[Music]
how do a crayon and two lions have
anything to do with how you live your
life a crayon and two lions how could
they possibly have anything to do with
how any of us live our lives now there’s
an answer to that question and we’re
gonna get to it together in just a
second but first I want to ask what
makes one person more relatable than
another person I started asking this
question after some discussions with my
high school students regarding teachers
that they liked and teachers that they
didn’t like teachers that they related
to and teachers they were not able to
relate to and they told me they gave me
an answer they told me why and the
reason why this matters for all of us
is as dr. brené Brown the famous
researcher storyteller from Houston says
in one of the most watched videos online
she said there’s a very specific reason
why we’re here that reason is connection
human connection is why we’re here I
couldn’t agree with her more so I
thought okay if connections why were
here then how do we establish it and
data suggests that connection is
established when two people are
relatable when they can relate one with
another so then the next question
becomes well what makes us relatable so
going back to the discussion with my
students I asked them why are you able
to relate with some teachers but not
able to relate to others and they said
coach G it’s real simple we want one
thing we want people to be real we want
people to be authentic I said okay but
what does that mean what does that look
like they said two things in addition to
bringing their own personality and their
own flavors in the classroom we want
them to be willing to admit mistakes and
willing to share faults I said okay but
why does that matter to you they said
and this is the key because it shows us
that they are human but I said
understand so
that discussion led to this question and
I want to ask all of you do you hide or
suppress parts of who you are in certain
situations do you ever hide or suppress
parts of who you are in certain
situations now their overwhelming
majority respond yes to this question
and the reality is we all do it
everybody does this even people who will
look you in the eye they say I don’t
give a damn what you think have to tell
you they don’t give a damn what you
think because they give a damn what you
think it’s the craziest thing but why
why do we do this
if connection is why we’re here and
connection is established to be a
relatability why do we hide the very
parts of who we are that make us
relatable and the answer is because we
don’t think that people can see past our
blemishes to see our beauty we don’t
think people can see past our mistakes
and our shortcomings to see the value
that we can add but ladies and gentlemen
nothing nothing could be further from
the truth and to illustrate I want to
share a little experiment that I did
last year I asked one of my students
creative artist I asked her to draw a
picture of a lion for me and then to
color it she drew it colored it brought
it back to me and it looked awesome I
said okay now can you do me this favor
draw the same exact lion but this time I
want you to color it with this box of
crayons and I gave her a box of crayons
that had smashed corners bent edges it
was ripped the top was being held
together by tape the crayons themselves
were chipped broken some of them were
flat on both ends they were snapped in
half they were missing their sleeves
this was a broken blemished imperfect
box of crayons I said can you color the
second picture with this box of crayons
she said absolutely she coloured it
brought it back to me I put him side by
side in no particular order and this is
the result
so I’ve got a question for you first
which one do you like better
like the left of the right
some people say left she said right she
likes the right one better
somebody said left I like the one on the
left it seems a little bit more detailed
the blues pop a little bit more but I
like the one on the right because it
seems a little bit more full the Reds
and the browns are a bit stronger but we
can all agree that there is beauty in
both of them and both of them add to the
slide but what if I would have said one
of these pictures was colored with the
box of crayons that was really broken
and blemishing imperfect matter of fact
we’re not going to color the second
picture because the crayons are a little
too broken they’re a little too
imperfect they’re a little too blemished
we’re going to keep this box of crayons
on the shelf there would literally be
half as much beauty on the slide if we
tip that box of crayons on the shelf
because of imperfection so what about
you what about us what about all of us
how many of us live our lives on the
Shelf so to speak because we think we’re
a little too broken we’re a little too
blemished we’re not quite perfect enough
so we stay on the Shelf there would be
that much less beauty because of it
there would be that much less
value-added because of it
ladies and gentlemen people do not
relate with you because you are perfect
people relate with you because you make
mistakes but they are inspired by you
because you overcome those mistakes so
what I am asking you to do I am asking
all of you to do is to be you
authentically to be you unapologetically
as dr. Holly Hancock says I am asking
you that you be you bravely I’m asking
the you embrace every part of who you
were because that’s what makes you who
you are and who you are is somebody that
somebody needs
ladies and gentlemen now is the time for
you for all of us to understand that you
are not beautiful despite your
imperfections you are beautiful because
of them
[Applause]
how do a crayon and two lions have
anything to do with how you live your
life a crayon and two lions how could
they possibly have anything to do with
how any of us live our lives now there’s
an answer to that question and we’re
gonna get to it together in just a
second but first I want to ask what
makes one person more relatable than
another person I started asking this
question after some discussions with my
high school students regarding teachers
that they liked and teachers that they
didn’t like teachers that they related
to and teachers they were not able to
relate to and they told me they gave me
an answer they told me why and the
reason why this matters for all of us
is as dr. brené Brown the famous
researcher storyteller from Houston says
in one of the most watched videos online
she said there’s a very specific reason
why we’re here that reason is connection
human connection is why we’re here I
couldn’t agree with her more so I
thought okay if connections why were
here then how do we establish it and
data suggests that connection is
established when two people are
relatable when they can relate one with
another so then the next question
becomes well what makes us relatable so
going back to the discussion with my
students I asked them why are you able
to relate with some teachers but not
able to relate to others and they said
coach G it’s real simple we want one
thing we want people to be real we want
people to be authentic I said okay but
what does that mean what does that look
like they said two things in addition to
bringing their own personality and their
own flavors in the classroom we want
them to be willing to admit mistakes and
willing to share faults I said okay but
why does that matter to you they said
and this is the key because it shows us
that they are human but I said
understand so
that discussion led to this question and
I want to ask all of you do you hide or
suppress parts of who you are in certain
situations do you ever hide or suppress
parts of who you are in certain
situations now their overwhelming
majority respond yes to this question
and the reality is we all do it
everybody does this even people who will
look you in the eye they say I don’t
give a damn what you think have to tell
you they don’t give a damn what you
think because they give a damn what you
think it’s the craziest thing but why
why do we do this
if connection is why we’re here and
connection is established to be a
relatability why do we hide the very
parts of who we are that make us
relatable and the answer is because we
don’t think that people can see past our
blemishes to see our beauty we don’t
think people can see past our mistakes
and our shortcomings to see the value
that we can add but ladies and gentlemen
nothing nothing could be further from
the truth and to illustrate I want to
share a little experiment that I did
last year I asked one of my students
creative artist I asked her to draw a
picture of a lion for me and then to
color it she drew it colored it brought
it back to me and it looked awesome I
said okay now can you do me this favor
draw the same exact lion but this time I
want you to color it with this box of
crayons and I gave her a box of crayons
that had smashed corners bent edges it
was ripped the top was being held
together by tape the crayons themselves
were chipped broken some of them were
flat on both ends they were snapped in
half they were missing their sleeves
this was a broken blemished imperfect
box of crayons I said can you color the
second picture with this box of crayons
she said absolutely she coloured it
brought it back to me I put him side by
side in no particular order and this is
the result
so I’ve got a question for you first
which one do you like better
like the left of the right
some people say left she said right she
likes the right one better
somebody said left I like the one on the
left it seems a little bit more detailed
the blues pop a little bit more but I
like the one on the right because it
seems a little bit more full the Reds
and the browns are a bit stronger but we
can all agree that there is beauty in
both of them and both of them add to the
slide but what if I would have said one
of these pictures was colored with the
box of crayons that was really broken
and blemishing imperfect matter of fact
we’re not going to color the second
picture because the crayons are a little
too broken they’re a little too
imperfect they’re a little too blemished
we’re going to keep this box of crayons
on the shelf there would literally be
half as much beauty on the slide if we
tip that box of crayons on the shelf
because of imperfection so what about
you what about us what about all of us
how many of us live our lives on the
Shelf so to speak because we think we’re
a little too broken we’re a little too
blemished we’re not quite perfect enough
so we stay on the Shelf there would be
that much less beauty because of it
there would be that much less
value-added because of it
ladies and gentlemen people do not
relate with you because you are perfect
people relate with you because you make
mistakes but they are inspired by you
because you overcome those mistakes so
what I am asking you to do I am asking
all of you to do is to be you
authentically to be you unapologetically
as dr. Holly Hancock says I am asking
you that you be you bravely I’m asking
the you embrace every part of who you
were because that’s what makes you who
you are and who you are is somebody that
somebody needs
ladies and gentlemen now is the time for
you for all of us to understand that you
are not beautiful despite your
imperfections you are beautiful because
of them
[Applause]
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