the one where we celebrate the awesome things

i’m not good at giving myself credit. nothing is ever good enough. i am never good enough. it could always be better, stronger, smarter, funnier, prettier, etc. striving for excellence is a wonderful thing; striving for perfection will leave you with nothing but disappointment. perfectionism is self-abuse of the highest order. part of this is just being human. but part of it is because of my obsessive compulsive personality disorder. my ocpd makes me so focused on unattainable perfection that it keeps me from doing anything. it makes me feel like a fraud when i do achieve good things; that i wasn’t good enough or didn’t deserve them. [b] introduced me to the term, imposter syndrome and it completely describes how i feel sometimes. and so often when we want to celebrate our own success we feel like we are “bragging” or “showing off” and it makes us feel guilty for something we should be proud of.

thanks to some wonderful people in my life who are always there to support me, i’m working at getting over this. we need to own our successes. i didn’t get lucky by chance; i worked my (excuse my language) booty off. i put myself out there; i went after what i wanted; i took chances and risks; i made the most out of every opportunity that i’ve been given. at the ripe age of 25 i’ve been fortunate enough to have some pretty damn awesome opportunities. i am not perfect. i am not an expert. but i am someone who struggles with anxiety and depression and ocpd and despite it all has powered through to do some pretty snazzy things.

today we celebrate the successes with no guilt, just pride and happiness and smiles. in the past months i have had some incredible things happen in my life, and i’m excited to share them with you…

• gave my first paid speaking engagement on social media to the Upper Midwest EDPA. best part? it was in a CAVE!

• will be giving my session on ‘unleashing the power of social media’ for the 3rd year at EXHIBITOR2015

• participated on a webinar with cvent on ‘amplifying the social experience at every touchpoint‘

• was featured in an article in mashable on the top 5 stressful jobs; representing my fellow event professionals (yes mashable, the website i read daily and always refer my attendees to as a resouce of information… this is real life.)

let’s all start celebrating our success. our stories. i may not be perfect; but parts of me are pretty awesome.

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pomp & circumstance

i truly cannot believe that a week ago today my baby brother graduated from high school. it felt like we were always talking about “where do you think you’ll be when Carter graduates?” or “I wonder what Carter will be like when he gets older” and now here we are. the final Dahl kid is done with high school. 3 short months away from starting the next chapter of his life at Bethany Lutheran in Mankato. a college student. it all just doesn’t seem real. i’m rather proud of myself, because i didn’t cry throughout the festivities. i’m sure i’ll be a bundle of emotions when we take him to college though. but it just all feels surreal. watching him wear his cap & gown and walk across that stage… i just felt proud.

i have gotten to be there and help him through most of life’s biggest moments so far. i remember learning how to rock him and give him a bottle; and sitting him on my lap and reading to him for hours; taking him shopping for school clothes; talking to him about relationships; helping him pick out his outfits; driving with him with he had his permit; being there to hear him vent and (i hope) help him through the not so great times; and all of the fun things these past few months with his senior year. i’ve not only gotten to watch him grow up, but i was part of helping him grow up. i couldn’t be more proud of the guy he is today. and i am so excited to see what the future holds for him.

i am so proud of you, young pup. you are a smart, annoying, smart ass, confident, funny, kind hearted, sweet and wonderful guy. i’m so blessed to call you my brother. (most days) i love you so very much!

the weekend i rocked the half marathon (7.6.12-7.8.12)

already the start of a new weekend and i’ve still yet to document the previous. for shame. dang my busy schedule and lack of internet at my apartment! anyways, i had an EPIC weekend (last weekend) as i conquered a half marathon! yayyyyyyy!

friday:

i got to work from my home office and that night i went to pick up my official race day packet. then we went to dinner and i carb loaded on some pasta, then did a short jog with my pops to keep my legs loose for race day!

saturday – RACE DAY!

months of training, preparation, everything… all comes down to one day. i was excited and nervous. i honestly was wondering what i had gotten myself into. i knew that i was ready. i knew that i was capable of rocking it. and the time had come to shine…

6:00AM: wake up, isotonix, coffee, 1/2 power bar, stretch

7:00AM: head to the starting place(get a few butterflies)

7:15AM: runner’s to the starting point

7:28AM: shotgun start and GO!

when the shotgun sounded a got a HUGE surge of adrenaline. it was unlike anything i’ve ever felt before. ‘some nights by fun.’ was the first song on my playlist and as i set off i couldn’t help but get a giant grin on my face, realizing the awesomeness of what i was about to accomplish…

5 miles in:

that smile on my face is actually real! i had my tunes rockin’ and i felt great!

6 miles in:

girl look at that booty, I WORK OUT. just shy of halfway and i was havin’ fun!

7 miles in:

and then the fatigue starts to set in… still feelin’ good tho.

10 miles in:

the smile on my faced is real,but only to trick my mind into believing we are still having fun. around mile 9-10 my legs started to kill… they were like, “emma, we’re kind of tired, and i think we would like to not be doing this anything.” and it was then when i truly understood how much of a mental game running a marathon is. i could have easily gave up, but i didn’t. i have come this far… only 3 miles to go… this is what you’ve been working towards… you got this!

miles 12-13:

this was the biggest mental battle… i was so close, but so far away from that finish line. just a little bit more. and then the wind picked up. but when i made that final turn and saw the finish line i pushed with every single thing i had left in me.

the finish line:

1 hour and 58 minutes on the nuts. when i first started training, my goal was to finish in under 2 hours. so as soon as i could see the clock i hauled ass to make sure i made that goal.

holy moly i did it!!!!!! 

my whole family was there to support me <3

evolution of a marathon…

couldn’t have done it without my trainer/ daddy

thirteen point freakin’ one.

after oodles of pictures documenting the moment, we got some egg mcmuffin’s and headed back home to relax. mom and i then went to get hands down, the best pedicures EVER. the woman gave me like a 20 minute leg massage and i thought i died and went to heaven. was amazing. the rest of the weekend was pretty relaxing. still in awe that i actually ran 13.1 miles in 1:58. it was both the hardest and the most amazing thing i have ever done. and a feeling i will never forget.