Amelia Earhart, KUSA – TV reporter and president of the Fly With Amelia Foundation, was born with a legacy to live up to. But it was when she was recreating a moment from her namesake’s past, flying around the world in 18 days, that she realized you can be whoever you want to be – and you can’t let others define you.
She shared this insight and more at Your Conversation With on Dec. 6. These are our four other favorite thoughts:
Pick your copilot. You get to create the relationships you want to have. “I am very proud to say that I am not related to Amelia Earhart by blood, but I believe that we choose who we are related to, and I don’t just mean in the friends and family sense,” Earhart said. “We choose who we want to share a connection with; blood doesn’t matter.”
Find your home. Discover the place where you feel the most like yourself. For Earhart, her home is in the clouds: “When I’m up in the airplane I feel confident, I feel focused. I hope that all of us can find that one thing that just feels good.”
Choose your adventure. Set out to accomplish goals for yourself, not for others. That’s what Earhart said her flight around the world was about: “to get out there and prove to myself that I can do it and that there are still adventures to be had.”
Throw your heart into it. When you’re committed to a project or goal, that energy is contagious—sometimes in ways we don’t even know. “You have no idea the connections that you’ll make, the people that we’ll influence, the memories that will spark for someone who may be looking for that at any particular moment,” Earhart said.
Want to hear from other inspiring leaders in Colorado? Join us at the next Your Conversation With Shannon Block, president and CEO of the Denver Zoo on Feb. 23.
Laura James is the marketing and communications coordinator for the Denver Metro Chamber.