The main reason is family

As I write I am in the air flying to America. I have the privilege of delivering a keynote presentation on Leadership at a large conference in Boise, Idaho. I get excited at the prospect of sowing what I have and what I know into the lives of others. I also get excited at who I get to meet. There are seven speakers at this conference. Some you might know include Rudy Giuliani (Mayor of New York when the Towers came down), Sarah Palin (former Vice Presidential candidate) and Stephen Forbes (Chairman and Editor-in Chief of Forbes Media), and I get to meet them and learn from them.

Why me? I think the main reason is family. My Mum and Dad have always encouraged me, loved me, supported me and spent time with me; just as they have my two brothers. They love me unconditionally and have done so since I was a little girl with a handicap. They have demonstrated that parenting is forever love. One of the songs that would often play in our home through my childhood was “People who need people are the luckiest people in the world.” My brothers and I came to know that to be true.

We celebrated my Dad’s 80^th Birthday on the eve of our departure – last night actually! We had a fantastic party with all the family, his tennis mates, old pals from his days in business, and lots of young people that Mum and Dad had added to the family at different times along the way. Always loving, always encouraging and always willing to provide tough love when it was in our best interests long term. Not everyone has the same blessing of loving parents that I have. I know that through some of the young women that I mentor.

I also know that whatever our background, the words we speak are the words that change our world. Words shape our thinking as well as our relationships. Over these next weeks focus on using words that will build greater self-belief and better connection with others. Be kind to yourself and it will overflow to everyone around you.

Love, Lisa.