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I’ve met hundreds of aspiring speakers over the years, but the one I met this weekend was different. We grabbed coffee while I was in town for an event, and he asked for advice about breaking into this career. Then on a hunch, I pulled up his website. He speaks on mental health and suicide prevention. Powerful, important work. But as I scrolled, it took me far too long to figure that out. So I told him the truth. I said, “Your most impactful points are buried. You don’t even mention mental health until halfway through this block of text.” The good news was that it was an easy fix. He had all the right pieces, they were just in the wrong places. I suggested a different tagline and a few small copy changes. Nothing dramatic. He thanked me, and we went our separate ways. Two days later, I pulled up his site again out of curiosity. He’d already changed it! That alone puts him ahead of almost everyone I meet. Not because the changes were perfect. But because he acted. He didn’t overthink it. Here’s the thing: I’ve never seen this guy speak. I don’t know his stage presence. I don’t know his storytelling ability. I don’t know if he’s any good yet. But I’d still bet on him. Because in most areas of life, progress has less to do with talent and more to do with action. I’ve met incredibly talented people who never go anywhere. The difference is rarely skill. It’s momentum. And momentum comes from taking action. Successful people don’t waste time perfecting the plan. They make the change and see what happens next. So here’s the question I keep coming back to: What’s the change you already know you need to make? Happy Friday, friends. Make it a good one. -Kyle P.S. I just finished up the busiest January of my entire career. This year's calendar is filling up quickly, but if you’re planning an event and want a speaker who helps teams generate breakthrough ideas and turn them into action, hit reply and let’s talk. |
One useful idea about creative leadership, once a week
I’ve noticed something interesting about our society’s approach to creativity: we punish it in children and praise it in adults. When adults find creative solutions, they often get rewarded with praise, promotions, or new opportunities. But when children find creative solutions for things, they are often punished. This happened to me all the time as a kid. In high school, I once organized an impromptu fundraiser to buy a gorilla suit (it’s a long story). That afternoon, I got called down to...
They say that you should tackle your most important tasks at the beginning of each day. That way, if things go sideways later, you’ve already accomplished your biggest priority. Which is why, every morning since late 2021, I start my day with Wordle. If you’ve never played Wordle, here’s the gist: Each day, you have six chances to guess a five-letter word. After each guess, the game gives you three colors of feedback: GREY means the letter isn’t in the word. YELLOW means it’s in the word, but...
This week I had three speaking events in 28 hours on opposite sides of the country. Last week I did four events in four cities in five days. It’s the busy season for speakers, and the question I get a lot is, “What about work/life balance?” I love that question, because it allows me to share one of my favorite hot takes: Work/life balance is a myth. It doesn’t exist! At least, it doesn’t exist in the way I often hear people talk about it. People talk about work/life balance as if it is a...