Ted Talks
I enjoy writing and sharing my ideas on life. I have a passion for establishing real connections with ADs and Team Members by expressing myself and connecting with others.
Moments in Life
There are moments in life when we feel the most heartfelt emotion of love, and have a thoughtful understanding that it won't last forever. We should hold onto these moments as long as we can. They create the best memories. It's my belief that we should try and make as many memories as possible and feel that way every day.
I don't want to come across too serious about it, but I'm having a realization of just... why not try to feel that way? There are a million details in life that happen every day, but what are they really worth? Sure, some things about work and life are important. We should be able to focus on them when we need to. But we shouldn't get distracted by details that aren't as significant as how we connect with others. Work will get accomplished. Problems will be solved. We'll figure out what we need to do. But it's about how much emotion we feel, and really, put into it. And what should we really be putting our emotions into?
We will always have feelings of frustration, sadness, anger, and depression. When we dwell on the past, it will continue to last. But when we focus on the task, it'll go by fast. What we should really be doing is allowing ourselves to recognize all the goodness we have within our lives and the relationships that bind us together. Investing in our thoughts, feelings, and actions with those that we love. Because the moments we share with them are more valuable.
We also have aspirations, goals, and dreams that we focus on that are important for ourselves. While these can be great things, we shouldn't spend all our time focusing on just ourselves. I've often said all that we have in this world is ourselves. But the more I live, the more I find that I'm not alone. We can care for ourselves, support others, and they in turn support us. We all help each other grow, the more we grow closer together.
It's the togetherness that I'm trying to communicate. The moments when you share an experience, get a look, feel all the love in the world... and also know that the moment won't last forever. It's a bittersweet feeling of complete satisfaction with life and knowing that it'll be gone in an instant. So why not try to create and recognize as many of these moments as possible?
My idea is not, "live every moment like your last." But live every moment like your first. With all the joy, excitement, and love you had as a child. To focus on what really matters.
I have a degree in Religious Studies and I'm still not sure what is guaranteed for an afterlife. All I really know is I have this one life to live. So why not try and make it Heaven on Earth?
Pineapple & Pizza
There's a lot of hate about pineapple on pizza and honestly at this point it's become a cliche. For a quick history lesson, the Hawaiian Pizza, with ham and pineapple, was created by Sam Panopoulos, a Greek-born Canadian, and it's called the Hawaiian because of the brand of canned pineapple he was using at the time. He was inspired by his experience preparing Chinese dishes which commonly mix sweet and savory flavors.
First of all, who doesn't love sweet and savory? Your tastebuds are exploding like the 4th of July with such a delicious treat. One time at a work function back in the day, my friend Seth and I when hearing some static on the Hawaiian Pizza, were blown away. We coudln't believe that so much hate was coming towards our suggestion of ordering this pizza, and this was before it was popular to hate pineapple. Seth replied, "Do you hate rainbows, puppies, and unicorns? Sunshine, joy, and happiness?" While this rebuttal was a little over the top, I find that it rings true to the essence of the pizza though. Those bits of pineapple are bursts of sunshine and sweetness, mixed together with savory ham, and delicious cheesiness. It's a beautiful bouquet of flavors that exudes joy.
I will even get only pineapple on a cheese pizza. Yes. I just said that, and I'm not ashamed. And I will shout it from the mountain top, that pineapple is a delicious and deserved ingredient on a pizza. And look, I understand that the texture or flavor isn't for everybody. I can't stand the rubbery mushrooms on pizza unless they're mixed into a Supreme.
Think about this though. When there's a pizza party with all the different choices of toppings, and everybody has had their fill of every different slice, the box that held the Hawaiian is always empty. The people who requested the sausage and mushroom pizza have half a pizza at least left to take home, sneaky move, I've seen it in action. The vegetarian pizza with a cuss ton of vegetables is still there with just a couple slices taken out of it. While I think most people would agree but are too scared to say, a vegetarian pizza is just called cheese pizza.
But who am I to judge? We all have different tastes. We all have different happy places. You can always try a slice and say that's not for me. Or you might find that you enjoy something you've never had before. It's all about sharing with each other, experiencing life, and finding connections. And if all else fails, there's always hot sauce. But I bet that's a topic for another time.
Valentine’s Day
With Valentine's Day coming up a lot of our focus will be on how to express our love for others. But don't forget to love yourself.
Now when I say love yourself, I don't mean the typical acknowledgments that you give yourself, recognizing recent "wins," the general confidence and happiness that you feel just being you, or a Treat Yo'Self gift like Tom and Donna from Parks and Rec. I mean something much more than that.
Take a look in the mirror, metaphorically speaking. Recognize and love yourself for who you truly are. Your strengths and weaknesses. Your beauty and imperfections. Your achievements and hardships. All of the things that make you who you are. Because without them, you wouldn't be YOU. We're all imperfect creatures and it's the imperfections that make us unique and beautiful.
While it's important to recognize your past and how it has molded you to this point, remember that it does not define who you are. Your goals for the future, what you want out of life, or who you want to become, are all great aspirations to have. But there will be ups and downs along the way, just like in the past, and your life and desires may change. Who you are, right now, in the present, is the most valuable thing to understand and love. Because while you can't change the past, you can become better today when you find peace and love within and of yourself. In order to build a positive future you need a solid foundation. And that starts with the love you give yourself at this moment.
There's an old cliche that says you can't love someone until you love yourself. While I don't think that's true, I think we can neglect ourselves and feel unloved. But that starts with us. I think we can love others better when we love ourselves. So while we recognize others and share our love for who they are this Valentine's Day... do that for YOU. It's the most important thing you can do for yourself. It's not selfish. It's not pride. It's not ego. It's LOVE.