Pilot: Who, Why, How, When, Where

Hi, my name is John Russell, and this is the first video of my channel, John Russell Coaching. I have contemplated over the years on whether or not to start a channel, or to invest in social media at all. One part of me said it seemed so silly not to give it a shot if there was some chance of success, another part said that whatever I have to say won’t have value to other people. I have had a lot of experiences in recent years that have forced me to grow in many ways, including the reasoning I have for establishing this channel.So why am I doing this? There are a few different reasons. Learning from my father was always very important to me. I had a truly exceptional father, he was my scoutmaster, my best friend, and mentor. In 2017 he began having symptoms that would eventually lead to his diagnosis in 2020 of ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. At first it affected his feet, then his legs, his arms, and ultimately his ability to breathe. A choice he faced was whether or not to get a tracheotomy, assisted breathing, and a feeding tube to prolong his life. Had he chosen this route he could have had a simulated voice he could control, and technology has become so advanced that he would be able to record his voice so that this simulated voice would sound just like him. I thought, as a hopeless romantic, what a great idea it would be to have my dad record himself reading his letters to my mom from when he served in the United States Navy. He did not record himself reading those letters, he did not elect to have the tracheotomy, and he passed away from respiratory failure in 2023, three months following my wedding that he was thankfully able to make it to…. I have so many memories with my father, pictures, videos, and lessons that will keep him alive for me forever, but I thought how much more powerful could it be for my children to have a catalogue of my perspectives from age 30 onward, see how they change, learn from whatever growth I experience in the meantime, and if nothing else have something to connect with in the event of my passing. I have no children yet, but my first reason for starting this is for posterities sake.Some things I feel like are lacking in the world today are authenticity, vulnerability, and openness. I have truly been inspired by Theo Vonns podcast, where he brings so much compassion and vulnerability into his conversations. I personally have always been very open, sometimes to a fault. I have always felt in ways that I had no filter, that serious life experiences were casual enough to bring up in daily dialogue. This required lots of learning, adapting, and honing what I believe now is a skill, despite being very self-conscious about it in my adolescence and early adult life. The truth has also always been important to me, I never saw much point in lying, and part of this came from a book we read in my sophomore year in high school, The Kite Runner. An idea presented in the kite runner was that stealing was the worst sin, as it was wrapped up in all other sins; if you kill, you steal someone’s right to life, and if you lie, you steal their right to the truth. In my head, if we don’t represent ourselves authentically, we have no way of building real connections, to see where our paths might be similar and to empathize, or for people to act in a way towards us that speaks to our true experience and needs. My second reason is that I want to be an example of these qualities in hopes that it catches on, and to hold myself accountable to my own values.I mentioned earlier that part of me has always said that what I have to say isn’t valuable for people to hear. Part of this is probably the result of being a youngest child, always trying to get validation, and often being overlooked. Another part of this is true in many ways; that we can’t honestly say, with the information available at our fingertips, that we have any original thoughts. Everything I say, do, or think has been influenced by everything around me, every piece of literature or music that I absorb, so if I thought I had a unique thought or idea, I was SURE that it had been thought or done already. What I’m starting to realize is that these specific experiences, passions, interests, and whatever makes me me, are the specific reasons why I can bring value… not that I’m wholly original, nobody could possibly be, but that there is originality in being yourself. If we don’t lean into ourselves and our values, our fate or passions, then we could very realistically be taking away something positive from the world. My third reason, therefore, is that even if what I have to say only reaches one person, then all the work in sharing my story will have been worth it.

My final reason for starting this channel is that I am currently on my journey to become a certified life coach through Jay Shetty’s life coaching certification school. My focus or niche will be working with people on personal development, clarity, and confidence. I am working on developing my practice and to gain clients, so if you, or anyone you know might be interested in life coaching, please see the link to my website, johnrussellcoaching.com, in my bio or description to book a discovery session and learn more! And don’t forget to like, comment, subscribe, and share with someone you feel you could start a conversation with about this!