I put it on my vision board. I took a course called Ready Speaker One from the brilliant TedX veteran, Dr Dan Young. My idea started to crystalize.
I have hinted at it a few times here. I did a short form talk for the Kiwanis International Convention in July that dipped my toe in the topic. I’ve been researching, and watching other TedX talks on the topic, and it was time to start looking for events to apply to.
In other news, this fall, I’m headed to Australia, Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia for a conference, two marathons and general touristy merriment! As I was booking the Sydney Harbor Bridge climb, and a food bike tour of a funky neighborhood in Singapore, an idea hit me.
“I wonder if there’s a TedX event in that corner
of the world while I’m down there.”
Wouldn’t that be amazing? This was going to be an epic trip already…if I could add a TedX talk to it…I have no words for how cool that would be.
So I did a search.
Nothing in Australia.
Nothing in Singapore.
Nothing in Malaysia or Indonesia while we’re there.
I broadened the search and *PING* there it was.
September 21, Palmerston North, New Zealand.
(a 3 hour flight from Sydney, the weekend after the marathon when we had planned to just be kicking around Sydney. )
THIS WAS IT!!! I was literally foaming at the mouth!
I pulled up the speaker application and saw they wanted a 3-minute intro video. Easy as! I got distracted by other tasks and went back to it the next day, and read the instructions more closely.
Please submit a 3-minute video where you introduce yourself and present your remarkable ‘Idea Worth Sharing.’ Utilise this opportunity to let your creativity flourish, making the most of each moment. Feel free to incorporate props, slides, or anything else that amplifies your concept.
This wasn’t just talking on a video.
“Let your creativity flourish”.
“Make the most of the moments!”
“Props…slides….”
OH CRAP! I freaked out. The outline of a script I had written wouldn’t do. I’d need to do more.
I shut my computer and walked away. “I’ll marinate on it for a few days, and hopefully come up with a creative idea.”
I thought. 2 days passed.
I thought some more. Another 3 days passed.
Have you ever been stuck like that? You want something really badly and you get caught up in creating perfection and end up never doing anything? At this point it had been 10 days since I found the event, and I knew the organizer would want to lock down speakers as soon as she could…and I was wasting time and in danger of missing the opportunity.
Then…I had an idea for the video.
PUNCH IT MARGARET® reverberated in my skull.
“Just get your phone and do the thing!”
I grabbed my phone, opened the camera and I made the video, and submitted it that day. It wasn’t perfect. It could have been better, more creative, better props, longer content…but at that point, if I didn’t just make it and launch it, I wasn’t going to do it at all. (I did pass it by a few friends and they gave me the thumbs up, so at least I know it wasn’t terrible.)
Next time you find yourself spinning around in the fear and stress of perfectionism, pause, think, then PUNCH IT MARGARET®! Go DO the THING!
I’m not saying you shouldn’t strive for excellence. Absolutely do that, but done is better than perfect, and so often in our quest for perfection, stuff never gets done.
The application is in, and all my fingers and toes are crossed. If you have a spare few fingers to cross for me, I’d really appreciate it.
And if you’re curious about my submission video, and learning a bit more about my idea, reply to this e-mail with “Show me the video!!!” and I’ll send you the link and you can let me know what you think.
Go get ‘em Tiger! (I am!)
