Turbo Leadership Systems^™

Get out of your comfort zone and live a lot.

Sue, an environmental technician for a wood products manufacturer in southern Oregon, told Session 3B of the Leadership Development Lab:

"Several years ago I was introduced to the outdoor activity of hiking. I found the exercise to be invigorating, energizing and renewing. The following summer, as I was sitting in the comfort zone of my backyard, I thought, 'I really didn't want to stop hiking just because I have no one to hike with'. I packed up my truck and headed for a campground on the Oregon coast. About 4 hours later I arrived at a campground near a hiking path I had read about in The Traveler, AAA's travel magazine. I set up my campsite and got a great nights' sleep.

I got up early the next morning, and after a quick breakfast, I headed down the road. I soon found the turn to the trail head. It was a misty morning and walking through the dew covered, shrouded trees was a little scary. When I crossed over a little stream and looked at the wide variety of trees and bushes, I started to relax. I walked a little further and came out of the trees onto a grassy knoll that ended at a cliff overlooking the Pacific ocean. I turned, looked behind me, and there was a small cove with a thin, silver waterfall coming down the back wall of the cliff. It was striking; one of the most beautiful waterfalls I had ever seen! As I sat looking at all the beauty around me, all I could think of was that I had almost listened to the inner voice of fear that had said, 'You can't do this.' The lesson I learned from this experience is to set my intentions by what I want, what I value, not to listen to or let fear set my agenda. I learned instead to say, 'YES I CAN!' The action I call you to

take is to learn to distinguish between the voice of adventure and growth and the voice of restriction and fear. Follow the higher calling. The benefit you will gain is a life full of adventure and growth, and you will have memories to look back on that will give you pride and true self -confidence."

Now here's a thought for all of us . . . . . this weekend, take a closer look at the Travel the Living sections in the Oregonian. If you're an AAA member, get our your AAA The Traveler quarterly magazine. Put them up on the wall and throw a dart at it. If that doesn't work for you, look up one of the places you've always thought of going to and go! We live in God's country. Climb Mount St. Helens, walk up to headwaters at Multnomah Falls, take a walk down the Oregon coast a little further than you ever have before, climb Haystack Rock, jump in to Crater Lake. If jumping in is too much for you, at least manage to stick your toe in the water. Go up to the Goldendale observatory at midnight and look up to the heavens through the most powerful telescope open to the public in the United States. Look up at Venus. Water ski on Detroit Lake or the Willamette, take a walk through Champoeg Park . . . you get the idea!