Tuesday Thoughts | 25 March 2024 | The Human Connection

Today is an absolute smorgasbord of emotions; I am at once incredibly excited to take the stage and compete in Speaker Slam ; deeply pained by the awareness that tonight will mark 5 years since the very last time I heard my father say my name; and anxious about letting down the people who helped me develop the words I am going to deliver tonight, and the person who inspired my deeper message – my Dad.

To say that I’m deep in the feels, would be an understatement of the most epic proportions.

Five years ago tonight, was six months since another fateful night, one filled with uncertainty, and stress as we had learned – in stages – of my father’s condition; when “he’s been in an accident, and might have broken his leg” eventually became “he can’t feel his legs”, and my mother and I waited helplessly by the phone unable to cross the literal ocean between us to be by his side.

When I realized that tonight’s competition on the theme of ‘Human Connection’ would fall on the same day as the 5 year anniversary of the night my Father’s heart stopped beating; I knew two things, one I had to tell the stories of how my Father came to teach me about the small moments of humanity, that can lead to incredible connections; and two, I was under no circumstances going to do so by suiting up in some sort of perverse ‘Trauma Olympics’.

Tonight, in the east end of Toronto, I will do my best to honour the memory of a man who never hesitated to tell you that his initials ‘B.S.’ short for Bruce Stephenson Russell, were a brilliant but unintentional act of foreshadowing on the part of his mother. You had to know him pretty well to have any real idea when he was being serious, but even if you didn’t have a clue, you probably still liked him.

I’m not going to tell you what I’m going to say, but if you’re free tonight, its not too late to grab a ticket, to catch my speech live – or on livestream; instead I want to reflect a bit on this idea of Human Connection, and a few other moments in this lifetime that seem relevant to today’s theme.

Whenever I hear the words ‘Human Connection’, somewhere in the recesses of my brain, it quickly becomes the ‘Rainbow Connection’, and then in an instant my internal sound track screeches across the vinyl, and I hear “someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection”, sung in the voice of one Kermit the Frog.

My floormates (from Clara Conrad Hall, Floor B1, 2000-2001) will recognize the Rainbow Connection as song 2 from ‘B1’s Bustin’ Bumpin’ Bad Ass Bonified Tunage’ a compilation of the official soundtrack of ‘The Original Rainbow Kids’*. As I am sitting here typing this (and realizing this computer does not have a CD player), I have my copy of said disc sitting next to me.

It is in community, in places like first-year University dormitories, where we not only spend time together, but come to be part of the lives of others – and they part of ours – where we most readily find Human Connection. Much has been written about the loneliness epidemic, and often in those articles, white papers, and even opinion pieces, we find the idea that it is so much easier to connect with others in educational settings than in our ‘regular’ adult lives.

Maybe its because I am an only-child, but I’ve always preferred my communities to be of the variety that I get to take breaks from, I found myself contemplating this idea, of community, and in particular of finding ‘your people’ the sort of people who are of like-mind; in a somewhat unusual place.

This weekend, I participated in my very first sound-bath; for anyone who has been here any amount of time, you’ll probably be unsurprised to know that I found myself lying on the floor of a Yoga Studio, surrounded by strangers, because the person leading the workshop is – a) a fellow golden hawk, and b) another Danielle ( Danielle Wong, MCM ).

Like many alumni of a University where we had to leave ‘home’ as in our hometowns, to attend, I often think of my Alma Mater as my second home – its right there in the name, as each fall we return to campus for ‘homecoming’; so I instantly felt this additional layer when a fellow Golden Hawk was encouraging me – and the other participants – to reflect on the idea of home.

Is home a place, is home a person, is home simply where your people are? Or is home a place you need to find inside yourself? Is home a community? I’ve been thinking a lot over the last many months about how much more at home I feel when I have some level of control over when I dial up ‘togetherness’ vs when I am able to recharge my Introvert batteries without needing to worry about offending anyone.

It is when my social batteries are full(er) that I am at my best in terms of making those Human Connections; batteries that often feel a bit drained on a campus full of outgoing, purposeful people. And. Today I find myself thinking about the person who modelled for me, how we find the small moments to make those connections while conserving our introvert selves.

Today’s call to action is an invitation, to reflect deeply on how we find home, and community as a strong foundation for making Human Connections.

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A Special Shoutout this week to the ‘Original Rainbow Kids’ of B1: Ayanna Dick , Jeanine Ferris , Dorothy Bossé , Martina Kasumovic , and others.

New and Noteworthy is a collection of things readers of #TuesdayThoughts might find interesting, important, or informative;

??Other Stuff I Did This Week (shameless self promotion): I'm incredibly honoured to have been nominated for two CSAE Leadership Awards; Community Leader Award and Empowering Leader Award |

???Hold These Dates: Tuesday, 26 March 2024 - Speaker Slam on the topic of Human Connection | Tuesday, 16, April 2024 - CSAE Leadership Awards Celebration

?? What to Do: Consider registering for Leanne Calderwood, CMP 's upcoming Workshop 'Content that Connects'

?? What to Read: Managing ‘The People in Your Neighbourhood’ Around the Board Table from the MacPhie Blog h/t Hugh D. MacPhie | The Balance of Belonging from Kurby Court, MA., CCP | This post from my Spinal Cord Injury Ontario board colleague Nish Bandara

?? What to Watch: Simon Sinek's take on Trusting Teams | This powerful video from Jeremy Andrew Davis on Internalized Ableism

????♀? Cool Jobs (Paid and Volunteer): Director of Advocacy and Government Relations @ Canadian Association of Optometrists h/t Meredith Low, MBA, CAE, C. Dir. | Executive Director @ Association of Condominium Managers of Ontario h/t Jack Shand | Marketing & Development Coordinator @ Children Believe | Public Policy Manager @ Canadian Race Relations Foundation

?? Take Note: Mental Health Summit for Legal Professionals h/t Rachel Runge | National Volunteer Week in Canada: April 14-20 and in the USA: April 21-27 h/t Jessica Pang-Parks MES, CVA

CALL FOR CONTENT: I crowd source 99% of what appears in New and Noteworthy, but I would love the help of the Tuesday Thoughts Community to identify content about you and for you. Got a cool new project? A Job Posting to Fill? Or just something you found interesting? DM me with a link.

I am a Certified Association Executive with over a dozen years of experience in leadership positions across Canada’s Not-for-Profit Sector, with deep ties in the Meetings and Events Industry. I use the art of storytelling in speech and writing to explain ideas, and to inform audiences and readers on a variety of topics. Learn more about how we can collaborate;

?? Consulting Services: I offer a suite of consulting services for Associations and Charities, and am interested in working with likeminded organizations on projects that contribute to better governance, leadership and the overall growth and health of Canada’s Association and Not-for-Profit Industries.

??? Speaker/Facilitator: I have spoken to standing room only crowds in the Association and Events sectors, connecting ideas and people; topics include, The Introvert Experience, Imposter Syndrome and Mentorship, EDI: Lived Experience as a BIPOC Woman in Leadership, Minimalism and Essentialism, Finding Your Voice and Building Your Unique Brand, Making and Impact, and the #TuesdayThoughtsFormula.

??? Contributing Writer: I have written for Industry Publications and Blogs with a focus on the role of Associations, Volunteerism, and the Intersection of Not-for-Profit Management and many current social and economic trends. My inclination towards storytelling lends itself well to the style of Creative Non-Fiction.

?? The Tuesday Thoughts Formula: I am on a mission to inspire actions that amplify my impact, each week I follow the #TuesdayThoughtsForumla to deliver a call to action inspired by relevant stories; new this year, I’m bringing live demonstrations of the formula to the stage to help conference, event and meeting attendees tell their own stories that amplify their ROI of in-person attendance.

?? Check out my website daniellerussell.ca or email me: [email protected]

?? I’m on a Mission to?Change The World, By Inspiring Actions That Amplify My Impact! Despite my Introverted tendencies, if I have any hope of success this cannot be a solo affair. Join my community where I Connect People and Ideas;

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