Lessons in Opening Up to Receive Love
agent 33 here with a cool story i would like to share.
earlier thisyear, i led a new york stiletto spyschool mission. the women were diverse in background, age, per
sonality and motivation for attending spy school. after learning how to shoot, slice and dice and bump and grind, we circled up and raised a glass to celebrate their accomplishment.
as we discussed the bigger lessons learned that day we went around the circle and each person shared a compliment she recently received. one of our agents (we will call her “s.d.”) looked at me and said, “i’ve been trying to come up with a compliment but i can’t think of one. i guess i don’t get a lot of compliments.” i thought to myself, “surely, she must get compliments and is just not recalling one at the moment,” and then said, “i will give you a compliment,” and proceeded to do so. without prompting, two of her stiletto sisters also offered up a compliment, which i thought was awesome!
flash forward a few weeks. we always ask women to share with us what they got most out of spy school and how they apply it in real life. some women share the most inspiring stories of how their training motivated them to make a decision or take an action, and the positive results that resulted from it. well, i recently got such an email from s.d.
i could paraphrase it, but i think her words are more powerful:
“after the ny exercise when we had to share a recent compliment that hadbeen given to us (and i couldn’t think of one to share), i went back to workand put up a huge sign announcing my upcoming birthday. i told everyoneif they had any reason at all to be thankful for my presence on earth, mybirthday was the day to tell me.
i was overwhelmed by gifts and sentiments of appreciation. my friendsplanned treats (lunch, dinner, presents, etc.) every day of my birthday week!
so i learned a good lesson that maybe i need to open up a little, and let people know that i need love.”
yes, indeed, we all need love. when i read s.d.’s email, i got a little choked up. i think we all put up barriers of different sizes for different reasons in different areas of our lives. when we are brave enough to break one down and let people in, we might just be surprised at how many show their love.
Big Spy/Little Spy
agent 33 here with a personal story i recently shared.
i recently got a call from this auntie (a woman named jill) who wanted to treat he
r three nephews and one niece to a private “spy training mission.” jill flew all the way from california for an action-packed day of surprise activities she had planned for these kids. i admire her for putting so much energy, creativity and love into keeping her niece and nephews on the right path.the specifics of jill’s mission are top secret. (one of the cool perks of having a custom mission!) but i will tell you that one of the training components was samurai sword fighting. it was a fabulous day, but the real “ah ha!” moment for me was during the wrap up.
at the end of each mission, we discuss what each student liked most about the training they experienced. we then show them how to take those lessons and translate them to every day life goals and obstacles.
as i looked at these young faces, two of whom were contemplating college, i realized that the words i chose would be important. i thought of what i would tell my own nieces and nephews: to be able to do what we truly love in life is a gift and not one that comes without dedication. you have the tremendous advantage of youth and the opportunity that comes with it. the world is completely open.
just like in sword fighting, you must study your craft. get an education as a solid foundation in life. real sword fights only last a few seconds so you can’t afford to hesitate for even a moment. choose your battles wisely but when you draw your sword, be prepared to use it. don’t let anything stand in your way. even if you fall short of your goal, you will never have regret over not having tried.
opportunities pass us by. you must seize them, commit to your actions, and have full follow through to achieve your goals.
as i watched their faces react to my words, i knew the life lessons were registering. and i received some inspiration of my own.
the next business day, i sat down with alana and we discussed what transpired at jill’s mission. i told her how amazing it felt to work with teens and young adults. we immediately started working on a big spy/little spy mission to give moms and aunties out there a unique activity that they can do with their daughters/nieces that is age appropriate and specifically geared toward this kind of motivation. so far, it’s been a big hit.
Even the Deadliest Secret Agents Have Heart
It’s that time of year when we get bombarded with cupids and hearts and Valentine’s Day advertising. What’s up with all the subliminal (and literal) messages telling us that we must have a valentine or we are somehow incomplete?
