The Art of Vision

Hello out there. Sorry it’s been so long since I last blogged. I promised myself I’d write two of these suckers a week, and here it is… a full month since my last post.

I’ve been really busy. Well, no busier than usual, but my how time flies when you’re having fun. I’ve been doing a tiny bit of freelance work, helping my acupuncturist get ready for her open house. (Which, by the way was a huge success!) And I’ve also been going through a pretty drastic life change.

I’ll get to that in a different blog. Maybe.

But where I’d like to start today is what propelled me back into the blogosphere.

This week is the Tennessee Association of Realtors’ annual convention, held right here in lovely Chattanooga. (Or Chattavegas, as the t-shirts they’re selling call it. I personally think that makes us sound like we’re a city full of 12 year olds. But I digress…)

The week’s festivities were kicked off with a keynote speech by international speaker Erik Wahl. His presentation – The Art of Vision – began at 9:30 in the morning. Approximately 600 people (that’s my approximation, so it was probably more like 200 or 1,000) gathered in a huge auditorium and were blown away within the first 10 minutes.

He said he wanted to begin with something just a “little bit different.” The lights dimmed. U2’s “Beautiful Day” blared over the speakers. He began dancing in front of a black canvas, flicking droplets of paint and smearing yellows and reds with a paintbrush.

The guys beside me made jokes about his apparent sexuality. And then this happened.





As soon as the crowd realized what he had created, it erupted into applause. It was spectacular.

Erik Wahl travels the country, motivating people to tap into their creative right brains more often. He says that business, no matter how mundane, can be enhanced if we only allow ourselves to think about things differently.

He spoke about past leaders, whose willingness to think against the grain marked great changes in history.




He spoke about his children, who he encourages not to be perfect, but to be extraordinary.

I left that auditorium feeling embarrassed for many reasons. I am one of the few people I know who is making a career out of what I love. I get paid to write about things I enjoy – events I attend and restaurants I patronize – and I have a ton of spare time to write about everything I love. And although I have no good excuse to avoid my own creative urges, I have allowed myself two or more hours of TV a night and no time for writing.

That’s just unacceptable.

Erik Wahl said some of the most influential people in the world were those who allowed themselves to be different. They allowed themselves to think in ways that weren’t popular, or even accepted. Then he painted this, upside down.




I was so inspired by his speech that I am vowing to myself – right now, in front of you and God and everybody – that I will dedicate more of my time to giving a voice to my inner self. Otherwise, how could I possibly inspire those around me?

I think it is my job, as a writer, to share my thoughts with anyone who will read them. I apologize to myself for keeping them inside, and I hope you will come back and read more in the future.

Peace and love.

(check out Erik Wahl’s Web site at www.theartofvision.com)