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BE PART OF THE LEGACY

TAMPA BAY • FEBRUARY 23-24 2026

This FINAL encore experience will be unlike any other. Because like everything we do, it's been "reimagined" from beginning to end. It's not a virtual or hybrid event. It's not a conference. It's not a seminar, a workshop, a meeting, or a symposium. And it's not your typical run-of-the-mill everyday event crammed with stages, keynote speeches, team-building exercises, PowerPoint presentations, and all the other conventional humdrum. Because it's up close & personal by design. Where conversation trumps presentation. And where authentic connection runs deep.

Hidden Talents

It’s easy to admire the gifts in others while negating our own.

Now, more than ever before in the history of mankind is it easier to meet new people. Whether it is someone in our city we find on social media or reaching essentially halfway across the globe, technology has made it virtually a snap to discover new people on a daily basis. Once in a while, we even get to interact with notable people which a few short years ago we’d never dreamed possible.

It’s exciting to hear someone on the radio or watch them on the television only to have an opportunity to interact with them through one of the many online platforms. A person you’ve considered to have reached a level of success is now taking his or her own time to communicate with you can be a thrill for many.

Talented people lurk all around us. These may be people at work whose ambition or abilities we admire and wish we could duplicate. Perhaps there’s a particular skill you’ve been struggling to acquire and someone else picks it up as if it were second nature to them. If only certain things were easier for us to accomplish life would be a bit more pleasant.

I believe this is a common mindset for many and it’s understandable why. All of us do have individual skills we are born with. Many of those are connected to what it is we like or enjoy. However, because they’ve been part of us for so long, we tend to take them for granted and since we may feel there is nothing exceptional about us, those skills must not take extraordinary talent to achieve.

“If I can do it and I’m just a regular guy well then anybody should be able to do it”. This was a common theme for most of my life because my default thinking was to sell myself short. Believing I was something special would lead to false pride and arrogance so anything I did was rarely more than average.

The key to embracing our own talents is understanding the difference between pride and arrogance. We can be proud of ourselves without being self-important. There are many times we are proud of friends, our children, or our parents. That kind of pride is not conceited so why can’t we have that same pride in ourselves?

Conceit or haughtiness is when we place ourselves above everything else. This kind of egotism is what leads to strife and division. Self-confidence is crucial in many daily activities allowing us to reach many goals or successes.

When we do recognize our individual gifts, it behooves us now to be grateful and always remain thankful for them. Realize these gifts were given to you; not to exploit them and take advantage of others but to make the world a better place for your having been here.

This planet will be here long after we are gone and our abilities will either add to its betterment or promote its decline. It’s your choice.

John Dunia
John Duniahttp://shamedoctor.com/
John has a passion; and that is helping others heal from past difficulties and abuses. Healing became important when he realized how much it freed him from his own past and now works to help others experience that liberation. The key to his success was discovering that the most debilitating damage was his own shame and the destructive things he believed about who he was. Throughout his own healing journey, he became hyper-aware of how shame was affecting him while having little clue of its presence. Others noticed these changes and reached out to him for help. His methods were so effective that he made it a mission to shift his career into helping others. Adopting the term “ShameDoctor”, he continues to teach others to empower themselves through his remarkably effective techniques. “Shame is one of the biggest yet least talked about issues we face as individuals and society yet so very little is mentioned about it.” It is his purpose to change the way the world perceives shame and promote helpful and viable techniques to heal and overcome those past struggles. John’s book, “Shame On Me – Healing a Life of Shame-Based thinking” was self-published in 2016. In addition to working with clients, John also writes healing and insightful articles each week. He is also looking forward to speaking on the topics of shame and healing throughout the globe.

DO YOU HAVE THE "WRITE" STUFF? If you’re ready to share your wisdom of experience, we’re ready to share it with our massive global audience – by giving you the opportunity to become a published Contributor on our award-winning Site with (your own byline). And who knows? – it may be your first step in discovering your “hidden Hemmingway”. LEARN MORE HERE


2 CONVERSATIONS

  1. You know that this piece sings to me, right, John? Yes, we all have talents, we all can acquire skills, we’re all smart! But we’re also all different!

    Even though I grew up in a better situation than you did, I also often felt “less than” because many times I found something hard to do, even though others seemed to find it easy! And unfortunately, my mother — who did want me to have a good life — frequently used these words: Why can’t you be more like (fill in another girl’s name here)? My skill sets, such as they were, didn’t always fit her idea of what a girl should do/be like/have in those long-ago days of the 1950s and ’60s.

    Thank goodness most of us grew up and realized the truth: we’re all different! And that’s fine and wonderful.

    Keep singing this song, John — you know you’re reaching a lot of others with your words and ideas.

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