We were in a film studio and I was in front of the camera. When I do this, I have a prepared message but I do not use a script. I know what I want to say but I allow myself to formulate the words in real time. I do this because I want the message to be authentic.
We were three minutes into the first segment, when the man in charge, Greg, stopped the process and said we should begin again. This surprised me. Based on previous experiences, Greg refers to me as “Mr. One Take.” I had begun to take pride in the title.
I asked if I had said the wrong words or hesitated in some way. He said, “No, but in the first two minutes you were not rolling like you are now. You have your rhythm. You are giving more. You are really connecting with the viewer. You need to do that from the beginning.”
I knew he was right. We started over and the difference was clear. At the end, I sought him out and told him I was grateful. His intervention would stay with me forever. In the making of future videos, I will be conscious of the lesson. I will prepare differently. I will be rolling from the start.
The sense of gratitude stayed with me all day. Why?
My purpose is to touch lives, to inspire positive change. I am passionate about it. When I am in a conventional state, I tend to become ego-driven. I need to show that I am self-sufficient. Feedback is an unwelcome disruption, something I block or set aside. Knowledge and pride drive out learning. I do not realize it, but I am living in the past and I am dying in the present. There is no life in me, I am out of rhythm, and people are not connecting. I am not inspiring positive change.
When I orient to my purpose, I move forward, hungry for feedback. I am using my existing knowledge base and expanding it through the process of learning. I am integrating the past with the present while shaping the emerging future. I am fully alive, in rhythm, and people are connecting. I am inspiring change because I am modeling change. I am grateful for Greg and his disruptive feedback.
Reflection
- When do you rejoice in disruptive feedback?
- What life purpose permeates what you do and leads you to welcome disruptive feedback?
- When is the last time you remember integrating the past with the present while shaping the emerging future?
- How could we use this passage to create a more positive organization?
The last two paragrasphs here are AMAZINGly beautiful and inspiring. Thank you, Bob, for these regular doses of thought-provoking, moving and inspiring blogs! You rock!
I gained new insight regarding the ego. Thank you!