Fantastic Movers and Shakers Weekend

Today was the final day of Hay House's Movers and Shakers event in Boston and it was phenomenal. The two and 1/2 day event was lead by Hay House CEO Reid Tracy and best selling author and coach Cheryl Richardson.  Friday night, Reid told us, "It takes 10 years to be an overnight success." Then added that this course knocks a few years off. I have no doubt about that.

Some of the things that struck me most: Movers and Shakers are compelled by a vision to change the world in a positive way.
The Who is more important than the What. The person behind the message is more important than the message.
You must know and embrace your own values. They will guide your vision and message.
A good idea is not enough.
There were lots of practical tips for building your platform from book proposals to iPhone apps. There is a LOT of work to do.

During all the breaks I ended up giving impromptu lessons about social media, iPhone usage and website tips to everyone who dared approach me.  Many people wanted to hire me, but their questions were so basic and simple to solve. This really drove home how much I've grown. Not many years ago, I would have hated being asked all these questions and considered those asking to be stupid, but I truly enjoyed sharing with all the fantastic people at the event. The answers of "right click", visit http://www.lynda.com/ or http://www.elance.com/ solved 90% of people's questions.

Our homework Saturday night was to prepare a 5 minute speech including a brief introduction, our message, a moving personal story and a call to action.  I worked till 12am to come up with something and practiced it a few times to be sure that if I didn't do it, it wouldn't be because of fear. 

The vast majority of the 100 or so participants wanted to speak so only a handful were randomly selected.  At lunch someone had the great idea for us to give our speeches at the table. I thought it was a bad idea at first, trying it in a noisy restaurant and I knew I was going to be emotional doing mine. So we went around our group of seven and it was very cool. We burst into applause for each person and every head in the restaurant turned to see what was going on.  It came to my turn and we had 5 minutes till we were supposed to be back at the event. So I gave a rushed and shortened story of the suicide I witnessed last July in San Diego. I got great feedback and support as we raced back to the hall and throughout that afternoon - so great idea Rena.

The big surprise of the weekend was the presence of Louise Hay herself. She is such an amazing woman and is the author of a book that truly changed my life, You Can Heal Your Life.

Sunday opened and closed with a few words from Louise. She is now 83 1/2 and says each decade is better than the previous one (I sure agree with that!) and so far her 80's are the best yet. Louise took the time to talk with and sign books for everyone in attendance. I felt so blessed to be able to tell her how much she's impacted my life. How I was such a depressed and suicidal mess until I read and acted on her book. She has the most amazing presence; radiating peace, calm, compassion and love in every glance and touch. She sent us out into the world Sunday evening telling us to keep repeating over and over, "Life loves me and and I am safe."
Amen!