A 10-minute talk presented at Give & Take, 05.26.10: an illustrated tour of my unusual career path from dancer to chiropractor to business owner to consultant to futurist.
The transformation began when I studied anatomy in college; the balance of arts and science, along with systems thinking and diagnosis, are the themes.
Dan Pink: When you see someone who does interesting work, ask them how they got there. Answer: “It’s a long story…” I’m a futurist: What’s that? What’s your background?
First say thanks to Colin, Ben, Troy for inviting me. And thanks to all the stories that contribute to each of our paths and to the myriad ways they brought us to be here together tonight. Part of my story includes a Thanksgiving visit home with my family, while I was in college, during a semester in which I was studying anatomy. I was helping my mother in the kitchen...she asked me to cut the giblets for the gravy…
For me, it all began when I started taking ballet lessons when I was 6….became serious…IAA…Omaha…conflict of wanting to do/know more U. Of I.: Anatomy
Mechanically: how cool is it to see the physical integration of upper and lower!
Epiphanies: I’m good at this! It’s not cold and divorced from human expression, but reveals even more about it
This connection of art and science was to open new, as yet unforseen, chapters in my life.
The knowledge of how the body works did wonders for my technique and my teaching. It also opened a new door: teaching anatomy. I moved to Chicago to dance with Jan Erkert & Dancers, taught at Columbia College…
But, I wasn’t happy. I wanted to do it on my own terms Chiropractic college More science courses…moved here…studied Chinese medicine and homeopathy
What is health? What is disease? Each discipline a closed set of logic. I was a good diagnostician…
My stroke of insight: I loved business. I get great joy from making things happen…a creative stage, full expression made manifest
Business also came easily to me. Art + Science
Putting it all together: who are you? Where are you going? Context is king!