Driving My Passion With Virtual Grenades

I'd catch a grenade for love
Throw my hand on a blade for love
I'd jump in front of a train for love
You know I'd do anything for love
I would go through all this pain
Take a bullet straight through my brain
Yes, I would die for you....

Bruno Mars sings these heartfelt lyrics in his fast rhythm song, Grenade. I love the beat; it has a pulsing tempo that just begs to pull your body into movement. However, if you listen closely, the lyrics will break your heart. When I take in his words, they makes me wonder about the things in my life that I would ascribe these same intense sentiments.

What are the passions that drive me to succeed and for which I would lay down everything. For me the number one answer would be relationships. I value the connections that I have with people. I am a deep, analytical soul and when I meet someone, I want to know everything about them.

Secondly I am passionate about self-actualization. I aspire to be the best possible version of me that can exist at this time and in this space. I love to make a difference in people's lives that will help them achieve their goals.

Lastly, I am passionate about leaving a legacy. I want to leave this earth having created pieces of myself that are left to lodge and grow and influence future generations. I don't want to disappear into the ether, but to have some tangible proof that I walked this earth and left it in a better state of being somehow.

So what do my ramblings have to do with unrequited love as it is described in Bruno's song. Well not much, but words and lyrics inspire me and cause me to reach deeper into my own psyche for parallel meanings.

What things in your life would you take a virtual grenade for?





Copyright Michelle Beckham-Corbin 2011

Escaping the Image of Me

Escaping the Image of Me

For years people have told you:

“You look just like her”

And while I don’t see the complete physical resemblance

Beyond similar hair and eye color,

I think what they were trying to do was to paint the feeling

That they had into words- the observation that our inner core, our essence is similar

Extroverted over-achievers with a flair for the dramatic and a love

Of being front and center

We have strong, independent personalities and value integrity and truthfulness

We are unflinchingly loyal,

Unless of course one has proven themselves to be lacking in the virtues we hold dear

Leaders

Thought provokers

Keeper of the peace

Risk takers (ok- we diverge here)

Brave hearts that seek to do what is right and not what is popular

Voracious readers of good content

Talented Writers

Gifted intellect


Lately you voice concerns about our similarities

And I ask, “Is there a reason why you don’t have positive feelings about being like me?

And you answer, “Because I feel like I am re-playing a movie role about your life”

Hazards of sharing journal entries of my life at your exact age….

And yes there are many, many similarities.

BUT there are differences that make you your own unique person

You are you and I am me

How lucky we are to have each other.

Copyright Michelle Beckham-Corbin 2010

NET-PRINTS: OUR OWN REALITY SERIES

I saw this phrase “…collision of professional and personal worlds” as part of a blog post entitled the “Blurring Lines of Work and Life” by Len Devanna. What happens when you make your total life a personal on-line reality series? What are the losses and gains that occur when you can be accessed and examined 24/7? I have been trying to determine if my uneasiness with the internet privacy issue is due to my age or to my own unique set of personality traits. I have a problem with posting all of my social media site contact information on each of my profiles for complete life cross-referencing. Many people have large lists detailing every possible way in which to connect with them: Facebook, Delicious, LinkedIn, Flickr, Blog site, Website, Twitter. The list goes on and on.

I like to keep my contacts categorized between business and personal social media sites with a few select people walking the tight rope between both of my worlds. I have always been an extremely private person, yet at the same time, I am highly extroverted and have a very likeable and approachable personality. This is a very fine line to operate under.

A great point was made by a friend of mine. He stated that if someone meets him at a business networking event and asks to “friend” him on Facebook, he ignores the request rationalizing that no-one could truly become his friend after a ten minute conversation. I just channel similar requests to my professional networking site, LinkedIn. My Facebook is a place for me to hang out and let my hair down with friends and family. I tend to post lots of pictures, especially from my high school and college years; a veritable “remember when?” collage. I also love to share music videos for favorite bands, some of my creative writing and links to interesting articles. I just don’t need the Vice President of P&G- Tremor to be my friend and pore over my private life unless of course we knew each other way back growing up.

I am a true marketer and I believe that when presenting the brand that is YOU to the public, perception is totally within the eye of the beholder. This is why I believe so strongly in personal branding and being cognizant of knowing who you are and how you want to be represented in the world. Let’s face it; everything on the net is fair game for anyone on the globe to discover about you. We all need to be aware of the dangers of trigger-finger posting and take the time to reflect on whether that Tweet, Blog Comment or public response to a LinkedIn question really captures the essence of who we are and what we are comfortable with sharing about ourselves: our brand identity.

One’s ‘net-print’ runs deep and lasts forever. A hasty post without thought can have repercussions that may last a long time. Stories already abound of people who have come to regret earlier posts that were rants or derogatory statements toward a particular organization or institution. Offers have been rescinded, positions lost and reputations massacred in the public eye. Picture comments you post on Flickr, or stopping by to leave some love on a favorite Blog might not mesh with the professional image you are trying to maintain on LinkedIn or one of the other business-oriented social media sites.

So, if you want your life to be fully displayed on the net through the use of blogging, micro-blogging, pod-casting, vlogging, social network site hopping, etc., then just take some time to determine how you want to be perpetually recorded. Remember, if you wouldn’t want your mother to see your ‘net-print’, then perhaps it’s just not appropriate to post.

As for me, I will continue to keep my professional and personal lives as separate as possible and will do an instant replay in my head before I hit the post button.

Here’s hoping you live a long virtual life with minimal regrets!


Copyright Michelle Beckham-Corbin 2009