In July I got to talk about love and marshmallows at TEDxFargo, a remarkable one-day intensive celebration of Wonder. (And yes, ‘wonder’ really was the conference's theme!)
Talking about a passion to a crowd of people is both easy and nerve-wracking. What’s nerve-wracking? Lights, smoke machines and a room full of people combine to create lots of things that could go wrong. That’s probably why public speaking consistently ranks among people’s greatest fears - so many ways to fail! And as the opening speaker I had to operate purely on trust that everything was going to work.
But we should never have anything to fear when we’re invited to tell our own story, especially not to a group of people who want to hear it. And in the end that's what made it easy.
I told the story of how Jenn and I started Wondermade and what we’ve learned about love along the way. We’ve learned that love takes only two forms: Love is either give what you get or love is give everything you’ve got. Most importantly that when love is a ‘give-what-you-get’ practice, things never end well.
Here’s my TED talk in all it’s glory:
Getting to talk with 1800 people about love and how to love better was a profound honor. Spending the rest of the day in one-on-one conversations was even better. I got to hear incredible stories about love and hope and adventure and bravery.
Until a year ago I’d never been to Fargo - I didn’t know a thing about it aside from the Coen Brother’s film. But fast forward 16 months, hundreds of conversations, three trips and one TEDx later and I’m in love. It’s an incredible city full of remarkable people - if you have a chance spend a few days there. Book a room at the HoDo and experience what a small town renaissance looks like firsthand.
Oh, and if you like the talk would you tell a friend? Sharing is what stories are all about, after all.