Crayon Challenge

For those of you who know me you know I am a super huge fan of Crayons. Not because I am an awesome drawer or even a decent colorer for that matter, in fact so far from it. No I am a fan of crayons for the simple, yet amazing power, of what they offer to us as adults. Holding a brand new box of Crayons instantly takes you back to a time and a place in your life where life was simpler.

The bright rainbow of colors that are offered to you when you open a fresh box, is there anything more beautiful? The slenderness of the crayon as you hold it between your fingers. The gentle waxy aroma that fills your nose and lifts your spirits. The power of the crayon instantly draws you back to a time when you were just a kid, everyone was your friend and the world was full of possibilities. What's not to love about that?

When I do a training or present an 8 Minute Ripple I often have white paper and crayons near by and I ask my audience to do pre-engagement exercise by drawing. I usually give them a little guidance by suggesting they draw their favorite super hero or draw themselves accomplishing their biggest goal in the next five years. Almost everyone has the same reaction. "Crayons? You must be kidding!"

Nope.

When people allow themselves to get beyond their own egos and they start pulling crayons out of the box something magical happens. They change. They open their mind. They reconnect with their imagination. They start smiling. They start to remember what it was like the last time they held this little piece of possibility in their hand. They start drawing. They start having fun. They stop worrying about how it looks or what others might think; mainly because everyone else is now coloring too.

They let their guard down and become more open to the possibilities of what is about to be shared with them.

We usually end each training or Ripple with everyone sharing what they have drawn with the group. To say some real masterpieces are created would be an understatement. It becomes like show and tell for big people, but really it's the kid in each of them that really tends to shine through. People share and engage on a level that is so much more meaningful and the connections that are made are quite simply fantastic.

Want to have some fun? Take the crayon challenge. Right now school supplies are cheap! You can pick up a box of 64 Crayons at virtually any store for next to nothing. Go today and pick up some Crayons, pull out a sheet of white copy paper and let your imagine run free.

Need something to draw to get yourself started....

Draw yourself achieving your proudest accomplishment as a kid!

If you have the ability to scan it - email it to me. steve AT ripplecentral DOT com - I will post any and all on my Flickr account.

Have some fun and as always.....

Ripple On!!!

Create The Life You Want By Rippling - Lesson Six

This lesson is one of my favorite but seemingly the hardest for us as adults to adhere to.

Be a kid again and remember what it was like to have fun!

Now about now you might be saying to yourself "Okay Harper, the other rules make sense but what does being kid-like have to do with me creating the life that I want much less Rippling?"

It has everything to do with it!

Remember back to when you were a kid and you had your whole like in front of you? Remember thinking with wild amazement at what you might do in the future? For me I wanted to be a doctor. I wanted to be a professional soccer player. I wanted to travel to Mars. The whole world of possibilities were out there and the only limitation I had was my imagination.

Plus remember what it was like to meet new people when you were a kid? Everyone was a buddy or a pal. There were no judgments; those came later. There were no false pretenses; those too would come later. And anyone and everyone could be your friend.

I still remember way back in elementary school when I would proudly proclaim both "Tiger" the school janitor and Joe the neighbor were my best friends in the world. Know what....they probably were....along with virtually everyone else who came into my life. That was until the bully situation happened as discussed in lesson five.

Bottom line when we all lose something along the way. We grow filters and build walls and somehow lose our kid-like ability to have fun and enjoy all that comes into our world; people, places, experiences, etc.. But you haven't lost your kid-like abilities you just aren't skilled at using them anymore.

Try evoking lesson number six and see what kind of Ripples you can create. Try finding a fun way to reconnect with someone in your life. Send them one ticket to the circus and tell them you will meet them there. Seek out one of the old lunch boxes (you know the metal ones that were so cool back in the day) and fill it with a good book or movie and plenty of treats. Buy a cool kite and send it to your best friend and suggest a day of hooky.

Your only limitation is your imagination.

Want to call up your inner child and see what comes out? Try this exercise....

• Grab three sheets of blank copy paper.
• Grab a brand new box of crayons.
• At the top of one page write Family. On the top of the second page write Friends. On the top of the third page write Business.
• Then on one side make a list of all the fun, creative ways you could do some fun ripples for each of these target audiences. Have fun...brainstorm and let your creative juices really flow. Remember to look at creating these Ripples using your child eyes (they still work ya know!) and imagination (which is limitless....trust me on this).
• On the back side of each page draw (yes...draw) yourself doing one of the Ripples you wrote on the front and show the person's reaction who receives the Ripple.

Sound crazy? Well maybe it is but I guarantee you the Ripples you create are going to be fantastic and extremely memorable!!!

Ripple On and Have Some Fun!!!

Steve