Getting Into It

Hey Ladies and Gentleman,

Thanks for joining me for another week at Graceland Ontario where we talk about the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll and learn the lessons he presented during his life that can help you in yours. Today, we’re making note of ‘getting into it’.

“Getting into what?” you may say… Good question.

‘Getting into it’ is when you put all the passion you can muster behind what you’re doing, when you savoir the very action of your job − when you find the joy in your work.

Really, you can get into anything whether that be a book, a project, or chemistry homework. But whatever it is, there can’t be any half measures − when you ‘get into it’, there’s no turning back.

That’s still a little confusing… To illustrate, let’s turn to my idol, Elvis Presley. Elvis sang a lot of fast songs when he was young. The crowds that flocked to him in the 50’s wanted to hear the fast rockabilly beats he and the Blue Moon Boys were pumping out of Sun Studios and RCA. Elvis would put all his energy into performances. Looking at clips from the Milton Berle Show are evidence of this. He would dance, and twist and jive to the music. He would ‘get in to it’. And people loved the music even more because of that.

But the years went by… Now Elvis is in the International Hotel in Las Vegas. He’s singing a country song called “Just Pretend”. It’s a slow ballad and there isn’t much opportunity for Elvis to swivel his hips. But he ‘gets into it’ all the same. He doesn’t walk around, but he sways to the music, heaving with emphasis at the dramatic parts. And guess what, the Casino audience is silent. Even with the slow song, the energy is still there. Elvis is still ‘getting into it’ and, by doing so, people love the slow song as much as the faster ones.

So, what does this mean for you?

Imagine you do a project for work. You go up and the rest of your company’s looking at you like you have three heads. You feel a little weak at the knees but you know you’re not getting out of this. So, you’ve got a choice: do you slide through it as quickly as possibly without enjoying it, not making the subject dance with your audience, or do you ‘get into it’ and give the presentation your all?

Well, given the Elvis pattern, ‘get into it’. Because as soon as you ‘get into it’ and start enjoying what you’re doing, others will notice it. And even if your presentation is a slow song, like “Just Pretend”, and there isn’t much room for you to swivel your hips, you can still give it your all. And like Elvis, people will see the excitement of what you’re saying and agree with you, probably subconsciously, the presentation will go like a dream and you’ll sell your idea with ease.

Elvis’s Lessons:

When you have a job to do, ‘get into it’; that is, do it with all the passion you can muster. By ‘getting into it’ people will enjoy what you’re doing more because you enjoy it. This may even happen subconsciously to your audience. And when your audience enjoys what you’re saying or doing, they’re more likely to support you, buy from you, over-all be awesome to you… Getting into it’s worth it for so many reasons.

P.S. If you’re interested in seeing Elvis ‘getting into it’ with “Just Pretend” at the International from Elvis: That’s the Way it Is, here’s a Youtube clip of the performance I talked about.

P.P.S. Remember to comment below or send me an email at alexghilson@gmail.com to add your input to this article.