Two days in a row the guests I had lined up to interview for my podcast had to reschedule. One was still dealing with the remnants of Hurricane Florence and the other is dealing with a death in the family. Last night I went to bed feeling a bit disappointed. This was different from the anxiety or even irritation I might have felt only six weeks ago had this happened. Then I didn’t have a bank of already recorded episodes lined up and ready to go.
This morning when I woke up I realized that what caused my disappointment was not the need to get ahead of my production schedule, but my thorough love for meeting new people and connecting. I love to find out what their aha moments were to get them to take risks and move through their fears in spite of them. I love the idea of helping others see how they can do the same by asking my guest thought-provoking questions. Connection with my guests and with my audience is definitely one aspect of why I love podcastng, but there is something more that I look forward to just before I record an episode and that is creation.
My disappointment was based in my need to create, to make something where before there was nothing. A painter does this by pulling together paints, brushes, canvases and the ideas inside herself. A novelist uses pen, paper, words, story structure, and his imagination to produce his novels. And I use my research, targeted questions, inspiring guests, a microphone and a mixing board to create episodes of Discovering Courage to share with you each week.
In thinking about the origin of my disappointment I realized that it was tied to my values of connection, creation, and teaching. This last value surprises me a little. I remember when I was a teenager my mom, who had been teaching for almost twenty years at that point, telling me, “Whatever you do, Patricia, don’t become a teacher.” Her advice was well-meaning, but it came from a pace of frustration with school administration red-tape and bureaucracy. Years later when I was reassessing my choice of career I thought perhaps I should have become a teacher in spite of her advice. But at that point I was far into my career as a project manager and so kept at it. Now more than ten years after this decision I realize I was meant to teach and that I could do this in a different way, outside the confines of a school system.
When I found myself dealing with an unhappy work situation I created time management and productivity workshops and I facilitated them at my job during monthly lunch and learn sessions. Participating in this extracurricular work gave me the ability to create, connect, and teach which provided meaning to the work I was doing. As a life coach I teach awareness, ways to get unstuck, and how to see obstacles differently so that people can change how or what they are doing and improve the quality of their life experiences. And, through the Discovering Courage podcast I connect with guests and create episodes that teach others similar things.
Connection, creativity, and teaching (on my terms) are values I must honor in order to be in integrity with myself. When I do I fire on all cylinders and life is really good.
What values must you honor to feel this way? Are you honoring them now? How might you be able to honor them in a creative and novel way?
Patricia Brooks is a life experiences coach, speaker, and the author of Growing Bold: How to Overcome Fear, Build Confidence, and Love the Life you Live. She is the host of the Discovering Courage Podcast where each week she explores how ordinary people have managed to live extraordinary lives. Patricia is currently living in France, pursuing her dreams.
Photo Credit: Sharosh Rajasekher