A Moment to Reflect

?“And it all started out of a $500 a month apartment in the worst part of town with a $39.99 microphone and the idea that I should speak about politics in Omaha, NE.”

Throwback Fridays! Yeah...I don't think that's a thing either. HOWEVER! I just got off an amazing group call with Manya Chylinski where reflection and introspection seemed to be the unspoken theme of the conversations.

carried the energy over from there and looked at the show I have been producing since 13 June 2019 in pure audio and then making changes shortly thereafter in Sep 2019 to begin regularly incorporating a video component as well.

The little collage of photos here is a small representation of the progression of the show, from the center being the very first video I ever uploaded to YouTube expressing my thoughts to the world with the idea that I could make a difference by informing people the impact of their words. Words have meaning the we each ascribe to them. Many of those meanings are shared, thus our ability to communicate with one another. But sometimes we don’t share a meaning with others and sometimes, unbeknownst to ourselves, we allow words to own our lives. This first video ever dives into that topic! (Check out @real-resilience on YouTube and go to the oldest video, yep she is still there, as public as ever!)

Irony of ironies, my initial intent for the show was for it to be a bastion of libertarian political philosophies with a specific focus on the political scene in my hometown of Omaha, NE. I had built out link diagrams connecting various political players to various organizations and groups along with tracking the city council in Omaha and monitoring their votes and so on and so forth.

Two things kept nagging me about this concept:

1.????I hadn't lived in Omaha for 10 years at that point

2.????I was losing the vision that the best way to positively impact the world was through politics.

At the same time, I was serving as a Master Resilience Trainer near Savannah, GA. I saw the impact on people's lives and the content itself really made a marked difference in my own life. Plus, I was enthusiastic about demonstrating resilience strategies and watching the light bulb turn on for those attending my workshops. I began to wonder. Could I do something with Resilience to improve the quality of people's lives in a tangible and practical way as a civilian?

This transition was very much aided by one of the best podcasters, and business coaches I have ever encountered, Jason Stapleton https://www.youtube.com/@TheJasonStapleton Jason is the single most authentic coach who is truly motivating by his ability to help you succeed in your business.

I decided to jump all in on the Resilience Boat by creating my first podcast Burn Your Boats. I interviewed over 25 business owners, entrepreneurs, artists, military leaders, comedians, magicians, young startups, theatre directors, musicians and so many more all with the goal of figuring out how they overcame the fear and pursued their dreams and goals, discovered their passion and persevered through the bad times and did not let success ruin them, or if they did, I sought to discover how they picked themselves back up.

I made a lot of amazing friends along the way to include Adam Messer and Jason Usry who became a part of my support network in Savannah, GA. So much so that Adam and I made our own show that broadcasted for a limited time where we would push and challenge each other on our thoughts regarding resilience, motivation, determination, and grit.

“I had to make a choice. Let the podcast die or transform.”

This was a TREMENDOUS success, and I could not have had more fun doing it. But I was preparing for a big transition in my life: leaving the military, getting married, and moving from Georgia to Virginia to be with my newly wed bride! This made things tough, especially in getting guests who I found to be interesting and valuable for my audience which was exacerbated by leaving my growing network in GA. I had to make a choice. Let the podcast die or transform. So, I shifting to the monologue style of show.

This was great because I had to challenge myself to talk on a given concept of resilience or motivation for an hour in at least a cohesive and engaging manner. This was also significantly more enjoyable and satisfying than I had originally suspected. I continued to grow my skills and learn more about myself and what I it is that I wanted to do.

This served me well for about one and a half years until I discovered a new vision. One where I take the resilience strategies and motivational tools I have learned and combine them with industrial and organizational psychological principles I am studying while finally overlaying them with my 11+ years of military and leadership experience to bring a new perspective to leadership in the workplace.

Becoming resilient at work is no simple task but it is one that means the world to me. And here’s why.

“If I can deliver collaborative strategies for organizations that will help them hold on to their employees as a natural biproduct of the culture of the organization then it is incumbent upon me to do so.”

It is fair to say that even now, not every single person is going to earn their entire living by being an entrepreneur or doing something that they are insanely passionate about. That said, this IS becoming an increased possibility for more and more people; but the trash still needs picking up, sewers need servicing, fish need catching, power plants need maintaining and so on. If I can take what I know and deliver collaborative strategies for organizations that will help them hold on to their employees (increase retention) as a natural biproduct (not an end in it of itself) of the culture of the organization then it is incumbent upon me to do so.

So, I decided it was the right time to start bringing guests back into the show!

Weird and random segue right? WRONG!

If I am going to make this big shift to try and help people in this way, then I need to bring in other people who have critical insights into this new arena. Now they can share their experiences both with me so that I may become a taller and brighter beacon of hope, but also so that they listener can get this same experience direct from the source about related areas of research and what they know and how that can apply to individuals managing their time and lives in the workforce.

I truly believe that we can improve workers’ lives by enhancing their sense of fulfillment and satisfaction in the workplace.?How do you feel when you leave the office for the day when your work that day felt like it was directly impacting the success of the organization? How do you feel when you have a tangible sense of your role in the organization and your leadership relies upon you to see the vision of the company to become a reality. You feel connected, you feel a sense of belonging and personal esteem. When you believe in the mission then you are also connected in a deeper way to being a part of a mission that is bigger than yourself.

This follows you home.

You are now more present when you are home with your family. You have pride in what you do, and this breeds confidence, which carries home with you as well. Now that you are more connected at work, you are more connected at home. When your children feel your connection with them, who they are, and invested in their own individual pursuit of fulfillment, the household is cooking with Crisco baby!

This is my anecdote. Backed up by other professionals and research. This is my hypothesis. This is how I will change the world. And it all started out of a $500 a month apartment in the worst part of town with a $39.99 microphone and the idea that I should speak about politics in Omaha, NE.

Do not judge what your dream is now, and do not inhibit its growth with unnecessary barriers and boundaries. This can be pursuing a new career, going solo/entrepreneur, or finding new ways to embrace the work you currently do!

It is 2023, and it is time to gain clarity on your vision of who you are. Let us get to work.

Check out the full journey documented since June 2019 here:

https://www.youtube.com/c/MatthewLostaglia-Real-Resilience