The Day Before TEDx
So, it is Saturday morning and I am thinking about tomorrow and how much I have prepared for this talk. I did my final edit last night with Laurie Vincent, the amazing speech writer that I worked with, and Susan Caba, the book writer. My mom and a good friend joined us for the run through. It went about 2 minutes over so we cut a section out and trimmed a few other areas. I am very comfortable with the content, now I have one more practice session this morning and then it is time to rest.
So much has happened over the past few weeks in preparing for this talk. I have gained so much more clarity. One specific area of clarity is the role that our business plays in my life and how important it is to stay focused. Over the years I have learned so much about focused effort and doing what matters vs just being busy. At this point in our business I am as focused as I have ever been so I can produce the best results. I love making a difference in the world, but I am a capitalist as well and I enjoy the fruits of my labor. In the end the money can do good things and it frees me up to make different decisions with my time. The important part is that I know what I need and I know that building a business is something I want, it makes life better.
Each day brings new lessons and I continue to be amazed by our children. The maturity that they have is well beyond anything that I was capable of at their age. They are happy and very kind kids and I enjoy spending time with them. During the development of this speech I have realized that they just want to feel connected to me. When I am with them I need to be with them, I need to be present. Being present has been one of my big lessons over the past 20 years. I have worked hard over that time to learn to be where I am when I am there. Tomorrow night it will be critical for me to be present when I am on that stage.
My partner, Chris, was out in California all week. We had lots of time to talk and think and it was great to see him. We have had a great 18 year ride together and it doesn’t look like that will change anytime soon. He has been a great balance for me, similar to my wife. They both allow me to be myself and support everything that I choose to do, no matter how wacky!
I head off to Nicaragua on Tuesday morning to speak at a social entrepreneurship conference. This year is going to be an amazing transition year as we prepare for our global tour in 2015. The family is very excited to travel the world and I am very excited to finally expand our business internationally. That is something I have avoided for many years because I didn’t want to leave the kids at home, but the time is right for this to happen.
So, to a relaxing day and a day full of excitement and joy tomorrow. Should be a day to remember in so many ways.
‘Til next time ……..
Larry Kesslin 