What and Who Inspired Me in 2013
2013 was a year. Just like every other one.
My 2013 came with ups and downs. Just like everyone else’s.
The thing about ups and downs is, there’s another up coming… and sometimes you just need a little inspiration to help you go out and find it.
I’m lucky (how many times have I said that?) to have had people and moments in my 2013 that helped me realize that I’ve got lots of ups to come and that I deserve to enjoy and celebrate them. I hope that you have those same things in your life, I’m sure you do. Just take a minute to look around for them.
Early in the year I was inspired by my friend Ashley Gibson who put on the 1st of her 2 cabaret shows at the Flying Beaver Pubaret in 2013. Even though I missed the “Life Is Sweet, Even in February” show I was amazed at her strength and determination in preparing this show with the memory of her mother in mind and the proceeds of the show being donated to the CAMH Foundation to support mental health programs right here in Toronto. I’m also thankful for my friends and family who raised $115 at my birthday to donate to the cause.
If you know Ashley, you know her infectious smile and laugh. And you know that she works hard every day to see the beauty and promise that life has. She truly is inspiring.
Going back to my birthday… having so many friends show up to Lou Dawgs for karaoke with hugs and handshakes and to sing country songs for me was amazing. I have some amazing people in my life and I appreciate every single one of them.
You are all awesome and thinking back to that night is a great reminder that I live a charmed life when maybe I’m not feeling it so much in the moment.
In March of this year at South by Southwest, Dave Grohl gave a keynote address. Now, I love Dave Grohl. I think he’s talented and smart and charming and handsome and wonderful. However, I am not a musician and the keynote address was clearly directed at artists and those in the music industry.
But for some reason, maybe because Dave is my spirit animal, I have found that listening to that keynote address has inspired me to keep pushing and working and trying to do my best. I have played the 49 minute YouTube video at least half a dozen times when I felt that I was dragging creatively. And I know that I will do it again.
If you haven’t seen it yet, I highly recommend that you watch it, even if you just listen to the audio while you do other things.
In April my family said goodbye to my grandfather. He was a good man and we all miss him very much. At his funeral I was honoured to be asked to speak about him and my memories in front of friends and family and people who I had never met. Every word was hard to get out and it was the most difficult speaking engagement of my life.
That same day though I was inspired by the strength and love and emotion that my family showed. Aunts and uncles and cousins that I don’t see very much all came together to support each other. But the most inspiring moments came when my cousin Kevin stood up to remember my gramp. He was funny and sweet and said everything that was in his heart. We were all fortunate to be able to hear him speak that day. Good job bud.
This spring I was also on the job hunt which was long and hard for me. I had a lot of moments I felt sorry for myself and questioned my abilities and skill set. I interviewed at a few places unsuccessfully before finding a new gig in June.
And through it all I was inspired to keep trying, not by my shrinking bank account balance, but by my friends who continued to send me links to job postings and spread the word that I was looking and encouraged me along the way. The support and kind words and love helped me push and keep trying instead of giving up and taking something I didn’t want. Thank you all for that.
At the new job I have been inspired by the creative freedom that has been given to me. Yes, I have to keep client goals and boundaries in mind. But for the most part I have been given the opportunity to create the content that I think will get the job done and writing the pieces that I am interested in.
I love what I do as a community manager/content creator/planner/strategist – and part of that love comes from being able to let my ideas dictate my work. Being able to turn my ideas into finished products inspires me to keep pushing new ideas out on a daily basis. I sincerely hope that those opportunities keep coming my way.
Let’s skip ahead to November and something that inspires me every single year… Movember.
For a fourth year in a row I was fortunate enough to be joined by great friends and dedicated fundraisers in an effort to support men’s health initiatives. And for a fourth year in a row we hosted Movember Challenge Karaoke Toronto as our biggest push to raise money for the cause.
This year was our biggest and best yet with more members than ever on our team, more participation than ever in the event and more money donated at karaoke than ever before. The night end total of $2280 surpassed all of my expectations – and brought our 4 year total to over $5500. I don’t yet know how we’re going to be able to make 2014 more successful, but I trust that our team and friends and families will help us do just that.
The participation and dedication and love that we were all showed this Movember is inspiring to me. As a community we came together and reached a goal. That makes us awesome.
This year I was also inspired by my mom as she became a licensed Lay Minister in the United Church of Canada, my dad who told me of his long awaited retirement plan and my friends who continue to work hard, support awesome charity programs and play a major part in their communities in cities all over the world.
I know that inspiration comes in different forms for different people. And I believe that there are times when we all need to be inspired so that we can do the work that we love and believe in, even if we don’t believe in ourselves.
I’ve been lucky enough to find a lot of examples of inspiration in 2013 – and I believe that I will be able to find more examples again in 2014.
I hope you do too.
ps. here’s the video of Dave Grohl’s SXSW Keynote, you can press play and listen right now!
creator of content, daddy blogger, writer, coffee drinker, fan of the Batman. proud mo bro. prouder dad.
