Connect Ann Arbor

Today is a day for inspiration. It’s a beautiful day in Ann Arbor. There is electricity in the air and the possibilities are endless. Today I have been thinking of one of my favorite quotes by Marianne Williamson. Our Deepest Fear from her book A Return to Love. Here is the quote:

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

When it comes to being the best at what we do, reference to Seth Godin and his book The Dip, I have to think this plays a role. Sometimes it’s not the fear of failure that holds us back, but the fear of success. The fear of having a spotlight on us, and outshining our peers.

As Marrianne Williamson says, we are all meant to shine as children do. We know this when we are children, but we forget as we grow and society makes us feel that we need to fall within the boundaries and do as our peers do.

Today we need to break out of that and shine. As I look around Southeast Michigan, I realize we need many, many people to shine. If we all go out and do our best, we can raise out of this depression. What can you do today to make a difference?

May 22, 1:45 PM - I helped get Seth Godin set up with the audio and tech at the Ann Arbor stop of The Dip book tour. Seth and I then headed out the back door of the Michigan Theater and went for coffee at cafe Ambrosia.

This was really a highlight of the whole day for me. 20 minutes talking with Seth Godin over some ice coffee. I learned a lot in those 20 minutes. And it was great to see how nice Seth is. We all know how smart and insightful he is. And I can attest to his character and kind manner. What a guy.

For me all the work to put this event together was worth it. To have 400+ people attend the event and really enjoy themselves. To build community and connect people from all over Michigan and Ohio for an event like this is just wonderful. I am inspired to have more Connect Ann Arbor events.

Thank you to Matt Sharp and Heather Feldkamp at Michigan Business Review. Without the ads and support of their Michigan Leaders Read program, we could not have pulled off this event. We had huge ads running in the Ann Arbor News and Washtenaw and Oakland Business Review newspapers. Thank you.

Others I owe thanks to: John Hogan, Diane Durance, Linda Latocki, Bob Guerrini, Barb Palazzolo, Leslie Herrick, Susanna Thomashefski, Chris Lakatos, Brandon Rhea, Liz Conlin, Angela Pierro, Charlie Penner, Tracy Koe-Wick, Robert Pasick, Edward Vielmetti, Nancy Shore, Kasey Kasemodel, Greg Peters, Ron Suarez, Ross Johnson, Nicola of Nicola’s Books, Amanda Strong, Brian Kerr, Annie Wolock, Jim Ceely and Print Tech, Catherin Juon, Linda Girard, and more that I may be forgetting.

Thank you all. Until next time…

What a day it was on May 22, 2007 when Seth Godin spoke in Ann Arbor at the first ever Connect Ann Arbor Event. Professionals from marketing, sales, academia, IT consulting, health and fitness and all walks of life attended the event.

400+ people enjoyed a great show w/ Seth Godin. If you were inspired by Seth and want to share your thoughts on The Dip please comment here. And thanks to everyone who played a part in this event.

Ross was out and took some photos of the Michigan Theater. It’s safe to say that Ann Arbor is ready for Seth Godin. But is Seth Godin ready for Ann Arbor? See you tomorrow at the event.