When TEDx Westoverhills reached out last year, I was surprised and delighted to hear that they wanted me to give a talk! Soon after meeting with their panel and pitching ideas, we were off the races. What followed was three (long!) months of writing, editing, practicing, and crafting the talk. I found myself waking up going over lines, and falling asleep reciting most nights. It certainly felt stressful at times, but I was honored for the opportunity and meaningful challenge to give from my heart and mind to their audience and the TEDx community.
Fast forward to January of this year and I’m pacing around the green room, breathing and laughing with the TEDx volunteers. I trusted that if I felt relaxed and playful, I could enjoy the intensity of being on stage instead of taking myself too seriously and messing up the lines.
Finally they called me to backstage, where they hooked up the microphone and gave me a countdown to walk on the stage. It felt surreal to hear them go over my bio and then… take a deep breath…time to walk on stage. With a sold out audience of around 130 people, I walked onto the red (circle) carpet, and shared from my memory as best I could.
Please enjoy, from my heart to yours…