Yesterday I attended the Chick-fil-A Leadercast at North Park Community Church. 85,000 people attended the event via simulcast at various locations to hear ten exceptional speakers share their insights on success and leadership.
As a professional speaker myself I registered to see some of North America’s top speakers perform because I’m on a mission to learn as much about the speaking craft as possible on my journey – to one day – master the stage.
And hey, who couldn’t use a good dose of motivation. Turns out it was a worthwhile investment of a day away from the office grind.
When I asked people who their favourite speaker of the day was, I was surprised at the diversity of the answers. Each person answered differently as they were taken by different speakers for different reasons.
For me, the two most impactful were Dave Ramsey a well-known radio personality, the man behind the Financial Peace University and the best-selling author of the Total Money Makeover and Suzy Welch, author of 10-10-10: A Life Transforming Idea.
Let’s start with Suzy’s message, in the next blog I will share Dave’s.
To give a bit of background, Suzy was one of those high-powered women, living the picture-perfect life. However, she realized it was in fact a “picture” and not a perfect “reality.”
So many people are caught up in this way of living. It’s all about setting the pace for the Joneses when in actual fact, when you really determine your values, most realize the proverbial Joneses have nothing to do with your success or level of happiness.
With all the talk of “values” it’s tough to actually pinpoint what are your priorities. You can say I value this and this, but are those really what should be guiding your actions?
Suzy shared three questions to help people identify their key values.
1) Fast forward to your 70th birthday. What would make you cry with regret?
2) What do you want people to say about you when you are not in the room?
3) What did you love about your upbringing? What did you hate?
By answering these three questions, Suzy explained that you can connect your decisions to your values.
My first and third answers shocked me the most. Funny enough neither had anything to do with my company or media career or politics – it was all about family – or in terms of regret, the lack of creating one of my own. Unfortunately, that’s not something you can just “make” happen, but it’s interesting to have a speaker put your life’s values in perspective. Hmm, wasn’t expecting that when I got up yesterday morning.
Another piece that was so valuable and I encourage you to read her book for more information, is her 10-10-10 formula. Each time you make a decision, think about the consequences in the next 10 minutes, next 10 months and next 10 years. By considering the immediate, foreseeable and long-term future as you make important decisions, you can better align your decisions with your values.
Are you surprised by your answers to the above questions?
Were you at Chick-fil-A Leadercast? Who was the most impactful speaker for you?
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