Sunday, March 11, 2007

Tip#36: Look At Your Own Happy Feet - Happy Feet



Happy Feet (2006)

Happy Feetis a dazzling animated musical film about a young penguin born with a difference among his penguin clan. While others are born with a beautiful singing voice, the lead character, Mumbles was born with a passion for dancing. The film points out the importance of believing your differences are your strengths whether anyone else sees it or not. And the reasons for your uniqueness will eventually reveal itself in life.

I remembered during my mid-life transition in my late 30's how I had discovered that my gift for public speaking had been suppressed at a young age. I was a talkative kid growing up and always got into trouble. Sometimes I was just entertaining other kids with my funny voices or impressions.

Being Punished

The teachers would always have to send me out into the hall, sometimes pulled by the ear, because I couldn't stop talking during class. Imagine how being punished constantly for something you do naturally conditions you in the long run. You are taught it is wrong and bad to express yourself like that.

So I turned to art to express myself quietly. It's no wonder that my suppressed gift for public speaking finally pushed it's way out during my early mid-life crisis. I believe our innate gifts are a powerful form of energy that needs to be expressed or our lives suffer. The energy of my gift may have been secretly orchestrating events around me to shake up my world in my late 30's in order to show me a path back towards my life mission and what I was born primarily to do as a motivational speaker.

Celebrate Your Gifts

Happy Feetrecently won an Oscar for best animated feature and represents a story meaningful for grown ups as well as celebrating one's differences. The classic story of Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeeris another similar moral. Everyone has their own special gifts and skills and they ought to be celebrated and not condemned or laughed at.

Believe no matter what was suppressed in your childhood you will always be guided to unleashing your inner gifts and what you were born to do. It's up to you to find the courage to set it free and share it with others.

So look at your own Happy Feetand nurture these secret skills and talents that are uniquely yours. Developing these skills will bring enormous joy into your life. They may even be the key to unexpected solutions and enthusiasm for your career. Just take a happy step forward!

Emmanuel Lopez
www.motivatorman.com
© Emmanuel Lopez 2007

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey Motivationman,

It's funny I had the similar experience in my childhood.
I was more talkative than I thought I was :)
I clearly remember I was told to shut up for expressing my opinion in a classroom.
Maybe because of that I had been quiet for many years.
And for a long time, I had the idea that I was very shy.
Still don't think I am a born public speaker but now I have been trying to overcome my fear...
now I am teaching.
And I might not be the dancing penguin Mumbles, but Salsa definitely brought out the dancer within me after years of suppression.
Can't wait to see the Happy Feet !!

Thank you
Harvey

Anonymous said...

great article.

i can relate. i've never been pulled out of class by the ear but i have heard about other people who were pulled out of class by the ear.

David

Anonymous said...

Haa haa! "happy feet" IS my favourite tip to date! Emmanuel, I was so glad to read that story. It had meaning for me too.

D.M.