener (for music
touring folks: riding in a bus doesn’t solve the problems you had because you
were riding in a van – you’re just going to have new problems from riding in a
bus!)
 |
| Picture above: SK & Tour Manager / Day To Day Manager / All Around Amazing Woman, Cousin Jess! |
- Understand the positive effects of your work (just because I
“just work in music” doesn’t negate the fact that my business brings a sense of
joy and happiness to people’s lives)
- Maintain your integrity and core values (which applies to
every aspect of life – not just work life)
The thing is, Stephen’s job and my job are both pretty cool.
Though there are challenging days like at any job, in Stephen’s words: “work is
like pizza or sex: even when it's bad, it's pretty great.” True story. Especially
since I really enjoy... pizza.
In addition to the overall admiration I felt for my friend as
he gave his confident, funny and poignant talk in front of over 600 people
(plus the few hundreds thousands who will eventually watch it online), one line, in particular, resonated with me:
“Your work is just your work. It happens to be what we spend most of
our waking hours doing, but it's not the whole of who you are and it's just one
part of your identity.”
I felt this to be especially
poignant because Stephen Kellogg said this. Stephen Kellogg is, to most of the
world, a singer/songwriter. A recording artist. A traveling musician. But if you
take that status symbol away from him, who is he? I fear this for myself sometimes as well.
I am a tour manager. A logistical planner of artists. Both of us have ‘clout’
of some sort but if we were stripped of our titles, who would we be?
As much as both Stephen and I love
what we do and rate high on the “job satisfaction poll,” I’d like to think it
is just one part of our identity. The overall satisfaction in our lives comes a
combination of our work and our relationships and doing things we love.
In this case, doing what I love means flying to
Portland to spend time with my friend and see him and other do-ers offer inspiration on how to live
full lives.
