Over the past few  generations, the art  of storytelling has slowly  dwindled although it still  remains one of the most  powerful tools to impact  and motivate a  community.  During the  last year and a half, I have  been traveling all the while telling my stories.  I have received great feedback and encouragement, but as excited as I get at hearing people  “living vicariously” through me, it often breaks my heart.  Sure I get excited about things and tell my stories with passion, but we all have passions and dreams screaming inside  of us and we can all move people with our  stories.  So, here’s my plan…

 At the beginning of June  2010, I decided to stop  focusing on myself and  my stories, and start  telling ones that belong to  other people.  For a full  year, I challenged myself  to write down someone  else’s story daily to ignite a passion within that individual, but also, hopefully inspire whoever decided to read.  
(Click here to read the initial blog that began this journey.)

 Think about it though; stories aren’t just fun ways to  pass  time with our kids.  They’re also the initial spark that ignites  us and gets us moving.  Think of it this way…
 I can tell you a fact like, there are 27 million slaves in our  world today.  That’s more than any other time in history and  we’re predominately unaware of it and the affect it has on  our daily lives (and shopping choices).  I could tell you that  the sex trade industry is one of the top grossing  industries worldwide and that there may be up to 800,000 

 men, women and children trafficked across international  borders annually.  I could even tell you that 70% of internet  sex shows (physically, psychologically, or emotionally forced  pornography) are filmed in the United States.  I could relay all  these facts to you and they may stir something in you to  fight for justice, but odds are nothing will happen until that  number becomes a face with a story.

                       Now, I need to tell you up front that not all of

 my blogs, or even a handful of them, are about social injustices or  stories that will make you cry.  On the contrary, a majority of them are  just about ordinary people doing extraordinary things (thus the  pictures of people I’ve met so far on this page).  All of them are just  conversations that I have with people where I find out what’s  important to them.  Some of these people are living their dreams,  others may never realize them, and still others just keep them on the  shelf.  Whatever the subject may be, I just hope they encourage you  to not just tell your story, but truly live it.  
 One thing I hear as I travel is that we’ve recently been perverting the  idea of storytelling and leaving it in the hands of a small group of  individuals.  We often define storytelling as a creative person  expressing something well enough to sell a product or idea instead of just listening to someone motivated enough to truly inspire a community.  We’re not all successful artists, but we all are creative and we all have a story to tell.

So, tell your story…
Go live the thing that excites you and has the potential to ignite the fire kindled inside…
Stop listening to the excuses of why it won’t
work and risk failure for something you truly love…
I get excited to tell my stories, but what truly excites me is hearing someone else tell theirs.  That’s what this blog is all about…