Was it worse than swimming with jellyfish?….

This morning I had yet another one of my “firsts” in life. Yes, at age 55 you can still have a hell of a lot of firsts!

This one was extremely important though. I didn’t go skydiving or cliff diving or go swimming with jellyfish. What I did was much more important, but probably just as scary for me.

I participated in a panel talk discussing how to navigate cancer in the workplace. Does that sound easy to you? Well, it frightened the hell out of me. This was my first time speaking professionally to the public. Ever.

Now I have talked at company meetings (which still scare me) and I have given a speech at my husband’s birthday party to about 60 people, so I know I like to talk. But talking professionally to strangers. Well that was enough to send me over the edge. But you know what? It was amazing and I can’t wait to do it again!

I prepared extremely well. I talked to my husband and I talked to my brother. Both of them are very familiar with public speaking and do it regularly. I talked to myself. I told myself, “Self, if you memorize what you want to say, it will be easy”. So I went through all the questions that were going to be asked and I prepared. I typed my answers, I stood in front of a mirror and rehearsed my answers. I talked to my brother the day before (via phone since he lives in Florida) and he assured me it would be good. He told me I was passionate about my subject and I would be fine. I talked to my husband the night before and the morning of my talk (he was out of town so I had to talk to him on the phone). He told me to speak from my heart. Everything they said was so true. The funny part was, after all my preparation I really didn’t follow my script. I spoke from passion and I spoke from my heart. Thank you to Jim and Al.

Now, I am going to stop for a moment and tell you what I did after work the night before my speaking engagement. I went to a work event. One of our Women’s Network events. The speaker was streaming live from Washington DC. Her name is Kindra Hall.

For anyone that is not familiar with Kindra, she is a professional storyteller. She admits that her title is made up but that is actually what she does. She educates people on the power of a story. If you look at raw data and compare it to raw data with a story behind it, the story will always win. People will remember it. People will choose your product. People will hire the story…. not the chart or the graph. People need emotion. It helps them connect. The message she was sending was so powerful. I am certain that she was speaking directly to ME (not the 500 people she was speaking to live in DC or the other 4,000 people she was speaking to via her live stream). She was speaking directly to ME. And I was listening. I was determined to make people LISTEN to my story.

The next morning came early. I stayed at a hotel in town so I didn’t have to worry about the “what ifs”. What if there was an accident and traffic was stopped. What if my car broke down. What if…. What if….. The funny part was, I stayed at a hotel very near a highway. Did you know that people start going to work at 4:30 AM!!!!! And this traffic was right outside my window! I didn’t consider the “what if” I didn’t get enough sleep!

I was fine though. I made it to the event in plenty of time, feeling fresh and ready to conquer! And ready to tell a story! I was able to walk from my hotel the the event space. As I was walking, enjoying the fresh air, I thought to my self what an honor it was to be doing this.

I HAD SOMETHING IMPORTANT TO SAY AND I WANTED PEOPLE TO HEAR IT!

As I was telling myself this, I immediately relaxed. This was an opportunity. Who cares how many people are staring back at you! The more people that are out there, the more people hear what I have to say. Even if only 1 person hears my message I will be happy!

I went in to that room with an excitement inside of me that was hard to control. I arrived and was immediately introduced to people. I was also approached by people who wanted to tell me their story. The energy was electric. At one point prior to the talk, I looked up and saw a friend of mine. I had no idea she would be there but she works with one of the other panel members. How cool is this!!!

The talk began and I must say, it was amazing. The other women on the panel were absolute professionals in their fields. Healthcare, Psychology, Human Resources, Hospice Care, Palliative Care. Oh my gosh they were amazing. And I – yes, little ‘ol me, had the honor of meeting them and talking to them. I learned so much from them and will never forget any of them.

Once the talk was over, the audience was able to ask questions. A lot of the questions were directed toward me. Again, I was able to share my story and my experience. I was able to give my opinion on what improvements I felt need to be made in the workplace when a cancer diagnosis is involved. I was, and will always be, so honored.

I hope I am able to speak again. As I have mentioned, I HAVE A LOT TO SAY!

My plugs for the evening are as follows:

1. The American Cancer Society is amazing. I dealt with them a little during my treatment but have much more to do with them now that I know the difference they are making. PLEASE support them. They aren’t some fly by night. They are real and they are important. They truly help millions of people. The Hope Lodge on Lindell is near and dear to my heart. I volunteer there often. This is one of the many things that the St. Louis chapter of the American Cancer Society does. Check it out….. https://www.cancer.org/treatment/support-programs-and-services/patient-lodging/hope-lodge/st-louis.html

2. Portraits of Hope. Yep, this is me. I am a Portrait of Hope and I am proud. This year I will be promoting the American Cancer Society, sharing my story and showing people that I survived! I was chosen to represent the American Cancer Society this year along with six other AMAZING WOMEN and I am going to do my best to spread the word. Cancer research is saving lives! Help us win this battle. Please.This year I will reaching out to all of you for fundraising events and awareness events.

I hope you will join my battle in cancer education and cancer research.

LOVE AND PEACE TO EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU!

Love These Women!

#cancercancersurvivorfaceyourfearspublicspeakingbreastcancercancerintheworkplace