TEDxOttawa

I was recently invited to speak at TEDxOttawa.  In case you don’t  know, TEDx events are slick, professional conferences held throughout the world where innovative people share compelling nuggets of wisdom and insight in an engaging, creative manner.  Started in 1984, TED brings together the brightest minds to give the talk of their lives. Past speakers have included Richard Branson, Al Gore, Bill Gates, Bill Clinton, and Jamie Oliver, as well as endless other less-known scientists, professors, designers, artists and trailblazers – all innovators in their field.

TEDx was created in the spirit of TED’s mission “ideas worth spreading”  to give communities and individuals the opportunity to stimulate creativity through TED-like experiences at the local level.  The all-day conferences follow a similar format: speakers are recorded in front of a live,  “by invitation only” audience which are then posted online.

To be honest, I hadn’t heard about TED or TEDx until mentioning my invitation to Mark one night as we were getting ready for bed. “TEDx?!” he exclaimed. “That’s an awesome opportunity!!” And then, in a more serious tone “You better be prepared.”  I guess Mark knows that I can be a bit unstructured at times, and in many respects, we’re complete opposites.  He’s Mister organized, very systematic and linear whereas I’m creative, intuitive and sometimes, well, scattered.  We even rock climb differently: he tends to study the climbing problem for a few moments and then executes his moves accordingly, while I just feel things out as I make my way along the route.  When I give talks or presentations, I have a tendency to forgo the cue cards and “wing things” instead.  Speaking at TEDxOttawa was suddenly intimidating, especially knowing that my talk would be filmed and then available online for everyone and anyone to view and comment on.

A month went by, and then,  just a few weeks before the big event, I began to scramble.  I never used power point before, but thankfully hubby hooked me up — finding images,  helping with layout and the other techie stuff I have so little patience for.  Mark was also my one-man audience, offering me sound advice,  feedback, and above all, support.

A quick run-through during our anniversary get-away

Although I felt quite honored being invited to speak at TEDxOttawa and not too nervous about public speaking, I was concerned that the audience may not connect with my own personal story. Being the first time that I had spoken out about my struggles with anorexia/bulimia,  a lot of old emotions surfaced. Talk about raw …  and very cathartic.

Eating a banana shortly before going on.

I also popped a handful of BAC and drank half a bottle of E3live directly before going on.

Seriously.

You should have seen Mark’s expression!

Struggling with the mic and messing up my hair! 😉

It was quite the experience.  And the feedback was overwhelming!

Sometimes it’s okay to be vulnerable and be honest about our struggles.

Hopefully in doing so, we can touch and help others …

(Please watch this on Youtube and leave a comment. Thank you, I appreciate it!)

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