My Top 5 Takeaways From The EDGE|X Conference

If we are lucky, there are a handful of times in our lives in which we experience life-altering moments. Some of these events we realize in the moment and others we don't fully grasp the importance of until years down the road.

If I were to list off life-defining moments for me, it would include moments such as: a sermon I heard in the earthquake-ravaged Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, the day I proposed to my now-wife, my first sermon (in front of 3,000 people!), the university I chose for my undergraduate studies, and my first trip to the beautiful subcontinent of India. 

And I can't help but think that this last Friday will end up being added to my list of important life moments. Why? Because I joined over a thousand other leaders for the EDGE|X Conference here in my hometown of Indianapolis. 

EDGE|X Conference is a half-day conference hosted by EDGE Mentoring as an event to invest in leaders - young and not-so-young. From the phenomenal Blueberry Cake Donuts (which were the best 19 donuts I've had in a while...) to the complimentary coffee, this four hour event was jammed-full of networking opportunities and a phenomenal line up of speakers. 

It truly was a transformational day for me in my development as an emerging leader (my term for us millenials). And I absolutely loved the speakers that EDGE Mentoring brought in for the event. 

If you weren't able to join for the EDGE|X Conference this year, here are my top 5 takeaways from the event. Hopefully they can help challenge and grow you as well!

Here are 5 of the lessons I learned from our speakers at the EDGE|X Conference:

1. Bob Goff: This guy is absolutely crazy in all of the best ways. He shared about his time in Iraq, the Pacific Northwest, and Africa as well as the death-defying adventures he has skipped through in the process. His big point was that following Jesus is all about being WITH people. It's not about accomplishments or fame, but about presence. He stated it succinctly when he said: "If following Jesus doesn't take you to the lonely, isolated, and hurting, you're not following Jesus. You're trying to be popular." 
2. Jessica Honegger: Jessica was brimming with enthusiasm for her company and her relationship with Jesus. And her company, Noonday Collection, provides her with the perfect intersection between her love for Jesus and her love for "the least of these." She shared about the big risks that she took in developing a phenomenally successful and impact-full company and challenged us with this quote: "We're too afraid to dream because we're more afraid to fail." 
3. Greg McKeown:  The author of the wildly-successful book Essentialism, Greg shared about the necessity of focusing on the few important (i.e. essential) things in our lives. While there are an endless number of things we could do, it's important to determine what must be done. A thought of his which I've been wrestling with all week is: "It shakes me all the things Jesus did not do."
4. Mark Batterson: Mark is the Lead Pastor at National Community Church in Washington, D.C. and a well-known author on the importance of prayer and bold living in the lives of Christ-followers. He shared about living bold lives even at the risk of looking foolish and challenged the audience at the EDGE|X Conference with this: "What would you do even if you knew you would fail, because you couldn't live having not done it?"
5. Dave Neff: In his opening remarks for the conference Dave (the Presidence and CEO of EDGE Mentoring) shared about the vision and goals for the day.  He talked about how the topics which were going to be discussed could end up shaping us into better leaders and better Christ-followers. He stated: "An edge is only created through friction." And I believe that is what happened at the conference. We were presented friction-causing topics which sharpened all of us in attendance that morning.

EDGE Mentoring is a top-notch, professional mentoring program focused on grouping together leaders in their 20's and 30's with professional mentors a little bit further down the journey of life. And their EDGE|X Conference was simply an over-flow of their mission to equip and unleash young leaders. 

And, in case you are wondering, this is not a compensated endorsement of EDGE Mentoring and their conference (though I did enjoy the free donuts at the event). I am a EDGE mentee who simply loved my experience at the EDGE|X Conference. 

I hope these 5 takeaways help challenge you as well. And make sure to research any of the speakers you are unfamiliar with, they are all great people who are changing the world through their own areas of passion and focus!

Are you familiar with any of the speakers above? How have they impacted your life through their work, speaking, and writings? Comment below and share with me and others!