What If
[Music]
so
[Applause]
i was born by the river
in a little tent whoa
and just like the river i’ve been
running
ever since it’s been a
long
long time coming but i know
change gonna come whoa
yes it will
change gonna come ain’t that the truth
before words like coronavirus and social
distancing
had a place in our everyday vocabulary
this global pandemic was simply a what
if
what if two words that when paired
together perceive the stuff of dreams
and when those dreams manifest change
gonna come
what if we actually colonize the moon
what if we could connect with millions
all over the world simply by using a
device
small enough to fit in our pockets
what if we lived in a nation where we
were not judged by the color of our skin
but by the content of our character
what if a flulike virus infected over
180 countries
shutting down global economies forcing
millions to shelter in their homes
for weeks and weeks on end what
if it’s often the most awe-inspiring and
mystical what-ifs that can truly change
the world
in an ever-changing world with its
ever-evolving complexity ambiguity and
uncertainty
what if we had the ability to access an
infinite resource to fuel our growth
through change
what if we had an innate tap to that
same resource that has powered
the greatest cultural movements and
technological advancements of humankind
better still what if we were signaled
into the best opportunities
to use that power to harness that power
to accelerate our better
our betterment our evolution to best
what if i’m a chemical engineer before
founding my consulting firm i spent a
little under 15 years
working in more traditional roles in
corporate america the predominance of
that career was spent leading innovation
for consumer packaged goods giant
a giant whom i’m sure if i were to begin
rattling off from their billion dollar
brand portfolio
every single person watching would
recognize at least one they have in
their homes right now
it was a company i was so proud to help
grow through sharing my talents
gifts and abilities well one day having
worked for that company for about 12
years
i was approached by my manager and told
that there would be an urgent meeting
for the leadership team of which i was
part
so at the designated time a little less
than a dozen of us gathered into the
board room
and we’re all kind of looking at each
other trying to gauge who might already
have some info about what was about to
be shared
but nothing could have prepared us for
the moments that followed
soon after we’d all grabbed our seats
our manager slowly walked in and took
her position at the front of the board
room
and eventually announced that our
business was being acquired
upon hearing that news news that my role
and in turn me
were being acquired by a different
company the first thing that hit me was
grief
it was like somebody had punched me in
the gut expelling all the wind from my
lungs
i immediately felt this overwhelming
loss of a company
and a culture that i had grown to know
and love it was the only company i had
known since graduating university
the company where i’d established my
closest relationships
i’d envisioned this grand career
spanning decades and had even
extrapolated out my annual salary and
bonus projections
for many years to come based on assumed
advancements
i immediately grieved the loss of that
dream
and felt anxious perceiving what it
might mean for my future
and my livelihood perhaps you’ve
experienced something similar recently
a lost job reduced hours unsure of how
you provide for yourself or your family
what if the negative emotion that
accompanies major change
were there to serve not to be diminished
or suppressed but rather embraced
what if that negative emotional energy
energy like anxiety and grief
bubbled up from within to signal us into
our greatest opportunities to grow
social psychologists have learned that
emotional response to a given stimuli
is milliseconds faster than cognitive or
thinking response
just like that grief that punched me in
the gut sitting in that board room
this emotion is innate infinite and
highly efficient often bypassing
the rational brain center moving swiftly
through the amygdala
a more primitive part of the brain this
emotion is a prized inheritance of our
species
a gift a resource flowing in infinite
abundance from within
and i believe the reason is to signal us
into our greatest moments of opportunity
opportunity to choose how we will
maximize the moment
how we will leverage the power of
conscious choice to transform
that negative emotional energy and to
fuel
for lasting growth through any change
a signal an opportunity
a choice a proven natural law is the
first law of thermodynamics which is
founded on the principle of conservation
of energy and it states
energy can either be created or
destroyed it can only be conserved
transferred or transformed now for those
of you looking on at the slide concerned
you might have just stumbled into an
advanced engineering course
let me set your mind at ease i’m not
about to try to explain these highly
complex viscosity and surface friction
curves
i just realized as a degree carry an
engineer i couldn’t live with myself
if i didn’t share some type of data
during this talk
now for those of you still looking on
with worry let me further reassure you
this is my only data rich slide
now for those of you far smarter than i
yes these graphs
marginally at best support my point
but anyhow by this law energy can either
be created or
destroyed and the same must hold true
for emotion which in and of itself
is energy peter mcwilliam said it best e
motion is energy in
motion energy as defined in an
engineering context is the capability to
do
work and i’m sure you would agree that
emotion can certainly fuel action
or work you all are a beautiful audience
and this is by far one of the most
exciting moments of my life
but if a bear or a tiger were to come
barely through that door
fear would fuel action fear would fuel
my legs to move faster than they’ve ever
moved before
although anyone looking on from a
distance might still beg the question
why is she moving so slowly doesn’t
she know there’s like a bear chasing her
nonetheless fear would fuel action right
in fact it can be so effective that
there are leaders who lead
by fear if you don’t do this that will
happen
you’ll lose your job you won’t get that
promotion you won’t be able to provide
for yourself
or your family and even though leading
by inspiring fear can be effective in
the short term
it is neither sustainable nor enabling a
fulfilled growth
in fact fear often stalls progress
through change
because when we’re invited to conserve
the energy of fear for
days weeks months on end our health can
take a toll
you see by applying this law this
conservation of energy we can either
conserve
transfer or transform our negative
emotional energy
by conserving we’re essentially holding
them within right fueling higher and
higher stress levels
and all the physiological impact that
come with it like lost sleep and
declining health
by transferring we’re engaging in
venting sessions right with anyone and
everyone who will listen
temporarily transferring our anger or
frustration from ourselves to another
individual
to another individual but it eventually
finds its way right back to us
like this energetic game of hot potato
or we can transform we can choose to
transform that negative emotional energy
into the energy that can fuel that can
motivate our growth
our journey to our authentic success
that energy is the same
energy that has fueled our
intentionality towards
international peace and that has enabled
and motivated the life-altering
innovation
that is making the world a better place
for many years to come
that power resides within each and every
one of us
that power resides within you
the question is how will you choose
to harness it a signal
an opportunity a choice
it wasn’t on the day of that
announcement but shortly thereafter
i embraced the grief lingering in the
pit of my stomach
and the anxiety stiffening the muscles
in my shoulders and back
to be signals blasting from a source of
infinite wisdom within
signals communicating that i was sitting
in a moment of opportunity
opportunity to grow to evolve to become
better i began considering how can i
best
use this moment and the power of choice
i chose to transform the energy of grief
for what i was losing into the energy of
pride for what i had accomplished over
those past 12 years
i chose to transform the energy of
anxiety for losing my job
into anticipation for what lie ahead
i chose to trust in the very fact that i
was feeling that anxiety and grief
to mean there was something great in
store for me
it wasn’t always easy and i had more
moments than i care to count
fill with those signal emotions but i
ended up excelling in that new company
successfully transitioning my
organization through the acquisition
i became a better leader i became a
better colleague
i became better i was inspired to
integrate this throughout every facet of
my life
i quit drinking i lost over 50 pounds
i was inspired to cultivate it to hone
it in a way that it can enable others
through their growth challenges
while still working full-time i work
diligently to build a consulting firm
with this message at its core
and i’m so grateful to live each and
every day on purpose
inspiring thousands through their
toughest change challenges
and if not for that fateful day sitting
in that boardroom
when i mentally buckled to my knees
overwhelmed by grief
and anxiety none of that would have come
to pass
and i certainly wouldn’t be standing in
front of all of you
on this stage in this very moment
a signal an opportunity
a choice what if today you chose to
believe the fear
anger anxiety frustration that come with
major change
to be your prized inheritance gifts
what if today you began allowing those
gifts to exist
and ultimately signal you into your
greatest moments of opportunity to
choose
to transform that negative energy into
energy that can fuel your lasting
and fulfilled growth what
if well like the iphone
this what if has become my reality and
it’s my hope that in the face of every
tragedy
disappointment devastation that change
may bring you’ll embrace it as your
reality
and one day together we’ll sing in
unison
there are times when i thought
i could last for long
but now i know i’m able to carry on
it’s been a long
long time coming but i know
change gonna come whoa
yes it will be well thank you
you