I Create Small Ponds

We were a mile deep in the woods when I discovered a powerful way to explain what I do as The Summit Guy and the central theme that ties together the last 21 years of my life. 

It was very early Saturday morning when my wife told me that she and Rowan were going to the wooded park to take a bit of a hike. 

When I say “early in the morning,” I mean about 9:10, but I had gotten home around 4:10 AM for very noble and respectable reasons (which I’ll tell you all about if enough of you reply to this newsletter and ask me for that story.) 

Early in the morning is relative. 

I did not have to go. She wasn’t even asking me to go. But we don’t have many opportunities to do things as a family, and I wasn’t going to miss it for something silly like sleep. 

Also, apparently you can’t just sleep later to make up for getting to bed later, but that’s also a tale for another newsletter. 

The closest I usually come to nature is that picture that Windows brings up when you log in, so it was very nice to get out into the woods. 

We came across some really cool things. My daughter found this giant turtle partially buried in the ground. The turtle was nice enough to let her climb up on its nose.

And if you don’t see the nose of a giant turtle sticking up out of the ground, then I encourage you to spend more time outside because you have definitely been working too hard.

A bit over a mile in, we came to a small pond, and I was reminded of how I often talk about my time running Phoenix Games, the game store and community I owned in my 20s.

I was a big fish in a small pond. A very small pond. 

The store never had annual revenues over $60,000, but I owned and led it. And I led a sci-fi convention and a Rocky Horror Picture Show cast that served the same community. 

I was a broke fish, but I was a big fish. 

For many years after that, I spoke of trying to find my new pond. I searched for a community space where I could have similar impact and find similar purpose. 

I have been much happier and more fulfilled since I launched my business in 2020 than I had been for some time before that. The reason is clear: I have found a community of people whom I can serve and who provide great fulfillment to me. 

But standing there, in the woods, by this pond, it all came together.

I create small ponds.

 When I create a Virtual Interactive Event for a client, I am creating a small pond for them to be a big fish in.

It became powerfully clear to me why I am so drawn to this work of running these kinds interactive virtual events. 

I am creating online the kinds of supportive, high vibration, positive, amazing spaces that I created in the store those many years ago. 

And I am doing it in a way that corrects the one mistake I made back then. 

Back then I was the big fish. It was the Michael show, and not everyone wanted to watch The Michael Show. 

Today, I put all kinds of big fish in my small ponds. It’s not about me. It’s about our hosts. It’s about our speakers. It’s about our attendees. It’s about our community members. 

My job is not to take the spotlight, but to reflect the spotlight on our hosts and our community. 

The result is creating virtual spaces where people learn, grow, and connect. That becomes a fertile environment for our hosts to start profitable relationships with those in attendance whom they can serve.

Want to learn more? Comment or DM me, and let's talk. Or drop by my Open Virtual Coffee any Friday at 1 PM Eastern