I got my first pair of glasses in eighth grade. “Oh great,” I remember thinking, “Now I’m going to be one of those people.” I figured the least I could do was select a style that would be cool. For some reason, I thought big, brown frames with lenses the size of dinnerplates fit the bill. Since then, I’ve gone through quite a few frames, including the horrible clear plastic cheapos that were the best I could find in an emergency late-night mall trip. I busted lots of frames early on. At the time, I blamed my aggressive, living- on-the-edge lifestyle, but it probably had more to do with the awkwardness of puberty (good times). In a cruel twist of fate, the nasty clear plastic ones lasted the longest (good riddance, sophomore year). I even went through a contact lens phase before ultimately deciding that glasses were easier and I got comfortable with the idea of being “one of those people.” One thing that hasn’t changed is that I’m still near-sighted. …
Escape Adulthood Summit 2019 Re-Cap
The 2019 Escape Adulthood Summit – our seventh! – was another sold-out affair. More than seventy people, from 14 different states and Canadian provinces gathered in the Middle of Nowhere, Wisconsin, for a chance to take a break from the daily grind, connect with other Adultitis Fighters, and take their lives to a new level. This year's theme was inspired by the Henry David Thoreau quote, "All good things are wild and free." That being said, we wanted to set the tone in a wild and memorable way. As guests arrived with their Golden Tickets, they were greeted by snakes, alligators, lizards, and turtles presented by the Madison Herpetological Society. While some folks admired them from a distance, others were eager to get up close and personal with the unconventional ambassadors.A wild start indeed. Once the doors opened, we greeted each guest one by one, excited to share with them all that the team had spent many months …
Revealing the Winner of the “A Chance of Awesome” Framed Canvas!
Everyone who pre-ordered my book, “A Chance of Awesome: How Changing the Way You See Changes Everything” was entered to win this stunning framed canvas reproduction of the cover painting. So, who won? Tune in and find out! Learn more about the book at https://aChanceOfAwesome.com …
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What’s Your Must Be Nice?
It’s a natural human tendency to compare ourselves to others, especially to people who are in the same field we’re in. Comparison isn’t necessarily a bad thing if it leads us to discover areas where we can improve. But when it shifts into envy or jealousy, that’s a problem. I often attend the annual convention for the National Speakers Association. I always have to brace myself for the “must be nice” game. In the speaker world, it goes like this: Of course he gets booked all the time, he’s a former NBA player. Must be nice. She’s got so many connections from working all those years in the corporate world. Must be nice. I wish I could juggle fire and do backflips like that. Must be nice. I spend so much time noticing all the things I’m not that I miss the things I am. One theme that drove itself home for me during a convention years ago was my talent as an artist. It’s something I’m good at, and it’s a skill that very few speakers possess. And yet …
Keep Casting
You can spend all day fishing and catch nothing: 2,375 casts; 2,375 failures. But. The next cast could be the one that changes everything. Since I started my company in 1999, I’ve encountered many dead ends. We’ve had a lot of projects we were excited about, initiatives we were certain would deliver the breakthrough beyond our wildest dreams, that failed—hard. We’ve lost money, time, and pride. Sometimes, it’s taken a long time to recover. After you’ve been hit by a car so many times, you start to wonder if maybe you should stop standing in the middle of the highway. But one thing that kept me going was a quote by Thomas Edison, who said, “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” I guess I was more afraid of being a failure than I was of failing. And there’s a difference. Dead ends happen. But hitting one doesn’t necessarily mean you’re dead or at the …
How to Reawaken Your Wild Heart
In this light-hearted and vulnerable talk delivered at the 2019 Escape Adulthood Summit, Kim shares her experience with the "joyful haul" of motherhood. She recounts her hunt for wonder, what she found, and how you too can rediscover your wild heart in order to bring more peace, fullness and joy into your life. After you watch the talk, I'd love to hear your biggest takeaway. Feel free to share it in the comments! …
Messes Make the Best Memories
"The Peach." 12"x12" oil on canvas. Buy this print. Eating a peach, in season, perfectly ripe, is pure magic. But also messy. Oh, sure, you can eat peaches before they’re ripe and they might drip less, but they’re not nearly as good. The best peaches are always messy. Now I’ll admit it: I prefer tidy. I like the structure of a good plan. I feel good when the dishes are done and the counter is cleared. I’m easily disturbed when piles stay piles for too long. Is that an Adultitis-fueled trait? Perhaps. But I do find that I am more present, relaxed, and creative when clutter and chaos are minimized. In general, I don’t think it’s a terrible trait to have. And I don’t believe that an Adultitis-free life is one that disregards any sense of order. But I still remember the day we let our oldest daughter take control of her own ice cream cone for the first time. It was a beautiful Madison summer afternoonand we were hanging out at the Memorial Union, overlooking picturesque …
Bronwyn Roberts, July 2019 Adultitis Fighter of the Month
An Adultitis Fighter is someone who rallies against rules that don't exist and engages in ruthless, senseless acts of silliness that undermine Adultitis and its unadventurous version of adulthood. Once a month, we shine a light upon the most remarkable among us, holding them up as a dazzling example of what we should strive for in this epic battle against a formidable enemy. Jason had the opportunity to meet Bronwyn Roberts a few years ago at a conference for the Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor. Bron had traveled VERY far from home to be a part of the event (Victoria, Australia!). One quick word to summarize Bron is…YES. She is living life so eagerly that the yes’ just make sense. Here’s a quick example she shared recently in the Escape Adulthood League: While attending a festival, she decided she would join the parade and ended up high-fiving over 4,000 people, as a simple way to connect with the people there. Initially, she only intended on high-fiving a few but …
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The Simplest Way to Turn Trash Into Treasure
Eating lobster used to be a punishment reserved for prisoners.I was reminded of this during a recent trip to New England. I had a speaking engagement in Connecticut, and took my oldest daughter with me. I had three different lobster dishes on the trip (in between samplings of clam chowd-ah).The fact that the inclusion of lobster makes any dish more expensive is quite a turn of events from its humble beginnings. A few hundred years ago, lobster was plentiful, washing up on shore by the hundreds. The so-called “cockroach of the sea" was eaten only by the poor and prisoners, who considered it cruel and unusual punishment. It was commonly used as livestock feed and fertilizer. Said essayist John J. Rowan in 1876, “Lobster shells about a house are looked upon as signs of poverty and degradation.”But in the late 19th century, canning became a viable way to get food rations to soldiers in the Civil War. Enterprising railway companies rebranded the lobster as an exotic dish to travelers in …
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You Can Turn Anything into a Drug
I used to be so smug about not being a meth head.Kim and I have been watching the series Breaking Bad, about a mild-mannered high school science teacher with a cancer diagnosis who gradually descends into a life of crime as a ruthless player in the local methamphetamine drug trade. Good times.The psychology behind the choices that the characters make and consequences that come from them are fascinating, not to mention the look into the dark underbelly of the drug economy. During scenes that show people in the deepest throes of addiction, I’ve noticed myself judging the junkies.How stupid could a person be? What did they think would happen? What a loser...But I've come to consider that perhaps we are all addicted to something.Drugs and alcohol are the most obvious, along with porn, gambling, food, and tobacco. But we can also be addicted to attention, validation, drama, status, and even busyness.For example, I often find myself caught keeping up on the news. I browse my go-to sites and …