An elderly woman sits at a dinner table, in a bustling room.
Her plate is full and it’s time to eat…
Actually, it’s a little past time.
Everyone else in the dining area is almost finished and yet she hasn’t started.
Her son walks in. He’s paying a visit to his mother in the care home where she now lives. He’s a little confused as to why she isn’t eating. He’s worried, but doesn’t sit down with her right away.
A nurse walks close by and he asks the woman why his mother isn’t eating. Has she been sick? Does she not like the food? Is something else wrong?
The nurse looks in his eyes, and quietly says, “She’s forgotten how,” and moves on.
Deflated and concerned for his beloved mother, the son sits close with her at the table. He notices, she has her fork in hand. She even has a morsel resting on it.
Without recognizing him, she turns and asks
“What shall I do now?”
“That is down there, and I am up here”
Her mind had lost an important part of the process; it was simply unavailable for instant recall.
My Sunday School Teacher, Bill Ballinger, then gently guided his mother’s hand and arm up, and helped her remember how the motion of eating her dinner worked.
Although he was heartbroken, she regained this simple lifelong ability for the moment, and began to devour her plate. She was happily eating away and enjoyed the meal immensely. She had been quite hungry, she had been trying, yet this one little step, was blocked.
Although sad, this story that Bill shared one Sunday morning, really touched me. I put myself in both of their places, and felt compassion for the weightyness of such a simple moment.
He no doubt, felt sorrow for the progression of her condition, yet he got a great glimpse of her inner resolve, her innate hunger for life, and how simply reminding her of something she already knew, made all the difference in her world.
Coaching can do that. Sometimes it can be nothing more than reminding someone of what they used to know about themselves. Something simple, and powerful, and maybe obvious to everyone else, but for them, (as it has been for me) it can blocked and forgotten from the mind.
And there is something I ask of you tonight, to coach me on 🙂
For the last month or so, I’ve been working on a presentation. This presentation will first be given at a meeting of the Young Professionals of Franklin County. And, this presentation will be available for free, to your business, your civic club, your small group at church, or even just a group of friends.
In the last couple years, you know that I’ve been on a personal journey. I’ve changed a lot.
In some ways though, we always retain certain natural abilities, talents, perspectives and sensitivities, that possibly were present before our birth even. So in some ways, I cannot have changed enough that I no longer am “Me”, in some ways, I’m more of “Me” than ever before 🙂
The point here is this: I am sitting at the table. I have a plate of food in front of me, and yet, even with all my recent self-education, my training with professional organizations like Dave Ramsey’s Lampo Group, the Free Agent Academy, Coaching Prosperity School, not to mentioned a library of books on marketing, self-help, lifestyle design and success principals, I have this question, about my presentation “What shall I do now?”
I have started and stopped several versions of this presentation. I’ve made handouts and graphic flyers, yet something inside me, isn’t sure I’m on the right track.
Here is where your coaching me, can help 🙂
See, the metaphor is powerful, yet I’m not really hungry for food, and the food’s not for me. What we’re really getting at here is what context and what content could a presentation I give, nourish the world around me, and specifically, your world?
You weirdforgood folks are with me week in and week out. I appreciate your readership. Today, you have a chance to shape and guide my projects and possibly bring this package to your place of business or your organization.
So guide me, and show me, what it is that you consider important. What is just as important as food to the hungry, that you feel I could offer, in this presentation.
Your ideas, will be collected, they’ll be treated with great care and appreciation. Understanding the needs of my community, your community, your world, is a much more poignant connection than me imagining, what I think you’d like to hear.
It’s no secret that I’ve had dismal results talking about certain issues like debt reduction. My goal with this presentation would be to take your instinctive gut reaction to this question, and pour myself into a truly creative work. The speech could encourage, educate, inspire and most importantly provide tools to get real results, on the topics you’re concerned about.
I trust that you’ll give me your honest opinions and with enthusiasm, I’ll be working on somebody’s important ideas soon. I hope you’ve put in your two cents at least!
To reiterate, if you could assign me a project to create a speech/presentation on any topic you feel would be important, helpful or interesting; and that I may be able to offer insight on. Please post it in the comments section below.
It doesn’t matter, if we’ve known each other our whole lives, from school, from church, from coaching or facebook, heck, even if we haven’t talked since the old hard-partying days of yore, give me your opinion on this assignment, and I will take it seriously 🙂
Once I’ve received feedback and compiled my presentation, you certainly will be able to bring this package to your organization free of charge, and I would appreciate the opportunity!!
“If you can dream it, then you can achieve it. You will get all you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want.”
Zig Ziglar
Thanks Sincerely,
Aaron Nichols
Feel free to post your ideas in the comments below. Maybe your idea will spark someone else’s thoughts 🙂 If you have something on your mind, that is too personal to post up there, please email me at aaron@truenorthffc.com or message me at Facebook