Inspired? Just Do It: My Speech at the World Domination Summit
Last July, I had had the opportunity to speak in front of over 3000 people at the World Domination Summit in Portland, Oregon. In case you're not familiar or are maybe freaking out right now seeing that, the World Domination Summit (or WDS) is an annual gathering of creatives, adventurers, and entrepreneurs from around the world, all who share the same core values of community, service, and adventure.
It's a bunch of amazing people who committed to living unconventionally.
It was a great opportunity to share just a sliver of a story, and one that wouldn't have been possible without attending WDS a couple of years earlier. (Watch below: 2min)
The video was about my first charity hike in 2012 for Do It in a Dress: an initiative by the Australian-based non-profit One Girl , working to provide education scholarships to girls in Sierra Leone.
I chose to hike for 5 days and 70km in the Canadian Rocky Mountains in a school girl dress, and I convinced my brother and father to do the same. We had a great time, raised awareness for education issues in West Africa, and raised a chunk of money too.
But it was what happened before and afterward that were most interesting.
I was so inspired by my experience at the World Domination Summit in 2012 that the idea of taking our planned hike and spinning it into a charity event (in school girl dresses no less) not only seemed like a fine idea, but one that would be ridiculous not to do.
And minutes after finishing our hike, I received a message from a friend named Ronald Rhodehamel who I met on a climbing trip in Africa years before. He told me that he was so inspired by what we did, that he was going to hike the Chilkoot Trail in a dress the following year. This 33 mile / 53km pass from the Yukon and crossing over into Alaska is known for it's poor weather and tough terrain, and Ron would be doing it at 70 years old.
Ronald Rhodehamel on the Chilkoot Trail (2013)
And he did. Not only that, but he credited the project (and his recent work with One Girl) for giving his life a new direction and purpose.
After the WDS closing party, and limping our way back to our posh Airbnb up on the hill overlooking downtown Portland, my great friend Josh from In The Middle Seat invited me to speak about my takeaway from the weekend.
My 20 second riff turned into 90 seconds. My topic? Inspiration is magic, but fleeting.
(Watch below: 3 min)
Day 22: Inspiration is fleeting: Featuring Dustin "just do it" Main. #inspiredaction
Posted by Josh Barad on Tuesday, July 15, 2014
It was 4am, and the video cut off before we were done, but I'm sure you get the point.
Maybe you read blogs, maybe you love hiking. Maybe you like to create things. Whatever it is, I'm sure you get inspired from time to time.
You need to take that inspiration and act.
Jump in headfirst... no fear. This is where the magic will happen. If you wait too long, doubt will creep its way back into you, stopping you from doing the big things you dream of, and inspiring others to do the same.
Thank you to everyone that inspires me with both their words and their actions.