Hi friends, so I just watched back a video of me giving a very intimate presentation (about Main Character Lab) to a group of about 5 friends this past weekend. One of our Main Character members, @Tyson Stryg, recently hosted a group of us to share ideas, creative or business plans, in a safe environment for honest feedback and support. Thanks, Tyson! I felt very comfortable with little preparation because I know everyone in the room well, so the stakes were low. When I watched the video, I couldn't help but notice I was rubbing my hands together pretty incessantly at some points. I didn't even know I was doing it! Usually, there's a microphone in my hand at bigger talks, and I'm standing... so I'm wondering if that was the difference? I'm a very manual person, meaning I speak with my hands, I enjoy chores that use my hands, when I zone out, I rub or tap my hands on my legs. It was very interesting to see myself doing this during this presentation, where I felt safe. I also noticed at some points, my posture was hunched. I've been reflecting on why, in my larger keynotes, I remember my posture, my hand gestures and other body language. But why did I let it drop in this more intimate space with friends? Perhaps I was just comfortable, less formal? Maybe because I didn't prepare what I'd say on each slide, there was a level of uncertainty that I don't have with keynotes I've delivered dozens of times? Whatever the reason, I just wanted to share here. No matter where we are in our communications journey, there's always work to do and points to reflect on. Always room for growth!

My new main character identity is: I’m a captivating storyteller who has great stories ready to go, and I’m hilarious in conversation and can connect with others instantly through masterful small talk.

I have been keeping plugged into news, doing work and volunteering around the clock and wanting more unstructured joy time for myself and with my kids. I want more out of my career and long for that daily. I have been annoyed by work demands, egos, have been shrinking beneath any big ideas, watching TV before bed and feeling stuck. I know I can have and be more than this and also giving myself a little grace after my partners busy work time that ends today. Grateful to reflect and make these changes even when I feel not ready..😀

My main character moment: For a long time I thought others were judging me, so I constantly felt criticized. Then I realized that in fact, no one cares. But in the best way possible (of course friends care, but they don’t care about my faults and mess ups or ugly parts). Then I realized that actually, all those years of feeling judged I was projecting, and I was actually unknowingly being judgmental of others. It took a while to accept this reframing and revisit so many memories with this new awareness, and retroactively seeing how people were being actually very accepting and supportive even if I couldn’t see it at the time. But having lots of empathy for myself and non-judgement of myself has gone hand in hand with my ability to connect with others, and that has been one of my biggest revelations. That, how judged I feel by others is actually directly tied to how I decide to judge myself, and it comes from me first.

My new main character identity is a successful business owner, that consistently partners with collaborative clients on impactful projects.