I noticed a guy walking through the crowd on Wednesday at the Vistage Executive Summit in Minneapolis.  There was something unusual about him but it took me a while to figure out what.  Was it his tie?  There were scant few of those here after a previous presenter from a few years back, Cameron Herald, nearly admonished us for continuing to perpetuate an out of style fashion statement.  Was it his gate?  He had purpose and intention.  Was it his face? It was lit up…all…the…time.  Was it the way he held his head?  It was tilted slightly as if he was approaching someone and was thinking hard about what he was about to ask or say.

He is John O’Leary and he changed my life on Wednesday.  He wrote a book a couple of years ago titled “On Fire”.  (I ordered it but haven’t seen it to read it yet)

His keynote was so engaging and so inspiring that I had to share a sliver of what he messaged to the crowd of 300.

I won’t do the message justice but if you want to gain more, you can hear his message through his book, his blog, his podcasts and other social media outlets.

What stuck for me:

•There are two primary motivators in life, Fear and Love.  You can choose which one to pay attention to and which one you will use.

A victim will typically ask themselves three questions:

•Why me?

John used pictures and humor and pounded on these three questions.  He teased us with the victim stance to begin with, coming from his 98% burned body at age 9, but in his message he turned the tables and asked the same questions from a victors perspective.

•Why me?

Why am I so blessed?  What did I do to deserve this?  More importantly, what can I do to show gratitude for my blessings?

He started with the example of a hot shower. How many of us take these for granted?  He then offered to jump on a plane with anyone who would join him so he could show us one of any number of places who don’t have that measure of hygiene we enjoy daily.

•Who cares?

Control what I can.  Ignore the rest.  Not who cares about me and my horrific situation but who cares about all the things I can’t control.  Let it go and focus your energy on the things you can control.

•What more can I do?

Rather than limit what your possibilities are, the question assumes you already won the lottery.

*You’re blessed.

*You’re breathing.

*You have tremendous gifts.

Now, what else are you doing to leverage them for the good of others?

-Can you mentor?

-Can you volunteer?

-Can you share your treasures with others and add value rather than simply stuff away a larger nest egg?

“Those who have a ‘why’ to live can bear with almost any ‘how’”

Viktor Frankl

Choose how you see the world.  Focus your energy on the world of wonder and blessings and possibilities.  Be grateful for everything.  Smile.  Participate.  Revel.

I noticed a guy walking through the crowd on Wednesday at the Vistage Executive Summit in Minneapolis.  There was something unusual about him but it took me a while to figure out what.

It is his attitude.

He chooses to be grateful, positive and inspiring.

If he can do it, so can you!

Have a blessed weekend!