Life is Short. Race Hard.

Clarity of thought, word and deed has immeasurable power.

Leilani Munter is a professional race car driver and nature lover – a seeming oxymoron. She’s not a professional speaker (she could be), though she was speaking to hundreds of women at Tory Johnson’s Spark and Hustle conference last week.   She didn’t pace, raise her voice or try to be anything other than what she is as she held a tired audience on the edge of their seats and earned a standing ovation. As for me, I was completely captivated and inexplicably on the verge of tears the entire time she was speaking. (The first time in 26 or so speakers.) She has been on my mind all week, so now I have to write it out.

I’ve been considering the dynamics of what took place as she owned the stage that day. She is an intensely focused woman on a mission, doing what she is designed to do and keeping her head high as she ignores a large camp of critics.

I’ve concluded that it is the strength of her convictions, her clarity and her excellence in articulating what she is passionate about that made her stunningly effective and memorable. Tory joked about the “Leilani effect” as the response to her challenge to observe a “Meatless Monday” to conserve energy was immediate. The vegetarian lunch option had been shunned by most until that day when they were snatched up first. And yes, I’m making changes to stop wasting energy through “vampire power” and reduce my carbon footprint. But the real impact for me was not saving the earth, since I’ve been a “tree-hugger” since before she was born.

I was fascinated by the fact that in a matter of 20 minutes or so, Leilani won the loyalty and avid support of an audience of movers and shakers. Which has caused me to take another look at my own level of clarity. On a scale of 1 to 10, Leilani scored a 10.

If given 20 minutes to express your mission, passion and purpose, how would you score?

I love hanging out with people who cause something deep inside of me to rise up, pulling me to step into the next level.  Thanks, Leilani.  And you can bet, I’ll “never under-estimate a vegetarian hippie chick with a race car.” You are making a difference.

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