Tag: Baseball

Manner Of Speaking Blog

Manner of Speaking WordPress blog.  It’s a good one.  Click here to check it out.

If you have no interest in Public Speaking, that’s ok.  May I offer this different perspective for still paying attention to this jungle jeff blog post?

As a Professional Speaker, sometimes a “sports story” is appropriate. There are people however, that will immediately turn off and tune out.  Why?  Well for starters, they’ll say things like:

  • “I don’t like sports”.
  • “I never played sports”.
  • “I don’t watch sports”.
  • “I hate sports”.

So let me just say this, when I tell a “sports story”, it’s not about sports, it’s about excellence.  When I blog about public speaking, it’s not about public speaking as much as it is about passion, and the pursuit of excellence – in any endeavor.

That’s why you should pay attention.  “You can observe a lot by watching”. – Yogi Berra

Where Was Obama?

Where was Obama the other night, Tuesday, I think it was?

He was in St Louis, and threw the traditional “first pitch”, to start the Major League All Star game.

Shouldn’t he have been at the White House?  Or meeting with important world figures.  Or working late into the night on a critical National issue?

Instead, he was at a baseball game.  A baseball game?  Seriously?  What the heck was that all about?

Here’s my theory.  What he did was critical to his role as our Nation’s Leader.

How?

It is important that we trust the President, right?

How does the White House team increase our trust in President Obama?

By design, the White House team knows that relationships are the key to trust.

By seeing President Obama as a “real person”, enjoying the same things many other Americans enjoy – Baseball, our National past time.

This makes me wonder how I could apply this to my work as a professional speaker.

Guess what, I’ve already got a few ideas.  Stay tuned.  And, um, oh yeah, carpe diem, jungle jeff 🙂

Disney and number 42?

Who said, “A life is not important, except for the impact it has on other lives“?

Number 42 said it. Number 42? Yep.

With relatives from Pennsylvania staying with us for a few weeks, our routine is adjusted. The TV is on more often, playing programs we do not normally watch. Wednesday’s ABC Evening News is a great example.

Charlie Gibson started talking about baseball having 15 games played that day.  So?  Well, he then starts telling the story about how every player on this one team was wearing the same number. Number 42.

Then, he says that everyone on the opposing team was wearing number 42. What the?

Not only that, but every player on all 30 teams that played those 15 games Wednesday, had the number 42 on every jersey.

Why?

Because it was that day in history when a HUGE barrier was broken.

It was the day when you no longer had to be white to play baseball.

It was the day Jackie Robinson, a black man, first played major league baseball, 62 years ago.

I don’t know about you, but I’m eternally grateful to any person who pushes the boundaries and finds a better way.

Jackie Robinson, number 42, did that. We should all stand up and cheer.

The Walt Disney Company, was founded in 1923 by two brothers, boundary pushers, just like Jackie Robinson.

In honor of Jackie, Roy and Walt Disney, I challenge myself to do something today that will make the world a better place. Carpe diem, jungle jeff  🙂