Public Speaking

Starbucks and CEO Howard Schultz (We Are #INDIVISIBLE)

Garth Beyer
Rewarding Everyday Moments

Before I even share the letter in which Howard Schultz has written to all of America, and before it is posted even more main stream this weekend, you need to understand the simplicity of judging a person like Howard. I have studied many of Starbucks marketing strategies as well as background info on the company and Howard. I have seen a few negative comments about Howard and I’d like to point out two simple details that will eleviate any negativie feelings.

First, Howard spoke at the Aspen Ideas Festival.

Taken from the Aspen Ideas Festival website, “For over 60 years, the Aspen Institute has been the nation’s premier gathering place for leaders from around the globe and across many disciplines to engage in deep and inquisitive discussion of the ideas and issues that both shape our lives and challenge our times. […] Imagine some of the most inspired and provocative thinkers, writers, artists, business people, teachers, and other leaders drawn from myriad fields and from across the country and around the world – all gathered in a single place, ready to teach, speak, lead, question and answer – all interacting with an audience of thoughtful people who have stepped back from their day-to-day routines to delve deeply into a world of ideas, thought and discussion. The week promises to be thought-provoking, meaningful and fun – true to Aspen tradition.”

Would a multimillionaire who is full of greed, who is evil or a terrible person attend this event, give a presentation and seek improvement in the world using this large of a platform? A platform that is centered on growth, on productivity and on trust.

The second minor detail which I hope no longer stays minor is the effort Howard has put towards employing Americans. Along with establishing the Create Jobs for USA organization, Howard has made America-focused choices such as creating a “new roasting plant in Augusta, Georgia that we could have located in Central America or Asia for 15% to 20% less, but we felt that creating 200 or so jobs domestically was more important.” [source]

Howard You Make A Difference

Before I share with you the letter Howard has written, it’s serendipitous that he has written this letter during a time period that I am doing an Unlocking Potential interview series with people who I know will make a different in their passion. It may also be coincidence that he shared the letter while I am in the final editing stage of my book Start Schooling Dreams (to be released at the beginning of August).

In Howard’s closing, he advocates for innovation and making a difference in the community to promote citizenship over partisanship. This is a major center of why I write. Everything I write is innovation, it’s to make a difference, it’s about unlocking potential in others, promoting people who care, really do care about learning, about coffee, about fashion about anything. These are the people who make the difference, these are the people who are like Howard Schultz, who are willing to stand up, speak out and try to create positive change, no matter how much resistance there is.

*More power to you Howard and even more power to those who have similar worldviews for change, whether it’s employment, civility, and politics or education, art and music.

Without further ado, you can read the full letter Howard Schultz has written to all of America below or click here to open it in a new window.

Creating Change In America

An Open Letter: How Can America Win This Election?

Friday, June 29, 2012

Posted by Howard S., Starbucks chairman, president and chief executive officer

 

On Independence Day, our country celebrates the promise of America.

It’s a day to remember that the principles that bind us together vastly outweigh what keeps us apart. The freedom to dream and the opportunity to create a better life – not just for ourselves, but for each other – has always defined our great nation.

I am a product of that American Dream. As a kid who grew up in public housing, went on to get an education at a state university and build a business, I am grateful for what this country has made possible for me. In turn, at Starbucks, we have always tried our best to honor our responsibility to the communities we serve.

And on this Fourth of July, our communities need all of us.

Across the country, millions of Americans are out of work. Many more are working tirelessly yet still unable to adequately care for their families. Our veterans are not being welcomed home with the level of support they deserve. Meanwhile, in our nation’s capital, our elected leaders are continuing to put ideology over real solutions. I love America, but we all know there is something wrong. The deficits this country must reconcile are much more than financial, and our inability to solve our own problems is sapping our national spirit. We are better than this. America’s history has showed that we have accomplished extraordinary things when we act collectively, with courage, creativity, and generosity of spirit—especially during trying times.

As we celebrate all that is great about our country, let’s come together and amplify our voices.

Let’s tell our government leaders to put partisanship aside and to speak truthfully about the challenges we face. Let’s ask our business leaders to create more job opportunities for the American economy. And as citizens, let’s all get more involved. Please, don’t be a bystander. Understand that we have a shared responsibility in solving our nation’s problems. We can’t wait for Washington.

At Starbucks, we are trying to live up to our responsibility by increasing our local community service and helping to finance small-business job creation with Create Jobs for USA. Our company is far from perfect, and we know we can do more for America. But we need your help. We need your voice.

Join the national conversation with #INDIVISIBLE. Starting today, I invite you to share your view of America, and how we can all put citizenship over partisanship. On Instagram, post a photo of the America we all need to see. On Twitter, provide a link to an innovative idea. Blog about who’s making a difference in your community; or on YouTube, share how you made your American Dream come true. No matter where you post, if you use the tag #indivisible, Starbucks will do its part to collect and amplify your voices.

To spark the conversation in our stores, your local Starbucks will proudly serve everyone a free tall hot brewed coffee on the Fourth of July.

Together, we can set a new tone in America. We hope you agree that doing so is a powerful way to celebrate our nation’s birthday.

In 2012, America needs to win the election more than either party does. It is time now to join together as Americans. It is time, whatever our differences, for us to strive and succeed as one nation – indivisible.

 

Stay Positive & #INDIVISIBLE

Garth E. Beyer

Two Types Of Public Speaking Confidence

Garth Beyer

Confidence in public speaking goes much deeper than simply being prepared and excited to give a speech. Those who strike the audience with an unexpected amount of determination are those that create a balance of the two types of public speaking confidence.

Type 1: Confidence In What You Are Saying

To have confidence in what you are saying you have to do your research. You need to know the topic you’re speaking on inside and out. Depending on the topic of choice, you may even have to know ideas and concepts that do not support the outlook you are taking on a topic. For more a more simple term, you can label this Analytical Confidence. To acquire this confidence, which is vigorously sought after in all professional positions, you have to be able to analyze every aspect of your topic. For example, you know how most people only know how to sing the alphabet? Well, to have analytical confidence, you have to know how to say it backwards, say it in German, French and Gibberish, create it in Morse Code, have a hieroglyphic example and be able to sing the alphabet to rhythm of the Canadian national anthem. Those who have this type of confidence, are considered Mavens on the subject and are the most respected people and speakers in the world.

Type 2: Confidence In How You Say It

Knowledge is power when you are public speaking, but remaining shy and quiet renders your intellectual stature meaningless. You may know what you have to say, but are you saying it right? The one technique for putting the most confidence in how you speak is to fuel it with passion. When you deliver a speech on a topic you are passionate about, you somehow create just the right balance between remaining humble and being assertive. For example, a person can know everything they need to get the job they want, but they won’t get it unless they show their knowledge, passion and the combination of the two which is confidence.

Confidence in what you say is gained from preparation and research. Confidence in how you say it is accredited to the level of motivation and  passion you have with the idea. Combine the two and you have the everything it takes to be a world class public speaker.

Stay Positive & Take Control Of Your Confidence

Garth E. Beyer

Be A Human. Be A Fool. Be One Of Them.

Garth Beyer

CEO, Administrator, Associate, Client, Friend, or Acquaintance, it doesn’t matter what position in life you hold, the only way to get sponsors (referencing example from The Hunger Games), the only way to climb the success totem pole, and the only way to acquire all the support you need in life and on your success journey, is you have to get people to like you.

While this is fairly well known to anyone who is trying to improve themselves and are striving for success, there are still thousands of people going about it the wrong way, getting discouraged and giving up. They get to a point that they are putting forth so much effort to get the attention and help they need, that they burn-out and do more damage to themselves and the people they are pitching to.

The reason is that they are pushing perfection, creating every event to showcase themselves and quite simply, trying too hard to be what they think others want instead of remaining true to themselves. The need to make an adjustment to the process is why the following three variables are the keys to getting people to like you which is directly connected and influential on your attitude, your income, your daily reflection and above all, your success.

1. Get personal!

Despite all attempts to only focus on listening to others and holding our tongue it’s nearly impossible. In fact, I encourage you to not “just listen”. A conversation is an interaction and the connection you can make by replying to what you listened to is most crucial to getting the other person to like you. The problem is that people try to solve problems too much and tell others what to do after listening to them. The trick to make that acceptable and beneficial is to share personal stories. You can incorporate this throughout a conversation when something you hear brings back a memory or lesson and also at the beginning of a seminar when you tell the audience what you want them to learn. Make the story light and half-applicable to their situation and half-enjoyment. By opening yourself to others through storytelling, they will open up to you and thus you have a bonded personal relationship that will benefit your life success. Remember, the spread of new inventions through word-of-mouth is as strong and abundant as a reference for you and your character.

2. Make a fool of yourself!

We have all grown wise enough to pick out who is just extremely charismatic, and who is really charismatic because they are excited about what they have to share. Obviously, the latter is the best choice if you are trying to get people interested in you and what you have to say. But this component requires you to express your other emotions too. You need to show others, your audience, that you have made mistakes in life. In fact, make mistakes when you are interacting with someone. It shows that you are human and humans connect better to other humans rather than a robot that has never made a mistake. Laugh with the audience when you stumble or forget something. Enjoy yourself and your mistakes because it resonates perfectly with others. Misery loves company, but humility loves it more.

3. Participate!

Above all, you can’t make a connection with anyone if you don’t get involved with them. Keep a mental tab of the topics they discuss and questions they are asked or bring up for discussion and toss in your two cents. Quit acting like a mentor and begin discovering answers with them instead of teaching or answering them alone. Become socially and personally interactive with office conversations, phone conversations and any other daily interaction. Make a contribution to face time and always act as a student to everyone you meet because you both have a lot to learn. Even I have a lot to learn, so how are you going to participate with this? (You can leave comments below)

Stay Positive & Stay Human

Garth E. Beyer

This post was originally dictated for public speakers as a way to gain a connection with the audience, but as many lessons, they are prevalent throughout all areas.What do you plan to apply these three steps to?

STANDOUT

Garth Beyer

I opened a can of chopped carrots to cook for myself and dumped it in the pot to heat up on the stove. To my incredible astonishment, there was a Lima bean in the can! How the heck?! It was a can of carrots… I still have no clue how a Lima bean could have gotten into the can of carrots. Though it will bug me endlessly until I figure out how this magic happened, the experience was a reminder – a reminder to Standout.

I wrote a 500 character description of this picture for a scholarship test called “Frame Your Future”. The directions said to post a picture that described your future and write a 500 character description on it. Reading over my original writing, it was not good enough. Why? I wrote how it involved my future when my heart was telling me to write about how I could positively impact your future. I used the picture to describe myself rather than to provide a life lesson. While it was originally for a scholarship test, I would now like to expand it for your sake and have it serve its appropriate purpose.

Framing Your Future and How To STANDOUT

You would think that to Standout, you have to be different, unusual or weird. This was once the status quo of Standing Out, but is now a failure. The true definition of Standing Out is to be your true self – to be comfortable with who you are, to have your individuality open to all, to be the only person you should be – YOU.

But, there is still one factor missing in the definition of Standing Out. The most crucial aspect of Standing Out is to influence everyone in your life.

“The more you try to be different, the more you look like everybody else. The more you try to be YOUnique, the more you STANDOUT”

What Standing Out Is NOT

Standing Out is not being looked at in a quizzical manner by everyone that notices you.

Standing Out is not wearing the “dunce” hat.

Standing Out is not challenging everything that is said.

Standing Out is not doing everything that you are told you “should” or “should not” do.

Standing Out is not being the center of attention everywhere you go.

Standing Out is not to have a negative spotlight on you.

How To Successfully STANDOUT

To successfully STANDOUT, you must focus on your influence of others. There is no certain way to STANDOUT than to express your character, attitude and mental/emotional persuasion upon others. Here are the key ways to STANDOUT in the world and achieve all you want in life.

  • Remain Naive: Often our parents, mentors and elders (do we still have elders?) say that we are naïve because we are ignorant of the possible consequences. My friend rewrote the definition of “naïve” when we were getting ready to move out on our own. “Naïve: inexperienced? … more like..ones dreams haven’t been crushed by society.” It is not that others can’t see the positive, the life lessons and growth that is created through being naïve, it is only that they still have not learned from their mistakes. You know that you have not learned from your mistake if you encourage others not to make the same mistake. I once argued with my dad that if I listened to everything he said and did not do the opposite or make my own mistakes what would I have learned? How would I have truly grown? I would not be me.
  • Ask Yourself: Does it empower all, without conditions and favoritism? Is everyone loved, forgiven and accepted eternally?
  • Do Things Differently: It is my motivation to find a new way to look at everything I read,see and hear. The easiest way to do this is to challenge everything! Learning is a competitive matter between yourself and the source of the information you are learning from. You must find a way that, what you are learning, could be improved. What is the information you are learning, missing? Once you discover that which was not taught, act on it. It is then that you begin to do things differently and you succeed in doing so because instead of waiting for the next step in the lesson, you created the next step. There is always room for improvement.
  • Think Outside Of The Box: This is very similar to doing things differently. Thinking outside of the box requires you to break status quo but, rather than challenge your mind, you have to become mentally creative. (Which may be challenging, but it’s a different type of challenge) Thinking Outside Of The Box also requires you to think about every situation in the one way that very few in the world do – as a life lesson.
  • Character: is the single strongest determinate of your future. Character is the soul of our soul, the heart of our heart, the mind of our mind and the creator of our future success.  When you read about successful people, you will often read countless characteristic words. Collectively, what do they define? Character                    Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired, and success achieved. – Helen Keller
  • Dress For Success: In addition to dressing your attitude in the finest garments of value, integrity and positivity, you must have the appearance of the successful. It is as much of a personal mentality as it is an impact on those who judge you (which is everyone). At work where the dress code is casual, I decided to begin wearing a suit and tie. On the third day I met the new executive director who I did not think would be in the office for another week. I was dressed for success and outdressed all the others in the office. You can never be overdressed or overeducated. – Oscar Wilde  Another tip on dressing for success, is the basis of this post, to STANDOUT. Who do you think Stands Out most in the picture? Obviously the guy in green. (Me) Dressing for Success does not mean dressing in blue, black and white every day. If you were to attend a business growth seminar for all the CEO’s of the Fortune 500 companies, you are going to want to Standout among the others dressed in bland and so-called “professional colors”.
  • Be Early: It PAYS to be early
  • Seek Advice: I have to honor Oscar Wilde again for saying “I always pass on good advice. It is the only thing to do with it. It is never of any use to oneself.”  While you may use the advice someone gives, it is just as important as to have advice to pass on. When I say to seek advice, I do not mean it in the sense of finding out what advice people have to offer you, but to partake in opportunities which produce advice you can pass on to others.
  • Speak: At every opportunity, make suggestions, voice possibilities to make improvement, ask questions, and participate in every discussion whether it is focused on your area of specifics or not.
  • Public Speak: “One of the greatest individual steps you can take in improving your self image is to learn how to public speak. People automatically give speakers credit for intelligence they don’t necessarily have.” – Zig Ziglar
  • Do More Than Is Required: We learned from above that there is always room for improvement. Well, there is always time and strength to do more than is required. I always say “Go as far as you can see, because once you are there, you can see just a little bit further.” The common thought is that there is nothing better than knowing you had done a good job. I would regularly feel this when I finished painting a room or the exterior of a clients house when I was in the Painting business. Near the end of my painting career I began making more people happier and even earning an extra few dollars. How? By also painting the closet when all that was asked was for the room to be painted. By putting a new coat on the downspouts when I was only supposed to paint the siding. Make this your newest thought, there is nothing better than knowing you did a good job, and a bit extra.
  • Lead: I have to point you toward John Maxwell for the most powering explanation and advice on leadership.
  • Bring The Energy: everywhere you go. Every meeting, every class, every get-together is unbelievably boring when it lacks energy. More importantly, every meeting, every class, every get-together is undeniably life progressive when it has energy. It is up to you to STANDOUT and be the one who brings the energy. Someone mentioned a friend who works at Starbucks with her that is completely energetic every day and exploits the energy with co-workers and customers. However, another co worker or customer might get annoyed by it. There are two responses I have. 1. This friend positively effects infinitely more people with the energy than the opposite. 2. It is not that his energy is annoying, it is the attitude of the one being annoyed. Please do not be the one who is annoyed – be the one who brings the energy. You can’t climb to the top without stepping on a few fingers, it’s better to do so with positive energy than in a negative way.
  • Find Your Passion and Live It: Nothing is more difficult in life than narrowing your interests down to one subject, your passion. When you do this, you have conquered the world. The next step is a form of constant progression – practice your passion.
  • IF: <<read and live it.
  • Health: Referring back to the initial picture in this post, do you know which is packed with more nutrients and vitamins between a carrot and a Lima bean? What is a man if he makes 10 million dollars but suffers a heart attack and loses his health in the process?
  • Positive Attitude: I saved the best for last, also the reason for my signature at the end of each post. There is not a successful person living that does not have a positive attitude. Absolutely no one has achieved a thing without first thinking that they may be able to. There is no victory if there is no thought of it. There is a reason I am writing a book called Infinite Positivity. Stay Positive.

Make your future to  Stand Out among the rest, just as the Lima bean does among the carrots. As a result you will always be on top and successful.When you Stand Out, you stand on top. All of success is about Standing Out in a positive way. The only way to get there is to also be the spoon that stirs the contents in the pot, rub your positive behaviors off on others and influence them. Be the one that prevents others from being burnt.

I have always said, we learn nothing by doing nothing, we learn everything by doing and wishing we hadn’t.

Only thing stopping you from being who you want is yourself.

I began to really Standout when I decided that I just want to make things and be creative, even if no one else loves it.

My statement: We need a positive revolution, one where more is given that you want, then what we are currently doing which is giving less of what you don’t want.

Fall into boundaries that life forces you and join everyone or begin prioritizing what you want and need and not what others want or expect from you.

Stay Positive and Why Fit In When You Were Born To STANDOUT

Garth E. Beyer

An Interrelationship Trend To: Success, Business, Self-Growth

Garth Beyer

Success, Business, and Self-Growth magazines all incorporate a common trend.

Can you guess what it is? Hint: It is an advertisement.

I love learning new languages because of the joy of it but also the benefits of knowing more than one language. You may recall my blog post How To Become 3+ Billion Times More Connected, Successful, and Happy where I write about the idea that those who teach you how to speak, teach you how to think. Now can you guess what advertisement you will find in each type of magazine?

“No one is the worse for knowing two languages” – Oliver Mowat

Rosetta Stone

It hit me in the head, like an unexpected gust of wind, one day when I was reading Success Magazine and saw the advertisement for Rosetta Stone. Of course, Rosetta Stone would purchase advertising space in these magazines in addition to Traveling magazines. Why?

  • Business Owners are in the top half of polyglot’s
  • Success comes to those who can connect with the most people – which is exactly what learning another language allows you to do
  • It takes a trained mind to focus and learn a new language
  • “Insert your own explanation here”

A Brian Tracy Story

If you have followed my blog, you know that I have joined Toastmasters and am constantly working at improving my public speaking abilities. Well, as a surprise, my friend filled out an application for Brian Tracy’s Speaking Academy without my knowledge. A few days ago she forwarded me the email that stated I was accepted into the limited class of 12. The director of events provided the details of the event and also added that it would cost over eight thousand dollars. As much as I would have loved to go to the Speaking Academy, it would be a stretch to get the money for tickets and a hotel to stay in San Diego while I attended. As odd as it may be, I was interested in the type of credentials that were necessary to get an employment position for Brian Tracy International – so I Googled the director of events’ name and found her LinkedIn profile. Who would have guessed?  Her specialties: Fluent in Spanish and Italian, and speak conversational French and Mandarin Chinese.

Coincidence?

I know not. It is not only a common trend in Success, Business and Self-Growth magazines, knowing more than one language is the most common trend in the majority of successful business CEO’s, directors, associates, etc.

What do you think?

Stay Positive and Polly-Wanna-Learn-A-New-Language

Garth E. Beyer

I do have to add that the advertisement stated the following “He was a hard working farm boy.     She was an Italian supermodel.    He knew he would have just one chance to impress her.” Would it be uncalled for to also say that those who know multiple languages, have the most beautiful arm candy?

S.A.D Your Darkest Cloud #TM

Garth Beyer

5 minutes and 33 seconds – the length of my 2nd Toastmasters speech titled S.A.D Your Darkest Cloud

“I liked your creative conclusion and 3 point organization. The organization made it easy to follow and you referenced it frequently”

“>Like the blend between facts and ideas > engaging > at times you didn’t seem too sure of yourself which halted your flow (mostly at beginning) > good hand gestures, eye contact, but your legs were static”

“Good job on giving the background of the 2nd study – slow down a bit when reading the studies and during the rest of the speech. Great ending! – Loved the ‘Life Weights…’ – Great job w/ speaking clearly and in an audible tone”

“The speech was delivered well and i will probably remember a lot of what you talked [about]”

“Great job! Well laid out topics w/ great summary, using personal experience really helped people relate. Good suggestions for how to get out of the depression!”

“Great control of time and speed! i really enjoy you speak. I think you can be even greater if you don’t use notes”

“Very good speech. I love the humor at the end of your conclusion. Very timely as well.”

“Great topic. The bad weather in winter season makes many people feel worse. it is good to avoid this feeling by talk[ing] with others.

“Garth> Fantastic. I actually have seasonal depression & working out and being with others, I have found, is key to ridding negative thoughts & gaining a clear head. You spoke very well & had great energy which made it a pleasure to listen to you.”

“Feels comfortable in front of an audience. I thought the topic was important to the audience. I liked the way you ended with the statistic you mentioned at the beginning”

Thank you to the audience members who read this for their feedback. I greatly appreciate all feedback: The glamored, the guts and the grime. Now it’s time for public speaking tips.

Lessons On Speech Prep and Present

Originally my speech was not 5 minutes and 33 seconds. After I wrote it out and timed it, it was 11 minutes and 49 seconds.

Lesson 1: Time your speech at different intervals as you write it. It will prevent you from writing too much and pressure you to amp up the content and let the fluff fly away.

While I was writing essays growing up, my mom would always tell me to always write extra because it is a lot easier to take out then to put in. While this may be true for essays, it is not for speeches under 7 minutes.

Lesson 2: If you end up with a 4 page speech when it should be no more than 1 1/2 pages, scrap it. Pull your main points out and use them for an outline and reference your 4 page speech when you get stuck. It is best to use it only when you get stuck because when you try to use a lot of your longer prepared speech, you will feel like the points wont be as powerful without all the fluff around them. Trust me. I used 2 days trying to take pieces out of my speech to shorten it when I should have started over after I found out it was nearly 12 minutes long.

Once my speech was set and in between the 5-7 minute restriction I thought I would try a new memorization strategy. I recorded myself giving the speech on my computer and uploaded the file to my iPod. I will tell you now, it is very uncomfortable when you listen to yourself give your speech for the first few times. But then I learned two lessons from it.

Lesson 3: Once you get over laughing at yourself as you listen to yourself giving the speech, you begin to notice the details. You notice when you take a breath, you notice the points of poor vocal variety, you notice the areas in which you really seem passionate and the areas in which you sound boring. By becoming an attuned audience member, you can become the tuned in speaker everyone wants to hear.

While originally this was not my point for recording my speech, this strategy greatly increased my presentation abilities. I won more than half of my audience’s appeal to having listened so intensely to myself speak over and over and over. But the real reason I recorded myself was that I wanted to memorize.

Lesson 4: Increase your memorization speed by listening to yourself give your speech. You will begin to mouth out the words as if it were a song.

Unfortunately, this technique did not work as well as I expected it to for me. However, I would still suggest it because the extra bit of memorization could be vital to your actual presentation. If you have or end up trying this strategy, please share your results! I would love to know if there is a particular way you memorize your speech.

…and then it was speech time.

Lesson 5: Next time you give a speech, ask a few audience members (or if you are in Toastmasters, ask the club members) if they will observe how you handle your struggles. When speakers fail to know every single idea, thought, feeling and movement of their speech they tend to, like me, find a way to push their ideas out or find a way to strive to reach an idea.

During my speech I struggled to remember and connect a few ideas and I used too many hand movements. I felt that if I made the movements as if I were getting an idea across, the idea would follow but it wound up backfiring. Do you know how you handle your struggles?

Lesson 6: Do not focus only on hand and facial gestures.

Audience members respond to whole body movement as well, as you read in my club’s feedback, my legs remained static during this speech. Just a reminder.

The Short Version

As you know, my original speech was almost 12 minutes long. I know that work did not go to waste because I truly enjoyed researching for it, writing it and learning from it. For now, enjoy the speech version rather than the “essay version”.

S.A.D. Your Darkest Cloud

There’s something I hate. Really do hate, and as you know I’m a very optimistic person, so it’s a huge deal that I’m starting with the fact I hate something. Now what I hate is a mood disorder and almost everyone gets it, whether it’s barely noticeable or you end up taking a trip to the doctor. Even with my positive attitude, I get it. I get SAD. Seasonal affective disorder, better known as winter depression or winter blues.

The symptoms can be so disastrous that all the positive energy and self improvement you created and invested in yourself throughout the last year could flash away in less than a week.

You find yourself unhappy with all of your achievements, in fact, you don’t even call them achievements, achievement is a sign you’re going somewhere. But you’re not; at least this is what the emotional disorder will tell you.

Now, can you believe 6.1% of the population suffers from seasonal affective disorder at a degree that they should ask for help? It’s such a small percentage but 6.1% of the US population is nearly 19million people.

All of this research began from the fact that every year, I’m in this 6.1% when the season starts to change to winter. After more than 9 years of trial and error I came up with 3 ways to, not only tackle seasonal depression, but these 3 ways can be used to leverage yourself in your success journey. The three topics I am going to talk about are exercise, the personal link, and the passion experiment.

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Now, do you have a coworker or friend that works out every day? I am going to bet that they are the ones with the most energy in the office, the ones that get things done and always have a smile on their face while doing so. I am finding it incredible the correlation that exercise has on our feelings and emotions throughout the day.

Let me share a study with you, researchers compared the effects of 30 minutes of walking on a treadmill with 30 minutes of quiet rest in 40 adults recently diagnosed with depression. None of the participants were taking antidepressants or exercising regularly.

The results showed that both groups reported reductions in feelings like tension, anger, depression, and fatigue. But only the exercise group reported feeling good, as measured by improved scores on “vigor” and “well-being” indicators.

And that is what we really want isn’t it? We don’t want to not feel bad, we want to feel goooood.

Even more so, I found another article where scientists have experimented with rodents and know that running induces the production of new neurons in rodent brains, BUT Elizabeth Gould and colleagues at Princeton University report that this benefit is wiped out when animals are housed individually, a situation she likens to “solitary confinement” for humans.

Which brings me to my next factor of fighting back depression, human connections.

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I can go on about the negative consequences to social isolation, but that is not going to motivate you to make personal connections when you are feeling down. What will, is talking about an out of the box benefit. While most read that social connections promote outcomes of better health, longevity, and greater quality of life — I have concluded an even better benefit. Social interaction can spring you forward to your life’s goals.

When talking to others, you have to form all your ideas into sentences to form a complete idea. Why do you think were told to practice our speeches out loud? By talking to people you have to put it in words and simplify it to where it’s understandable and the result is achievable. When you talk with people, every word is a brick to the path of the ideas manifestation.

Furthermore, with this social interaction, you will simply forget about depressive thoughts.

Can you recall the last time you were so focused on something that time just flew by? Maybe you were on a phone with a friend and didn’t realize it had even started to rain outside or a personal example, I was talking to a friend on the bus about my eBook and we both forgot to pull the cord and missed our bus stop. We get involved with talking to others about life, and goals, and achievements that we forget the negativity, the downs, the SAD emotions.

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Now the state of connecting with people leads me to my next point, life is like a giant game of connect the dots. You know people; those people know other people or have information that can help you get what you want and live your passion.

And acting on your passion is my last point because the action of going after what you want can decrease your depression symptoms. Why? Because you have a focus. It’s similar to what I mentioned with personal connections, you get so caught acting on your passion that all the emotions and negative circumstances in your life disappear.

To be honest, seasonal depression helped me figure out what I was absolutely most passion about, and just as I have over 250 life goals written down, I have the same number of passions, but having the depression helped me figure out the top thing. Writing. When I sit down and write I forget everything, I forget to eat, I forget to sleep, I have once gone over 6 hours writing without getting up to go to the bathroom. But most importantly, I forgot it was winter, I forgot I was sad, I forgot all the negative situations in my life… they vanished. I want the same for you.

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By exercising each day to release the gitty-up chemicals in your brain, by making social interaction a priority, and by making your passion an adventure by exploring and sharing your findings,  you can decrease the force of depression, eliminate it permanently, or completely prevent it in the first place.

Before I end this speech, do any of you remember approximately how many people suffer from seasonal affective disorder in the US? (nearly 19mil) Even though this is such a small number compared to the actual number of  people in the US, if these people started to exercise, started to seek out connections, and do what they love can you visualize how HUGE of an impact that would make on the world as a whole?

That is almost 19 million people achieving their goals, feeling motivated, having energy, being happy, inspiring others, connecting with each other, exchanging positive attitudes, spreading love. They say a simple smile is contagious, well you mix all the emotions and actions of the above and you have yourself a freaking epidemic!

BUT, the winter season is filled with dark clouds, both literally and mentally speaking with seasonal affective disorder being the darkest cloud. We know that it’s the time that everyone is at the highest risk of depression, so remember when you lift weights, lift ideas with people and lift your passion, you are also lifting your darkest cloud.

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Stay Positive and Lifting

Garth E. Beyer

High Existence: A Look At Exercise and Public Speaking

Garth Beyer

When you become fit, you become fit for public speaking. Due to the plethora of information regarding healthy lifestyles and their correlation with public speaking, along with my personal experience in Parkour and public speaking, I think its due time to make a post about it.

The Analogy You Expected

The way we exercise our bodies is the same for public speaking. In order to have a fit body, we continuously hit the gym, hit the floor, hit the mat, and hit the weights. We all know that we can’t just workout once or twice a week and expect to see positive results. In order to exceed average public speaking skills, we have to give multiple speeches each week, we have to practice our tone, volume, and linguistics. For both, the list of practice methods are endless. The same goes for the results; with consistent training you become a key-note speaker or a certified ass-kicking machine. Just as well, the tips for staying motivated and consistent work for both. Here are the two simplified versions.

  • Position, Plan, Execute – Evaluating yourself and where you stand on the line of success now, is how you can tell if you have made improvement later.Figuring out your position allows you to choose the techniques for the next step, planning. You have to plan out where you want to go, to get there. You cant expect to walk around aimlessly and find the “X” marks the spot treasure chest. By knowing where you are, you figure out where you want to be. In planning how to get there, you will get there, but you need to execute your plan. You have to follow the steps you set for yourself. You do so by following the next tip.
  • Dangling Carrots and Maximizing Achievement – Regardless of your end goal, you wont get there unless you break it down into dozens of small goals with small rewards. For example, if my goal was to cook a meal for the top 10 richest people on the planet and “I” had to make it without the help of anyone else (yes the world can be cruel at times, better to expect hardship and be grateful for any help than to expect help and face the hardship of it not being there), I would make one dish at a time. I know that trying to make everything at once would end up a disaster, so I would break it up into small goals, small meals. In doing so, I am maximizing my achievement by putting 100% of my effort into the one dish instead of 10% of my effort into each dish. The real catch to accomplishing small goals, is the reward. I know the visual is typically a person that wants to lose weight and they are running on a treadmill with a donut hanging in front of them, but I am a health nut so I dangle carrots. Positive rewards to go after. As a result of finishing each dish, I will indulge myself by being the first one to enjoy its delishes-ness. After the first dish, I am ready for the next!

 The Real Connection

Why is it that people fear public speaking more than physical pain?

It does not really matter, but if that is the case, I challenge you to experience positive physical pain: Workout. I guarantee that if you begin to exercise regularly, that your fear of public speaking will dissipate with each physical mark of progression you make. Not only that, but all your public speaking attributes will improve drastically. It is easier to understand the process by examining the connected benefits between working out and public speaking.

  • Exercise releases endorphins which make you happy “the good feel hormones”
  • Increases blood flow getting oxygen to your body, making you less fatigued and providing more mental and physical energy
  • By working out you become more energetic and alert of your surroundings which results in the ability to make audience connections and impromptu comments
  • “Whenever I am running, I am always thinking of things. When you’re running, the oxygen is like the ignition switch to great ideas” – Certified Personal Trainer

What The Sweat And Physical Exertion Boils Down To: A Stunned Audience

“Audiences like speakers who reflect good health and physical vitality. Research has shown that an audi­ence associates a speaker’s well-being with the soundness of his or her verbal messages. So watch your diet and exercise regularly.” – Toastmasters manual on Gestures.

Do you recall learning that your appearance both creates and leaves the biggest impact on your audience. Speakers forget that their first impression is not the first sentence out of their mouths, it is their appearance and the way they walk up to give their speech. Having a fit lifestyle will promote a confident entrance to public speaking. Apart from the words you share, you will enjoy sharing your image, you will enjoy sharing your hard work (exercise) and the results – “Dayumm you look good. A person looking as good as you must have something important to share.”

Fact: The same part of the brain that keeps people from losing weight also keeps people from great wealth! – The Millionaire Mind

“Studies have shown that a mere 7% of the messages that we communicate to others are transmitted by the words we use verbally. Instead, 55% of communication is based on physiology: the way a person stands, whether or not he smiles, degree of eye contact and so forth. The remaining 38% of communication is in tone of voice. What is said must be consistent with how it is said […] By subconsciously mirroring the physiology of others, a sensory message is sent to the brain, creating a similar emotional state. Therefore, health and fitness professionals who love their work, company, and clients and exhibit the body language that corresponds with these emotions positively affect the people around them. Because all sales decisions are ultimately made on emotion, having this effect on people can open the door to initiating the relationships that a successful career is built on.” – NASM Essentials of Personal Fitness Training

I would be doing this post an undeserving torture if I stopped here.

Richard Branson is the 4th richest citizen of the United Kingdom and 254th richest person in the world, according to the Forbes 2011 list of billionaires, so his words cannot be taken lightly. Especially when he was asked what the quickest way to success was… He answered with one word “Workout”.     Here are some other quotes by Richard Branson

“There’s an old saying: Look the part, and you’ll get the part. Well, more and more research is showing that people who are leaner and fitter are viewed as being more competent and successful than those who are overweight. And when people view you as competent, they are more likely to pay you what you deserve. Don’t believe me? Consider this: A New York University study found that people packing an extra 40 pounds make 20 percent less than their slimmer colleagues” – Eat This Not That, David Zinczenko

To end this post, I have to add another passion of mine that hopefully you have read my other posts on: Parkour

Ah, Sweet Ol’ Parkour

One of the greatest Parkour founders,Châu Belle, explains it is a “type of freedom” or “kind of expression”; that Parkour is “only a state of mind” rather than a set of actions, and that it is about overcoming and adapting to mental and emotional obstacles as well as physical barriers

You have to master your mind to master Parkour. And what do you need to master in order to master public speaking? That’s correct, your mind.

I would like to add that you not only have to master your mind, but your body – your movements. Just like public speaking, Parkour requires precise movements of the body in succession to mental stimulants. Can you see the correlation with gestures? It is as simple as that.

Just one more reason to try Parkour.

Stay Positive and High In Existence

Garth E. Beyer