It smelled like 'cow', and I liked it...

I wasn’t sure what to expect as I drove through miles in miles of open farmland with cattle.  I ended up meeting and was pleasantly surprised by interacting with 900 students with Colorado FBLA (District 3 and 4).  These were some of the most poised and professional individuals that I’ve ever seen throughout my career, yet some of them were as young as 14 years old.  All of them were driven to learn, connect, and get better.

As part of my presentation process, I ask attendees to complete a survey in advance of the presentation. The thoughtfulness, the depth of truthfulness of their answers, simply astounded me. The photos below share what their definition of success looks like.

Many of these students are growing up on ranches that have hundreds of thousands of acres.  Their towns are extremely small and many of them don’t even have coffee shops. Their classes are small and typically they know everyone in their entire school district. These are driven individuals that are looking to create a future for themselves and for their families. Regardless of location many of them will choose to stay in their small towns, and others may be influenced to experience larger locations.

Their eagerness to PARTICIPATE, ENGAGE, and SHARE was some of the best that I’ve ever seen.  Without knowing them personally, I am so proud of what they are accomplishing and who they are becoming.  Here are a few additional definitions of what SUCCESS means to them.  What does it mean to you? 

Special shout out to the district officers that led this incredible event, Carley Hase and Ben Kleve. They want to help others achieve their goals. What an incredible statement for such young individuals. I can’t wait to see what they create for their future and what all of their members continue to do in their lives.

An email came to me from a very special student on my drive back to the Denver Airport that reinforced one of my "WHY's" to speak and present, and they gave me permission to share the essence in hopes that it will help others. 

"My major take away from you presentation was to not let people stop me. Since middle school I have been judged by what seems like everyone. I've never seemed to fit in no matter what I like. I am very rarely taken seriously by my close peers and multiple times throughout this experience I have questioned giving up and conforming to their standards of "normal". You presentation helped me to realize that I am doing what most don't. I have had stone after stone thrown at me and yet instead of letting that stop me, i have used those stones to build myself up. Even if that has caused me to question if it's worth it. I now know it is.

Lastly, the bamboo anomaly was one of the best stories I've ever heard before. It made me realize that even though Bamboo is small compared to a large oak tree, if you can gather all of those smaller bamboo shoots, they can withstand more wind than a large oak tree. It made me realize that if you got everyone who sits in the back of the room, who doesn't think they belong, who don't have many friends, who get bullied, and are considered the little guys together and put them up against those bigger people, the people who judge us, the people who hurt us, or even the fears that hold us back from what we truly want, we can make it through. Sometimes it takes more than one person to do it. But we are all destined for success. We just have to work together as a whole rather than one singular bamboo.

I have seen speech after speech from people and yet I thank you for being the best I've ever seen. Your words have truly changed me. I walked into the event this morning not talking so I don't Crack up and cry to walking out of the building with a new mindset on life. I hope you have an amazing rest of your day and I hope you continue to do what you are doing now. If you never change a life again, I hope you know you have changed mine."

The power of a positive message and a reminder for all of us to "JUST HELP" each other. 

Thank you Future Business Leadership of America (FBLA) Colorado District 3 and 4.  More can be found on their website: https://coloradofbla.org.

E-mail us to learn more about Bart's Availability to present to your organization:   [email protected]