Speaker 1 (00:03):
Hey everyone, welcome to the I Dare You podcast. This podcast is all about you and helping you reach the big goals that you have for your life, and what next steps do you want to take to get there. And I am your host, Aaron Johnson, welcomed episode 59. I am really glad that you're here. You have so many choices in digital media and what you consume and where you put your time and attention. The fact you're tuning in means a lot. So thank you. And if you like this podcast, if you love this episode, I invite you to subscribe so you do not miss a one, and also to share with others. Now, if you're new to the podcast, um, and well, we're seeing so much growth, um, the number of downloads and shares month by month, quarter by quarter is just growing exponentially. And if you're new to the podcast, which many of you are, I just want to tell you welcome, welcome to the room, welcome to the show.
Speaker 1 (00:51):
Now, today, today we're gonna be talking all about you and your story. So here we are, we're recording this, uh, middle of March, 2023. And how's your new year going? In fact, it's not even New Year. Let's rephrase that. How's your 2023 going? You know, for me, uh, it is a, it's been very, very busy, very intense. I've been doing a lot of business travel, been out on the road a lot, meeting with a lot of different leaders, having a great time doing it, but it's been really intense. Been busy, hasn't it? And so where you at right now, doesn't matter where you've been in the first, what, 75 days of 2023. This is a chance to learn from where we've been and now to look forward and now to move forward and hit the reset button if we need to. You know, lately I've been really focused in on and interested in the topic of story and storytelling.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
Not only what is your story or the one that, you know, we tell others or share with others, but what is the story that we are telling ourself? First, some background on me. We have so many new listeners. I, I want to give you some insight in who you're listening to. , first off, I live in Idaho. Idaho Falls, Idaho, and that is on the eastern part of the state. It is about two hours from Jackson, Wyoming, grand Teton National Park. Unbelievable. We're about three hours from Yellowstone and it is just God's country out here. It's just beautiful. We we're in the dead of winter and spring is starting to come and it's just a beautiful part of the world. My professional background is I've been 33 years in corporate America, uh, primarily in sales and marketing, 33 years in corporate America. And I wear that with a badge of honor because those of you in corporate America know that that's a pretty big deal.
Speaker 1 (02:28):
I was the VP of medical sales for Fortune 100, uh, pharmaceutical company, and I've been VP and senior VP of sales for CPG or consumer package goods wellness companies. I work with a lot of leaders, uh, every single day, every single month. I'm passionate about it. I got my MBA from Washington University, Oland School of Business in St. Louis, Missouri. And that also was a life-changing experience. I'm married for 33 years, I have three grown kids. And with all that as a set up, I do not have all the answers clearly, but I do have a lot of life experiences to share, and that's part of what the I Dare You Podcast is all about. Like many of you, um, I've been fired before. I've been laid off before. I've been in trouble financially before I've raised kids. And I know that's not only rewarding, but it's also not easy.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
And I'm doing the podcast to hopefully share some insights, uh, some free insights, , and to help people navigate the challenges that we all face. Our podcast is not meant to remind you of who you ought to be. We're not here to shame or or to make anyone feel like, boy, I got a lot of work to do. Quite the opposite. We're here to embrace who you are becoming. We're all on this leadership journey. We're all on this path, and no one's gotta figure it out, no one. And that's what we're all about. So I'm glad you're here. So that's part of my story and who I am. I'm curious what's yours, and I'd love for you to follow us on Instagram at I dare you pod and drop me a message from time to time. Let me know about how these episodes are working for you.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
Let me know about you. Um, I love that. Now, I, as I mentioned, I've been interested in how stories and storytelling help us be more effective and help us be better leaders and we focus on our own story. Self-leadership precedes team leadership. And so that's the spirit of what we're gonna be talking about. You know, in c o d that feels like it decade ago, doesn't it? At least it does for me. What are some of the things you did in Covid that maybe you normally wouldn't have done because you had that opportunity? For me, I, I got bees. Uh, for some reason, I, I bought a beehive and I started . I start, I had a whole backyard full of bees and, and had, uh, uh, honey and was learning about how to take care of bees and everything about, and that's a whole nother podcast episode.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
I also though, uh, did something I've always wanted to do. I took a storytelling class through Second City Improv outta Chicago. For those of you that know about Second City, it's world class, uh, improv training, but also they do corporate training. And I took a, um, storytelling class and absolutely loved it. In fact, one of my instructors, uh, is our guest on episode 19, Christina Igar ez. And Christina is a master storyteller. And if you haven't listened to episode 19, I invite you to do so. So now with as a setup, you know, with your permission, we're gonna spend some time talking about your story and how you can develop the best story for yourself. Not only the one you're telling others and sharing with the world, but also the one you're telling yourself. And we are hardwired to connect with stories, aren't we? I mean, go back in time.
Speaker 1 (05:30):
Go back in the, and how we have all evolved. And if we were all sitting in a cave somewhere around a campfire, storytelling is the foundation of how we share information, how we share culture, how we share who we are. And even though technology has never been more prominent, it's everywhere. It's, it's everywhere. Storytelling has never been more important because look at it this way, the campfire is still there. You cannot not communicate again, you cannot communicate, especially your story. If I go to your social media, I can tell in two minutes. Well, I can tell in two seconds a little bit about what your story is by when you walk into a room, you're making an impression, people are already thinking about what your story is. You're, you're exuding part of that story, so you can't escape it. So if that is the case, how about if we spend a little time talking about what is the story we are projecting to the world, and what is the one that we are telling ourselves?
Speaker 1 (06:21):
This is gonna be fun. You ready? All right, let's go. So the, the question I have is, what story are you writing for your life? You know, a friend of mine writes screenplays and he lives in New York. You name, his name is Jeffrey Harper. And a few years ago I was just talking to him about story and he's obviously, he's, that's his career. That's his vocation, that's his passion. He's incredible at it. And he knew I was interested in it. So it gave me a book that it was written by Robert McKee, and it's called Story. Robert McKee is just a world expert in storytelling and screenplays. He, he teaches and lectures regularly on this topic. And the book called Story is just so much fun. And in the book, Robert McKee says, what makes a great story? A character who wants something and overcomes conflict to get it.
Speaker 1 (07:07):
I'm gonna say that again. What makes a great story? A character who wants something and overcomes conflict to get it. Now, question to you. What is your favorite story of all time? What are just some of the maybe your favorite movies or books? What would those be? You know, a a quick scan for me, I think about some of the classic movies from Disney Beauty and the Beast. For example, when the kids were younger, we would have VHS tapes. Yes, it was that long ago. VHS tapes. We would just put in Beauty and the Beast and Little Mermaid over and over and over again. These stories are great. Why? Because it involves a character who wants something and overcomes conflict to get it. What are your favorite movies? What are your favorite stories? Can you see it? Lion King, even Top Gun should have won the Oscars, should have won it, but it all involves a character who wants something and overcomes conflict to get it.
Speaker 1 (07:59):
I'm, I'm telling you that you are the character in your own story. So now here's the formula for a great story. And you've seen it. You live it every single day. It's called the Story Spine. It's really the, the thread that goes throughout every story really about the through line of the story. And it starts with, once upon a time, are you there with me? You can go into a crowded room, , and you can say those words once upon a time and the room will go quiet because we are all tuned in to telling stories and hearing stories. But the once upon a time and the every day you're establishing the routine that the character is in. You're getting to know the character, what the day in the life looks like, establishing what the routine looks like. And once you've established once upon a time and every day that routine, then something happens in the story, it goes something like this.
Speaker 1 (08:51):
But one day and the but one day is the inciting incident that changes everything in a story. The inciting incident is that thing that always happens that radically upsets the balance of forces in the character's life and the stories you're thinking of. For me, I'm thinking of Lion King, I'm thinking of Top Gun. I'm thinking of all these classic movies. There always needs to be that, but one day, otherwise you don't have a story. Now, sometimes for all of us, these inciting incidents, they just happen to us and many of us are living through it. We have medical issues that come up, a diagnosis. We weren't expecting careers. Maybe we're laid off, maybe we're fired, we went through the pandemic for Pete's sake, that's an inciting incident. The inflation, higher interest rates, the list goes on and on. And while that is happening, for many of us, all of us are going through something.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
I don't need to make light of that at all. Uh, these are events that we, that are happening to all of us. Sometimes there's sometimes when we need to create our own inciting incidents, we need to create these events in our life that disrupt things. What might that be? Well, things like buying a ring, buying a house. Maybe it's setting a big goal or getting an accountability partner to finally go after that big goal you've always wanted to reach. Now let's do a quick audit for ourselves. What right now in your life is happening to you? What is the inciting event that is breaking your routine? What is your butt one day? What happened? And maybe more importantly, what inciting event do you need to create for yourself? The point of a great story is you need the conflict to overcome, otherwise you don't have a story.
Speaker 1 (10:33):
And our brains need that cuz their brain is always trying to prevent us from taking action. Not because the brain is bad, the brain is trying to protect us. It's always looking for the potential dangers of taking that next step. Let me ask you a question. With all due respect. Are you too stuck in your routine? Are you bored? Are you continuing to learn? Are you continually challenged? Do you occasionally have that feeling in your gut or the sweaty palms that you're getting outta your comfort zone? And I'll put to you that maybe just maybe you do need to create an inciting event for you. Break the routine. And one of the things I see, especially talking to leaders and to entrepreneurs as is that we are happier and we are the happiest when we are building, when we are doing something, when we have a goal, it's important to us.
Speaker 1 (11:20):
And that every day we know we're taking just small steps toward that goal. And I've also noticed something else about so many people that I talk to is that they're the happiest when they are actually chasing a goal. When they reach the goal, that's when they get into trouble. They start falling into bad habits, they stop doing the things that help them get to where they wanted to be. Can you relate to any of that? When you're chasing something that matters to you and you're in that zone, it feels good. And when you reach the goal, have you ever wondered, man, why don't I feel better about it? I'm there, but why am I not celebrating more? Now if you find yourself bored and wondering, is this all there is? I would listen to that voice and turn that into something really positive for yourself that your challenge, my challenge to you is to go out and create that inciting event.
Speaker 1 (12:06):
Go create it. The ultimate question we all have to wrestle with. And my question to you is, what do you want for your life? What is it specifically? And then do you want it bad enough to overcome the conflict? Remember, you are the hero of your own story. No one else. And this is where social comparison can creep in. You're not someone else's story, it's your life, it's your story. So what do you want? All right, quick time out. You're the hero of your story. You need to overcome conflict, the inciting event to break the routine. That's the essence of what makes for a great story. And that's, that's what makes your story so great. Now, what is the mindset that we need in order to see that through? This is easier said than done. This all happens in the mind, everybody. So now let me ask you a question.
Speaker 1 (12:54):
Are you surrounding yourself with the right people and taking in the right information to support or become the person that you want to be in your story? You know one of my favorite books, it's on my bookshelf, is Champion's Mindset by Dr. Jim Arama. And I hope to have him in the podcast soon, where a Cherokee grandfather is giving advice to his grandson and it goes like this, my son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all. One is evil, it is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false, pride, superiority, and ego. The other is good, it is joy, peace, love, hope, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith. The grandson thought about it for a minute, then asked his grandfather, which wolf wins? The grandfather simply replied, the one that you feed. Now we all have wolves inside of us.
Speaker 1 (14:05):
We all do. But the ones that win, the ones that ultimately win are the ones that determine the story of our lives are the ones that we feed routinely. You know, in our mind this is where we decide whether to carry on and to keep moving forward on the habits and the consistency or, or we believe the lies we tell ourselves and revert back to old behaviors and we just settle. And you need to guard the mind. You need to protect your mind. How first social comparison, you know what? If you're following people on social media that are getting inside your head, unfollow them right away. Do not let that creep into your mind. Unfollow them. And remember, this is your life and nothing's perfect as it looks like on social media. Nothing is. What are you reading right now? I'd love to know. Drop me a message on that.
Speaker 1 (14:51):
Some of the top three books you've been reading lately, what are you watching and how much time are you spending? Where do you spend your time? Who do we spend time with? I'm inviting you and I'm challenging you to be intentional with feeding the right wolf. Read the right things, watch the right things. Spend time with the people that lift you up, not that bring you down. And the great thing about a story is that there's always a next chapter. Whatever your story has been, whatever chapters have led you up to this, you're stronger because of it. And now write your own story using that as your strength and to write the next chapter and the next chapter. So as you think about what next steps you want to take, remember the brain is trying to stop you from doing that. Distractions are trying to stop you from taking next steps and to write the story you wanna write.
Speaker 1 (15:37):
You know, one observation from talking to so many podcast guests, they've been incredible, haven't they? But they have found a way to push past their fear and to not, not take the giant leap, but they just take the next step. So as you think about pushing past fear, if that's what you may be feeling or maybe apprehension, I wanna leave you with this in the Bible, do not be afraid and fear not. That is the most often repeated command or extrication in scripture. So the more important question on that is why would that be the case? Do not be afraid and fear not. It's repeated over and over again in so many contexts and in situations. And I think it's because fear is the opposite of faith. And faith is that number one quality, the number one response that God wants to see in all of us.
Speaker 1 (16:26):
And we have opportunities to show fear or faith every single day. So today, feed the right wolf and focus forward. Write your own story and enjoy the conflict. And long your journey. Do not be afraid. So that's it. That's a one to share with you. Thank you so much for listening. Now think about sharing this episode with others. Who are you thinking of right now? Uh, that one step of sharing with one or 10 people that you're thinking of. You are helping them feed the right wolf. So when you take that 10 seconds and you share with a group of friends or family, you have no idea the impact you're having, also be sure to subscribe to this podcast, especially if this episode spoke to you. Also follow us on Instagram. I'd love hearing from you. I'd, I'd love to see you there at I Dare You pod.
Speaker 1 (17:14):
You're gonna get exclusive content you won't find anywhere else. Also, to stay in touch with this podcast and everything going on, go to I dare you pod.com, sign up there and there you'll get some exclusive information that we can't wait to share with you. And now get ready for episode 60. Next week. I'm finishing up editing. It's gonna be another great one. Every episode's different and special. Yet the common thread is how to live our best life. And you're part of this community and part of this conversation and I'm so glad you're here. I'll see you next week, everybody on the I Dare You Podcast. I'll see you then.
