I left New York late last night to fly to Detroit. I then drove 2 hours north for a conference in the rural area of Marlette, Michigan for Thumb Area Michigan Works. This area of the country is called "the thumb" because if you look at a map of Michigan, we’re in "the thumb".
The theme of the conference is "Opportunity of a Lifetime". As I have said, I love coming to speak to the smaller communities in the US especially after having been in New York. Where else can you smell fresh manure in the morning? (don’t knock it until you’ve tried it). After I gave my keynote today, I moderated a panel of 10 high school valedictorian’s to get their views on the world (When I graduated high school, I was only the salutatorian (2nd)- Ann Temkin always beat me out.) What stuck me the most was how not many of them knew what they wanted to do for a living. I applauded this since we put way too much pressure on students on what they want to be when they grow up. We have to encourage them that the world of possibilities for most of us are there.
