My ‘One Word’ this week is: WISH

Imagine this: You’re at the Pearly Gates, ready to enter heaven—and you’re granted (1) wish.

Mine?

To have dinner with the following 5 game-changing women who have impacted my life—by giving away their core value—to help me become a better father, husband, friend, brother, and guide to the people I show up for.

𝐒𝐚𝐫𝐚 𝐁𝐥𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐥𝐲: 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞

Sara’s story of wanting to help other women and men feel confident in their clothes is what drew customers to SPANX—not the undergarment itself. Sara’s brainchild isn’t a simple t-shirt to me. The compression t-shirt I wear sucks it in and lifts it all up, giving me the #confidence to step onto stages and share my ‘One Word’ message with the world!

𝐆𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐧 𝐃𝐨𝐲𝐥𝐞: 𝐔𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐝

Her 2020 memoir, Untamed, delivered a life-changing truth. As fathers, society often conditions us to protect—read: “tame”—our daughters. This antiquated way of parenting results in us raising our daughters differently than our sons—and this isn’t okay. The key to winning a relationship with daughters? Mutual respect. Show your daughters that you see them by letting them live the way they’ve been raised. Trust that your example will give them the fortitude to blaze their own paths ahead. After turning the final page, I called my daughter Samantha at Vanderbilt University to share my revelation and apologize.

𝐁𝐫𝐞𝐧é 𝐁𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐧: 𝐕𝐮𝐥𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲

A #1 lesson from Brené? “You can’t give away what you don’t have.” I did the emotional development work to discover my core value as a CATALYST—and I’m now committed to disrupting the way people think about themselves so they simplify their identity down to ‘One Word.’ This is the same way I helped iconic brands think differently about the products they were selling during my corporate career. I’m now able to help young adults step into their ‘One Word’ identities because I did the work to discover mine. Give away who you are and you’ll help others win, too.

𝐃𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐨𝐧: 𝐒𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐲

Dolly is one of the world’s most-beloved —and that’s partly due to the way in which she brilliantly leverages her “Sassy Dollyisms” to stay relevant to all generations. In her song Backwoods Barbie: “I’m just a backwoods Barbie in a push-up bra and heels. I might look artificial but where it counts, I’m real.” Dolly taught me that self-deprecation is the way to connect emotionally and win over hearts.

𝐎𝐩𝐫𝐚𝐡 𝐖𝐢𝐧𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐲: 𝐆𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫

“O” taught me that servant leadership is the game-change to a happy life! It’s about being the guide, never the hero of your story, and giving without expecting anything in return. And the single greatest gift you can give anyone in life is your time.

So, who would you like to have dinner with at the pearly gates?