100 is a nifty number. It’s many people’s favorite currency denomination (who doesn’t like having a pocket full of Benjamins). It carries a certain and enviable weight. Just saying the words “one hundred” can send currents of excitement through our brains.

Did you know, for example, that the numerology number 100 represents energy that's self-determined, independent, and has infinite potential?

That the number 100 can be seen as a practically unlimited number 1?

That it is highly self-sufficient and feels comfortable being alone doing what it prefers to do for its own reasons?

Okay, some of this may be a bit meta for Team PYP, but in celebration of my 100th episode this week, I wanted to pass along some interesting trivia about the number 100. I share some of these fascinating tidbits in the show itself. But for this part of my show description, I am passing on what I recently learned about the number 100 as it relates to numerology.

In numerology, the number 1 brings independence, leadership qualities, and the ability to work alone to the number 100. The number 0 brings openness, wholeness, comprehensiveness, and infinity to the number 100.

The two energies, 0 representing all that is and 1 representing aloneness, may appear to be incompatible. But they enhance each other when combined, making 100 a powerful and universally appealing factor (maybe that’s why number 1 is such a popular jersey number). With the influence of both the number 1 and the number 0, 100 can be seen as a virtually unlimited number 1. And that, to me, is super cool.

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If you were deathly afraid of spiders, would you deliberately spend the night in the jungles of Borneo? Today’s PYP MVP Sue Ritchie did, and said it was one of the best experiences of her life. Sue is a leadership coach who knows how to shake things up and move us out of our comfort zones so we can thrive in the new world of work and life. No stranger to taking calculated risks, Sue walks her talk and can attest to the importance of stretching ourselves so we know life in a new way. She is an expert on establishing effective leadership presence, and has pinpointed the X factor for exceptional leadership across all industries. I’m not sure if I’m ready to sleep on the floor of a jungle anytime soon, but she certainly got me thinking about ways I can show up a little bit smarter, a little bit better. I admire Sue for the way she has crafted her life, and I think you will too!

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Shownotes

I first met Karen Lopez McWilliams in the lobby of a Hilton Hotel in Southlake, Texas. It was late June 2015 and she arrived with all the materials she’d agreed to bring for our two day strategy session together on her passion project: big post-it paper, colored markers, legal pads, pens. For the next 48 hours, we hashed out the game plan she would use to create her book, The Ones Who Believed: True Inspirational Stories Honoring Everyday People Who Took a Chance, Shaped a Life and Made a Difference. All those proverbial Xs and Os made sense and showed us something incredible was unfolding before us. At that point I did not yet know my role in the project would extend beyond the planning stage into the subsequent 18 months of full-time writing, revising, designing, publishing and ultimate launching and promoting the book right alongside Karen. What I did know was she had an incredible concept on her hands that no one else had explored the way she wanted to. Writing a book is no easy feat and it takes a team of committed visionaries to make it come to life. This is why the Acknowledgement section in most books is quite dense. Many hands go into producing a book of substance. OWB was no different. Comprised of 25 true stories, it flips on its head the conventional approach to exploring success, with storytellers honoring the one(s) who believed in them to showcase their personal triumphs and breakthroughs rather than simply telling their own story. By making the honoree the central character of each tale, each story encourages readers to remember and reflect about their own one(s) who believed in them and then pass on their gratitude for the wisdom and positive impact they experienced because someone took a chance on them without any expectation of gain. How many times have we watched athletes upon winning the big game make mention of special people who believed in them? How many Oscar winners make a point of sharing with the world the names of those special ones whose belief made their accomplishment possible? If ever a time in human history was right for a book like The Ones Who Believed, now is that time. More than ever we need to find a way to connect with each other and build something great together. OWB is one way of doing that. When we’re willing to hit the pause button on our busy lives and take the time to honor someone else with sincere and genuine gratitude, nothing short of miracles can happen.

Get a copy of The Ones Who Believed here

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I love the Super Bowl. I was not happy with the outcome on Sunday as I wanted the Falcons to win. But hats off to Tom Brady and the Patriots for pulling out of their tailspin and coming back to win the game. History making event.

But enough about football. Ha! Today I want to talk about the halftime show because it was out of this world and I couldn’t help myself...I was enjoying it not just for the entertainment value, but also for the business value...looking at Lady Gaga as the epitome of an artist entrepreneur who plays her position to a tee.

I’ve been a distant fan of Lady Gaga for years, with a few of her big hits on my playlist. She is an icon of my daughter’s generation more than one of mine. But I gained an entirely new level of respect for her after Super Bowl 51’s halftime show.

Here are three things that stood out to me about Lady Gaga’s performance at Super Bowl 51:

1. When you show up as yourself, you win. I can’t think of another performer today who is as much herself as Lady Gaga, and the halftime show she put on demonstrated that exponentially. Her glittery costume and matching boots. Her hair, the mask over her eyes. She was confident. She was bold. She was authentic.
2. When you serve others through playing your position, you win. Lady Gaga is all about her fans who she calls her “Little Monsters” for those listening today who don’t know much about her. Notice how she didn’t use the enormous viewing stage that comes with a halftime show to play a song she’s been working on that no one knows, or rant about her views on some issue. I have seen performers do this when they get the spotlight. They make it all about them instead of giving the audience what it wants. In Lady Gaga’s case, what her audience wants to hear are her big hits like “Poker Face” “Born This Way” and “The Edge of Glory.” And she delivered big time. Her one nod to the highly charged political climate was starting the set with “America the Beautiful.” Her message? We are all one big team here. We may not always see eye to eye but we can work together to keep this thing called Democracy we love going as red white and blue lights lit up behind her in the shape of the American flag. Brilliant..
3. When you want to play your position at the highest level, you build a great team around you. Even though she is the name of her brand, the center of the Lady Gaga brand, she surrounds herself with the best -- the best dancers, the best musicians, the best sound team, the best choreographers… Lady Gaga is incredibly smart about her business and she holds herself accountable to the highest standards. She takes responsibility for what happens. Even in her pregame interview with Michael Strahan, she was cool under pressure, confident about who she was and what she was going to deliver. Like anyone about to launch a product into the world, she knew her performance had risk in it. But she went for it anyway and took it all the way into the end zone.

The experience was extraordinary from the opening aerial stunt when she came flying down from the fake sky to the conclusion when she dropped the mic and caught the football as she leaped off the stage into the abyss. It took my breath away when I watched it live and it’s taking my breath away now as I recall it.

For me, that was the biggest win of the day.

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