Do you have a girlfriend? Did your mom really slam a revolving door? Did you eat the shirako? How can I travel around the world? How can I teach English in Japan? Are you sure you weren’t dropped on your head or exposed to heightened levels of radiation as a child?

These are typical questions I get asked after presenting to audiences across the continent. There’s one question though, that I should take some time and answer.

How do I get started?

After a conference or assembly you leave pumped up and ready to take over the globe with your ideas. You get home and then sit down at your computer to get started with your plan for conquering the world.

Then you log on to Facebook.

Oh what’s this? Somebody answered a question about me on a quiz? Of course I want to check it out!

3 hours later, you try to remember why you got on the computer in the first place. You can’t remember. You shut it down, go watch The Hills then go to sleep.

—

There once was a group of turkeys. They spent their days doing turkey stuff. You know, hanging out, looking ugly, dreading Thanksgiving and NOT FLYING.

Then one day one of the turkeys announced that they were invited to a conference where there would meet a flying turkey. They were so stoked because this flying turkey was going to teach them how to fly! They couldn’t believe it. They got their stuff together and walked to the conference – hoping it would be the last time they would have to walk.

They stood around in a group waiting.

Then all of a sudden, one of the turkeys noticed something in the sky coming towards them. As it got closer, they saw it was a FLYING TURKEY!

He swooped down and landed in the middle of the group. It was incredible!

For the next few hours, the flying turkey taught them all about flying. He showed them how to use their wings and the wind to fly.

Later that day, he brought them to a cliff and one-by-one each turkey jumped off and flew. It was amazing. The turkeys couldn’t believe it. They soared through the air. They went above the clouds. They did flips and dive bombs, they did things they never could have imagined.

It was the greatest experience of their lives. They now knew how to fly. They were so excited. They would never have to touch the ground again! They felt amazing. This was so much better and quicker than walking. Why didn’t they learn this before?

The conference ended and they all landed back at the main conference area. The turkey’s waved good-bye as their flying instructor took off and flew to another turkey conference.

The group of turkeys then, picked up their stuff and walked home.

—-

At conferences and assemblies, you learn a ton of new stuff. You learn how to fly. The problem is that most people return back to their regular lives and forget all about the things they learned.

They walk home.

So how do you continue flying?

Decide to change. Decide to take steps to stay in touch with the people you met. Decide to use the ideas you learned to change your routines the world you live in.

If you learned something new about leadership, try using it in your next student council meeting. If you learned how to fly in your relationship, try it. If you learned something that inspired you to get involved, get involved. If you were inspired to build a school in Africa, don’t wait. Start the planning now.

You continue flying by deciding not to land.

Don’t be a turkey. Fly already.