I came home from New York City (NYC) and people were amazed what I fit in just 3 days. They thought I was there a week or more. I did it all while I was in NYC. The Tower observation decks, museums, boat tours and much more. The main reason I was there was to experience my first Live TED Talk event.

This was a double bucket list trip. First time seeing TED Talks and NYC. The whole trip was amazing but I would like to tell you my thoughts on some of the best motivational speakers of the evening. In the heart of NYC, Broadway and Time Square, I went to the historic Town Hall Theater. This event was going on all week with a different main topic each day. The main topic for the day I went was “The Education Revolution”. Other topics were things like science, history, war and peace.

I would like to say that this is a very informal post, more like expanded notes.

Andrew Mangino, CEO and Co-Founder of The Future Project:

He told us about how we need not just teachers in our world but Dream Directors. Yes every teacher can be a Dream Director, every one of us can inspire the future of our children. With the increasing amount of rules and regulations in the education industry we are leaving children’s creativity by the way sides, and we are ignoring their abilities to dream big in their life. Life is not all about just pushing kids to go to college it is about living their own lives. Listen to their ideas and let them follow their dreams. Not all will succeed right away but if we teach them how success and failure work together, all of their dreams have the ability to grow. We need to update the Education System and teach kids the jobs of today. Things have become useless were other things are not even brought up.

Julie Lythcott-Haims, Academic & Bestselling Author of “How to Raise an Adult”

Julie said at the end of her speech, “My kids are not bonsai trees they are wild flowers of an unknown species.” We are giving our children a checklist childhood we are expecting our kids to perform at a perfect level that we never even held ourselves too. These kids need to learn right and wrong by experience. Our kids need to experience failure and how to rise above it. Julie says, “By the end of high school these kids are questioning the worth of their life and their future.” We need to stop babying our kids. They need to be able to grow their own self-efficiency. Kids have too much entitlement; they need to earn more of what is just given to them. Kids need to experience life for themselves!

Julie told us, “A study was conducted and all the top professionals did chores as a kid.” I did chores and I made it to Design Director and now I am headed toward Dream Director as a motivational speaker. Academically kids need to know they matter to us, that they are not just another test grade statistic. All success did not come from going to big name schools, and world renowned colleges. Some success did not come from college at all. I choose to only get my 2 associates degrees. With that and a well brought up life of challenges and discovering who I am, I am succeeding everywhere in my life. I don’t owe everything I have accomplished in my life to some big name school. I owe it to my parents, Scouts, Failure, and outright earning everything I have in life from hard work.

Daniella Carter, Founder of Gender Global

As a youth Daniella was homeless, she was homeless because she was rejected by her own parents for being transgender. The LGBTQIA individuals have enough problems in the school and social setting as it is. For Daniella to rise about her homelessness and the critiques of the world around her is a huge challenge. Today she teaches children to overcome their adversities and embrace who they are with confidence. She was emotional giving her life story speech but I think she left no eye dry in the theater either. Bullying is such a problem in our world today. Where are kids learning that it is alright to tease and make fun of people who are different? The crazy thing is every single one of us is different! Even as an adult we make fun of and talk down things and people just because we don’t understand them. At the end she says “Join the revolution of loving someone different.” That is vague and precise all in one statement.

Sean McComb, National Teacher of the Year in 2014.

He started a program called AVID to help the students stretch themselves to succeed. He is also the youngest teacher to ever receive this award. He tells us that even thru all the change in regulations and paperwork and poor treatment of our future it still stands that teachers are the heart of hope for the future of our students. Our biggest enemy is the unknown future ahead, will it get worse or will it get better? “We need to make school the best 7 hours of our students day,” says Sean. We, above all else, cannot let these doors of opportunity close on any child.

There is a future for me here. The world of motivators is calling out to me and I get closer and closer to hear exactly what they are saying every day. I have been around the block many times. I have been hurt and I have been happy. My life has always been an adventure. This blog is certainly where I started but It will never end till I stop breathing. I am going to make a difference in this world, you can wait and see or you can join me along the way. I am too strong for anyone to break down my cause and truthfully only care for those that support, encourage or just plain accept what I am doing here. Those that follow me are very helpful, those that share their positive opinions I am thankful for, and those that want to help me I am extremely grateful for. You are all amazing and I am grateful for any part you take in this journey. I know I cannot make this world a more positive place on my own but I guarantee WE can do it together.