Rebecca Morgan, CSP, CMC, CVP, VMP

A True Rock Star!

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I drove onto the rockery’s automobile scale so the staff could weigh my car before I added some flagstone pavers for my new garden paths. I carefully picked out 30 foot-sized flat stones so I could tend my plants when it’s muddy.

When I drove back onto the scale, a woman staffer looked at my car and said, “I’m taking it all in.” At first I didn’t know what she was talking about, but then realized she was looking at the red plastic “save the rhino” horn I’ve had on the front of my car since my 2014 visit to South Africa. I’ve added a tail out the trunk, and two black ears on either side of the windshield. I forget that this can be quite a sight. I told her I’ve made my car into the rhino-mobile to bring attention to the thousand rhinos killed each year by poachers. She nodded.

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Be my guest at my BrighTalk Global HR Summit digital keynote

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There’s no charge! Leadership Lessons from Silicon Valley Create High-Performing Remote Teams How can you take lessons learned about team leadership from Silicon Valley companies and apply them to your work-from-home team? Rebecca will share research from Silicon Valley companies on how leaders create highly effective teams. You’ll learn Google’s 5 key components of top … Read more

Certified Virtual Presenter

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For years, I’ve loved traveling globally giving keynotes and training to clients. Now that we are unable to do that, I’m delighted to announce that I’ve passed the test for the Certified Virtual Presenter designation. The certification assesses competency in audio/visual setup, virtual delivery, equipment, and more. When I earned this designation, I was only … Read more

Arrogance Foils Excellence

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Arrogance foils excellence
Sydney Park, AU, Photo: Rebecca Morgan

 

Have you encountered a know-it-all? Someone who seemingly knows much more than most on nearly all topics. Someone who would be loathe to utter, “I didn’t know that.” Someone who dismisses genuine experts. Someone who claims to an authority without any credentials or study (formal or informal) on the topic?

Perhaps you’re related to someone like this. Or married to one. Or can be one yourself.

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Ego Is a Renewable Resource

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Ego is often thought of as a negative, as in “He has a big ego.” But the dictionary defines it as “a person’s sense of self-esteem or self-importance.” We value healthy self-esteem.

Sometimes we are afraid to try something new, concerned that we’ll fail and our ego will take a hit, from our self-flagellation or from others’ ridicule — or both. If we are cowed by the prospect of this, it keeps us playing safe and not trying much new.

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Reassessing During Your “Recessment”

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I made up the word “recessment” to express my feelings — and perhaps yours — during this time of self-isolation, assuming you and your loved ones are well and practicing safe behaviors, and you aren’t an essential worker working outside the house.

(Granted, “recessment” does not address the added element of fear for one’s health and the health of loved ones, the grief over significant loss in others’ lives, possible uncertainty about financial security, and the anxiety about what lies ahead for you, others you care about, and society.)

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Lessons Learned from Doing Stand-Up Comedy

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In August, I decided I wanted to add more humor to my content-rich presentations. I can be funny among friends, but I was having trouble finding humor for my keynotes and trainings.

I researched nearby stand-up comedy classes starting around Oct. 1. However, my friend Jeanne Robertson encouraged me to enter a video for her annual comedy competition — with a Sept. 9 deadline. Not being a professional humorist, I had only one five-year-old video of my doing a funny bit in front of about 30 friends. I had no illusions of ever winning, but thought, “What the heck.”

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Life Is a Self-Designed, Personal Growth Seminar

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Photo: Rebecca Morgan, Ayutthaya, Thailand

 

Our lives have incredible highs and some heartbreaking lows. The former are exhilarating. In the moment you think, “How can life get any better?”

The lows often involve blaming ourselves, feeling stupid, and being embarrassed for our part in the mishap. Or you condemn others, thinking they caused this setback.

The difference between those who rebound quickly and those who linger in their negativity is their perspective. Wallowers stay stuck in victimhood, never reflecting on the lesson the experience has for them.

The sooner you can shift from anger or sadness to introspection, the happier you will be. Every disappointment has a gift for you, if you are willing to look for it. This is not always easy. The more time distancing you from the event, the easier it gets. However, if you can train yourself to look for the lesson as soon after the event as possible, the less suffering you’ll have.

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