This Saturday, Danger Lou has a very special mission on her hands. The Robot of Mediocrity thinks that creativity is unnecessary, and Danger Lou is determined to prove him wrong. Here’s a short missive from Danger Lou, explaining why she is participating…

Why is creativity important?

I have a background in psychology and research. For a long time, going through school and college, I was told that I was “too smart for art.” However, the onset of a long-term health condition stopped me in my academic tracks and I realised that I was on a path I didn’t want to be on. I wanted to do something that was much more directly connected with people in the real world and the changes they wanted to make, something that used both my smarts and my arts. In fact, something that destroyed that whole notion of “smarts” vs. “arts” – why do we see those two things as binary?

Yes, I draw and doodle… however I think that creativity is much more than that. I also kick ass in excel, making spreadsheets that count on their own and show data in new and interesting ways – and I think that is just as creative as doing a quick doodle. I know people who excel in talking about emotions and making them more concrete and easy to understand. I know people who tell great stories. And I know people who play clever games with their kids to encourage them to help with household chores. These are all creative acts.

The Robot of Mediocrity says that you’re only being creative if you have a paintbrush in your hand, some glue and scissors nearby, or a stack of sticky notes at the ready. The Robot also says that creativity is unnecessary – that it’s a waste of time, pointless. Danger Lou totally refutes that. Creativity is a crucial part of every day life – it’s at the heart of decisions we make every day that lead to feeling healthier, happier, and more connected. I wish more people could see how creativity turns up in their lives on a regular basis and celebrated it. Coming up with a tasty dinner with those three random ingredients in the fridge… working out why the windscreen washer is squirting the inside of the back window of the car instead of the outside… thinking of a way to help a friend in need. All products of creative thinking!

If you join me in my altercation with the Robot of Mediocrity, you will learn to identify and name the things that hold you back on a daily basis. You’ll understand how those things operate, and you’ll also identify some ways to overcome them. We can’t let that pesky robot win, can we? Thought not. So if you can, please join us at CreativeConf, this Saturday. See you there!

Check out CreativeConf and apply the special code SpeakersFriend to get a 15% discount.

November’s Misfit Local

Carrie started Onefish Twofish, a B2B marketing company, when she was 25 years old. Three years later she had 13 employees and the company was turning over a million dollars. At the same time she was burning rubber as an elite cyclist. This might sound like a story of success; it wasn’t for Carrie. It was a story of striving, incredibly long working hours, sadness, and disconnection. She has told this story and her journey back to health and happiness for herself and her company, now 10 years old, in her TEDx talk.

However, Carrie is more than this one story. Yes, she has set up a business accelerator programme that is based on a new operating system for work, and is now on its second generation for entrepreneurs, as well as running a corporate version aimed at encouraging entrepreneurial thinking within employees. She is also looking at a new operating system for life, having cut sugar out of her diet. She loves snapchat, singing and surprises. And if there’s one surprise about Carrie, it’s her unfailing belief that our new operating system encompasses life, work, business and everything in between… and it’s surprisingly simple.

September’s Misfit Local

Sarah and Woody started The Utopian World of Sandwiches back in 2011. The Utopian World of Sandwiches is a games company with a difference: making games with a purpose that have a meaningful impact on their players. Their first game, Chompy Chomp Chomp, was created to bring people together in the same room. They work from a shed in their garden in Cambridge, balancing day jobs, friends, family and each other – and their utopian dream.

We’ll be talking about how meetings in the pub are a starting point for some of the best ideas, how they manage to play to each others’ strengths, and how Sarah manages to kick-ass in her day job whilst also leading their games revolution.

This is an incredibly personal thank you from me to all of the Misfits at Misfit Con 2014. I’m unlikely to win an Oscar so you can view this as my Kate Winslet moment.
If you’re going to read on, I encourage you to read all the way to the end. If this isn’t your thing, then feel free to look away now, although I would encourage you to stay and breathe through.

Asking for help was a strong theme this year from the speakers. And this year, I had to ask for a lot of help – because of my own health condition, and because of Tracy’s anxiety. Not only did you all respond, you also helped in a myriad of other ways without even having to be asked. That means everything.

So thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. It’s not possible for me to mention you all here, and there’s no way that I could possibly notice every way that you helped; that makes it even more special. For everything you did, big and small, own this gratitude. You are all awesome.

To Misfits. For caring more than any other human beings I have ever come across.

_ _ _

Tracy S – for surprising me. Every single day. And then some.

Louise B – for noticing, and knowing that the correct response was gin (maybe it’s always gin?). For running through O’Hare and alerting the gate we were on our way so we *just* made that flight home. While they said they didn’t hold the flight for us, I’m sure that they did, and your sprint made all the difference.

Gigi – also for noticing. And also for That Hug. Right when I needed it. In fact, there were at least two of those. And for making me go see 365, too, even though I was all over the place. It worked.

Jessie – for noticing. And then bringing a bagel, stat. And understanding.

Gigi and Jean – for being the best roomies. Ever.

Michael – for driving and wheelchair-sourcing and transporting. And for just getting it. And getting on with it. Such a beautiful kind heart.

Michael, Israel, Jesse – for top notch wheelchair driving, and stepping in at the drop of a hat.

Greg and family and friends – for making Dinner in the Woods supremely easy. The most beautiful of welcomes. And achieving what we have never been able to achieve. More on that separately.

Erik – for that speech, right before Lemonade Detroit, right from the heart.
And for not judging the slightly crazy lady who had to keep running off to do obscure “jobs.” And for being the greatest mo… You know the rest.

Jackie, Ria, Maisie – for sheer persistence, never giving up, and following your instincts. You played it exactly right.

Amy – for the joy, and that laugh. Own it.

Jenni and Terry – just because.

Nichole, Randi, Mark, Melissa – for handling all the random postcard requests – we got there in the end. Nichole – they made it! Thank you so much!

Deb C – for crying at the perfect moment, and giving me permission to cry, too. Which meant that I could tell Tracy just what I thought of everything she had achieved at that point. Awesome.

Jackie – for saying yes. And for painting. And painting, and painting.

Deb B – I can’t remember why. But it was definitely in Atomic Coffee, it was awesome, and it was at exactly the right time.

Katrina – for getting right on The Internets, stat.

Genie – for the space to talk about my dad. For being real.

The lady from Misfit on the plane from Fargo who told me you “gave us” your flight as you’d already missed yours – you probably still don’t know that we made it. Or that I don’t know your name.

Sukhneet and Sergio – for not being afraid to say ‘Hi’ right at the end. Some of my closest misfits are the ones I met right at the end last year. It’s never too late.

Brett and Amber – for pulling me out of my reverie. And Brett, for the honesty. Always.

Jeremy and Weston – for the randomness.

Sally – for getting it. Let’s talk more.

Nathalie – for being you.

Aaron – for the wine. And dinner. And the cute photos of your kids. It is truly an awesome thing to be your honorary sister.

Israel – for doing what you do better than anyone. And for the honesty.

Laura – for the space. And the hot chocolate.

Nelson – for the fun. So much fun. And the tea. And breakfast. And That Photo.

Photo @dewittn. Lou really loves this vending machine.

And for talking me down from the ledge. Which meant that this post happened. And for being the most generous person I have ever met. Ever.

Tracy B – for my lunch, which was perfect.

Jonathan – for That Guided Meditation. I have never felt so present before. It has never stayed with me for as long.

Jason and C.C. – for the honesty. And C.C., for that scream.

Clay – for giving us precious time at the last moment, and getting us to up our game.

Claudia – for That Opening Performance. Bring it.

The people I didn’t meet – for giving me space. It would have been too much to meet everyone and you knew that. And don’t let that stop you reaching out now, ok? You’ll know when.

AJ and Melissa – for believing. I trusted the process, trusted Misfit, trusted you. Thank you for trusting me, too.

All of you who shared the crowd-funding link, or donated, or both – thank you thank you thank you. Some of your dads donated. That’s so Misfit.

To Misfits. Who do more, feel more, care more. I love you all the more.

_ _ _

Postscript:

If you’re reading this and you weren’t at Misfit, this may make very little sense to you. Maybe it makes little sense to you, even if you were there, and you read someone else’s thank you. In a way, that’s the point; these are personal thank you’s, tied to very personal acts of kindness. My hope is that you ask for personal kindness in your own life, notice it, and acknowledge it. The reward is greater than the risk.

 Interviewing AJ Leon was a very special event for me. My name is Martyn Sibley and alongside Lou Shackleton from the YouCan Hub, we organised and delivered a special Cambridge night at Hot Numbers recently. Here’s my take on the night.

My introduction for anyone not familiar with my blog or Disability Horizons magazine is this – I’m a dude in a wheelchair, who travels the world, runs e-projects on disability matters and just loves life.

Enough of my story though. None of my blogging, tweeting and world changing exploits would be possible without AJ, his awesome wife Melissa and his groundbreaking company Misfit-Inc. Back in July 2009 I approached AJ at the Institute of Fundraising convention following a breathtaking presentation. I shared a vision of empowering disabled people, and he saw potential. After a Starbucks meet up; we chatted, dreamed, agreed to collaborate and stated to never give up!

AJ and his crew run a digital agency, carry out social humanitarian work, encourage artistic creativity and travel the world beyond belief. They’re never in their New York home! 

Having launched his book: the event, a Cambridge Misfits meet up if you like, brought together like-minded people and gave me a personal chance to show my gratitude of AJ and also find out some new things too.

The former part was easy. Since the Misfits supported me creatively, strategically and instilled confidence we have chatted, laughed and got drunk numerous times. Our friendship runs deep and dreams remain.

The latter was an interesting one. Lou and I had base questions. However the best of interviews and questions tend to be off the cuff. I enjoyed asking him if everyone should be Misfits, to which he replied “yes but not everyone will be”. I also loved his recounting of how we must live this one life the best way because even if you believe in reincarnation, we only get one chance. In acknowledgement of his depth but also the seriousness in the room I lightened the atmosphere with the random statement “I agree, it’s not possible to tweet when you’re a snail”. A testament to our philosophy and humour.

I felt as though the audience were stunned as to what AJ stood for, what he has achieved and how his character embraced everyone. More so, the questions showed intrigue, an appetite for more Misfit gold dust and a general demand for more of this vibe of an evening.

Working with Lou was a pleasure. She’s a true Misfit too. I hope we can recapture such an evening again in the future. Whilst AJ returns to his life journey I know he sparked people the way he did with my dream in 2009. On leaving Hot Numbers, the buzz in the room was incredible.

For me, the key take-aways were: dream big, never give up, love life!

Want to see more about the night? Check out the storify here.

Last December, my husband signed me up for the gym. I didn’t manage to make it there at all that month and I finally had my induction in January. I wasn’t exactly over the moon with the whole gym idea. For a long time I’d been convinced that I’d reached the fitness limits of my health condition; I’d had lots of tweaks of medication over the years and was told, “Some people just feel rubbish on the medication you’re taking, because it’s not the same as your body making it yourself.” I’ve been running for a few years now, which has helped, but I was stuck at running around 2km.

I surprised myself quite quickly at the gym and despite being unable to lift a cup of tea to my lips the day after my first strength session, there were almost immediate gains in my energy levels. And so, in September, I set myself a challenge – an Impossible challenge. To make the shift from running 2.5km on a regular basis to trying my first 5km run.

I started my training schedule, with a date firmly in the diary at the end of October. It was all going so well. I rocketed through the training and my energy levels rocketed too. At the beginning of October, I wrote in my journal…

“Up to last week I still felt unsure about running 5km. It seemed a big jump from running 2.5km, 3km. Can I really do this? From my running rate it seems that it’s going to take me 40-45 minutes. Am I fit enough? Yesterday on the treadmill, I managed 3.9km and it started to feel real. But then, today, I totally surprised myself. I walked for 5 minutes, ran for 25 minutes, walked for 5 minutes… and at the end the treadmill dashboard said it loud and proud – I did 5k! This is it! I feel certain now, 100% certain that I will finish the run and still be standing. I might even enjoy it! I might even do it in a good time!”

It was amazing! I felt invincible! But since then, this challenge has been more about patience, flexibility, and healing. First, I started getting a niggle in my heel. I listened to it, and eased off on the training. I reduced the amount I was cycling. Then I picked up a throat infection, just three days before my run date. It all happened very quickly and before I knew it I had sky high fever and difficulty swallowing. The pharmacist dispatched me to a walk-in clinic and the duty doctor made a “Ugh” sound with accompanying facial expression when he looked at my tonsils – antibiotics for me, and no chance of a run. I shifted the date a few weeks down the line, needing to have total rest for a week. Then after my rest, feeling much better, I started back into my training and my heel flared up in a major way. I took it really easy with my training and got some tips via the Internets from my cousin Aimee over at Revitalise Fitness; these really helped and it stopped getting worse, but it still didn’t get better.

It was time to call in the big guns, and get some in-person physio. I checked in with Tom at Core Fitness, and it turned out to be a classic beginner runner’s injury, my Achilles. There was nothing serious, just some early warning signs. The tips from my cousin were perfect, I just needed a couple of extra exercises. It was time to do some learning – learning how to better prepare my body for running, and help it to restore afterwards. And absolutely no 5k until I could consistently run 3k without pain the next day.

My date got shifted again. Serious frustration alert! Am I ever going to be able to do this run? I had two potential November dates in my mind, and they both had to get swept aside again. I did a fair amount of huffing and puffing and whingeing – mostly to my husband, Mel and Ruth at You Can, and my fellow Impossibles in our facebook group. They encouraged me to hang in there. I responded well to the exercises I was given, and in two weeks I was back to running with no pain. Result! Excitement, but still taking it easy and some words of caution from the physio – you’re lucky, you caught it early, you probably feel like it’s all back to normal but it’s going to take a while to settle down so don’t do anything to shock it. So I’m staying away from my bike until after my run, because cycling seems to make it worse, and I’m being super-good about my warm ups and cool downs, and I’ve been slowly increasing the distance with a mix of walk-running.

And now, here I am. The day before D-Day. Or is that 5K-Day? I’m actually going to do it. And I haven’t run or walk-run 5k since that amazing day on the treadmill back in October. James Altucher writes that it takes practice to be the person who is a source of compassion and honesty. This journey towards my Impossible could have been about pushing through, just powering on to stick to my committed date. But defeating my nemesis, the Robot of Mediocrity, isn’t always about fighting. I’ve learned much more by doing things this way – being honest with myself, showing myself compassion, letting myself heal and learning new ways to be compassionate to myself – even in the way that I prepare for and wind down from a run. I’m also in awe of the compassion and generosity of my friends, family, and supporters who have continued to back me with messages and donations – as for an extra level of accountability, I decided to make my challenge a sponsored event to raise funds for our work.

I hope that I show myself this same level of compassion tomorrow, whatever my time. For now, the predominant feeling is: Eek!

Wish me luck.

_ _ _

You can read James Altucher on patience here. And yes – maybe, just maybe, I’m on my way to becoming a Jedi Knight. And that beats running a 5k, any day!

And of course there’s still time to make a donation, if you’d like 🙂 Head on over to my sponsorship page here and hit the big orange “Donate now” button, and any donation up to £10 will be matched by our local community foundation, so you can double your money. Serious feel good factor! With match funding and gift aid I’ve already raised over £1000. So thank you to you fabulous donors!

If you want to take on your own challenge soon and you want some friendly support, check out the Impossibles. Your challenge doesn’t have to be sponsored and you can have a whole lot of fun along the way!

Last December, my husband signed me up for the gym. I didn’t manage to make it there at all that month and I finally had my induction in January. I wasn’t exactly over the moon with the whole gym idea. For a long time I’d been convinced that I’d reached the fitness limits of my health condition; I’d had lots of tweaks of medication over the years and was told, “Some people just feel rubbish on the medication you’re taking, because it’s not the same as your body making it yourself.” I’ve been running for a few years now, which has helped, but I was stuck at running around 2km.

I surprised myself quite quickly at the gym and despite being unable to lift a cup of tea to my lips the day after my first strength session, there were almost immediate gains in my energy levels. And so, in September, I set myself a challenge – an Impossible challenge. To make the shift from running 2.5km on a regular basis to trying my first 5km run.

I started my training schedule, with a date firmly in the diary at the end of October. It was all going so well. I rocketed through the training and my energy levels rocketed too. At the beginning of October, I wrote in my journal…

“Up to last week I still felt unsure about running 5km. It seemed a big jump from running 2.5km, 3km. Can I really do this? From my running rate it seems that it’s going to take me 40-45 minutes. Am I fit enough? Yesterday on the treadmill, I managed 3.9km and it started to feel real. But then, today, I totally surprised myself. I walked for 5 minutes, ran for 25 minutes, walked for 5 minutes… and at the end the treadmill dashboard said it loud and proud – I did 5k! This is it! I feel certain now, 100% certain that I will finish the run and still be standing. I might even enjoy it! I might even do it in a good time!”

It was amazing! I felt invincible! But since then, this challenge has been more about patience, flexibility, and healing. First, I started getting a niggle in my heel. I listened to it, and eased off on the training. I reduced the amount I was cycling. Then I picked up a throat infection, just three days before my run date. It all happened very quickly and before I knew it I had sky high fever and difficulty swallowing. The pharmacist dispatched me to a walk-in clinic and the duty doctor made a “Ugh” sound with accompanying facial expression when he looked at my tonsils – antibiotics for me, and no chance of a run. I shifted the date a few weeks down the line, needing to have total rest for a week. Then after my rest, feeling much better, I started back into my training and my heel flared up in a major way. I took it really easy with my training and got some tips via the Internets from my cousin Aimee over at Revitalise Fitness; these really helped and it stopped getting worse, but it still didn’t get better.

It was time to call in the big guns, and get some in-person physio. I checked in with Tom at Core Fitness, and it turned out to be a classic beginner runner’s injury, my Achilles. There was nothing serious, just some early warning signs. The tips from my cousin were perfect, I just needed a couple of extra exercises. It was time to do some learning – learning how to better prepare my body for running, and help it to restore afterwards. And absolutely no 5k until I could consistently run 3k without pain the next day.

My date got shifted again. Serious frustration alert! Am I ever going to be able to do this run? I had two potential November dates in my mind, and they both had to get swept aside again. I did a fair amount of huffing and puffing and whingeing – mostly to my husband, Mel and Ruth at You Can, and my fellow Impossibles in our facebook group. They encouraged me to hang in there. I responded well to the exercises I was given, and in two weeks I was back to running with no pain. Result! Excitement, but still taking it easy and some words of caution from the physio – you’re lucky, you caught it early, you probably feel like it’s all back to normal but it’s going to take a while to settle down so don’t do anything to shock it. So I’m staying away from my bike until after my run, because cycling seems to make it worse, and I’m being super-good about my warm ups and cool downs, and I’ve been slowly increasing the distance with a mix of walk-running.

And now, here I am. The day before D-Day. Or is that 5K-Day? I’m actually going to do it. And I haven’t run or walk-run 5k since that amazing day on the treadmill back in October. James Altucher writes that it takes practice to be the person who is a source of compassion and honesty. This journey towards my Impossible could have been about pushing through, just powering on to stick to my committed date. But defeating my nemesis, the Robot of Mediocrity, isn’t always about fighting. I’ve learned much more by doing things this way – being honest with myself, showing myself compassion, letting myself heal and learning new ways to be compassionate to myself – even in the way that I prepare for and wind down from a run. I’m also in awe of the compassion and generosity of my friends, family, and supporters who have continued to back me with messages and donations – as for an extra level of accountability, I decided to make my challenge a sponsored event to raise funds for our work.

I hope that I show myself this same level of compassion tomorrow, whatever my time. For now, the predominant feeling is: Eek!

Wish me luck.

_ _ _

You can read James Altucher on patience here. And yes – maybe, just maybe, I’m on my way to becoming a Jedi Knight. And that beats running a 5k, any day!

And of course there’s still time to make a donation, if you’d like 🙂 Head on over to my sponsorship page here and hit the big orange “Donate now” button, and any donation up to £10 will be matched by our local community foundation, so you can double your money. Serious feel good factor! With match funding and gift aid I’ve already raised over £1000. So thank you to you fabulous donors!

If you want to take on your own challenge soon and you want some friendly support, check out the Impossibles. Your challenge doesn’t have to be sponsored and you can have a whole lot of fun along the way!

The Life and Times of a Remarkable Misfit is coming to Cambridge!

Not only that, but Princess of Organising Chaos over at Misfit Inc, Jessie White, has put together this awesome poster.

[gview file=”http://theyoucanhub.org.uk/files/2013/11/Misfit-Gig-Cambridge-Poster.pdf” height=”1300px” save=”0″]

Misfit friends, new or long-standing, are invited to join us – if you would like more information and a free ticket head over to our booking page!

I’m Ruth, one of The Impossibles, and I have set myself a challenge of riding my old bike 50 miles!

The exclamation mark indicates to me (and hopefully to you) that, for me, this is a long, long way!! It is way out of my ‘comfort zone’. I was away recently and got chatting to a guy who had cycled from London to Moscow!!! My jaw dropped…I was staggered…so many miles…I began to question if what I was doing was ‘enough’….then on reflection I realised that actually my journey is the equivalent of his Moscow!!!

The journey is such that it is a challenge…I’m the one who has set it…and I know that it is going to be an achievement. I think too often we question if we can do something new because it is too big to imagine doing..we need to think ‘steps’ ( or pedals?!) and this is the way we break through that ‘I can’t do that barrier’.

Why am I doing this you may ask…I want to make my pulse race! (in the nicest possible way!!)

So what has the You Can Hub done for me? I have been working with them for about two years. The following will help to put you in the picture I think about the ‘why’.

I’ve always been a team player….never a leader…but since working with the You Can Hub I’ve recognised that I can do it! I can do both!The You Can Hub has helped me to feel that my decisions…my choices are valid…that they have come from my experiences which I now realise is actually extensive! I now feel as if people want to know what I think…they want to know how I work…I seem to be a person who has something to say and others want to know about it! The You Can Hub has done that!

It has felt a two way process… I’m giving as well as receiving…I like that! I don’t feel as though I’m being mentored…it’s about natural positive support…enabling me to try stuff out…not to feel panic stricken if things don’t work out…reminding me that we often learn the most when we make mistakes…and that’s actually not only ok but bloody brilliant! New stuff happens!

There have been tears! But actually they’ve mostly been tears of laughter! There has been the odd occasion when I felt that its all too much…so I’ve cried…and I’ve discovered actually its not been about it all being ‘too much’ it’s actually been about change happening ….and I’ve ‘wobbled’ …(nothing wrong with worry wobbles I say)..so now I recognise that I feel more in control…less panicky…

Through The You Can Hub I have become project facilitator of a project called You Can Bike Too. I did that! The You Can Bike Too project has developed further than I would have thought possible…it’s continuing to develop… The You Can Hub has helped me to see the ‘bigger picture’. I am a very ‘reactive’ person who likes to deal with what’s in front of me…sort it! I’m now beginning to relax re the bigger picture…!

So how does it work? Offers of help….doing the stuff that I struggle with…whilst encouraging me to ‘have a go’ …praising my efforts…”your passion shines through!” Those kind of words(whilst I struggle to fill in a funding form!) Help to say that I don’t know how to…even the little things… I feel that it’s ok (must be annoying!) to say where’s the ‘on’ button? ( if you know what I mean!)

So I’m doing my ‘Moscow’ cycle ride very soon…I’ve decided to be part of The You Can ‘The Impossibles.’ These people are people who cheer you on…help you to see that there is a community out there willing you on to do it! I love the fact that there is a Facebook group for people who choose their challenge and need support off each other…giving and receiving support from each other. People who are total strangers can come together in their Impossible Community.

My big ride is this Friday, weather permitting. I’ll let you know how I get on! Bring it on! For an extra level of accountability I’m doing this as a sponsored challenge, raising funds for the You Can Hub. Please feel free to make me accountable and make a donation! Click the link to read more about me and make a donation on my sponsorship page.

And feel free to get involved! Join the Impossibles!

I’m Ruth, one of The Impossibles, and I have set myself a challenge of riding my old bike 50 miles!

The exclamation mark indicates to me (and hopefully to you) that, for me, this is a long, long way!! It is way out of my ‘comfort zone’. I was away recently and got chatting to a guy who had cycled from London to Moscow!!! My jaw dropped…I was staggered…so many miles…I began to question if what I was doing was ‘enough’….then on reflection I realised that actually my journey is the equivalent of his Moscow!!!

The journey is such that it is a challenge…I’m the one who has set it…and I know that it is going to be an achievement. I think too often we question if we can do something new because it is too big to imagine doing..we need to think ‘steps’ ( or pedals?!) and this is the way we break through that ‘I can’t do that barrier’.

Why am I doing this you may ask…I want to make my pulse race! (in the nicest possible way!!)

So what has the You Can Hub done for me? I have been working with them for about two years. The following will help to put you in the picture I think about the ‘why’.

I’ve always been a team player….never a leader…but since working with the You Can Hub I’ve recognised that I can do it! I can do both!The You Can Hub has helped me to feel that my decisions…my choices are valid…that they have come from my experiences which I now realise is actually extensive! I now feel as if people want to know what I think…they want to know how I work…I seem to be a person who has something to say and others want to know about it! The You Can Hub has done that!

It has felt a two way process… I’m giving as well as receiving…I like that! I don’t feel as though I’m being mentored…it’s about natural positive support…enabling me to try stuff out…not to feel panic stricken if things don’t work out…reminding me that we often learn the most when we make mistakes…and that’s actually not only ok but bloody brilliant! New stuff happens!

There have been tears! But actually they’ve mostly been tears of laughter! There has been the odd occasion when I felt that its all too much…so I’ve cried…and I’ve discovered actually its not been about it all being ‘too much’ it’s actually been about change happening ….and I’ve ‘wobbled’ …(nothing wrong with worry wobbles I say)..so now I recognise that I feel more in control…less panicky…

Through The You Can Hub I have become project facilitator of a project called You Can Bike Too. I did that! The You Can Bike Too project has developed further than I would have thought possible…it’s continuing to develop… The You Can Hub has helped me to see the ‘bigger picture’. I am a very ‘reactive’ person who likes to deal with what’s in front of me…sort it! I’m now beginning to relax re the bigger picture…!

So how does it work? Offers of help….doing the stuff that I struggle with…whilst encouraging me to ‘have a go’ …praising my efforts…”your passion shines through!” Those kind of words(whilst I struggle to fill in a funding form!) Help to say that I don’t know how to…even the little things… I feel that it’s ok (must be annoying!) to say where’s the ‘on’ button? ( if you know what I mean!)

So I’m doing my ‘Moscow’ cycle ride very soon…I’ve decided to be part of The You Can ‘The Impossibles.’ These people are people who cheer you on…help you to see that there is a community out there willing you on to do it! I love the fact that there is a Facebook group for people who choose their challenge and need support off each other…giving and receiving support from each other. People who are total strangers can come together in their Impossible Community.

My big ride is this Friday, weather permitting. I’ll let you know how I get on! Bring it on! For an extra level of accountability I’m doing this as a sponsored challenge, raising funds for the You Can Hub. Please feel free to make me accountable and make a donation! Click the link to read more about me and make a donation on my sponsorship page.

And feel free to get involved! Join the Impossibles!