Jen Engevik’s Bold Speech for TED.com: 5 Steps to Boldness
The following is a speech developed by Jen Engevik and Anette Ericsson on the concept of boldness. It outlines 5 Steps to Bold Living that can be applied to your and anyone’s life. Pass it on!
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First Step to Boldness
After studying some of the world’s boldest men, women and children, it has become more and more obvious to me that
Galileo in Court - Sharing HIs Truth
they seem to share five traits. I’ll be sharing them at the TED Conference in Irvine today via video. In an effort to give you a sneak peak, I’ll provide you the first of the five that I”ll be sharing:
1. They listen to the truth within. Plato instructed humanity to “know thyself.” He discovered that when we fail to examine our selves, it is rather impossible to have a purpose in this world.
A couple examples include:
Galileo – He just couldn’t resist standing up and shouting to the world that the earth rotates around the sun…because it was the truth! The government and church taught the opposite and were worried that if the world learned the truth there would be a revolution. They tried to silence Galileo, yet he didn’t quit. They took him to court…he still didn’t quit. They then sentenced him to house arrest until his death. He chose to put his life on the line for future generations. His perseverance was driven by truth…and oodles of gumption…you gotta love it!
Rosa Parks – She stood up for her truth…that she was just as valuable as a white person. In defiance of a ridiculous law, she refused to sit at the back of the bus with the other black men and women. Her actions played a major role in changing history forever!
Knowing thyself appears to mean…
- understanding what makes you tick
- fully examining your beliefs and testing them against reality
- daring not to follow the pack and thinking for yourself
- not being threatened by those you don’t understand and listening to their stories
- knowledge of your body and how you can maintain true health & balance
Those who fail to know their truths…or are just too fearful to acknowledge them tend to be quite unfocused, unhappy, frustrated, frustrating, and dreamless.
I can’t help but wonder if this is why so many of us are miserable and depressed in this world. So many of us fail to really look inside, buck the system, and do our part in changing/improving the world.
If you find yourself doubting yourself…how about taking a bit of time to get to know who you really are. Ask yourself…”if I could do anything in this world…what would I do?” And then think hard…what within inspires you to desire your dream? Such knowledge is a perfect starting point!
I’ll be a part of the Ted Conference today…check it out from 11-4…the live stream will be at http://www.livestream.com/tedxyouthbommercanyon.
Thank you for reading!
- Jen Engevik
Project BE Bold
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Coldplay’s Paradise and Going Bold!
Enjoy this video from Coldplay. Reminds us that sometimes we just need to break free from the confines of our minds & realities…and do something wild and bold!
The songs lyrics are as follows…
When she was just a girl
She expected the world
But it flew away from her reach so
She ran away in her sleep and dreamed of
Para-para-paradise, Para-para-paradise, Para-para-paradise
Every time she closed her eyes
When she was just a girl
She expected the world
But it flew away from her reach
and the bullets catch in her teeth
Life goes on, it gets so heavy
The wheel breaks the butterfly
Every tear a waterfall
In the night the stormy night
she’ll close her eyes
In the night the stormy night away she’d fly
and dreams of Para-para-paradise…
Don’t let life slip away…grab on with your bristly trunk and just go for it!!!
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10 Bold Words to Meditate on Today
1. Love…keep the heart pumping and ever expanding…show your partner, your child, your mother & father, and even
strangers some love today.
2. Forgive…let go of yesterday…today offers the perfect opportunity to create new, positive brain waves.
3. Now…have you noticed all of the beauty surrounding you at this very moment? The magic lies in the moment…that’s why we had so much fun when we were kids.
4. Trees…thank goodness for green leaves to create more oxygen for us to breathe. How about being a tree huger for the day…or climbing up one for fun.
5. Path…choose the path that your gut tells you to take. It may be scary and temporarily painful, but at least it beats stagnancy.
6. Hand…this world wouldn’t be what it is today without our hands. “I can change the world…with my own two hands…with my own…with my own two hands” – Ben Harper
7. Eyes…dare not to take for granted that you have eyes with which to experience the world. Open them up a bit more, and you’ll be amazed at what you can experience.
8. Listen…the more we listen, the more we learn. It’s not always easy to stay silent and give time for another being to express himself/herself, but it’s the most loving thing we can do. Practice makes perfect…let’s keep trying to be better listeners.
9. Quiet…minds need time to breathe. Let’s dare to find a nice place where there are no distractions and just be. Clarity and great ideas grow in moments of peace…and quiet.
10. Imagination…it’s OK to daydream a bit and let the mind take flight. How else was the science of flight conceived?…or the iPhone developed?…or the pyramids designed? Why do we not have daydreaming classes in school? Don’t be one of those people who tell your children not to daydream…or that their imagination will lead them to ruin. Join in the fun!
Those who are out there making things happen in the world often have a hard time sleeping at night…their imaginations run wild as they dream up their next creation. Have you bought into the idea that they own some special dreaming license? At birth we were all given the same one…why not use it?
- Jen Engevik
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Connecting the Dots, Steve Jobs, Justin Bieber & Dreams
While trying to drift off to sleep last eve, or should I say around 2am (because of a massive creative attack), I thought of a
speech that Steve Jobs gave at Stanford University. He spoke of how one can only connect the dots when looking backward, never when looking forward. Meaning…if we try to piece everything together before it happens, we waste valuable time.
Will my dreams come true?
Will my family be happy and healthy?
Will I finally be able to own my dream house?
Will I be able to travel the world?
What about work…will I be able to keep my job?
If I completely dislike my job and decide to quit…will I be OK? Will I starve?
If I leave my dysfunctional relationship, will I ever find love again?
The list goes on and on…
The truth as Steve Jobs so eloquently put it…is that we simply can’t know. We can only make wise/bold decisions in the present moment and have faith that the dots will connect in the future. One moment will lead to the next, no matter what we do. Time cannot be halted until we figure it all out.
The key is to stay focused on what we can do in the here and now. Begin writing before we worry about finding publishers. Start running for a while before we become concerned with whether the pounds are coming off. Do our best each second to create healthy relationships with the people we love…not try to connect the dots toward forever.
We must be the task…whatever it is…otherwise we push people away, we don’t focus on the actual work that needs to be done to build our dreams. I was thinking today about Justin Bieber. That poor kid has so many haters and critics. But I’m going to tell you something…
he’s doing it…
he’s putting himself out there while…
well…while many people are sitting on their arses doing nothing. Staring at the TV with their mouths open…allowing for
their minds to grow soggier by the moment. Laugh all you want…while he’s singing and dancing his heart out…and traveling the world to boot.
It’s not that we all have to become fans…but really we must respect those who are out there experiencing and pushing the limits.
If you have a dream…or a hope…just put one foot in front of the other and begin to create something.
The dots will connect while we’re doing our work…
- Jen Engevik
Project BE Bold
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Making it Through Struggle in Today’s Challenging World
Fall in Sweden
I’m writing from Sweden where fall has definitely set in and the yellowish-brown leaves float by as the winds whip through the crisp sky. It’s beautiful really, even though the Southern Californian in me keeps hoping for the Santa Anas to push warm air in from the desert…all the way up toward the arctic circle. Ahh…the dreamer in me really never quits.
I’ve been talking to many friends, family members, and strangers on the street about today’s world. The majority feel that things are wild…scary…unpredictable. The economy has many of us panicked and worried about our futures. This get me thinking a bit about how we navigate through life when things seem so unpredictable.
For me, when I feel things are falling apart at the seams I tend to not sleep…to have a hard time focusing…eat less…fret…worry…become like a frightened cat feeling there is no option but to run and hide under the bed.
I’m not in this place now, but I’ve been there many times. There was a time though in which I held on to things so tightly. I prided myself in living in my own apartment, driving a beautiful Audi, having excess cash for travels, etc. When I quit my well-paying job to pursue the life of a writer, it was darn wild. My savings diminished quickly, and I really had to fight to survive. Sometimes I still do in my effort to live between two countries with my other-half and write.
But…I feel it’s been worth it…and hopefully it may pay off in more ways than one. It hurt when I decided I needed to downsize my car, reduce my “thing” pile, and find a new place to live in Southern California/a roommate who would both help me save money and be an adopted cat mom while I am in Sweden for months at a time (ouch!…before moving I kept invisibly hitting myself over the head for making this move. I kept thinking that someone my age should be much further ahead…with a house overlooking the sea…living the “dream”).
Yet I learned something life changing — I am not my things — I am not my home — I am not my car. In the end, I gained an amazing friend in my roommate and a new sense of humility. Who knew how much communal living could be? Who knew what freedom can be gained by not being attached to so many things?
I know someone right now who is so worried about finances and saving her home that she walks around each day with tired, bloodshot eyes. Her soul is weary…she cries often. She frets about things she should have done and about how bleak her future looks. “If I am forced to move, what will I do with my beautiful furniture?” she asked not long ago. All the while, her fears are sucking the life out of her. My question to her was, “what is your furniture going to mean to you if you’re dead or sick?” She looked at me with pain in her eyes, wondering if I had fallen off my rocker. My point was…if she keeps letting fear be her guide…she will not last either physically or mentally.
It’s wild to think…many people around the world revere an amazing being who had no home and no worldly possessions. Jesus roamed freely, not burdened by things…but driven by a passion and love for humanity. “Come to me all who are weary and burdened…and I will give you rest,” he once said. Whether you are religious or not, it is important to realize that these words were coming from a wanderer without a bank account, without a multi-million dollar home, without a Mercedes Benz. He realized how bogged down we can become when attached to things…that our connection and love for one another should trump our obsession with the material world.
I’m not saying for one second that it is bad to have “things.” I still want to save up for a little bungalow overlooking the ocean in Southern California…and who knows…I may own a fancy convertible sports car one day. What I’m saying is that if you or anyone you know is struggling to keep your head above water financially, don’t be afraid. Just make key decisions that will make your life easier to maintain. Don’t beat yourself over the head…don’t alienate the people you love in an effort to hold on to your possessions…don’t make yourself sick.
Downsize if you need to…
Learn to live on pennies for a while…
Make decisions that are going to propel you forward…
Let go of the need to hold on to possessions and begin focusing on to your loved ones instead…
It’s going to be OK.
The moment we free our minds and unburden our hearts…the more we allow our creative energy to take flight. A healthy mind is essential for success in this life. Pray for guidance. Meditate on good things. Ask for help.
You’ll make it through…
- Jen Engevik
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The Steve Jobs Story: Inspirational Video from Stanford University Graduation
Enjoy this amazingly inspirational commencement address by Steve Jobs at Stanford University in 2005! There is so much to learn from this man!
RIP Mr. Jobs. Thank you for your willingness to innovate, inspire and be bold…
