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Art of Voice Recognition

This tends to happen to a lot of people at some point in their lives.

You go to record your voice for something, and you do amazingly well. You said what you wanted to say in an interesting and clear way. Then you listen to the playback and you realize how different you sound. This is a funny moment, but also brings-up a today's challenge.

The past several months I've had a lot on my mind, and getting things out of your head is surprisingly DIFFICULT unless you are in the habit of doing so. Additionally, having a record of where you've been and what you were thinking and feeling at a certain time and place can be as valuable as gold in years to come.

I'll save you my long history with methods of recording life events, and set the challenge right away.

The Challenge is to put on a recorder, whether it be video or voice, and leave it on for a while (aim for an hour if your hardware permits). If you are anything like me, you will want to fill the emptiness at the beginning. Try and not care if there is a long silence, but if you have things on your mind let them spill out your mouth!

When you're done recording, don't replay. If you can, wait a week (yes, all seven days) to replay it. I use an alarm on my computer/mail to remind me it's time to listen in.

A very interesting thing happens when you listen. See you next week!

Photo: Vicky's Nature

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There are a lot of motivational memes out there that talk about getting things done, and staying on task. Most of them (like this one) are about being in shape.

I think this one is great because it justifies getting out of your comfort zone. However, the amount of these out there brings this age old question to mind; why do we idealize physical fitness so much more than physical wellness, or mental wellness and agility. Becoming the person you want to be must not be considered as sexy as a six-pack.

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On Thinking Outside The Box

"OK, I know why thinking outside of the box is important. It give you new ideas of new things to do!"

Fantastic! Then why don't you do something about it??

Thinking and being are two different things (OBVIOUSLY), but we tend to believe that thinking outside of the box is good enough... It's not!

Anywhere you go, you're going to hear about how fear stops people from doing what they want. So how do we get the confidence to get past fear, to build strengths, find weaknesses?

Test what you can do in a safe environment to find what needs to be improved. Get support. Get a friend in on the action to keep you accountable, or help you if you don't feel comfortable.

Getting outside of your comfort zone is what gets you past roadblocks. Thinking outside of the box is what you do once you ARE outside.

Photo by Merlijn Hoek

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The Approach

Leaving the nest:

Your network is your safety net. Unfortunately today it's all about LinkedIn and Facebook, but networks DO exist outside of these realms. How many people do you know outside of these spaces? Hopefully more than a few!

It's all great and good to have social networks, but it makes you realize how easy it is to forget the people who are outside of that world when every day you see what a select group of people are up to.

This makes us really susceptible to the feeling that we are alone in the world. And why wouldn't it?! If we're forgetting about people we know and probably care about, what does that leave for the people we have yet to meet?

This activity is a base activity that will be very useful for other challenges, so getting good at it may be a good plan.

The idea is this:

Approach people you don't know and get them to shake your hand. This can be as easy as saying "Hi, I'm in a challenge with my friend to see who can shake hands with the most people!", or you can say "Hi, my name is ____. I'm introducing myself to people I don't know."

Once you get the hang of it, or if you are returning to this challenge, try playing with things like eye contact, approaching someone who is busy/idle, approaching someone in a group, approaching an entire group. There are a lot of options, find the one that makes you the most uncomfortable. I know for me it's approaching someone in a group.

Photo by Franz

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Source: (Dopiest)

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The Introduction

A look inside the art of introductions.

"Hi there! Can you just remind me in a sentence or two who you are, and what you're looking for?"

It's the elevator pitch, with a biography. I had no idea what a great challenge I was about to face.

As with most challenges listed here, the first time is usually uncomfortably terrible. Chances are, unless you are a professional with years of experience in what you do, you're not used to defining yourself. What's more, unless you are looking to define a specific need, like "I need a kitchen tool so that I don't burn my hands," or "I need my dog to listen to me!" most of us aren't in the habit of stating our needs.

Imagine we got in the habit of it. That we got good at introducing ourselves to the point that we could modify what we were saying to the individual we were talking to. We're saying, out with the, "Hi my name is Jim, I'm an English teacher" and in with "Hi my name is Will. I educate kids like those to find the power of words and express their incredible ideas".

The possibilities are vast, and the implications profound. It's literally going from the expressive capabilities of a 2nd grader to that of an affluent individual.

The challenge is this:

Identify yourself. This can be who you really are, or not. Maybe you want to introduce yourself as the person you dream of being. Give yourself an identity you can sum up in two sentences max. Look for change and results. I change that, I can help there, I could get that to, the list goes on.

Once you have your identity set, it's time to hit the road and think outside of the box. Go to a public space and meet people. Tailor your introduction to that person, and what they are doing.

Once introduced, end as you please!

Photo: John McNab

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Eyes are meant for WHAT?? Real world Cabeceo

Ok, so I like most of the people I know spend more time looking at a computer screen than I do at... well anything else in my day. But there are some seriously amazing things in the world that are right outside of our doorstep. But this is all besides the point.

The Point: Eye contact says a lot about you and your confidence and ability to engage. 

So the point is to engage, so what's the challenge? You can probably guess... lasting eye contact.

This is a good challenge to start, and then make a habit. I've been at it for quite some time, and I've come to realize what amazingly interesting people there are out there that I would have just walked by otherwise.

The challenge is this:

When you make eye contact with someone keep it up as long as possible. At first you want to be proactive, just to get good amounts of practice in. This will seem very unnatural for those of us who normally dart our eyes in any other direction, but will over time become like second nature. It took me at least a good month of consistent work to get this down. If you get someone who asks you what you are looking at, make-up an excuse (thought they were someone else etc.).

Fun side note:

For those outside of the tango word the term "cabeceo" is used as an invitation to dance between two people at a milonga (social tango event). One of the many interesting things about this is that it's done entirely through eye contact. So being as how you are in a fairly loud and crowded environment this is a great way of communicating even if you are across the room. If you divert your eyes before the receiver accepts it's considered a "no thank you".

Photo by: Exoskull

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The Silent Film

A great individual challenge or a great way to spend some time with friends.

This challenge is a sister challenge of the Mind Reader challenge, and apart from getting out of the routine, can be a blast especially if you do it with others.

This one is relatively simple, go to a public place (no recommendations this time because really anywhere you can people watch will do) and find a seat or stand where people can pass by you but where you are not too close. As people pass, whether they are talking on their phone, having a chat with a family member, a sales rep, librarian, etc. have the conversation for them. If you can have the full conversation filling in both sides say the customer and the sales rep. Once you get the hang of it you'll be smiling in no time.

If you want to give it a try but don't have time to go out, turn on the tv, or find a youtube video and turn the sound off (like this one, or this one).

Photo by: Stuck in Customs

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Mind Reader

Ok here's a fun one that I'm a huge fan of!

Now, the ability to actually read someone's mind is debatable, but picking up on people's intentions before they open their mouth is definitely not. There are two levels to this challenge; we'll call them level one, and level two.

Level One: Actions

Take a walk where people tend to be doing varied activities (say a mall, park, beach etc.) and instantly try to predict their next activity. Obviously you're better than thinking "they are going to take a step with their left foot" if they are walking.. I mean come on! A good example would be, if they're in a store, predict where they are going, what they are going to try-on, who they are going to talk to. Then see if you were right.

Once that becomes easy, level two awaits!

Level Two: Opinion

This is much harder, and is something some people have a real knack for. But for those who don't, I believe truly believe that with a bit of practice this skill can easily be learned. Now, having said that, it must be said that the challenge is a bit more hands on and will require some face time! We're trying to predict people's opinions. The challenge is to use everything you know about reading someone (clothing, facial expression, actions, energy, etc.) and finding out who they are.

Like level one, don't go for the obvious, like asking someone if they think a kid is cute. Stay away from things people might view as threatening (like their voting preference in upcoming elections), and go for the things that make a person special. Examples can include profession, favorite hobby, favorite music or food. Whatever you think you might be able to tell from looking at someone. Then approach that person and see if you were right!

Remember that getting the action or opinion right is only the icing on the cake. Look to get out of you comfort zone by making judgements, starting a conversation and covering up your mind reading intentions!

Photo: Alexlittler

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Categories

Politically correct? Sometimes. This one will get you thinking about what you like and don't and gets you to speak your mind.

At the very least, set some time in your day to take a walk in a public place where you are likely to have interactions with people (stores, restaurants, really crowded places etc.) and listen to how you feel. If possible do it all day throughout your daily routine. If you feel a certain way, vocalize it! I think limiting categories is an effective way to go about it.

Enjoyment: "nice"

Gratitude: "thanks"

Frustration: "jerk"

Fright: "scary"

Surprise: "surprising"

Sadness: "unfortunate"

Label things you see, even if you are not interacting with them. See a dog limping down the street: "unfortunate". Someone is annoying you: "jerk". The list goes on and on. But the key is that everything is labeled. Everything.

It's not as easy as you think.

Photo: Mitikusa

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Runner

A nice place to start your career public challenges.

Dress:   Anything except what you would actually go running in. The more formal the better.

Place:   Library, store, anywhere where there is security guard. Look for tranquil moderately busy places where the norm is to stand, or walk slowly. Ideally this is also a place you are likely to not know anyone.

Challenge:   Run fearlessly. If someone asks why you are running tell them you thought you saw a friend, or saw something you really liked, or something totally different.

Photo: LeoKHW