I’ve been a coach and mentor to hundreds of startups, dreamers, and change agents over the past 15 years.  I used to have a thinking partnership with Dawna Markova and she would always start the call with the question ” what have you been ‘teaching’ people lately?” (i.e., what advice are you giving others). And then we would explore the wisdom we were sharing with others (which is often all about us).

I’m not sure it’s any different lately, but I am noticing that I’ve been doing a lot of  ’boldness’ coaching my whole life.

My husband always says the problem with education is the that the bar is set too low. I’m thinking that this is a society-wide epidemic. We don’t challenge ourselves and others enough. We are often surrounded by people who want us to stay small, not rock the boat, follow the rules. Well, clearly, as we can see all around us, those rules aren’t really getting us where we need to be.

There are so many things that are broken, that need re-inventing, that need re-thinking. It’s a great time to be alive. It’s also not the time to be thinking small.

What if your idea could be bigger and have a greater positive impact? What if it could be done twice as fast? What if you could be happy and balanced and impactful all at the same time? What if you could take Friday’s off to reflect so that you are more effective? What if slowing down (meditating) actually allows you to be more productive (because you are grounded and balanced and less easy to distract)?

I’m mentoring a Next36 team that is brimming with ideas and hopes and dreams. I asked them a couple of months ago, “who’s on your wish list?”. You are in this incredible program funded by 3 Canadian billionaires and can pretty much get to anyone in the country. Who do you want to meet? This is your chance. Make a list, dream big and get out there and introduce yourself around, share your dreams, hear other people’s stories and get to it. Seize the opportunity.

Umair Haque has a great article in HBR – Overthrow Yourself –  where he says the reason for the organization is to ‘evoke the highest human potential’. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen an organization that has a reason d’être anywhere near that but it’s certainly A if not THE, design point I would consider central to my life. How am I putting myself in situations and finding environments where I can evoke my highest human potential?

How are you?