Last Wednesday, I hosted a sold-out speaking workshop in Cusco for my fellow Remotes.  My hotel had a sweet space called the ‘Sun Room’ which felt perfectly Zen for practicing public speaking.  

In honor of my friend and mentor: Cole GP who passed suddenly, the theme for the evening centered around Improv.  We had an interactive discussion on the difference between acting vs public speaking, and improv vs preparation.  

And, we played one of Cole’s favorite games, ‘Best/Worst’, in which the speaker must argue both sides of an impromptu topic on the front and back end of 1 minute.  Best/Worst is a challenging game, but always yields ridiculous results and lots of laughs!!!  

One thing I love is seeing people come out of their shell and shine like a superstar.  Some people claim to be super shy, but when they get on stage, they turn into a rock star!  That was the case with all 4 stellar storytellers!  

Natalie shared a hilarious tale entitled “One Grey Day”, about a first date that ended up with a smoking car and 3 fire trucks on the side of the road.  

Abe recalled a spring break story about almost inadvertently getting arrested for indecent exposure.  

Kelly shared the tale of both earning and expunging her criminal record for illegally cutting down a Christmas tree.  

And, finally, Jess had us in stitches as she told “A Story About Her Butt” and the training and preparation she took to trek on the Inca Trail.

All 4 storytellers were in the zone in the Zen Sun Room.  I’m very proud of everyone who came out to the event, and I hope they all found value in it.  I know I did. 

Special thanks to Miranda for being our event photographer!