The Life You Want Tour Nuggets

Our team was blessed to participate in the DC Oprah’s the Life You Want tour which had so many aha moments. 

Here are some amazing quotable nuggets. The first section is from Oprah and then we share some nuggets from Mark Nepo, Rob Bell and  Iyanla Vanzant.

You must have sunrise faith. The sun will always rise no matter how dark it gets.- Oprah

With the rising of the sun, you ask, “What will make of this NEW day?”

I want us all to fulfill our greatest potential. To find one calling, and summon the courage to live it.

Turn up the volume on your life, you are co-creating it.

What have you been called to do?

Your job, if you are here is to honor your calling.

Create the highest, grandest vision for your life. Then let every step move you in that direction.

Your life is constantly speaking to you.  It always comes in a whisper. Pay attention to the whispers.

The ordinary moments of your life are creating the extraordinary of your life.

With every experience, you alone are painting your own canvas — thought by thought, choice by choice.

Nothing you were meant to have was meant to stay with you.

The only courage you ever need is the courage to live the life of your dreams.

Ask yourself what does YES feel like. Energy is everything. Be responsible for the energy you bring into this room. 

Together, we rise. After you’ve done all you can do surrender. Whatever you are going through is to get you through. Make a shift and be grateful for it instead of complaining about it.  You are living the reality if your beliefs right now.

Every one of us is looking for the same thing — we want to know we matter. We want to know we were heard.

Strive to be full of yourself, a cup running over so you can give to others.

With the setting of the sun, my heart I filled with gratitude for yet another day to live on purpose.

The longest journey of your life is from your head to your heart. – Mark Nepo

Two key lessons:  No one can live your life for you. No one can do it alone.

Our light is revealed as our gift strikes against the needs of the world.

The life you want begins by embracing the life you have. -Rob Bell

Excessive pain will render you unconscious. – Iyanla Vanzant

Life is really on your side.  Life talks you must learn to listen. If you made it through you past, you passed. Life always tells you the truth your job is to recognize and accept it.

Vulnerability is my Greatest Superpower

Super Truth: Vulnerability is my greatest superpower.

I have done a lot of really cool stuff over the years. Things I am proud of because they were not easy...but I attempted them anyway! Sometimes I succeeded. Sometimes I failed.

I used to think I needed to do these things because people would listen to me if I had accomplished enough. That being a doer, a go-getter, and having mental toughness would be the superpowers that would take me straight to the top. It felt easy to imagine standing on my story of being the girl who graduated from West Point, flew helicopters, completed a half-ironman, rolled out of bed and ran a 50K race one day, etc, etc...

After all, don't we get hired because of all the fabulous things on our resumes & the achievements we have under our belts? Isn't THAT what impresses people & makes them love us?

What I've discovered in the last few years is that not one of those big, bad challenges was as scary as learning how to demonstrate another superpower. Vulnerability.

Years ago I would have rather run a marathon or ruck march up the side of a mountain than display what I considered to be weakness by sharing my fears. By sniveling about what I'd overcome in the past.

Whaaaa. Poor me. Why bother others with my sob stories? After all, I had learned to suck it up & drive on...wouldn't most people rather hear about my results than my breakdowns?!

In a word, no.

What I have discovered has been surprising and a bit of a relief. People actually love and appreciate me for my failures just as much, if not more, as they love me for my successes. My faults are not liabilities...they are my humanity. And my wins become boring if that is all I ever share. People tune out. No one on the planet bounces from success to success to success...and so it's hard to get inspiration from those who talk about nothing but all the things they've done right.

I remember one particular evening when a friend & I decided to play a little game we like to call "vulnerability chicken." We decided to share our deepest, darkest secrets in service of creating a closer connection. To share the things we never said out loud to other people because we were SURE saying them would lead to the certain death of the friendship. Our mistakes. Our regrets. The things that still haunt us in those silent moments when we get a little too inside our heads.

I remember telling him something I felt was so horrible and embarrassing. I could barely look him in the eyes when I said it.

And then I waited.

Much to my surprise, instead of judgement, I was met with compassion & acceptance. And then my friend opened up about some of his own personal battles...which made me love him even more. In fact, I couldn't believe he'd been holding in these things he called deep, dark secrets. To me they felt like the same kind of mistakes we all make navigating life.

I think that night was truly the first night I stopped holding my breath. Stopped wondering when my mistakes would catch up with me & my flaws would cost me a friendship. It was the night I learned sharing these parts of my journey are not only healing for me...but for others who may need reassurance as well. And that people don't love me in spite of my mistakes...they actually love me more because of them.

That kind of acceptance was the best feeling I had ever had. And I knew that if I could be that accepting of everyone I met (because don't many of us fear that "if people only knew ______, there's no way they would accept me?!"), I would be giving people the greatest gift I ever could.

So from the bottom of my heart, because my friend showed me so much compassion & understanding in my imperfections, I want you to know that you are amazing. Exactly. As. You. Are.

I see you. I appreciate you. And I thank you for being my friend.

About the author: Leslie has more than a dozen years of leadership, process efficiency, behavioral analysis, professional facilitation and training experience in a number of challenging environments. Her experience includes seven years in the U.S. Army, work in membership sales, television news production and in non-profit and association communities. She is sought-after as a professional facilitator and facilitation trainer. Leslie’s work through Lead Like A Girl focuses on inspiring groups and individuals to look for new perspectives when the ones they’re stuck in just aren’t working anymore, using their own brilliance & untapped superpowers to improve communication and enhance success. Leslie calls herself a “Life Enthusiast” because if there’s a challenge most people don’t want to tackle…she’ll give it a try. From flying Chinook helicopters in the Army, to completing her first half-ironman to taking lessons on the flying trapeze, Leslie doesn’t know the meaning of the words, “I can’t.” And she will make sure you forget those words too!Connect with Leslie at http://www.lesliestein.com/blog