4 Lessons from NTC

What I learned from my two days on Nike campus:

1. Take care of your people, and they will take care of you. I have never felt so accommodated, appreciated and welcomed by any other organization in my life as I did this week by Nike at Nike Training Camp. When you experience great service, you cannot help but want to be of service to others. The energy and inspiration that I experienced at NTC was indescribable, and I will forever be changed by it.

2. When you have a goal, take a step of any size toward it. Linear paths to where we want to go are rare. Be comfortable taking two steps to the right, as long as they are accompanied by one step forward. Just keep moving. The path to your dream does not need to be a straight line, and it most certainly will never end up exactly how you planned it. Expect that, and embrace it. And remember that any step is a productive step. Taking no step leaves you exactly where you are, and no one ever won a race at the start line.

3.  Knowing what you don't want clarifies what you do want. So those steps to the right---they help you figure out that you want to go forward next. Life is full of experiences that provide us feedback. So stop that silly talk about failures and successes. Every single experience has value and will take you toward your dream if you are willing to learn from it. Time well spent.

4. Always be yourself. You should be joyously celebrated throughout your life, and that starts each day when you look in the mirror. Know who you are, and be you without abandon. People crave and respond to authenticity, and there is a reason that there is only one of you in the world. Own it.

A huge thank you to Geralyn Coopersmith and her Nike team, Michol Dalcourt, Jason Brown and Julz Arney for sharing your thoughts and experiences that resonated with me. And to the stranger who sat next to me on the flight home--you inspired me to take action and believe in myself, and it couldn't have come at a better time.

xoxo,
ALL