My ‘One Word’ this week is: SURREAL

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐒𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐬 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐓𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐊𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐆𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠!

When I left my corporate career at 50 to chase what many called a “crazy idea,” it often felt like I was shouting into the void.

Would anyone understand my vision of helping people discover their personal brands in 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝?

Would anyone even care?

Eight years in, I have learned this: the universe is always watching.

And just when you are ready to give up, something or someone shows up to remind you why you started.

Here are two moments that reminded me:

1️⃣ 𝐀 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐀𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐥𝐚 𝐃𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡

Early on, one of my mentees (and friend), whose 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝 is 𝑈𝑛𝑖𝑓𝑖𝑒𝑟, introduced me to Angela Duckworth, the best-selling author of Grit.

Yes, that Angela Duckworth.

We talked about her obvious 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝: 𝐺𝑅𝐼𝑇. She gave the world the secret to success, passion and perseverance over time, and there she was, encouraging me to keep going.

I hung up thinking, “If someone like her believes in what I am building, maybe I really am onto something.”

2️⃣ 𝐀 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐒𝐚𝐫𝐚 𝐁𝐥𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐥𝐲

During a keynote, I invited a young woman from the audience to help me uncover Spanx’s 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝, 𝐶𝑂𝑁𝐹𝐼𝐷𝐸𝑁𝐶𝐸.

Out of 450 people in the room, what are the odds she turned out to be the creative director for Jesse Itzler, Sara Blakely’s husband?

Afterward, Amanda showed me a text exchange she had with Sara during my talk. She said:

“Keep this exchange on your desk and read it every day. Never give up. Your 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝 idea is unique and powerful.”

Eight years later, that text is still on my desk. And that young woman? Amanda is now a mentee (and friend). Her 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝 is 𝐴𝑙𝑐ℎ𝑒𝑚𝑖𝑠𝑡, and she is out there creating extraordinary experiences of her own.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐧!

People are paying attention, even when you feel invisible. The universe sends signs, sometimes through a best-selling author, sometimes through a chance encounter, to remind you to keep moving forward.

So to anyone building something that feels impossible:

𝐊𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠.

Use every word of encouragement as fuel. Because you never know who is watching, and sometimes, it is exactly the person you would least expect.