I think we’re all guilty of making things out to be a lot worse than they really are. It’s easy to become overwhelmed just thinking about all the responsibilities we all have in our personal and professional lives. A good dose of perspective can always shake you back to reality and remind you of what’s truly a problem and what’s nothing more than melodrama. I received a good dose perspective over the last 10 days.

It was 10 days ago when I started not to feel very well, I started experiencing chest pains. I didn’t think it was heart attack, why would a 52 year old, slightly overweight man with high cholesterol think that? To be on the safe side I went to the doctor and he put me through a battery of tests. I was right, no heart attack. The doctor wanted me to be thorough so they sent me off to get x-rays done on my chest. The next day the doctor called me and said, “Your x-ray indicated that you have a small nebular density on your lung. We believe it’s benign but we cannot rule out cancer. We’re going to arrange a CT scan on chest to get a better look, and from there we can determine what the next steps will be.”

Funny how everything changed from the moment I heard those words. (more…)

It can be the most unnerving, and for some terrifying, experience.   There are those who make it look so easy but I suspect their secret to success is the ability to suppress the fear and anxiety of public speaking.  There are plenty of courses for those who want to become better at public speaking but no course is as valuable as practical experience.  Presenting in front of a large audience teaches many lessons, and the lessons are usually painful.

 There’s nothing more humbling than walking off the stage and saying to yourself, “well, that sucked”.  I’ve done enough public speaking over the last few years to honestly judge my own performance.  Really, that’s what public speaking is.  Either you’re “on” or you’re not.  There have been times when I’ve been in a middle of a presentation and I know it’s working.  The words seem to flow, the pace of speech is just right and the audience is engaged.  I measure audience engagement by Blackberry use.  Then there are other times when I know I’m not connecting with the audience, and god forbid if I have another forty minutes to fill.  That has to be one of the loneliest feelings in the world.  There’s no teammate on stage that can cover for you.  It’s just you and the audience wishing they were somewhere else.

Every time I go on stage to do a presentation I’m nervous.  Not to any paralyzing degree but enough to get the feeling in the pit of my stomach, accompanied by sweaty palms.  It doesn’t matter how many times I do it that feeling is there.  It was no different last week when I spoke to a group of realtors in Oakville.  For context, a great supporter of Merix, Mark Mighton, asked me to speak at event he was sponsoring.  It was the Oakville Real Estate Association continuing education session, with some 250 realtors in attendance. The presentation was being held in a movie theatre.  It was an interesting day to say the least.  My morning started by doing the opening remarks at the CAAMP Symposium in Laval, Quebec.  Off to the airport from Laval to catch a flight to Toronto so that I can make it on time for the presentation in Oakville.  Of course the plane was delayed by an hour which means I would be cutting it real close.  I’m providing ETA updates to the organizers of the event, and I know I was causing them some angst.  As luck would have it I arrived with 10 minutes to spare.  No time to decompress or really gather my thoughts, its show time.  So I’m introduced by the host of the event, and I say “Thank you and good afternoon ladies gentlemen’”.   Just then I noticed a woman, right in the middle of the theatre, dead to the world.  I mean she is out cold, head tilted to the side, mouth wide open, she’s in a deep sleep.  It’s funny what goes through your mind in about second.  My first instinct was to laugh, and then I started to rationalize.  “Christ, it can’t be me…I’ve been on for only 3  1/2 seconds”.

For 45 minutes I tried to avoid looking at the woman in a coma.  That’ not an easy thing to do because I know she’s there and I’m wondering if she’s really going to sleep through entire presentation.  She did.  In fairness to the slumbering woman, when the audience clapped at the end of my presentation it startled her awake.  She rose to her feet and joined the others in clapping.  I made eye contact with her and mouthed, thank you.  What a thrill for me.  I received a standing ovation from one person in the audience who didn’t hear a single word I said.

 Until next time,

 Cheers.

This is going to be pretty busy year for me as relates to travel.  My work requires me to travel a fair bit as it is, but when I add my responsibilities as CAAMP Chair, well, Toronto’s Pearson International Airport will become a second home to me.  I’m not complaining in the least bit.  I signed up for this gig; therefore, I have to accept the responsibilities.  It would be tempting to only visit cities where I have a personal interest (i.e. Merix volumes) but if that was my motivation I should have never campaigned and ran for Chair.  The Chair has to separate his/her personal interests from that of the associations, and so it begins for me.

 The CAAMP road show begins today with the first symposium of the year in Kelowna, B.C.  It will eventually move across the country and I’m looking forward to talking to members in all regions of the country. (more…)

Another CAAMP conference (Mortgage Forum 2011) has come and gone, and I’m looking forward to catching up on some sleep.  The sleep deprivation has nothing to do with indulging.  On the contrary, I was a good boy during the conference,  and even if I was tempted by all the distractions logic dictated discipline.  The meetings seemed endless during the conference, and no complaints on my part.  I signed up for the gig.  But I can take a deep breath now that the conference is over.

The Mortgage Forum 2011 was significantly different than the previous conferences.  There’s always a risk in trying something different but when you balance that against what could be, well, you have to go for it. (more…)

As you read this blog I’m sure you’ve noticed some changes.  The look and feel of the blog has been completely revamped.  A decision was made a few months  ago to give the blog a face-lift.  Why?  That’s what happens when the person who manages the functionality of the blog, and was responsible for the creation of the blog in the first place, is a perfectionist.  So if you like the look, it’s all Leeanne O’Brien, our Social Media and Communications Specialist.  If you don’t like the look, it’s all my fault.

This blogging thing has taken me by surprise. (more…)