Upmarket Magazine

From Furniture Salesman To Award-Winning Poet And Speaker: Kirk Nugent

Posted: 01 Oct 2012 02:00 AM PDT

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of interviewing highly inspirational speaker and award-winning poet, Kirk Nugent. Kirk took a leap that makes him a poster child for stepping into your Sweet Spot: he left a soul-sucking career as a furniture salesman to launch a career as a professional poet (of all things!).

Kirk has spoken on countless college campuses, including the Ivy leagues, at Fortune 500 companies, in church ministries and at empowerment workshops across the U.S., Canada, the Caribbean and in Europe. His aim is to give people the tools to pursue their passion, and express and fully live the greatness that is inside them.

I’ll share more about Kirk and his story next week, but wanted to introduce you to him and the poem that caught my attention when I was first introduced to him a number of years ago: Pursue Your Passion. I highly recommend you watch his riveting delivery of his poem on stage here. You can also read the words below.

If you’ve ever wondered if you could truly live the dream that lives inside you, take Kirk’s words to heart!

Pursue Your Passion

This is your life,
Your purpose on this Earth is not to please me.
Nor is it to fulfill your parents unrealized dreams.
You were not placed here to make concessions so that they could be proud,
So they could brag about their seed,
Fulfill some unfulfilled childhood emotional need
Let them be proud of their very own deeds
This is your life!

I came to shine light into the dark
And like a dog against a hydrant, I am leaving my mark!
We were not sent here to invest in someone else's idea of what we should be
The complacent life does not stimulate me.
So forgive me if I feel no compassion
For those poor souls who live to follow the fashion.
Because if you want to live a life that's neither limited nor ration,
Then by God you must pursue your passion.
They will tell you that it can't be done
As though you were delivered unto this world for your song to go unsung.
Let the world scream that unattainable theme
But for you, there is no such thing as an impossible dream.

Ain't no mystery, check the history
Examine the life of Oprah Winfrey,
Muhammad Ali, Mahatma Gandhi.
Remember what they told Walt Disney?
They said, "Young man you must be blind
You must have lost your rodent loving mind!
No one would ever pay to be entertained by a mouse
Or anything of that kind."
Now Disney is worth more than everyone in this room…combined!
Pursue your passion!

Steven Spielberg was kicked out of the University of Southern California
Film School because his grades weren't good enough.
Pursue your passion!

Russell Simmons refused to sign Madonna
Because he thought she had no talent.
Pursue your passion!

Brandy's teacher told her she was too ugly to be an actress.
Pursue your passion!

Bill Cosby used to shine shoes in front of Temple University.
Pursue your passion!

Michael Jordan was benched on his basketball team in High school
Pursue your passion!

Larry Bird was benched his entire freshman year of college.
Pursue your passion!

Here is proof that greatness is born out of zero doubt
In 1962 Decca Records dismissed four young musicians
Told them that groups with guitars were on their way out.
They left without a contract
But refused to walk on pins and needles
Months later they released their first album
And called themselves, "The Beatles"
Pursue your passion!

Colonel Sanders was 65 when he fried his first piece of chicken,
Made millions after he convinced us that it was finger lickin'.
Pursue your passion!

Lauren Hill was booed at the Apollo
Pursue your passion!

Luther Vandross was booed off the Apollo
Not once, not twice, but three times!
You've got to keep coming back ladies and gentlemen.
Forget the limitations set by your fellow man,
Because when you pursue your passion,
Provision will be provided for your plan!

Let others lead small lives, but not you.
Let others be satisfied with the crumbs, but not you.
Let others sit around and be chronic complainers, but not you.
Let others be volunteers victims, but not you!
Let others be imprisoned by their fears, but not you.
Let others use their race, their gender,
Their sexual orientation as a crutch, but not you.

Let others be concerned about what the neighbors
Might think, say or do, but this is not for you!
Leave that for the politicians, the governors,
Start caring about other people's opinion
And you'll become their prisoner.
This is about a lifestyle that uniquely fits.
Life is God's gift to you,
Style is what you make out of it.
Whatever you're passionate about, the perfection of that craft can be learned
So with the obstacles of this world be not concerned
Because if you set yourself on fire
The world will come watch you burn.
So now that you know that impossible is a word
Found in the dictionary of fools
What are you going to do?
What are you going to do with the rest of your life?
What two things do you want said about you when you die?

I never listened to what the pessimists are telling me
Because I know that the richest place on the planet is the cemetery.
There you will find books that were never written,
Loved ones that were never forgiven,
Ideas that were smitten
And dreams that were forbidden.
Soil that was never tilled, cathedrals that were never built!
Restaurants that were never opened
Chefs that never knew they were smoking.
Paintings that were never drawn nor hung,
Songs that were neither composed nor sung
Souls that never acted on what they really wanted to do
So don't you dare die with your greatness buried within you!

The sperm that fertilized your egg
Survived the odds of 400 million to one.
Get it? Your sperm won!
As long as you live, you will never face such dramatic odds,
Now tell me that ain't proof you're favored by God.

You're greater than any obstacle that can make you hysterical
So don't you dare leave without your miracle.
It's all an illusion, don't you invest in their lies
Their forecast of economic woes and financial demise.
The Universe has an infinite supply, so no need to lie when I testify
That regardless of the economy, you cannot be denied!
It matters not if they raise the terrorist threat level
To hot pink, burgundy or fuchsia
You were born to control your future!
Don't let 'em fool you.
You were born to win, destined to be great
Magnificence was chiseled into your heart,
When God made you he was just showing off!
Discover your divine assignment and you'll have no reason to retreat
Discover your passion and you'll laugh in the face of defeat.
Indifferent to the pressures felt and you do not buckle like a belt.
Declare today that you refuse to lose
Because you can either live your dreams,
Or you can live your excuse!

So even when I'm old and grey,
I'll still be commanding the stage,
Words still be smoking off the page.
So understand…this ain't no phase!
Because everyday I learn a new lesson,
My best poem has yet to be written
And I'm not leaving until what I came to give has been given.
99 on the mic and I'll still be spittin' Still be rippin'
Still be giving, Still be driven So let my tombstone read:
Here lies Kirk and he died…LIVING.

Presence Point: Book Review: ‘Your Brain at Work’ by David Rock

Posted: 28 Sep 2012 06:00 AM PDT

Imagine the power of consciously harnessing the workings of your mind, in small, simple steps to create the results you want with more ease, joy & success in your work, relationships & life. David Rock shows us how to do just that & more the upcoming Neuroloeadership Institute October conference & in his latest book Your Brain at Work: Strategies for Overcoming Distraction, Regaining Focus and Working Smarter All Day Long.

What I love about this book

As a Speech Pathologist & Executive Coach, I am fascinated by the workings of the brain & how it directly relates to our perceptions, habits & results. What I love about this book is that it is designed to train people to know their own brain, observe their processes, reflect, interrupt & choose other more powerful behaviors, creating better outcomes. Rock is a business consultant, not a neuroscientist. Using cutting edge research in Neuroscience, Social Cognitive Neuroscience & Psychology, he pinpoints activity in specific parts of the brain, & relates it to our habitual thought patterns & actions. He then shows us the "before" & "after" effects, using scenarios of a "typical" working family. Before, as they unconsciously let their emotions, thoughts & "noisy brains" run the day on autopilot; & after: as they consciously practice observing themselves, quieting their minds & purposefully making more satisfying choices.

The book, structured as a play, with 4 acts.

Act 1 is "all about learning to work around the limits of your conscious mental processes" in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), a "small fragile & energy-hungry brain region" which sometimes needs to be shut down, for us to plan, organize, prioritize & create. Rock describes what typically happens in the PFC & what we can do to optimize peak performance & limit fatigue. He introduces his ARIA model of facilitating insight & creativity, which has far reaching implications for problem-solving: "the emphasis at school, university, & in the workplace is on cognition & general intelligence. There is little focus on knowing yourself or on cognitive control. If getting around impasses in the future is going to be important, then we might need to rethink how we teach problem-solving."

During Intermission, we meet The Director, without which "you are a mere automaton, driven by greed, fear, or habit." The Director is known by several different names including mindfulness, self-awareness, meta-cognition, & executive function, which "sits 'above' your other working-memory functions, monitoring your thinking & choosing how to best allocate resources." The stronger the director, the more successful we are. Practice is the key.

Act 2 explores "how the brain is built to minimize danger & maximize reward. This occurs as a toward & away system of emotions, driven by the limbic system of the brain." Rock shows us how quickly our brain defaults to similar past experiences when we feel threatened & teaches us techniques to "wrestle back control from an overly aroused limbic system." Simple things, such as breathing, practiced repeatedly, can literally change the outcome of a stressful meeting.

Act 3 shows us the social world from the brain's perspective. Much of human behavior "is driven, largely unconsciously, by the desire to minimize social dangers & maximize social rewards." It is here that we learn how even a slight decrease in any of the five domains of social experience is perceived by the human brain as significant a threat to survival as a lack of food & water. For example, just speaking to your boss generally activates a status threat. Elevating others' status is integral to improving performance & relationships. Fighting for status among coworkers also impairs collaboration in teams.

Act 4 confirms why it is hard to change ourselves & others. One factor is "mirror neurons" that light up in our brains when we see someone perform an action with a specific intent behind it, which establishes or diminishes rapport. "Mirror neurons explain why leaders need to be extra conscious of managing their stress levels, as their emotions really do impact others." This is also a critical component in successfully managing remotely as body language cues are absent.

With fascinating research & practical application, David Rock shows us the "How" and "Why" of the workings of our brain – to know our brain, to detect what our brain is doing, interrupt it & redirect it for success. How well are you using your "brain at work?"

Image credit: Patrick Hoesly

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miercuri, 28 noiembrie 2012