282 Turning Points For Our Growth
Stepping out of your comfort zone can feel frightening, from massive changes to the tiniest ones can feel like the world is ending if you are not stretching and growing as a person. Traveling, whether it be a new way home from work or halfway across the world, can impact your perception on life, as can being open to the thoughts and feelings of others, and accepting what you cannot change.
In this episode Sarah Elkins and Tom Jackobs discuss the importance of allowing yourself to stretch and change but also staying true to yourself and your values despite all these changes.
Highlights
You need to set the stage for your stories.
Perceptions of yourself change over time however it’s up to you to take accountability for your actions.
Expanding your horizons is imperative to your growth and health as a human being let alone as being a storyteller.
What do I have control over and what don’t I have control over?
Quotes
“That’s part of really good story telling, is I call it color and texture. Bringing color and texture to your story because a lot of times if I would have just said ‘It was an old school that I went to,’ then everyone would have a different image of what that school would be. Even if I said, ‘Oh yeah I was driving my car,’ you have a different idea of what that car is versus what I have a different idea of what I’m saying. However by adding in that color and texture of the story, like the smell of the wood and the recital hall, or the car example it was an old beat up BMW three series. Now everybody now knows what that image is and that draws the listener in because now you’re on the same page in terms of the details of the story.”
“Has my identity really changed? And certain elements I think have changed overtime, but I think that’s apart of society in terms of kind of forcing you into a title or an identity, but what’s deep inside of me, who I really am, that hasn’t changed but that perception of how it comes across to other people I think does change over time.”
Dear Listeners it is now your turn,
When will you take a small step out of your comfort zone, into your stretch zone so that you can take more of those steps, gradually seeing all of the improvements and the changes and the satisfaction you get from doing those small steps out of your comfort zone. Those things that scare you a little bit will scare you less and less so that the bigger things that scare you now won’t feel so overwhelming when you’re ready to take that step.
And, as always, thank you for listening.
About Tom
To say Tom has been through a few things in his 30+ years of being an entrepreneur is an understatement. He’s had more failures than successes, but wouldn’t have it any other way. In 2017 he sold his fitness business which he owned for 9 years to become the Impact Pilot, helping entrepreneurs generate more income through better sales conversion strategy and using stories to sell.
Tom has a BFA Degree in Theatre from DePaul University in Chicago and holds his private pilot license for single-engine airplanes and is SCUBA certified. He has licenses for Land, Sea and Air, which will come in handy during the apocalypse.
Be sure to check out Tom’s LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram! As well as his website Here!
About Sarah
"Uncovering the right stories for the right audiences so executives, leaders, public speakers, and job seekers can clearly and actively demonstrate their character, values, and vision."
In my work with coaching clients, I guide people to improve their communication using storytelling as the foundation of our work together. What I’ve realized over years of coaching and podcasting is that the majority of people don’t realize the impact of the stories they share - on their internal messages, and on the people they’re sharing them with.
My work with leaders and people who aspire to be leaders follows a similar path to the interviews on my podcast, uncovering pivotal moments in their lives and learning how to share them to connect more authentically with others, to make their presentations and speaking more engaging, to reveal patterns that have kept them stuck or moved them forward, and to improve their relationships at work and at home.
The audiobook, Your Stories Don’t Define You, How You Tell Them Will is now available!
Included with your purchase are two bonus tracks, songs recorded by Sarah's band, Spare Change, in her living room in Montana.
Be sure to check out the Job Interview Storytelling Course as well to make sure you nail that next interview!