The other day I’m at this conference and as I finish my speech and appreciate the audience applause I’m given a brown paper bag by the M.C and I’m thinking this is one of two things, my left over lunch or a gift. Now usually it’s a bottle of wine or a box of chocolates and I open it at home, but this guys saying open it now, like right on stage in front of 70 people. I felt like it was my baby shower, not that I’ve ever had a baby shower, been a woman or had kid, but I’ve watched movies and I imagined this is what it would feel like as I opened my gift with everyone looking.
I open it up and it’s three flying pigs, my immediate reaction was this seems contradictory to my message, I felt I was saying dream big achieve more and they were coming back to me with, and pigs might fly.
What would you think if you were presented with something that you did not expect, that reminded you of a previous experience or stirred up an historic emotion? Would you let that cloud your perception? I think a lot of us would, but how quickly could you bring yourself to the present (no pun intended) to see things, to hear things as if for the first time?
It didn't take long to realise what a lovely and thoughtful gift this was, now these pigs fly across my office wall as a reminder that if we can be creative and adventurous enough to see that pigs can fly, maybe we are able to reach new heights ourselves, maybe we can bend perceptions.
So as we head toward a New Year what are the goals, dreams and aspirations that we think are impossible? And when are we going to teach our pigs to fly.
