Cheesy, corny crap that actually works!

A few weeks ago, I had to attend a seminar.

my first reaction?...AAAaaaggghhhh

my second reaction?....oh, alright...if I have to.

A week before the seminar, I received an online survey to complete. cheesy, dumb questions.

A few days before the seminar, I received a book.....with instructions to read specific chapters. It was that terrible, boring reading that makes you nod off two sentences into the first paragraph.

Between the online survey and reading selection....a sense of dread settled over me.

I knew that this was a 2 day seminar.

It was offsite. Away from our office......far from the grip of our normal lives.

We were told only to bring a pen. No notebook, no paper.

Don't bring a large bag! No cellphones! No Blackberrys! No laptops! Oh the humanity!

We were instructed to be prepared to cut ourselves off from the world. Make it clear to everyone that for 2 days we would be unreachable!

Was this a cult?

Was I going to have to cut my hair and give up my clothes? Perhaps walk around in some sort of kaftan?

Would there be chanting? Would there be some sort of medical experimentation?

My mind was running amok!

By this point, I am sure you are sensing my less than enthusiastic/optimistic outlook on the seminar.

But as the day began, I was quite smitten by Bill. He was charming like a gameshow host. He told great stories. He had a voice that made you take notice. The perfect facilitator!

There was a lady too. She was nice, but lacked the charisma of Bill.

I panicked slightly when we were given journals to record our thoughts, feelings and meditations of the days to follow ~ I sucked at keeping a diary when I was 12, how would I make this work?

Slowly, I began to let go.

I began to take it in.

I began to journal ~ not a lot, just a little.

I enjoyed the excercises, shared my stories, listened to the stories of those around me, began to sip a bit of the Kool Aid.

That first night in my hotel room, I read over what I had written during the day.

Whoa! Some of it was deep!

With Day 2 before me, I was totally suckered in.

I was now drinking the Kool Aid.

At the end of the seminar, we made committment statements and were given a blue chip to carry around. I felt like I had been thru a 12 step program.....but, wow!!! It felt really good!

It has now been almost 3 weeks since the seminar.

I am sticking to my committment statements.

I am 'starting at curious'

I am keeping myself high on the 'mood elevator'

I have accepted 'gravity'

It has actually stuck with me. It has actually had a profound effect on me. How cool.