What This Campaign Has Been Teaching Me

As my mayoral campaign ramps up, and I try to juggle my coaching business with the campaign, and life in general, a few things have occurred to me lately I’d like to share:

• Everything is an opportunity.   An opportunity to help.  Opportunity to lead.  To strengthen skills.  To build more and better relationships.   To rise to a challenge.  To grow thicker skin.   To rally people behind a vision.   And to integrate living a good life with exciting projects. 

  
  

• Anytime you put yourself out there in pursuit of growth or leadership, expect a wide range of opinions. That's part of the journey.

• The narratives shared on social media – sometimes accurate, sometimes not – are but a small piece of the real stories.   The truest version of facts is found by having many conversations, at deeper levels, with people who are actually ‘in the know’.  The ones involved and who are charged with making decisions.   That’s where the closest version to the truth is to be found.

  
  

• At our core, we all really want the same things.   Safety and security.  Some autonomy, meaning & satisfaction.  And loving relationships with people that matter.  These needs can be expressed positively or negatively.   Our actions and words often reveal what's driving us - whether integrity & courage… or righteous, fear-driven behaviour.

  
  

• Serving one’s community in a leadership role can be one of the most fulfilling, gratifying ways to serve others.  And it’s not for everyone.

On the surface these thoughts may not all seem related.  But the more I reflect on these, the more I realize they are all connected by the same thread.  They all point toward what leadership, growth, and service have been teaching me lately. 

To bring increasing clarity.  To stay focused.  To be grateful.  And to appreciate the amazing people around me.

Maybe one of these reflections resonates with something you're experiencing.  Maybe it doesn't. Either way, life has a funny way of presenting the next opportunity... if we're paying attention.

What’s your next adventure?