Serving Up Opinions and Intentionality

This week is Thanksgiving in the United States. In addition to turkey and stuffing and cranberries and pumpkin pie, my family also serves up opinions and intentionality.

So, bad news: there are a lot of opinions. Some of them spoken in public, some of them muttered in private, and lots more held in resentful pits inside. Because, well, people.

In previous years, I’ve focused too much on these opinions. If I’m being honest — and you know I’m always honest with you — the opinions spoken, muttered, and festering have eaten me up inside.

But thanks to Robin Roberts, who pulled one specific line out of Limitless and shared it on social media with millions and millions of followers, I’m reminded often that no one gets a vote who shouldn’t even get a voice. (Fun fact: I wrote that line just like I wrote every other line in the book , with purpose in pen but not with popularity in mind.)

Throughout the week, I just keep reminding myself about who gets votes, who gets voices, and who gets vanquished. I hope you do the same, and if not, can file away the wash of wasted opinions where they ought to live which, by the way, is definitely not rent free in your brain.

This brings me to the good news about what's also on our table: intentionality.

Last year, in addition to putting on Thanksgiving for 20, it was also my mother’s 80th birthday. (Hi Mom!) So I threw that party too.

There was so much big stuff.

Because I was hosting, I didn’t get to spend much quality time with her, playing board games and chitchatting as the rest of the family got to do. By Saturday, I was exhausted, and already looking ahead with dread to the balance of the year that still lay before me.

Maybe you feel that same crush of Dec 31 coming, and feel both excited that the end is coming but also overwhelmed at how much is left to do?

Between that day and December 14 — so roughly two weeks — I had meetings in NYC, my husband’s holiday office party, keynotes in Providence, Woodstock, Nashville, and Boca Raton, meetings in Scottsdale, and another hit on Access Hollywood which is filmed in Los Angeles.

There is always so much big stuff.

But, back to Thanksgiving. On the last day of the weekend, after almost everybody had left, my mother and I sat down to play Scrabble. And, when I say “play” Scrabble, let me be clear: it’s a no holds barred, all out assault, battle to the death. She spent my childhood wiping the floor with me; the woman knows no mercy.

We ended up playing two games. In the first, her score of 344 was no match for my 422. But, in the second, she beat me heartily, reminding me once more who was the OG Scrabbler.

In a weekend of football, and cooking, and celebrating, though, it was this time that was the most meaningful to me.

Sometimes we focus way too much on the big things, and forget that the real memories are made in the little moments in between. So, The One Thing to do this week: be intentional about creating the little moments.

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Limitlessly Yours,

LGO