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I needed to do the laundry, but then I realized I was out of detergent, so I went to write a shopping list and went to grab paper and realized how unorganized computer desk was and started reorganizing the files and started checking pens for ink. When I went to toss all the junk and paper files and worn out pens, I saw that the trash was full but before I took it out I wanted to get rid of old food in the fridge. That's when I realized a juice jug had leaked so I needed to clean it up but when I went to grab a rag, I saw that the pantry closet was a nightmare so I started to organize it... and that's how I ended up on the floor looking at my old photo albums from the 1992 and not doing laundry. I don't know about you, but sometimes this is my life. I'm really busy....but productive? I don't know what I finished today. And a lot of this comes from jaded framing and prioritizing and focus of my day. Jaded framing of decisions can also impair clarity and create a false sense of urgency. John Kotter (2008) writes that there are three states of urgency: real sense of urgency, complacency, and a false sense of urgency. Complacency of course is us not doing laundry and living in dirty clothes... which might be what some of you have been doing for the last 7 months. False sense of urgency can lead to rash decisions and untimely actions... like looking at old photo albums instead of doing laundry. Real urgency is when we know that we will have NO clean clothes left and must do laundry TODAY. That's real urgency. Real focus. This mindset can be kind of comical in this example but in work teams the laughter seems to die down. I was collaborating with a team inside a large oil and gas company that hosted a "needed it done yesterday" type of leader. The leader would speak of any initiative, project, or goal then state with frenzy that it was urgent and really needed to be done yesterday. The team was always on edge about what new goal or task or project would be urgently assigned at any moment. The result was a less than excellent performance, increased stress in the team dynamic, and lack of clarity in prioritization of team goals as a result from the false sense of urgency. These veiled threats and unproductive noise created a team of anxiety, fear, anger, and frenetic activity. So, here's what I want you to do, whether it be doing the laundry or leading a team. Prioritize critical issues in a reasonable framework and do your best to stay focused to see that project, or at least load of laundry, through to the end. Reference: Leading Change; John Kotter, 2008

Industries create jargon to act as shortcuts for understanding. Every industry has some variation of jargon. When speaking to other professionals in the industry, this is a way to clarify communication and simplify conversation. If speaking to your team of cyber security professionals during a data breach or discussing credential stuffing or DDS or ransomware...it's much easier to use a understood term or verbiage to the concept rather than explaining every time. However, if you are also going to discuss the same data breach with the C-suite executives rather than the cyber security team then the benefits of using jargon reverse in usefulness. We must understand the baseline knowledge of our audience when discerning the right time to use jargon. Unless it is extremely obvious, I aid on the side of caution in assuming someone knows my particular knowledge of certain industry jargon. Most of the time, I try to speak in more simple language. So, how can you simplify your jargon within your speech when speaking to non industry experts? Ginny Redish is quick to remind us that "It's not a matter of dumbing down. It's a matter of meeting people where they are and saving people's time." Simplifying jargon can begin by speaking in shorter simpler sentences. Eliminate excess within your speech. Try to avoid using "it is" "there is" or "there are," to begin sentences. For example, rather than "It is essentially important to take note that we need to be thoughtful when we are handling sensitive information by sending encrypted messages." Instead say, "Send sensitive information in encrypted messages." By eliminating excess and redundancies while adapting a more action focused statement, you are creating a framework that is easier to understand. Also, clarify abbreviation and acronyms. HR begins using acronyms literally in their name, "HR" and the acronyms only expand from there. I have an FTE that's using PTO and ESL. Is that English to a non-HR person? Sometimes, just saying the acronyms provide more clarity. I have a "full time employee" that using their "paid time off" and "extended sick leave." You can use comparisons and examples. If you've seen any of my trainings or keynotes, you know that I use this a lot! You can compare a stand up in a development team to a huddle in a sports team. You can explain a cloud storage to an expandable garage holding knowledge. You can explain sourcing recruitment to hunting and application recruitment is more like fishing. All of these provide an image of a more commonly known everyday item or experience that is relatable. Finally, adjust your pace. Include more pauses for questions, speak more slowly so that you can be intentional to look at your audiences faces to discern understanding. There are a lot of different ways to communicate jargon, so here's what I want you to do today. Ask the question, will jargon be helpful or hurtful in this audience? If jargon is not helpful, simplify and clarify your statements so that you can increase understanding.

I was on a 16-hour road trip with a team to North Dakota. It was getting late and we were getting hungry. We began to discuss what we wanted to eat. One began, "I think we should have a nice sit down meal." Another piped up, "No, let's get fast food." Another chimed in, "Why don't we stop at a grocery store and get items for sandwiches and snacks." We noticed on the map that we were approaching a town. We were in the Dakotas and there weren't a lot of towns on our route so we needed to make a fast decision. However, we went through the town, without getting food - because of indecision. The hunger began to rise. Our stomachs began to growl. We had another hour before our next opportunity to stop for food. The conversation shifted. What kind of food did we want? One voted American, another Italian, another Mexican, another wanted Chinese, two were undecided. This conversation circled for a while. We began to approach the second town. We drove straight through without a stop. Now the hunger, tiredness, agitation, and tension began to rise. We entered the next town. By the time that we sat down for the meal, we knew that we had missed the deadline for an enjoyable meal as we were in a famished rage. In your teams, you may not be dealing with the beautiful vast land in the Dakotas with a van of starving people - but you may have a similar feeling of circular conversations that go nowhere leading to lost time, energy, and money. This brings me to an important factor of leading your teams - you need to create systems to encourage timely decision-making in your team. As we were returning from the North Dakota workshops, we had a new system to decide where we were going to eat. First, we determined our boundaries. In our group, we had one person that was a vegetarian and another person who had a gluten allergy. We were not going to suggest places to eat where some team members might go hungry. In your team, your agreed-upon boundaries may be set by budget, project scope, or timelines. Either way, I want you to first identify agreed-upon boundaries for your decision-making opportunity. Next, I want you to timebox the discussion. In our team, we allocated 20 minutes for discussion and then 5 minutes to make the decision. I was working with a team that had a habit of circular conversations and so they legitimately used a timer for discussion. This was great for their team dynamic because they had individuals that were hasty decision-makers and individuals who were too detailed to make decisions in a timely manner. This system designated time for conversation and time for a decision. In one team, the timebox discussions were called ELMO! Which stood for, "Enough, let's move on." They would time box discussion. Allow time for final remarks. Then, make a decision. ELMO! I was with another team that struggled with determining the end of a project or presentation so they used the term, GETMO! This stood for, "Good enough to move on." This term is preferred to ELMO with more fluid work like a project or presentation. Either way, the goals of both ELMO and GETMO are the same. Allocate time for discussion and for decision. I encourage you to utilize a system of communication. In our team, we devised a system of quick communication using a Likert scale. A person may ask, "On a scale of 1-10, how hungry are you?" 10 represented hangry and the number 1 represented a person being full and not wanting to eat. The van would echo, "4", "2", "3", "4", "3"... then the leader would respond, "Okay, so what I'm hearing is that we are okay to wait a few hours before we stop somewhere to eat, is that correct?" Yes. If the responses were a higher number, then the team would begin looking for food more urgently. I have worked with several teams that utilize parliamentary procedure abiding by Robert's rules of order to run effective and efficient meetings. Personally, I love when meetings are conducted with this approach. At surface level, this may seem too formal or complicated for your team and you may adopt a more simplified or relaxed rules of order for conversations. Your team may not like Likert scales or Parliamentary procedure - and that's fine! Find a system that works for you! I was doing a workshop with one team that had a habit of getting sidetracked and off topic. In our workshop, the team decided that they would use the codeword, "Peaknuckle!" as a cue to get back on track. This was quick, easy, and highly effective. Lastly, make a decision. Decision-making in a collaborative dynamic can sometimes lead to conversations that feel like they are going nowhere - but I encourage you with this quote from Theodore Roosevelt who stated, "In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing and the worst thing you can do is nothing.” So, here's what I want you to do - make a decision.

A couple of years ago I was working with some teams in the city of Den Haag/ The Hague in the Netherlands. One afternoon I stopped by a little round building, paid a small fair, and ventured up a winding staircase to see one of the few surviving 19th century piece of art called panorama. Now, most people today know of panorama as that feature on your camera phone, but back in the 1800's, this was quite revolutionary. In fact, entire structures were built to highlight the beauty of this unique art. In the Netherlands, I entered from the bustling city street, went up a winding staircase, and then found myself immersed in a peaceful sandy beach. Furthermore, the museum included sounds of waves and seagulls. At the base of the canvas, the artist filled the ground with sand and objects from the beach like seashells, an old buoy, and beach towels. I looked out and couldn't tell where the painting began or ended due to a slit curvature of the canvas. I was surrounded by information that told me that I was at a calm sandy beach even though I knew that actually surrounded by a city. I felt like Mary Poppins hopping into the scenes of a picture. Author and Columbia University professor Martin Meisel described this art "In its impact... a comprehensive form, the representation not of the segment of a world, but of a world entire seen from a focal height." The artists documented every detail of a scene, by doing so they created a world complete in and of itself. I was no longer in the city, I was ready to grab my sunscreen for a day at the beach. As I thought of this experience, it really made me think about the power of confirmation bias and how it can have a major impact on our decisions. How can we confront confirmation bias in our decision making? First - don't jump to conclusions. Seek to gather data from a variety of sources and don't be too quick to form a decision without all of the right information first. Oftentimes, we already have an idea in our head of what decision we are leaning towards and hastily or haphazardly gathered data can help solidify the decision without all of the proper information. This can lead people to become ignorant of information and ideas that contradict preconceived notions. In a team setting, confirmation bias can lead to small minded group think. So, ask yourself - what factors could cloud my judgement or provide bias in my decision making? Is it an idea that your project will work? Won't work? If I really really really wanted to be at the beach, then I had plenty of information around me to confirm that I was at the beach. Without asking any other questions, I could have sat surrounded by the sounds of waves and seagulls in ignorant bliss - it sounds nice, but it is incorrect. Gather all of the relevant data first. Next, I challenge you to try and prove yourself wrong. In the heart of confirmation bias, the mind will often subconsciously ignore contradictory evidence. If I want to rollout a new initiative in 4 months when all evidence says that it is going to take 7, I can find enough data to skew the decision. I may collect the data of a smaller company that had a 4 month roll out, a company with a larger resource team, assume longer hours, assume there will be no errors, and so fourth whenever giving the prediction. So, instead ask, "What would be the factors/reasons why we wouldn't meet the deadline in 4 months?" Find reasons why your inclination could be wrong. In some team scenarios, this could be an assigned devils advocate, a person that will challenge and conflict in a pursuit to see a situation from a different angle. Also, take time. The short-term emotion and excitement of a bold undertaking often tempt leaders to neglect thinking twice about their high-risk decision. It is in this time of hype and excitement that leaders and residents alike are quick to make poorly thought out decisions that outlast the final events. Whether good or bad, make sure that you take the time to breathe and make sure that your decisions are not made in haste. Lastly, and this is a big one, leave flexibility for when you find new information. Sometimes, we have been a victim of confirmation bias and didn't realize it, sometimes we have new information that arises after a decision has been made, sometimes the situation changes. In any case, this doesn't mean that you have to be stubborn in your first decision, leave the flexibility to acknowledge and adjust when there is new information. I often say, "I reserve the right to be smarter tomorrow than I am today, but based off of the information that I have now, this is the best decision and direction that I believe is right." I encouraged leadership teams to use this a lot during the COVID pandemic, we were getting new information all of the time! Extreme confirmation bias can lead to folly in decision making. Even with the panorama painting, many people from the Romantic period felt that it was nothing more than a deceitful illusion requiring insultingly low levels of aptitude. My of my favorite poets, William Wordsworth, alluded to the panorama in Book Seven of The Prelude with disdain. From the very pretense, Wordsworth felt like the the panorama lulled viewers into a world without requiring much interpretation of the art. In a way, I get his point. It's generally easier to find information that confirms our single viewpoint than gather a lot of information from different viewpoints and interpret the data. That latter is more work, but more worthwhile in making better decisions. So, here's what I want you to do - I want you to look at your data collection. Are your collecting information from multiple sides to create a more well rounded, better educated decision?

When I was 15 years old, I entered a speech competition. This wasn't my first rodeo, I'd been doing speaking competitions since I was a babe, but this competition was a little different. This was fully in Spanish. I had been taking Spanish classes since I was in grade 1, but a full speech was a little different. I practiced each syllable, each word, I worked on my delivery, my timing, my facial expressions. I went to the competition and gave it my very best. I was awarded first place in the state and then had the opportunity to go to Mexico City to speak with groups of people there. In the middle of Mexico City, I spoke to hundreds of people with my memorized message about hope and inspiration and motivation, and faith. I was able to return the following year and spoke with more confidence. It was an amazing experience. I'll be honest, my trip to Mexico was my first time leaving the country and I was a little nervous about the differences in culture. I didn't know what to expect, I wasn't scared, just curious. What would be the same, what would be different? Here's the common ground I found with my first real interaction in a global team, these commonalities ring true in globally remote teams today. First, we all shared in emotions. We all got excited when there was a football match or soccer game, we experienced pain and loss, celebration and happiness. The team I was with gave some kids backpacks with supplies for school and I was able to share in their excitement and pride of their new belongings. No matter where we were in the world, we shared in emotional bonds. With The Pathwayz Group, we have members of our team all over the world, when the typhoons hit the Philippines earlier last year, we empathized with our team and shared in the emotion and the weight of the tragedy going on there. We shared in the emotion. We also shared in the community. In Mexico City, we all shared in community mainly revolving around food. Food is the only beautiful thing that truly nourishes. We were able to come together for meals, delicious meals. We came together in this in a strong way. Food, just like art, music, and plays, all tell the story of a place. Beyond a "happy hour" with your globally remote team, share recipes, stories, games, andmexperiences virtually. It's a different level of connection with stories and fun. Finally, all long for relationships. I sat down with a group of kids in Mexico City and we worked on drawing pictures, doing crafts, and making something awesome. At the end of our project time, I had several of the kids give me their projects so that I could remember them. It was so touching. The kids introduced me to their families and friends, we were building trusting relationships. In our globally remote teams, you can also bring in the relationship side. We are all at home in this time. Actually, meet the kids and spouses and pets that roam around during the work week behind your colleagues' screens (of course, if they feel comfortable). They are not an inconvenience, they are a part of the work-family, build relationships. Global remote teams can have a lot of differences, but they have a lot of similarities too. I mean, we are people. We all laugh and cry and worry and celebrate, we all focus on basic needs like clothes and food and community, and we all long for relationships. In global remote teams, the differences can sometimes be highlighted, so here's what I want you to do, highlight the similarities.

Czech athlete, Emil Zatopek was a pioneer in the running world that popularized interval training and was known for his radical approach to running - almost as radical as his approach to friendship. He is most well known for his absurd display of willpower and strength during the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. Emil had won the gold medal in both the 5000 meter and the 10000-meter races but then decided last minute to run his very first marathon during the Games. Talk about super-human. Now, this is where the story becomes one of legend. Zatopek was known for being a chatty person like me. But his favorite place to talk was on the track during races! He really appreciated how long-distance running allowed time for personal conversations and true deep connections. Now, this annoyed the officials for some reason and so when he entered into the marathon they actually decided to neglect to share the marathon rules with the newbie contestant. This resulted in Zatopek passing up on all the opportunities for water, food, and refreshment throughout the entire marathon! 26 miles! 42 kilometers! Zatopek, being the insanely talented and determined athlete that he was, decided to take it easy and follow the pace of the other contestants. Soon enough, he caught up to the leader, British runner Jim Peters. Peters and Zatopek had an interesting relationship altogether, Peters had actually switched to the marathon after he had been annihilated during the 10000-meter race by Zatopek in a crushing defeat. Zatopek came up behind Peters, carrying a respectable pace, and stated, "Hello, I am Zatopek." Peters knew exactly who he was racing. Halfway through the race...and Zatopek's talk with his new friend... Zatopek asked Peters for some words of advice, “Jim,” said Zatopek, “is this pace too fast?” “No,” Peters replied sarcastically. “It isn’t fast enough.” Although said in jest, Zatopek took the comment literally and picked up his pace going on to win the marathon and smash the world record. Now, I love this story. It doesn't even sound real. Here are some lessons we can learn from this remarkable athlete. First, prepare Second, Take on new challenges Lastly, lead with relationships First, prepare Zatopek didn't know that he was going to run the marathon. But he had been preparing for physical competition so that when the opportunity arose, he was prepared to step up to the task. Always sharpen your mind, skills, and abilities. Prepare yourself to take on opportunities. Luck equals preparation and opportunity and if you are not preparing to be your best self, then you may not be ready when the opportunity comes. Second, Take on new challenges Zatopek recognized that he had the transferable skills that he could take to a new arena. He'd never competed in the marathon before and won gold after winning gold in a 5k and 10k - he earned an extra gold medal literally on a whim because he decided to take on a new challenge. This wasn't Zatopek's first time to try something new. He was a pioneer in his innovative approach to training that popularized interval training. Today, this style of training is seen commonly all over the world. Be fierce- take on a new frontier. Lastly, lead with relationships Now, I recognize that in this story, not everyone was rooting for Zatopek. Officials didn't tell him the rules, Peters tried to give bad advice, not everyone was on Zatopek's side. But Zatopek was always rooting was everyone. He was constantly lifting people up and acted as a cheerleader for other's success. Zatopek spent his time speaking with others and sharing in astounding acts of friendship. My favorite story is when fellow athlete Ron Clarke visited Zatopek in 1966. Both were retired from successful careers but Clarke’s extensive resume of 17 world records excluded an Olympic gold medal. Zatopek and Clarke had a nice visit as old friends and as Clarke was leaving Zatopek handed him a package instructing him to not open it till he was on the plane. Clarke opened the package mid-air to find one of Zatopek’s Olympic gold medals with a note that read “Great is the victory, but the friendship is all the greater.” Zatopek was astounding by himself, but his goal was to champion the success of others. So, here's what I want you to do. Identify one thing that you can do today to prepare to be your best self to take advantage of opportunities and new frontiers when they arise. Also, take the time to champion the relationships and success of others within your field. Zatopek understood that a rising tide raises all ships - he sought to be his best and to bring out the best in others. Be like Zatopek.

Welcome to the wonderful world of Human Resources! Y'all have made it to the home of Toby from The Office! You have made it to the place of paperwork and processes and paperwork and processes and a little bit of paperwork and few more processes. You have made it to the world of grievances and firing and counselings! Who is excited to complete their HR functions for their company today?! It’s true, HR sometimes gets a bad wrap. With our technicalities and complexities it can be pretty overwhelming. Let's simplify HR so that it is more easily understood, valued, and dare I say fun? I’ve worked in HR in a variety of different capacities and I’ve found that no matter the industry, HR can be broken down into four basic functions. HR can be broken down into 4 simple functions. 1. Build your team (Recruitment) 2. Value your team (Compensation and Benefits) 3. Develop your team (People Development) 4. Retain your team (Employee Relations) Build Our Team “Great vision without great people is irrelevant.” – Jim Collins, Good to Great What are the values of your organization? Imagine your ideal work place. What does your email inbox look like? What does the water cooler conversations look like? How are meetings run? Who is in this team? Have your standard? Good. Hire hard, lead easy. Be protective of who you allow inside of your family. In building a team, you are building a culture. Culture is a widely overused term so I simply define culture as the personality of the team. Culture happens no matter what. A company with a toxic manipulative backstabbing culture has a culture the same way a supportive, progressive, family-like culture has a culture. The difference is the intentionally with which a team, organization, and values are built. You have the ability to be intentional and impact the culture of your team and organization. The team you build will shape the culture of your workplace. Author and thinker, Pat Lencioni, outlines three key factors to look for in any potential hire. These factors are the qualities that I sought in my players as a coach and are used in the hiring methods of stellar organizations such as the Ramsey Solutions and The Table Group. Are they humble? Are they hungry? Are they smart? In other words: Are they trainable? Do they want to be trained? Are they capable of being trained? With this criteria, you can build a championship winning team in your HR role. Value Your Team Team value is often broken down into compensation and benefits. Determining the most fair and equitable pay can be challenging. I would recommend taking a look at three main factors: the industry, the organization, and the position. By assessing the market value you can place an accurate anchor on your wages which will help prevent undershooting wages to stiff your team or overshooting wages to stiff your budget for growth. There are encyclopedias worth of benefit options that you can provide to your team. Laundry service, full service cook, daycare, gym membership, on site masseuse, tuition reimbursement, casual Fridays, casual everyday, 401K, life insurance, health, dental, vision…the list goes on and on. With this daunting task of choosing what benefits to have it is important to first assess the need and use. Should you offer a stellar 401K? In high school and college I was the head lifeguard for a group of community pools, 98% of this organization's work force was under the age of 18. Did they really value a 401K? Not really. Did they want free passes for their friends to come to the pool. Oh yeah! Find what benefits works and then let your employees know! I was at a large organization that had a full time on site counselor to help their teams cope with high anxiety and stress. This was a wonderful service except few knew where the onsite counselor's office was located and many didn't know that a counseling service was offered. Ask what benefits are wanted and needed and then communicate the benefits offered. People Development When you are not growing you are dying -William Burroughs An NFL coach can recruit the best players, pay them well, and then let them show up every fall Sunday and play games. Their previous experience and education will allow them to perform adequately. But will they win the Superbowl? Probably not. It is senseless to recruit the best players and pay them well but cease investment and development. The coaching continues. The practice continues. The growth continues. Improvement and progress towards a championship. If you don't develop your team, they will not be ready come game time. This can come with a slew of options such a mentor programs, continuing education, cross training opportunities, and professional development participation. Richard Branson famously instructs us to "train people well enough that they can leave, treat them well enough that they don't want to." Train your team to exceed expectations and give them opportunities to grow. Keep Your Team Retention begins with culture. Retention ends with culture. HR has the opportunity to create a culture that is fun and engaging and awesome and feels like a healthy family. But families fight. Keeping your team can involve tough conversations. You have the responsibility to represent and speak up for your team. Those that have the ability to speak have the responsibility to speak. Sometimes this means helping team members be successful inside of the organization, sometimes this means inviting team members to be successful elsewhere. Document everything. If it is not written down then it didn't happen in many HR matters. Write every thing down to hold yourself and your organization accountable to the high standards agreed upon by the company. Accountability, fairness, guidance...these are all good things to protect the organizational family and culture. These crucial conversations are tough but necessary for the good of the employees, the team, and the organization. Why HR? Why Human Resources? Because if you can achieve your dreams all by yourself, then you are not dreaming big enough. Build a team to accomplish a big, hairy, audacious goals. Value the people in your team and then build them up to be better and exceed expectations. Train them well enough to leave and treat them well enough that they don't want to. HR is an exciting opportunity to have a profound impact on peoples life. The success of organizations begin here. HR might be a land of paperwork and crucial conversations but it also the place where you can be the superhero and the ninja. This is where you build your team, you value them, you develop them, and you keep a rock solid family.

What is the foundation of a high performing team? In this highly interactive workshop attendees will engage in quick thinking challenges and compete in childhood games as Amber Vanderburg shares stories of working with teams in India as the only female, America, Christian, and blonde Academy Football Coach. This workshop aims to equip attendees with simple strategies and programs to apply to any organizational culture initiative. OKHR Conference April 2018 Tulsa Hardrock Hotel and Casino

This autumn, America has been bustling with protests, politicians, and the glorious football season. This is the time of year with the leaves change, pumpkin is involved in every aspect of the ‘merican diet, and the anxiousness of Christmas begins to peak its head around the corner as Hobby Lobby has already marked ornaments and wreaths for sale. Meanwhile, in Bangalore, the weather is still a beautiful 75 degrees and we have many holidays before ‘ole Saint Nick comes down the chimney. We also have been bustling with protests, politicians, and glorious football. First, I shall address the protests conducted Indian style. I have had some forced rest as Bangalore experienced a spirited Bandh earlier this month. For my non-Indian readers, let me explain how a bandh works. When there is a disagreement, sometimes the entire city will shut down (“bandh” literally means “shut down”) as a form of protest. The streets go barren, the stores are closed, schools are locked, businesses don’t open. The bustling sounds of constants horns and people and animals and cars all stop. No one leaves the house. Everyone stays inside. In this Bandh specifically, there was basically a disagreement between my state of Karnataka and the neighboring state of Tamil Nadu in that there was a dispute about how much water Karnataka would need to release from the river that runs to Tamil Nadu after a dry monsoon season. In this Bandh, I was unprepared because the protest was impromptu and I did not have food in the house. Needless to say, after a forced fast we were very excited when the bandh was over. I’ve had some people ask me what happens if you break the bandh and open your business or carry on without acknowledging city protest. Guns are not a commonality in India and therefore forms of violence and crime is resolved through means like fire and stones. Yes, buses and rickshaws can be burned and businesses can be stoned (like bible times) if the bandh is broken. Naturally, I stayed inside for a couple days and simply read a book. In other news, football. At Gameday Arts, tournaments have been abounding and surrounding in recent weeks. We had our first tournament at one of our locations last weekend which was a success. Next weekend is a city wide sports day hosted by Adidas in which we will be managing football tournaments consisting of over 300 teams in seven different locations across the city. The event is called “Adidas Uprising” and hosts a number of sports for one day including running, tennis, basketball, etc. and we are very excited to be involved with this event. The week after that, our elite teams will be traveling to a city called Goa to compete with some of the best teams in the country and we wish them the best of luck in this exciting opportunity. Our Academy continues to grow as we added yet another new location to our repertoire with two (and possibly three) more teams to coach. This is our third international school location which I am convinced are the coolest types of educational facilities ever. One school resembles PCA from Zoey 101 and another one resembles Daddy Warbuck’s home from “Annie.” Though this may be only a slight improvement from the Tulsa Public Schools that I attended, I find myself sometimes reminded to pick up my jaw as I gaze around these beautiful grounds. In regards to Indian life, I’ve been learning quite a bit of Hindi and can have the beginnings of a conversation with people and count to ten and say I’m hungry (very important). My driver almost become my Mr. Miyagi when he teaches and perfects my rough Hindi vocabulary but this is a very fun part about becoming Indian. I rode on a motorbike through the city for the first time this month as well and felt like just then did I become a Bangalorean. Slightly terrifying but luckily the extreme traffic keeps it at a slow pace. I’ve also continued learning how to eat certain foods in India which I’ve determined as a never ending process. Just when I think I’ve mastered the food here, I’m given a plate some new food that I can neither pronounce nor eat, definitely keeps me on my toes! Concerning holidays and celebrations, Dasara is coming up and I might be heading over to a town called Mysore with a couple friends to see the streets and palace illuminate with lights, music, and celebration. I encourage you to look up this place as it appears breathtaking! The bigger holiday, Diwali, is coming up next month as well. Everyone is heading home to celebrate with their families and enjoy longstanding traditions. I will be trekking and swimming on the heavenly Andaman Islands while on a relaxing vacation. Thank you to everyone for your kind wishes and prayers in regards to my health as I am feeling much better and look forward to enjoying this trip with strength. I am very thankful for this past month and look forward to the exciting things to come. Prayers for safe travels in my upcoming ventures, continued opportunity for teaching and growing moments with my teams, and chances to build quality relationships with people are appreciated. As always, thank you all for your continued love and support, it really means a lot as the Lord leads me in this extraordinary journey. Until then, Boomer! Amber Vanderburg

I come from the state of Oklahoma. The place that is known for high pollen levels, ever-changing weather, and a near required flu shot. The land that cultivates a runny nose in even the most Ron Swanson of folk. As a native Okie, I have built a fairly strong immunity to most allergies and sinuses attacks. You can imagine my amazement that in this paradise weather, with palm trees and chai tea galore, that sickness has all but consumed this month. Fever, runny nose, cough, sore throat, and headaches have been all too common. But through the sneezes and coughs, I’ve been able to continue to see our football program grow. Our new location that started last month has about 75 consistent players and we plan to have over 100 in the upcoming weeks which is very exciting! In another location, I started coaching my first Indian girls team who are filled with spunk and are hilarious to be around. Our teams have learned many valuable life lessons this month as opportunity has provided many teaching moments about teamwork, sportsmanship, respect, perseverance, and leadership. Team fundamentals has been this month’s focus and it has really been great to see these learning moments shape the dynamic of our player interaction and team. This month was also full of Indian celebrations. We celebrated Indian Independence Day on the fifteenth with Indian flags and balloons and the works. Honestly, no one typically does much for Independence Day but I insisted on being obnoxiously patriotic with many decorations and food. I definitely celebrated independence American style. We also celebrated raksha bandhan, which is brother-sister day with many traditions. Ryesh, my Indian brother, was the person with who I celebrated. I read him a sibling poem, we fed each other Lindt chocolate, and I tied rakhi bands on his wrist. It was very special to be included in this tradition with my Indian brother. I’ve had the opportunity to join my new friends in everyday fun as well. We went to the movie theater which was an awesome experience. The movies are in a variety of languages, all complete with subtitles, all are edited/cut for family audiences which makes films like Suicide Squad an interesting watch, and all films have an intermission. We also have been to go see some bands which made me again realize the universality of music. I go to the gym everyday where they offer legit classes like Bolly Aerobics (Indian Zumba) and martial arts. Everyday my relationships and community are growing as I continue to become Indian. We got a new coach/roommate from London and I have been assigned as his tour guide since I am now basically Indian. I gave him an Amber Vanderburg Tour of Bangalore which was quite the success and brought me back to my AVTOT days. Oh, and yes this is the beginning of American football season and yes, I have figured out how to cheer on my Sooners from abroad. Sooner born, sooner bred… I am very thankful for this past month and look forward to the exciting things to come. Prayers for a complete health, continued opportunity for learning moments with my teams, and chances to build quality relationships with people are appreciated. As always, thank you all for your continued love and support, it really means a lot as the Lord leads me in this extraordinary journey. Until next time, boomer! Amber Vanderburg

Hello from India! It’s been almost a month since I decided to move to this beautiful country of India. Boy, what an adventure it has been! I am getting accustomed to the new soundtrack of car horns, construction, people, and animals. Slowly my mouth is getting numb to spice and I have become quite the pro at eating rice and dal with my hands. The traffic here is tremendous as I am in the car at least two hours a day, though sometimes it can be closer to four or five. The massive tree canopies that make up about 75% of every drive make this much more enjoyable. My biggest accomplishment everyday above all else is crossing the street. Seriously, it’s the most terrifying thrill of your life. The cars, bikes, motorbikes, rickshaws, buses, tractors, semi trucks, wagons, food carts, and cows that flood the road don’t stop for anything. I also have to remind myself to look right THEN left as the cars drive opposite of America. The fast pace energy and high tech industry in Bangalore reminds me of New York City, the consistent 75 degree climate and tropical scenery reminds me of Hawaii, and the hospitality and warmth of the people remind me of my dear Oklahoma. It really is the best of many worlds. I am working with a wide variety of people from all over the globe which makes for some interesting tales. Everyone speaks English but the dialect and diction are very different. A Frenchman, a northern Indian friend, and until recently a coach from Sweden lived in our little home. I live in a very nice place in the center of the city with my own room and bathroom and gorgeous window view. We have a cook, a maid, and a driver to which I am still getting accustomed. The maid looked very befuddled when I began to do my own laundry one day and the cook was confused and insisted that I not make my OWN omelette in the morning. The kids here are great, very eager to learn and coachable. I recently returned from Sweden with our elite group, one team from our Boys 11 and another from our Boys 13 age groups.  Gothenburg, Sweden hosted a youth World Cup called the Gothia Cup. This tournament is for boys and girls ages 11-18. Over 1,700 teams participate from over 80 countries.  There were nine teams representing India and our academy performed the best with our Boys 11 team making it to the quarterfinals. This was the first international competition for our academy and was a big success. I will be working with future tournaments like this moving forward including a tournament in November in Singapore. Currently, I am working with our grassroots academy in a couple new locations throughout Bangalore and will be building various programs and teams, we are looking to begin a girls soccer program in Bangalore which I am very excited about, and I will continue to travel with our other academy teams in both domestic and abroad tournaments. God has really opened up some great doors for this organization and myself allowing for opportunities to build relationships and friendships with so many different people here. I am very thankful for this past month and look forward to the exciting things to come. Thank you all for your continued love and support, I will continue to keep you updated as the Lord leads me in this extraordinary journey. Until next time, boomer! Amber Vanderburg #Bangalore #India #Soccer #Travel