We all make first impressions on each other, whether we intend to or not.
A reader went through my websites, read a lot of the material and asked me what I'm really all about because my writing is all over the place, from business discussions to esoteric philosophical posing. He wanted to know what my purpose was in getting involved in a startup.
Good question. Obviously, I haven't developed an elevator pitch and used it to narrowly define my presence in cyberspace.
Five or six years ago, I talked with a coworker, Ron, whose son was attending Georgia Tech. I reminisced with him about my freshman year at Georgia Tech and the decisions I made that led me away from the institute, hoping that his son would think through the effects the decisions he made would have on his future success. Ron laughed that I had a good story to tell and should think of myself serving as an example to others. In other words, I had started down a path determined for me by adults that would lead to their definition of success yet took another path that to the adults looked like failure but had led me to success all the same. Not everyone has such a story to tell.
I suppose he's right. In my latest adventure of reconnecting with primary school mates through online gathering places like facebook, myspace, and myyearbook, I have discovered that every one of us who has found the other via the Internet has made a success of his or her life, despite hardships and diversions from a predetermined path.
On the other hand, some of my schoolmates died long ago. Others either aren't jumping on the cybersocial network fadwagon or are just not available. Their level of success I cannot determine. I know one or two of them are too busy for casual surfing because of their successful position in society. But others? I can't say and won't guess.
So where does that leave those like me who don't have a vested interest in the future (i.e., no offspring to nurture)? I took a nap at lunch today and woke up with the remnants of a dream on the edge of my consciousness. From what I gather, the dream had to do with standing in front of a group of people of various ages. I asked the people to come back to class the next time with an elevator pitch. When one of the people asked me what an elevator pitch was, I then told them the story of my life and how it had led to my being there in front of them at that moment. The elevator pitch I gave them was this, or something like it:
"I imagine some of you have no idea what you want to do with your life but you're here because you want to find out. As you can see, I have been in your shoes. If you want to keep having fun while figuring out how to use your strengths and weaknesses to succeed in this world, this class is for you. Even if you don't want to succeed, this class is for you because we're going to have fun. In fact, I'm going to reward you everytime you show up for class [handed something out]. Before we continue, I'll let you in on a secret -- there's no such thing as failure, in this class or anywhere else. Life is just a series of events that you can learn from and the more you open yourself up to learning, the more fun you'll have getting ahead in this world. If you want to be here but for some reason can't make it, I'll do what I can to get you out of the ditch or out of a rut and back on the road to success. Just let me know why you can't make it so I can help you. I can't think for you, either, but I can help you learn how to focus your thinking on what works for you.
"I'm not here for my health. I'm here because I want to learn from you and know that you'll learn something from me. Once you figure this out, you'll see the world in a whole new way, that the world was built for you to do well and have fun doing it.
"You can't stop other people's opinions of you, positive or negative, but you will start taking care of your opinion of yourself. When you go to bed tonight, review the day's activities, ignoring the voice of any nagging naysayers you heard that day. Instead of rehashing what you have done over and over again, think about what you learned so that you don't have to repeat yourself again. We only repeat ourselves because we haven't taken the time to see the lesson we've learned over and over again. Okay, you've learned it! Go on! Tomorrow, the next brand-new day in your life, you'll find yourself waking up with a smile, ready for the next adventure."
I sit here with a smile, believing that I've found my elevator pitch. I hope you've found yours.
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